Down to the sea

Barbara Dyer: Honoring our veterans every day

Mon, 11/24/2014 - 12:15pm

In Camden we honor our veterans, not just in November, but every day, with permanent memorials and honor rolls.

Begin with the Revolutionary War, or American Revolution, fought by Great Britain and her colonies in North America from 1777-1783. There is a sign on “Power House Hill” or Route 1 in Clam Cove (Glen Cove) and part of Camden at that time.  There was a fort and barracks to protect the coastal people from the British, after they took Castine.
 
The Civil War Soldiers’ Monument stands now in Harbor Park.  That was the conflict that split the United States from 1861 to 1865. Many Maine men left the farms for the first time to fight a cruel battle.  Finally General Lee surrendered to Gen. Grant at Appomattox, Virginia.
 
There is a boulder in Harbor Park honoring the Camden veterans who were in the Spanish American war between Spain and the United States in 1898.  Spain ceded Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippine Islands to the United States.

“Remember the Maine, to hell with Spain” was the battle cry.
 
The Conway Boulder at the Elm Street School was hauled from the top of Chestnut Street by many teams, to be placed there honoring William Conway, who would not take down the American flag and replace it with a Confederate one, when ordered by his commanding officer. There was a big parade in 1906 when the boulder was placed there.
 
The tower on Mount Battie was put there in honor of World War I veterans. It was designed by Parker Morse Hooper and dedicated Aug. 20, 1921.  World War I was the “Great One” fought from 1914 to 1918 with Great Britain, France Belgium, Italy and Japan and the United States defeating Germany, Austria, Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria.
 
The granite Honor Roll in the Village Green, dedicated on May 28, 2007, has names of World War II 1939-1945 (“the war to end all wars”), Vietnam, (“the unpopular war”) Gulf War, Afghanistan and all that have followed recently. The honor roll lists all the men who left from Camden for the service. It was place there in
 
We honor and thank all our veterans every day.
 

Barbara F. Dyer has lived in Camden all her life, so far.