"A World Apart" - World War II Memorial - Savannah, Georgia

While exploring Savannah back in April, we came to this World War II Memorial.  It is located on River Street. This tribute to Chatham County Veterans of World War II was erected on November 7th, 2010 after nearly a decade of planning and work by the Veterans Council of Chatham County, citizens of Savannah and Chatham County as well as other organizations. The area around the globe is surrounded by over 2000 engraved bricks which could be bought for $100. 

The architect who designed the memorial is Eric Meyerhoff. The globe was constructed by Ken Brandell of Brandell Studios in Key Largo, Florida. The monument site was chosen due to the significance of the Savannah's role during World War II. The Savannah shipyard built the "Liberty ships" as well as being one of the ports that made sure our troops received their supplies.

It is a large globe, made of bronze and copper. It is split in half as representation of the war fought in European and Pacific thearters. The globe itself sits on Georgia granite and is twenty feet high. On the inside of the globe, where you can walk through, there are eight inscribed panels on either side of the globe with the names of the 527 Chatham County citizens who lost their life in World War II. On either side of the opening there are purple heart medals and the inscription below that is on either side of the globe. 

Beginning tomorrow, I will begin publishing my pictures of the inscribed panels two at a time with the names of those on the panels. It is also the beginning of my involvement in the Honor Roll Project which was started by Heather Wilkinson Rojo, see her blog piece at http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/p/honor-roll-project.html. The Honor Roll Project is an effort to transcribe and photograph military honor rolls. By transcribing the names of the service members, it will be easier for researchers and family members will be able to find them on the internet. I find that while this is a simple thing to do and in doing this project I feel that it will not only be rewarding but helpful to others.

Sources:

Nancy Gould, "Savannah Welcomes World War II Memorial", (http://www.army.mil/article/47988/savannah-welcomes-world-war-ii-memorial/ : accessed 22 April 2015)

Savannah's World War II Monument-Commemorating the Veterans of Chatham County, Historic Savannah Parks, (http://www.historicsavannahparks.com/parks/world-war-II-monument.html : 22 April 2015)