Today we were honored to host the 4th Annual Tribute to Veterans at Mountain Home.
For the 2nd year, the American Legion Honor Guard – Ider Team participated in this year’s event with the story of the POW, Flag Folding (with narration of each fold), Rifles, and Taps. Coupled with our small tokens of thanks and recognition for the Veterans in attendance, remembrance of the 100 known Veterans buried at Mountain Home, poignant and timely remarks from U.S. Marine Corp Col. Mark A. King, (Ret), Dennis Hall (Marine Corp Veteran) and Rex Beaty, and a moving rendition of the National Anthem by Kelbi Watkins & Alexa Brown.
This year we engaged several members of the community, most being a family member of a Veteran buried at Mountain Home and read the names of those buried here. Through this we all gained small glimpses of these Veterans, to whom we owe great thanks for their service.
There are 100 Veterans buried at Mountain Home
1 in the U.S. Indian Wars
4 served in 2 foreign theater campaigns: WWII & Korea
1 in 3 foreign campaigns: Army-WWII & Korea, & Navy-Vietnam
10 in the Civil War
10 in WWI (1 died in base hospital in France)
39 in WWII (1 POW/KIA)
17 in Korea
7 in Vietnam
11 Peacetime and Other Service
The oldest marked grave is January 6, 1864, marking the grave of James Craze, Sargent, Company C, 1st Alabama & Tennessee Vidette Cavalry, Civil War.
The youngest and oldest Veterans buried here are:
> Joseph Floyd Crow, U.S. Air Force, Age 19
> Lee Dolphus Kerby, Sr., US Army, Age 92
The following list in alphabetical order the 10 Veterans buried at Mountain Home (that we know at this point).
Henry Lee Vester Adams PFC U.S. Army, World War II
Calvin Keith Arnold U.S. Navy, Vietnam
Elder Selba Khomer Beaty Sr. CW3 U.S. Navy, World War II & Korea, U.S. Army, Vietnam
A. D. “Dick” Blevins (Abner Denson, Jr.) SGT U.S. Army, World War II
Leonard W. Blevins A1C U.S. Air Force, Other Service
Marshall T.J. Blevins TEC 5 U.S. Army, World War II
John Lee Bray U.S. Navy, World War II, Korea
Tom Carson U.S. Navy, World War II, Korea
Garry L. Collins BM1 U.S. Navy, Vietnam
John B. Chambers, Sr. SGT U.S. Army, World War II
Arthur Ilo Crabtree PVT 35 Co 162 Depot Brig. U.S. Army, World War I
Calvin Coolidge Crabtree CSR3 U.S. Naval Reserve, World War II
D. Reuben Crabtree 87th Infantry Division, U.S. Army, World War I
George W. (Washington) Crabtree Ala PVT 6th U. S. Inf. U.S. Army, Other Service
Kenneth D. Crabtree PFC U.S. Army, Korea
Marvin E. Crabtree U.S. Army, World War II
Warren Crabtree Co C 1st Ala & Tenn. Vidette Cavalry, Civil War
Willard E Crabtree U.S. Army, 187 Airborne Infantry, Regimental Combat Team, Korea
Daniel R. (Dan’l) Craze Co. C. 1st Ala & Tenn. Vidette Cavalry, Civil War
James Craze SERG Co. C 1st Ala & Tenn. Vidette Cavalry, Civil War
Joseph Floyd Crow CPL U.S. Airforce, Korea
John F. Downer SGT U.S. Army, Korea
Larry Neal Drake SP4 U.S. Army, Vietnam
Anthony Buley Durham, Jr. U.S. Army, Korea
James Clifford Durham Private U.S. Army, Korea
Jesse M. Durham (died in France) PVT Co F 305th Inf. 77th Div. A.E.F. U.S. Army, World War I
Nick Springs Durham PVT NOV Auto Repl. Draft U. S. Army, World War I
Walter Verlon Ellis PFC U. S. Army, World War II
Jesse P. Eargle U. S. Marine Corps, Korea
Moses M. Findley Co B 1st Ala & Tenn. Vidette Cavalry, Civil War
Orlando Greeley Flynn U.S. Navy, Korea
Gordon W. Frady PFC CO. B 321 MG BW 82 Div. U.S. Army, World War I
William Colon Gifford SFC U.S. Army, World War II, Korea
Frankie Gardner Gilbert PFC U.S. Army, Vietnam
Howard E. Gothard CPL U.S. Army, World War II
Clinton Marlin Graves U.S. Army, Other Service (Served in Germany)
Ralph Thomas Guinn PFC U.S. Army, World War II
Clifford O. Hamm U.S. Army, World War II
Elbert Olen Haney SGT U.S. Army, Korea
Raymond L. Haney SC1 U.S. Navy, Korea
Robert Dexter “Rabbit” Haney U.S. Airforce, Other Service
William C. “W.C.” Haney U.S. Army, Korea
Nelson Douglas Hardeman S1 U.S. Navy, World War II
Floyd Ray “Harpo” Harper U.S. Army, Korea
James P. Hayward PVT Co. C. 67th Infantry NY Inf., Civil War
Henry Grady Hicks U.S. Navy, WWI Navy, World War II
William Russell Hicks U.S. Army, Korea
Reuben Jacob “RJ” Hookey A1C U.S. Air Force, Korea
Leon Howington PFC U.S. Army, Vietnam
Wendell Wayne Hubbard PVT U.S. Army, Korea
James P. Jarrell PFC HO Btry 20 FA BN, U.S. Army, World War II
Adolphus Edward Johnson S2 U.S. Navy, World War II
William R. King, Sr. S2 U.S. Navy, World War II
Lee Brown Keith SGT U. S. Army, World War II
Sherman A. Keith Pvt 331 Inf.83rd Div. U.S. Army, World War I
U. D. Keith S2 U.S. Navy, World War II
Lee Dolphus Kerby, Sr. U.S. Army, World War II
Tom N. Kerby SGT U.S. Army, World War II
L. Z. Lea U.S. Army, World War II
Walter Lea, Sr. CO C. 1st Ala & Tenn. Vidette Cavalry, Civil War
Virgil Lee, PFC U.S. Army, World War II
Walter M. Lee Ala TEC 4, 11 Tank BN U.S. Army, World War II
J. H. (Josiah H.) Lusk, Jr. Co. G 1st Ala & Tenn. Vidette Cavalry, Civil War
Robert Durham “Bobby” McCurdy U.S. Marine Corps, Other Service
Roland Eugene Mitchell U.S. Army – Air Force, World War II
Billy Ray Nix U.S. Army National Guard, Other Service
Matthew B. Ott, Jr. SGT U.S. Marine Corps, World War II
Gary Wayne Overby Army National Guard, Other Service
Robert V. (Vester) Parham PFC U.S. Army, World War I
Verlon Dennis Parham, PFC U.S. Army, World War II
Julius L. Partido U.S. Army, World War II, Korea
Roy Connard Payne CPL U. S. Army, World War II
Berlin C. Prestwood, A3C U.S. Air Force, Korea
Roy Pence U.S. Army, World War II
Norman Francis Prestwood, Jr. PVT U.S. Army, Korea
William W. Ragsdale Ala PFC Base Hospital U.S. Army, World War I
Melvin R. Ray SGT U.S. Army, Other Service
Paul J. Rector (POW, died in Philippines) PVT 803 Engineer Battalion, Aviation U.S. Army, World War II
Benjimin D. Sims SP4 U.S. Army, Vietnam
George B. Sims PFC U.S. Army, World War II
John W. Sizemore PVT HQ Battalion Co E 5th Infantry ‘Red Diamond’ Insignia U.S. Army, World War I
Clyde G. Smith Tec 5 U. S. Army, World War II
Garth D. Smith S2 U. S. Navy, World War II
John N. Smith Corporal CO. B. 49 Ala Infantry CSA, Civil War
Leonard Smith Merchant Marines with the U.S. Coast Guard, World War II
Melvin Smith S. SGT U. S. Army, World War II
Tony. O. Smith SFC U.S. Army, Vietnam
Wheeler Max Smith PFC U.S. Army, World War II
Whiteson Smith Co. C. 8th Tenn. Infantry, Civil War
Earl Stephens U.S. Army, World War II
John M. Tatum, PFC U.S. Army, Other Service
Arnel H. Thomas U.S. Army, World War II
Earl N. Thomas U.S. Army, Vietnam
John M. Thomas CO. K, 10 Tenn. Cavalry, Civil War
Charles Columbus “Charlie” Tucker, Jr. 11th Airborne, U.S. Army, World War II
James W. Tucker TEC5 U.S. Army, World War II
Larry Douglas Tucker U.S. Air Force, Other Service
Henry C. Tuggle PVT, U.S. Army Indian Wars Cooks Co., 2 (Turk’s) Georgia Militia
Grant C. Turner U.S. Army, World War II
Arthur Olen Whited PFC U.S. Army, World War II