The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 is marks the end of major hostilities of World War One. The following year, President Woodrow Wilson declared November 11th Armistice Day, now known as Veteran's Day. One of the most decorated U.S. Soldiers during The Great War was Tennessee native Sergeant Alvin York, who received a medal of honor for fearlessly charging a German machine gun nest in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Matt Markgraf speaks with The Discovery Park of America Marketing Director Mary Nita Bondurant, Historian Martin Kane and Assistant Education Director Chris Gunlefinger the special exhibit titled "In the Footsteps of Sergeant York" on display through January 3rd.
Alvin York is one of the most celebrated American heroes of WWI. He came from Pall Mall, a small town in eastern Tennessee. Despite his moral convictions as a pacifist, York was convinced that the war was just. While fighting in France, he more or less single-handedly captured 132 German prisoners, saving his unit.
After the war, York returned to Tennessee and worked to increase education in his remote part of the state, using his fame to fundraiser and open schools in the area, including the Alvin C. York Institute, which is still in operation today.
The exhibit at Discovery Park of America comes from the Museum of the American Military Experience. Visitors will go through a trench recreated inside the building. The trench includes artifacts from the era including weaponry and uniforms. Not all of York's unit made it back home and at the time battlefield burials were held where the grave would be marked so that later the body could be disinterred and buried properly with honors back home. Several years ago, bodies from York's unit were found and archaeological records were discovered to match historical records, showing precicely where the men stood. So this exhibit has items from some of the battlefield burial sites of York's unit: knives, forks, helmets, mess kits, canteens. -- For Veteran's Day, there is free admission to the Discovery Park of America for anyone with a military id. The exhibit otherwise has no additional cost and can be seen with general admission to the exhibit through January 3. Education resources for teachers or anyone interested in learning more can be found at the Discovery Park of America's education section. http://www.discoveryparkofamerica.com/teacher-resources -- The next traveling exhibit is Bodies Revealed, opening late January through April. In this exhibit, human bodies have been preserved in a type of plastic where one can see organs, the circulatory system, muscular systems and skeletal system. -- Discovery Park of America is located at 830 Everett Blvd in Union City, Tennessee. The park is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays.
