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Forgotten war heroes honored in Canfield
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RECALLING THEIR LIVES: Capt. David Frank, a member of the 19th Ohio Company B regiment, talks about the lives of the deceased soldiers.
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SALUTE: War re-enactors honor the fallen of three wars at a ceremony Sunday at Canfield Cemetery.
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A SOLDIER’S TALE: Area historian Steffan Jones narrates the life of one of the soldiers.
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RECALLING THEIR LIVES: Capt. David Frank, a member of the 19th Ohio Company B regiment, talks about the lives of the deceased soldiers.
Mahoning Valley residents who served in wars throughout this country’s history came from varying backgrounds and walks of life, yet little is known about many.
A large number of local military personnel have been dead for decades and have no remaining family or friends, both of which makes it easy for them to slip into obscurity.
Nevertheless, that should not diminish the importance of their contributions — or being remembered for their valor and sacrifices.
That was a main theme espoused during Sunday’s 11th annual “Forgotten Heroes” program at the Canfield Cemetery on U.S. Route 224. Special honor also was given to two local Civil War re-enactors who died this year.
Area historians and war re-enactors narrated the lives of four Canfield natives buried at the cemetery during the hourlong program, which also paid homage to their achievements on and off the battlefield.
The four are James M. Nash and James M. Park, both Civil War veterans; Harry S. Manchester, who served during World War I; and Kenneth H. Evans, who fought in WWII.
“They’re more than a name on a headstone. They were human beings with families” who made the ultimate sacrifice serving their country, said Capt. David Frank, a member of the 19th Ohio Company B regimen.
Narrating Park’s life was local historian Steffan Jones, who noted that Park enlisted Aug. 11, 1862, with the 105th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was captured twice but escaped the second time, Jones said.
After the war, Park, who was born near Dublin, Ireland, and came to the area as a child, returned to the Canfield farm where he had spent many years, Jones told his audience of a few dozen.
When Park died in 1940 in Salem Clinic Hospital at age 98, he was thought to have been the oldest man in Mahoning County, according to his obituary.
Frank outlined the life of Nash, who moved to Canfield from Cleveland after having been an apprentice and reporter for The Plain Dealer. He was sent to Canfield as a reporter and went on to help found the Youngstown Tribune, which became the Youngstown Telegram, Frank noted.
“He [also] was heavily into politics and an ardent Republican in this area,” Frank said, adding that Nash also studied law.
In between, he continued, Nash worked his way up the ranks with the 19th Ohio Company B regimen. Even though he didn’t win any major battles, Nash should be remembered as someone who “stood up and did his duty,” Frank added.
This was the first year Manchester was honored, noted Ron Novak, a Civil War re-enactor with the 105th OVI.
Manchester was one of a handful of Americans trained as a pilot in the Italian Air Force, Novak explained, adding that Manchester became a test pilot in France during WWI before being discharged as an Air Force lieutenant.
After leaving the service, Manchester helped run his father’s Canfield hardware store, served as town solicitor from 1926 to 1930 and was a justice of the peace. For many years, he also was part of an area law firm, from which he retired as a senior partner, Novak noted.
Evans, a South High School graduate, was a radar technician with the Army Air Corps, noted Shane Williams, a WWII re-enactor.
Evans’ other accomplishments included teaching at Fitch High School in Austintown from 1932 to 1944 and later at Warren Junior High School, being a musician with the Youngstown Symphony Orchestra, and a member of the Northeast Ohio Teachers Association, Williams explained.
Honorable mention was given to Bob Smith and Howard Coler, both of whom were local war re-enactors who died this year.
In 1962, Smith, who died last July, attended an event recognizing the 100th anniversary of the Civil War, and was extremely knowledgeable about its history.
Coler graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School, served in the Navy and worked part time as a reserve with the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Department, noted Ron Johnson, an Austintown Middle School history teacher.
Ten members of various honor guards fired their rifles after each narration was presented. The ceremony also featured the playing of taps.