Exhibit Reveals Details of Knox "Gold Star" Veterans

"It is not enough to record their military service," stated Knox College President Carter Davidson, as he announced in 1945 that Knox's planned new gymnasium—Memorial Gymnasium—would be named in honor of more than 60 Knox College alumni who died serving in the U.S. military during World War II. 

Now, a team of researchers that includes Knox College students, staff, and alumni is drawing fuller pictures of the lives of all 99 members of the Knox community—98 alumni and one faculty member—who died in U.S. military service during the wars of the 20th century.

The free, public exhibit, "99 Lives: The Knox College Gold Star Memorial Project," is on display May 28 through July 9, in the Ford Center for the Fine Arts, on the Knox campus in Galesburg.

At the May 28 opening ceremony, held during the Memorial Day weekend, Knox College Library Director Jeffrey Douglas reminded visitors of Knox's commitment to honor veterans, voiced by Knox President Carter Davidson, even before Memorial Gymnasium was completed in 1951.

"After 67 years it might be easy to overlook the meaning of the 'Memorial Gymnasium' name on the side of the building, but a memorial it is," Douglas said. "A display in the lobby of the gym featured the names and photographs of those who had died in both wars; the display was updated following the wars in Korea and Vietnam."

Douglas said the 99 veterans' biographies, from World War 1 through Vietnam—including photos, hometowns and varying levels of details about student activities—reveal strong links to the Knox of today.

"These past generations of Knox students look to me a lot like the current generation of Knox students," Douglas said. "They were singers, baseball players, writers, leaders in student government; some aspired to careers in medicine, some planned to teach; some came to Knox from small communities nearby, some came from cities far away."

The project began several years ago, starting with research by Jamie Bjorkman of Galesburg, a 1957 Knox graduate who wanted to track down the burial places of Knox soldiers who died in World War II.

A history major at Knox, Bjorkman traveled extensively in search of veterans' gravesites. "I've learned a lot from this project," he said. "It started with curiosity. I wanted to know where they were from, some background on them. You'll learn a lot from the memorials. There's a lot on those granite markers that has escaped the paper record."

As Bjorkman worked in the Knox College Archives, staff put him in touch with students who were doing their own projects on Knox alumni in World War I—Ben Hosto, who graduated from Knox this year, and Sarah Pawlicki, who graduated in 2017.

Bjorkman collaborated with the students, along with staff from the Special Collections and Archives in Knox's Seymour Library. 

"Originally I was creating short biographies of the Knox men who gave their lives in the First World War," Hosto said at the opening ceremony. "Since then, I've expanded Jamie's and my own research to the Knox Gold Star soldiers from WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. It's been an absolutely fascinating experience, especially being able to catch glimpses into campus life during those periods."

The title of the exhibit refers to the red-bordered service banner flown by families with members in the U.S. armed forces. A gold star on the banner represents a family member who died in the service during wartime.

Photos above and below, Jamie Bjorkman and students Ben Hosto and Sarah Pawlicki, in the Knox College Archives.