PHOTO BY BILL GREEN
Hank Davis with American Legion Francis Scott Key Post 11 places a flag on a veteran’s grave at Mount Olivet Cemetery on Nov. 2.
Mount Olivet Cemetery
A RESTING PLACE OF HISTORY
BY GINA GALLUCCI-WHITE SPECIAL TO THE NEWS-POST
On the morning of Nov. 2, volunteers and community groups gathered at Mount Olivet Cemetery to begin the formidable but rewarding task of placing a small American flag on each grave of a military veteran. Out of the more than 41,000 individuals who have been interred at the cemetery, about 4,800 are veterans from every American conflict, as well as those who served during times of peace.
COVER PHOTO BY BILL GREEN
Wyatt Dellinger, 5, helps his father, who is a veteran, and other members of Platoon 22 place flags on veterans’ grave at Mount Olivet Cemetery on Nov. 2.
Mount Olivet Cemetery historian and preservation manager Chris Haugh came up with the idea in 2018 to honor military personnel because it was the 100th anniversary of the armistice of World War I. The cemetery is a final resting place for more than 600 WWI veterans
As the cemetery already worked for decades with the American Legion to place flags on military graves for Memorial Day, he asked if they could they could expand the gesture to include Veterans Day.
The cemetery also participates in Wreaths Across America, which has volunteers annually placing holiday wreaths on the graves of veterans.
Francis Scott Key, the composer of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” is buried right at the opening gates. Gov. Thomas Johnson, the first governor of Maryland, and Civil War icon Barbara Fritchie, who was immortalized in the famous poem by John Greenleaf Whittier, are buried a short distance from each other.
“One of the unique facets of Mount Olivet is we have this overarching theme of patriotism,” Haugh said. “… It is important for us to honor those men and women.”
Many people know those three names. But Mount Olivet also is home to a plethora of notable military veterans.
William Theodore Kreh Sr. was a World War I veteran who served as a bugler in the U.S. Army’s Company A of the 115th Infantry Regiment, part of the famed 29th Division.
PHOTO BY BILL GREEN
Keith Clevenger of American Legion Francis
Scott Key Post 11 places a flag on a veteran’s grave at Mount Olivet Cemetery on Nov. 2.
His position called for him to play the standard Reveille and taps, but he also was near commanders who had him play signals loudly for the troops during battles. Haugh noted that this made him an obvious enemy target.
Serving in Europe, Kreh took part in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in France, carrying important messages to commanders. He received the Silver Star for his actions during the conflict.
He came back to Frederick, where he was active with a number of veteran organizations. Kreh also officiated many sports leagues and later served as president of the National Baseball Umpires Association.
George B. Shope served as a private in the 1st Regiment of the Maryland Militia in the early 1800s. The Frederick resident would later become known as one of John Brown’s hostages during his infamous insurrection raid attempt in Harpers Ferry in 1859.
Shope later testified at Brown’s trial in Charles Town. It is unknown why Shope was in Harpers Ferry during the raid, but it may have been for a business trip.
The cemetery is home to several military veterans who responded to the call for help.
PHOTOS BY BILL GREEN
ABOVE: Flags in front of veterans’ graves at Mount Olivet Cemetery. RIGHT: Elih Velazquez and his son Mauricio-Manual Velazquez-Guerrero, members of the U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, salute a flag they placed on a veteran’s grave.
“ Mount Olivet is a museum without walls,” Haugh said. “It is a reflection on Frederick’s past.
CHRIS HAUGH, historian and preservation manager at Mount Olivet Cemetery
Lifelong Frederick resident Jesse Claggett served in the Spanish-American War. He was Maryland’s only Rough Rider who served under future President Teddy Roosevelt. He was one of the soldiers who charged San Juan Hill.
Jefferson resident Allan Clay McBride served in World War I and II, rising to the rank of U.S. Army brigadier general on the staff of Gen. Douglas MacArthur. He was captured by Japanese forces in 1942 and died in a prisoner of war camp two years later in what is now Taiwan. His remains were buried at Mount Olivet in 1947.
Growing up and living in Washington, D.C., Charlotte Berry Winters fell in love with the Frederick area because of the rich history. She served in World War II as a U.S. Navy Yeoman (F) and later as a civil servant. When she died in 2007 at age 109, she was the oldest American female veteran of the war.
During the American Civil War, Frederick resident Col. Henry Cole was a calvary commander who put together a group of volunteers known as Cole’s Rangers or Cole’s Cavalry. He and his men fought in many of the battles that took place around the region, including Harpers Ferry.
There is also Capt. Peter Mantz, a top Revolutionary War veteran, who came from one of the first German families to call Frederick home. He was a part of a mobile battalion of soldiers in the mid-Atlantic region in 1776 and later served as a militia recruiter in Frederick County.
This is a small sample of the stories of Mount Olivet veterans. Haugh does a blog post each week on a new veteran at MountOlivetHistory.com. Volunteers are working to discover more about each individual buried there.
“Mount Olivet is a museum without walls,” Haugh said. “It is a reflection on Frederick’s past.”
PHOTO BY BILL GREEN
Three members of American Heritage Girls Troop MD3126 of Ijamsville place a flag on a veteran’s gravestone.
Stephen C. Gillis
United States Army
John E. Hovde
United States Marines
SSGT Melvin Hurwitz
United States Army Air Corps
Hurwitz attended basic training Greensboro, North Carolina, then served at Army Air Corps training centers around the country. He was a radio gunner on a B-17 Flying Fortress.
He served with the 493rd Bomb Group, the last bomb group assigned to the Mighty 8th in the war. Hurwitz’s B-17 was nicknamed “Organized Confusion” and flew four combat missions. He also participated in “Operation Chowhound”, the dropping of food supplies to the starving Dutch civilians and flew returning French prisoners-of-war from Austria.
Arriving back in the United States, the crew began B-29 training in preparation for the ongoing war in Japan. While awaiting orders to the Pacific, the war ended. Melvin was discharged in 1945.
Photo from III MAF Transient Facility, Da Nang, Vietnam
MSG Lisa Martell
United States Army & Army National Guard
Martell served from 1985 to 1989 in the active Army, vvthen from 1996 to 2012 in the Maryland Army National Guard. She was deployed to Iraq in 2004 while serving as a teacher at Ballenger Creek Middle School. Martell retired in 2012 at the rank of Master Sergeant. She is very proud of her military service and shares her experiences with her students who are interested in joining the military.
Keith E. Mobley
United States Air Force
Airman Second Class Served 1962 - 1966
Dale A. Young EOC (SCWS)
United States Navy Seabees
Young served in the U.S. Navy Seabees from October 1988 to December 2008. He served two tours to Iraq in 2003 (Fallujah) and 2005/06 (Al Anbar Providence), as well as several other deployments throughout the U.S. and overseas.
Lewis E. Crutchley Sr.
United States Army
Crutchley during World War II, just before D-Day in 1944.
Jennifer L. Crutchley (Beckner)
United States Navy
Crutchley with her dad, Senior Chief Milton Crutchley
SGM (RET)
Bernard J. Hobbs
Army National Guard
Hobbs, with his wife of 45 years, Dawn Hobbs, attending a Platoon 22 gala at Musket Ridge Golf Course.
Bruce Stone
United States Army Air Corps Stone was a radio operator on a B-17 whose plane was shot down over Germany. He spent his remaining time in POW camp. When he returned to Frederick, he operated a radio and television repair business.
LT Keith Midberry, USCG (RET)
United States Coast Guard
Served four years in U.S. Navy (1972-1976), Naval Mobile Construction Battalion #72 (Seabees) and 22 years in Coast Guard.
Inset photo taken while on icebreaker ship north of Arctic Circle Greenland 1981.
Ryan McCulley
United States Army
McCulley graduated from Urbana High in June 2001 and started at the University of Maryland. Shortly thereafter, our nation was attacked. McCulley left college to serve his country and defend our freedom.
William H. Paugh
United States Navy Gunner’s Mate
USS North Carolina Battleship Years Served: 1942-1946
Chief Master Sergeant
Robert B. Paugh
United States Air Force
Maryland Air National Guard
175th Security Forces Squadron
Warfield Air National Guard Base Years Served: 1987-2012
SALUTING OUR LOCAL VETERANS
Sgt. Adolph Gardner
United States Air Force
He was a crew chief and flight engineer in the Air Rescue on the Husky HH43B, Detachment 2, 38th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron, stationed at Takhli, Thailand, 1969-70. The call sign was Pedro.
1st Lieutenant Richard Foot
United States Army
Foot was a commissioned officer in the United States Army, serving a tour in the Infantry in the Republic of Vietnam (1970-71). He earned a Bronze Star for his military service in Vietnam.
Senior Chief Petty Officer (RET)
Milton C. Crutchley
United States Navy
Years of service: 1964 - 1993
Crutchley, a Vietnam veteran, survived the fire and explosions on the USS Forrest-AL CVA59 that occurred on July 29, 1967. At left, he is pictured with his son Michael C. Crutchley and Scott A. Crutchley of the U.S. Navy.
Dr. John Klish, Colonel, USAF (Retired)
United States Air Force
PICTURED LEFT
Dr. Andrew Klish, Major
United States Army
PICTURED RIGHT
The above photo was taken in 2014 when Andrew Klish was a 2nd lieutenant. He was promoted to major and now an activeduty dentist at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Tacoma, Washington.
1st Lieutenant James Hubbard
United States Army Year served: 1966-1972
Harry Scyphers
United States Army
Participated in WWII European Theater from the D-Day invasion through the end of the war in Europe.
Col. James J. Damato MSC, PhD, HCLD QA RAB (RET)
United States Army
Damato’s assignments included FT Rucker Alabama, Fitzsimons Army Medical Center, Denver Colorado, the 121 Evacuation Hospital, Seoul, Korea, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology and Walter Reed Army Institute of Pathology.
His duties in Korea included monthly blood collection and shipments to Da Nang, Vietnam. As a laboratory director he provided extensive health and career counseling for active-duty personnel. Due to his exposure to Agent Orange and subsequent development of prostate cancer, the VA classified him as 100% service-connected disabled. Since he has retired, he is volunteering as a healthcare advocate assisting individuals and families who have healthcare and nutrition questions or problems.
FAMOUS MONUMENTS dedicated to veterans
Several famous monuments have been dedicated to U.S. war veterans. They’re powerful reminders of the valor of these brave people. Here are a few:
PEARL HARBOR NATIONAL MEMORIAL
This memorial commemorates the 1941 attack on Oahu, paying tribute to the 1,102 sailors and 1,177 marines who lost their lives. Built over the wreckage of the USS Arizona, the memorial is a 184-foot structure with a deliberate sag in the middle, symbolizing defeat and eventual triumph.
NATIONAL D-DAY MEMORIAL
This memorial in Bedford, Virginia, honors the U.S. soldiers and Allied forces who participated in the D-Day landings on the French coastline. Featuring an arch overlooking a memorial pool, along with water fountains and bronze statues of soldiers, it’s designed to emulate the experience of storming the beaches.
AFRICAN AMERICAN CIVIL WAR MEMORIAL
This memorial in Washington, D.C., commemorates the 19th-century heroes who fought in the Civil War. It features a bronze statue titled “The Spirit of Freedom” and a curved wall inscribed with the names of the men who served in the war.
VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL
Situated on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., this memorial consists of a massive wall inscribed with the names of over 58,000 servicemen and women who lost their lives during the Vietnam War. It includes the Three Servicemen statue, the Vietnam Women’s Memorial, the In Memory plaque and a flagpole.
KOREAN WAR VETERANS MEMORIAL
Positioned near the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., this memorial was dedicated on July 27, 1995. It pays tribute to the 5.8 million Americans who served in the U.S. armed services during the Korean War.
