SUNBURY — Beginning at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 14, Polly Horn will present a program to the Big Walnut Area Historical Society in the Myers Inn Meeting Room in honor of Veterans Day.
As Bill Whitney, former editor of The Sunbury News, received data from parents, the war department, and letters from service personnel, he passed the information along in his column, “With Our Boys in Service.” As Whitney got an address, each local person in the military was sent a free subscription to The Sunbury News.
Through the column, people kept track of the locals serving their country while those in the military were able to keep track of each other as they were moved around the world. They also got to see what was happening on the homefront.
Unfortunately, Whitney got the ranks reversed on the first column and demoted the man instead of promoting him. He told his wife, Marian, never to let this happen again and thus Marian’s Scrapbook was born. Their daughter, Polly, pulled the book from the trash when Marian was clearing her things for her son, John, to become editor.
The Nov. 14 program will focus on the articles and photos from those newspapers. Where our local soldiers went, what they saw and did. Guests can relive the experiences of these servicemen and see Marian’s Scrapbook. The entire scrapbook is also available at http://bigwalnuthistory.org/Local_History/WorldWar2/Begin.htm.
Myers Inn Museum faces the southwest corner of Sunbury Square and is open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays or by appointment made by calling 740-965-3582.
Submitted by the Big Walnut Area Historical Society.
