Friday marks the 70th anniversary of V-J Day as World War II ended and the Sunshine State is marking the occasion. While the official Japanese surrender did not take place until Sep. 2 on the decks of the USS Missouri, hostilities ended on Aug. 14, 1945, with news sweeping the nation which had been engaged in World War II for three and a half years.
The war helped grow Florida as military personnel were stationed in posts across the Sunshine State. Around 248,000 Floridians served in the armed forces and more than 4,600 of them made the ultimate sacrifice. More than 300,000 Floridians helped the military as civilian volunteers aiding defense efforts.
Earlier this week, Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner announced the Museum of Florida History in Tallahassee will hold a “Celebrate Victory” on Saturday with a wreath laying to honor those who served the nation in the war. Veterans who served in the war and civilians will share their experiences in a series of talks at the museum on Saturday afternoon.
“The Museum of Florida History and the Florida Department of State are proud to salute the many Floridians who served during World War II,” Detzner said on Wednesday. “This event provides the public an opportunity to learn about their experiences firsthand.”
From Aug. 8 until Sunday, Florida held “Victory Week” to honor the American triumph in World War II. Last week, Gov. Rick Scott honored 30 veterans from Florida with the Governor’s Veterans Service Award and he offered his perspective on the anniversary.
“As the son of a World War II veteran, I know firsthand the sacrifices made by our service men, women and their families,” Scott said. “During Victory Florida Week, we are honoring the sacrifices of America’s Greatest Generation, saying thank you to those World War II veterans and remembering the fallen.”
“Seventy years ago this week, the world reached a defining moment as World War II came to an end,” Detzner said last week. “With the many training facilities in Florida serving the active military, and our dedicated workforce fighting the war on the home front, this state made historically significant contributions to securing liberty and freedom for millions of people around the world.”
Mike Prendergast, the executive director of Florida Department of Veterans Affairs and retired Army colonel, noted how Florida boomed after the war as veterans who served in the Sunshine State during the war returned to make it their home.
“At the end of the war, returning veterans and their families came to the Sunshine State in greater numbers, attracted by low tax rates and the warm climate,” said Prendergast. “They used the GI Bill to advance their education, raise families and help propel the middle class to new prosperity. During Victory Florida Week, we continue to honor and serve our state’s nearly 100,000 World War II veterans and reflect with pride on the selfless service and sacrifice of those who gave their lives to defend our freedoms.”
Prendergast is correct in his assessment. Florida was the smallest state in the Southeast before the war and grew dramatically during the second half of the 20th century. It’s telling that Camp Blanding, one of the largest military training centers in the nation outside of Starke in Clay County, had the fourth largest population in Florida during the war.
While Florida played a role in many aspects of the war, it played a major support role in the liberation of France from Nazi control during World War II. Florida played a supporting role in the amphibious landing and the start of what Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, the Allied commander, called the crusade in Europe.
In the latter half of 1943, the 4th Infantry Division took part in maneuvers at Camp Gordon Johnston in Carrabelle over in Franklin County, including amphibious landings at Carrabelle Beach and Dog Island. After the training operations, the division was sent to England. On D-Day, the 4th Infantry troops were the first American troops in the amphibious landing to reach French soil when they hit Utah Beach in Normandy.
Decades later, the 4th Infantry’s time in Florida is still remembered. There’s a historical marker at Carrabelle Beach focused on the D-Day preparations. Back in 2000, the Camp Gordon Johnston Association collected soil from Carrabelle Beach to include in National 4th Infantry Division Associations monument in Arlington, Va. Visitors to Carrabelle can learn more at the Camp Gordon Johnston museum.
World War II heroes are still honored across the Sunshine State. Among the honored veterans interred at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell is Largo's Col. Leonard T. Schroeder. Schroeder, who passed away in 2009, was the first American to land at Normandy during the D-Day operation. Wounded at Utah Beach, Schroeder earned the Purple Heart, the Silver Star and the Bronze Star during his three decades of service to this country.
Right before the invasion, Schroeder was part of the team of officers to get briefed by Gen. Theodore Roosevelt Jr., son and namesake of the 26th president. Seeing Schroeder, Lt. Col. Carlton MacNeely, the commander of the 2nd Battalion, called him by his nickname "Moose" and wished him luck.
"Well, Moose, this is it," MacNeely said. Give 'em hell!"
"Well, colonel, I'll see you on the beach!" Schroeder replied.
Accompanying Roosevelt to the beach, besides being the first American to set foot on Utah Beach, Schroeder led his company to take out German fortifications. Half of his company were casualties and Schroeder was wounded twice in the arm.
Schroeder left an account of his D-Day experience and much of his equipment can still be seen at the Armed Forces Military Museum in Largo, just one of the places across Florida to honor the men and women who made victory possible. The war’s impact can still be seen all across Florida in museums and sites across the Sunshine State honoring one of the pivotal events in American history.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
