Pearl Harbor Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Woody Williams U.S. Capitol Statue Will Happen, Grandson Says

Curtis Tate spoke with Chad Graham, Williams’ grandson, about what happens next.

The state Senate unanimously approved a resolution in February to place a statue of Hershel “Woody” Williams in the U.S. Capitol. Williams, who died in 2022 at age 98, was the last surviving Medal of Honor recipient from World War II.

The measure, though, did not get a vote in the House of Delegates before the regular session ended. Curtis Tate spoke with Chad Graham, Williams’ grandson, about what happens next.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Tate: How come the legislature didn’t complete its work on the resolution to place the statue?

Graham: My understanding is, and of course, I’m a resident, as my granddad used to call it ‘that foreign state over there,’ Kentucky. So I’m about two hours and 40 minutes from where I grew up there, and the Huntington-Barboursville area, but my understanding is, it was just timing. It seems like there’s widespread support of this. And I think it was just how things fell in terms of what they were trying to get through within that session. And everybody feels confident that in this next round, or I guess, maybe in a special session, it’s something that will get pushed to the top of the stack, so to speak, but that’s my understanding.

Tate: What would your grandfather think about the effort to put his statue inside the Capitol?

Graham: I’ve never known anyone that was more proud and loved more being a West Virginian. My grandmother was the same way. She used to joke, ‘I’ve got five grandsons.’ My mother, Tracy, still lives in Barboursville. But the other daughter lives in Ohio. Her sons live in Ohio, and then three of us grandsons live in Kentucky. And one day my grandmother’s over visiting the family in Ohio, and she was still living and she said, “Do you think it’s time for us to get back home? The air is just better over there.” And it was I mean, they were you know, they were in like Marietta so that was right across the river. But point being, he loved being a West Virginia and he loved West Virginia so much. Even where he chose to be laid to rest there with my grandmother at Donnel C. Kinnard State Veterans Cemetery, so many people said Woody, you know, as a Medal of Honor recipient, Arlington does welcome those recipients to be buried there and their spouses. He said, “That’s not where I’m from.” He said, “I want to be with my people. I want to be in West Virginia.” So I know this for him would be so, so meaningful.

Tate: Once the legislature is fully on board, how long might this take?

Graham: My understanding is that it is a multi-year process, as many things in the District are, especially when it involves the Capitol, the way that the Capitol is governed and the design components of this and how that design would be developed. Even down to the medium used for the statute itself, there are fairly clear-cut regulations and guidelines for that. I can send you some quick reads in terms of how the statuary works. But it would be a multi-year process. And if that all went smooth – I know just enough to be dangerous in terms of how the different committees work when it comes to design and things like that at the district or within the district, especially within the Capitol. It could be as quick as two to three years. There are components of it that would be out of the hands of our state of West Virginia, essentially.

Tate: The rotunda was full of dignitaries the day his casket was brought in. Do you see that happening when the statue is unveiled?

Graham: Of course, we miss him every day. Still, every single day. But it warmed our hearts, made us feel very thankful for everybody that supported him. And I feel like this would be much the same. He was so generous with his time and who he was that he gave a little piece of himself to everyone that he met and interacted with, and even some folks that he never met. I think what he meant to people is part of why this is important. And I am certain that on that wonderful day when this is unveiled that there’ll be a lot of people squeezing in to be a part of that, to see it and and support it and support what he’s about.

Tate: The last survivor of the USS Arizona attack at Pearl Harbor just died. Your grandfather was part of a generation we’re losing fast.

Graham: On the (USS) Missouri, it’s probably been 2016-17, somewhere in that space. With then five of the living Arizona survivors of course as you mentioned, we just lost the last one but sitting with those five gentlemen and then going into the captain’s quarters on the Missouri, decorated as it was in World War II with pictures of the commander in chief (Harry) Truman in the cabin. And these old guys, it was like dialing back the clock, they might as well been 21 years old again. You know, giving each other a hard time of course, Papaw being a Marine like your granddad and these guys being Navy and giving each other just all kind of grief, and then when they christened my granddad’s ship in San Diego. Those guys came to support him, those Arizona survivors, and to lose them I think that to me, it breaks your heart a little bit to see – not a little bit – it breaks your heart, period, to see that generation dwindling away because they’re from a different fabric.

Life Preserver From USS West Virginia Donated To WVU

Each Dec. 7, communities across the country commemorate the attack on Pearl Harbor. This year, the ceremony at West Virginia University will integrate a new piece of history.

A life preserver from aboard the USS West Virginia, which was sunk during the Dec. 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, was recently donated to West Virginia University by the Kendrick family.

Lori Hostuttler, director of the West Virginia and Regional History Center at WVU libraries said the life preserver is a powerful symbol.

“When I first saw it, my first thought was, ‘Did somebody cling to this? Did it save somebody’s life during that attack?’” she said. “It’s a very somber artifact, but it also can symbolize resilience of Americans and West Virginians.”

Hostuttler said the piece was first pulled from the waters of the harbor by Charles House Morgan, Jr. who was serving at Pearl Harbor with his father, Charles House Morgan, Sr. She said Jr. saw the life preserver as an item “to commemorate those who were killed in that attack that day and as a remembrance of the horrible tragedy that he had witnessed.”

“I think it’s emblematic of West Virginians’ service to the military,” Hostuttler said. “West Virginians have always come to the aid of the United States and served when there was a conflict.”

The USS West Virginia was restored and returned to service after the attack. Its mast and bell are now permanently installed outside of Oglebay Hall on WVU’s Morgantown campus.

“It was a student-led effort to bring that to the campus in the early 1960s,” Hostuttler said.

The university’s annual remembrance ceremony will be held by the mast Thursday morning, and the life preserver will be on display in the downtown library.

“We definitely like to honor our service members, and anything that can allow the military or service members to be in the spotlight at WVU, we love to have that happen,” said Penny Lipscomb, interim director of the Center for Veteran, Military and Family Programs.

The ceremony will include members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Foreign Legion, Earl Anderson Marine Corps league detachment as well as ROTC cadets and guest speaker Secretary of State Mac Warner. The Daughters of the American Revolution also lay a wreath in memory of the fallen soldiers.

“We gather for this tradition, it’s been happening since the 1970s, where we go out and we stand in front of the mast to honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice to our country,” Lipscomb said.

December 7, 1941: Japan Launches a Surprise Attack on Pearl Harbor, Sinks USS West Virginia

In the early morning hours of December 7, 1941, Japan launched a surprise attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The raid killed more than 2,400 Americans and prompted the United States to enter World War II. Torpedoes and bombs sank four U.S. battleships, including the USS West Virginia, which lost two officers and 103 crew members.

The battleship, which had originally joined the naval fleet in 1923, was a great source of pride for West Virginians. She was raised from the mud of Pearl Harbor and rebuilt in time to serve during the last year of the war. The ship went back to sea in July 1944 and participated in the invasion of the Philippines. At Surigao Strait—the largest naval battle of the war—the West Virginia led the line and was the first American ship to open fire. In September 1945, the West Virginia was in Tokyo Bay for Japan’s official surrender, the only Pearl Harbor survivor present.

World War II marked the end of the battleship era. The West Virginia was decommissioned in 1947 and sold for scrap in 1959.

Morgantown High School Band Will Represent W.Va. at Pearl Harbor Commemoration

Dec. 7, 2016 will mark the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, which thrust America into World War II. Morgantown High School’s marching band has been selected to represent West Virginia during a commemoration next year in Hawaii to honor that milestone.

One of the few remaining survivors of the attack came to the Mountain State from Texas to share his first-hand account of that fateful day with the band members and take part in Veterans Day ceremonies.

Seaman 1st Class Richard Cunningham, 94, was invited to speak at Morgantown High School’s auditorium because he’s one of the last witnesses to one of the most infamous days in American history.

He was serving aboard the USS West Virginia on Dec. 7, 1941, as the battleship was docked in Pearl Harbor. Early that morning, he and two other sailors were assigned to pick up some officers from shore in a small, wooden motorboat. They were halfway through their 10-minute journey when they heard an enormous explosion.

“The three of us looked back and we saw this Japanese plane coming down and peeling off and coming in,” Cunningham said. “We looked and saw the two rising suns and the big loud bomb and I thought, ‘Boy, this is it. This is war.’ ”

Cunningham told the rapt audience about how he and his shipmates dodged enemy fire in that flimsy boat to rescue sailors from the burning water of the harbor. He told them how the explosion from a damaged Japanese plane was so close that it singed the hair on his arms. And he told them how he and others fought the flames from the burning American naval fleet for days after the attack.

Seaman 1st Class Richard Cunningham speaks with students following a talk he gave at the Morgantown High School auditorium on Monday, Nov. 9.

But his message in the end was simple.

“Be prepared,” Cunningham said. “The nation can get lackadaisical in their attitude toward living, you know. And you get so involved with the things that you have to do that you forget about that the freedom isn’t free.”

Learning About History

Cunningham participated in many of the Veterans Day ceremonies in and around Morgantown during the week of Nov. 8. But he also spent time at Morgantown High School talking to students about the battleship he served on, the USS West Virginia, and the attack on Pearl Harbor.

It especially meant a lot to the MHS marching band. They’ve been chosen to represent the Mountain State in Hawaii next year during the 75th anniversary commemoration of the attack.

Band director Keith Reed said that to prepare for the trip, the students are learning a lot about the USS West Virginia and the sailors who died during the battle. He said having Cunningham meet the students in person drove those lessons home.

“The kids really liked him,” Reed said. “They listened, they were quiet today — I mean the whole student body, not just the band kids — and I think it will really bring it more alive to them and make it significant when we get to go over there.”

It’s a Long Way To Hawaii

Reed said the school plans to send about 250 band members to Pearl Harbor next year. Freshman trumpet player Arden Minor will be one of them.

“I know we’re good, but I don’t think we’re the best in the state,” she said. “But I do think we are very well qualified to represent the whole entire state of West Virginia and I am really excited about that.”

A small boat rescues a seaman from the 31,800 ton battleship USS West Virginia on Dec. 7, 1941.

Arden said she is looking forward to paying homage to all those who served aboard the USS West Virginia.

Reed said he hopes to lay some wreaths on the dock near where the battleship was moored when it was attacked. He also has a special song in mind.

“We really want to play ‘My Home Among the Hills.’ And I don’t say that to, you know, to invoke emotion, but it is to think that,” he said.

Reed said it’s going to take quite an effort to get the band and their instruments to Hawaii, but they’ve received a lot of community support for the trip.

W.Va. Roots

Cunningham said he was more than happy to come to Morgantown. He lives in Texas, but of both his parents were West Virginia natives. Cunningham said he’s thrilled that so many students from Morgantown High will get to experience Hawaii.

“I’d love to see ’em out there and bare-footed and walking up and down Waikiki beach in their bare feet,” he said. “It would just, that would just tickle me, really, it would make me happy.”

Cunningham wrapped up his visit as a Veterans Day parade guest of honor, riding in a silver convertible and leading the MHS Marching Band down High Street in Morgantown.