Mendota DAR club highlights American history at May meeting

The Fort du Rocher Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution featured a program about the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at its May 18 meeting at the Graves-Hume Library in Mendota.

At the close of World War I in 1918, about 2,000 American casualties could not be linked with a name. In France, eight soldiers and four substitutes were exhumed. One casket was selected to represent all of the unknown service members who died. Some French soil was placed in the casket so he’d always be on French soil, then the body was placed in the Arlington Cemetery tomb Nov. 11, 1921. The top section of the tomb was completed April 12, 1932. After World War II and the Korean War, an unknown service member from each war was interred at the base of the tomb. With the advances in DNA testing to help with identification, an additional crypt for Vietnam’s unknown soldier remains empty.

Regent Donna Jungnickel presided over the DAR meeting. She welcomed guests from the Rochelle and the Illini chapters of the DAR. The club’s American Indian minute recounted facts about the life of Pocahontas, who was forced to convert to Christianity. In 1616, she traveled to England to be presented as a “civilized” indigenous resident of the Americas. She died at the age of 21.

Bev Richardson presented facts about Memorial Day. She said the holiday originally was called Decoration Day because families decorated the graves of fallen Civil War soldiers. Some of the earliest celebrations included the 1865 march of 10,000 freed slaves who marched to honor Union soldiers. The first formal observation was May 5, 1866.

The club’s patriot minute honored Joseph Brown, a man who was born into slavery in Rhode Island. He enlisted to serve in the military as the replacement for his slave owner’s son, who wanted to enter privateering. In return, Brown would receive freedom after the war. After the war, most freed slaves were asked to leave the area, but Brown continued living in Rhode Island with his wife, Lucretia, who also received freedom from enslavement. They owned and operated a tavern. Lucretia baked her “Joe Frogger” cookies, which still are a staple in New England.

During a discussion about conservation, members learned that Illinois’ soil is Drummer silty clay loam. Much of Illinois can thank Iowa for the rich soil that blew in on west winds.

The Mendota club chapter will host its Lunch in the Park on Friday, Sept. 20. The next meeting will be at 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 17, at the La Moille Community Methodist Church. Any woman 18 or older whose lineage traces back to a Revolutionary War patriot and who wants to learn more about Daughters of the American Revolution can attend the meeting. For information about the Fort du Rocher chapter, visit www.fortdurocherchapternsdar.com. To learn more about the DAR, visit www.dar.org.