thedrifter
01-15-07, 07:33 AM
What's in a name - The stories behind the streets
January 15,2007
ANNE CLARK
DAILY NEWS STAFF
We drive them every day, roads that wind through the many miles of Camp Lejeune. But what do we know of the streets’ namesakes?
They’re named for heroes both long-past and modern. Here’s a guide to knowing them:
• Holcomb Boulevard: The main road through the heart of the base is named for the late Gen. Thomas Holcomb, who was Marine Corps commandant during the years that Camp Lejeune was built.
Holcomb was born in Delaware only a few years after the Civil War ended, and entered the Corps in 1900. He served in Peking as attache on the staff of the American Minister and studied the Chinese language.
After serving meritoriously in World War I, Holcomb commanded the Marine Barracks, Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He became commandant in 1936; under his command, the Corps grew from 17,000 to more than 300,000 troops.
Holcomb, the man Time magazine called “methodical” and “determined,” became the first Marine ever to hold the rank of general. He was 64 years old when he retired from the Corps.
After holding a diplomat position, minister to the Union of South Africa, Holcomb retired from public life in 1948 to manage the family farm in Maryland. He died in 1965, three years after the death of his beloved wife, Beatrice.
• Gonzalez Boulevard: The street on the western side of the base, coursing through the French Creek area, honors Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. Alfredo “Freddy” Gonzalez, who was 21 years old when he led a platoon of Marines into battle in Vietnam. He had taken over from a wounded lieutenant.
He enlisted in the Corps right after high school, fulfilling a childhood dream fueled by John Wayne movies.
He served one year in Vietnam, but after coming home was haunted by the news that his old platoon had been ambushed, with many casualties. Gonzalez thought he might have been able to save them if he’d been with them, so he volunteered to go back into battle.
In early 1968, soon after he’d returned to Vietnam, Gonzalez and his 3rd Platoon were ordered to advance into Hue City.
While moving by truck convoy, they came under heavy fire several times. Gonzalez beat down the enemy with hand grenades while moving one of wounded privates to safety.
Though Gonzalez was bleeding badly, he chose to stay and lead his men. While they were defending a school building, Gonzalez fell mortally wounded in a rocket attack.
The following year, Gonzalez’s mother accepted his posthumous Medal of Honor. A U.S. Navy ship, home-ported in Norfolk, Va., is also named for this fallen hero.
• McHugh Boulevard: Branching off the main traffic circle, this street takes its name from the third sergeant major of the Marine Corps, the late Sgt. Maj. Thomas McHugh.
He was born in New York City to Irish and Scottish immigrants, and began his career in the Corps as a reservist. McHugh was called to active duty in 1940.
During World War II, he was attached to the 1st Marine Division and received a Purple Heart for injuries he received at Peleliu in the Pacific.
In Korea, he served in several campaigns, including the Chosin Reservoir. He was also sent to Vietnam, after serving as the sergeant major of Corps.
• Lucy Brewer Avenue: Located in a cluster of streets named for women, in a regimental area originally built for female Marine reservists, this street is named for a 19th century heroine.
Lucy Brewer grew up on a Massachusetts farm, but arrived in Boston in 1812 to find her fortune. Finding her options limited and unsavory, Brewer reportedly put on men’s clothes and enlisted in the Marine Corps.
She saw action at sea aboard the USS Constitution and fired muskets at the British. It would be another 100 years before women were even allowed into the Marine Corps Reserves, and then in clerical positions only.
• Molly Pitcher Road: This road is named for a Revolutionary War heroine whose real name was Mary McCauly.
She followed her soldier husband through various battles, but it was at Monmouth, Pa. in 1778 that she distinguished herself, tending to the wounded and even carrying a soldier out of harm’s way.
When her own husband fell wounded, she took the rammer staff from his hands and became the second woman to defend an American battlefield.
For her efforts, President Washington made her a noncommissioned officer.
• Camp Johnson: In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, this list includes the late Sgt. Maj. Gilbert Johnson, nicknamed “Hashmark” for the many stripes on his uniform that signified a long and distinguished military career. The base along the New River is named for him.
Johnson was born in rural Alabama and attended Stillman College to become a minister, but he left in 1923 to join the Army. He’d serve in the Navy, as well, before enlisting in the Marine Corps in 1942.
He became one of the first black men trained as a drill instructor aboard what was then called Montford Point.
Fighting in Guam during World War II, Johnson asked that his black Marines be assigned to combat patrols; after getting approval, Johnson personally led 25 of those patrols.
Later in his career, he would serve as a senior noncommissioned officer in mostly white units. He became one of the Corps’ first black sergeants major.
He died of a heart attack in Jacksonville in 1972, while addressing a meeting of the Montford Point Marine Association. Camp Johnson was named for him two years later.
Ellie
January 15,2007
ANNE CLARK
DAILY NEWS STAFF
We drive them every day, roads that wind through the many miles of Camp Lejeune. But what do we know of the streets’ namesakes?
They’re named for heroes both long-past and modern. Here’s a guide to knowing them:
• Holcomb Boulevard: The main road through the heart of the base is named for the late Gen. Thomas Holcomb, who was Marine Corps commandant during the years that Camp Lejeune was built.
Holcomb was born in Delaware only a few years after the Civil War ended, and entered the Corps in 1900. He served in Peking as attache on the staff of the American Minister and studied the Chinese language.
After serving meritoriously in World War I, Holcomb commanded the Marine Barracks, Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He became commandant in 1936; under his command, the Corps grew from 17,000 to more than 300,000 troops.
Holcomb, the man Time magazine called “methodical” and “determined,” became the first Marine ever to hold the rank of general. He was 64 years old when he retired from the Corps.
After holding a diplomat position, minister to the Union of South Africa, Holcomb retired from public life in 1948 to manage the family farm in Maryland. He died in 1965, three years after the death of his beloved wife, Beatrice.
• Gonzalez Boulevard: The street on the western side of the base, coursing through the French Creek area, honors Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. Alfredo “Freddy” Gonzalez, who was 21 years old when he led a platoon of Marines into battle in Vietnam. He had taken over from a wounded lieutenant.
He enlisted in the Corps right after high school, fulfilling a childhood dream fueled by John Wayne movies.
He served one year in Vietnam, but after coming home was haunted by the news that his old platoon had been ambushed, with many casualties. Gonzalez thought he might have been able to save them if he’d been with them, so he volunteered to go back into battle.
In early 1968, soon after he’d returned to Vietnam, Gonzalez and his 3rd Platoon were ordered to advance into Hue City.
While moving by truck convoy, they came under heavy fire several times. Gonzalez beat down the enemy with hand grenades while moving one of wounded privates to safety.
Though Gonzalez was bleeding badly, he chose to stay and lead his men. While they were defending a school building, Gonzalez fell mortally wounded in a rocket attack.
The following year, Gonzalez’s mother accepted his posthumous Medal of Honor. A U.S. Navy ship, home-ported in Norfolk, Va., is also named for this fallen hero.
• McHugh Boulevard: Branching off the main traffic circle, this street takes its name from the third sergeant major of the Marine Corps, the late Sgt. Maj. Thomas McHugh.
He was born in New York City to Irish and Scottish immigrants, and began his career in the Corps as a reservist. McHugh was called to active duty in 1940.
During World War II, he was attached to the 1st Marine Division and received a Purple Heart for injuries he received at Peleliu in the Pacific.
In Korea, he served in several campaigns, including the Chosin Reservoir. He was also sent to Vietnam, after serving as the sergeant major of Corps.
• Lucy Brewer Avenue: Located in a cluster of streets named for women, in a regimental area originally built for female Marine reservists, this street is named for a 19th century heroine.
Lucy Brewer grew up on a Massachusetts farm, but arrived in Boston in 1812 to find her fortune. Finding her options limited and unsavory, Brewer reportedly put on men’s clothes and enlisted in the Marine Corps.
She saw action at sea aboard the USS Constitution and fired muskets at the British. It would be another 100 years before women were even allowed into the Marine Corps Reserves, and then in clerical positions only.
• Molly Pitcher Road: This road is named for a Revolutionary War heroine whose real name was Mary McCauly.
She followed her soldier husband through various battles, but it was at Monmouth, Pa. in 1778 that she distinguished herself, tending to the wounded and even carrying a soldier out of harm’s way.
When her own husband fell wounded, she took the rammer staff from his hands and became the second woman to defend an American battlefield.
For her efforts, President Washington made her a noncommissioned officer.
• Camp Johnson: In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, this list includes the late Sgt. Maj. Gilbert Johnson, nicknamed “Hashmark” for the many stripes on his uniform that signified a long and distinguished military career. The base along the New River is named for him.
Johnson was born in rural Alabama and attended Stillman College to become a minister, but he left in 1923 to join the Army. He’d serve in the Navy, as well, before enlisting in the Marine Corps in 1942.
He became one of the first black men trained as a drill instructor aboard what was then called Montford Point.
Fighting in Guam during World War II, Johnson asked that his black Marines be assigned to combat patrols; after getting approval, Johnson personally led 25 of those patrols.
Later in his career, he would serve as a senior noncommissioned officer in mostly white units. He became one of the Corps’ first black sergeants major.
He died of a heart attack in Jacksonville in 1972, while addressing a meeting of the Montford Point Marine Association. Camp Johnson was named for him two years later.
Ellie