(Sgt. Darrell S. Cole) 

THIS PAGE IS DEDICATED TO SGT. DARRELL S. COLE, CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL OF HONOR RECEPIENT FROM ST. FRANCOIS COUNTY KILLED IN ACTION ON IWO JIMA IN 1945, AS WELL AS TO ALL OUR OTHER  VETERANS WHO BRAVELY ANSWERED THEIR NATION'S CALL AND OFFERED THEMSELVES TO PROTECT THE PRIVILEGE OF FREEDOM THAT WE ALL TODAY ENJOY. WE SALUTE YOU!!

Sgt. Darrell Cole's diary, books, pictures find home in Stars and Stripes

By S. GREMINGER\Daily Journal Managing Editor
Mar 07, 2005

When Nelda Bleckler of Bonne Terre visited the Stars and Stripes Museum in Bloomfield, she was dismayed to find the facility had very little information and only a small photo of the late Darrell S. Cole, the Marine for whom the USS Cole is named.

Terrorists attacked the USS Cole in the port of Yemen in October of 2000 causing the death of 17 American sailors. It has since been repaired and returned to active duty in the war on terror.

Sgt. Cole is the only man from St. Francois County to be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. He died Feb. 19, 1945, on Iwo Jima.

His citation states that with his company pinned down on the beach of Iwo Jima, Sgt. Cole stormed Japanese pillboxes armed only with a pistol and grenades. He jumped on top of each pillbox and threw an armed grenade inside, returning to his own lines three times to get more grenades. On his third trip back, he was killed.

Bleckler remembered that the late Joe Layden, former managing editor of the Daily Journal, had organized a ceremony to honor Sgt. Cole in the 1980s.

When she called the newspaper wanting some photographs and more information on Sgt. Cole, she was happily surprised that some of that material was still in possession of the editorial staff.

Photographs of Sgt. Cole were located, including the last known photograph taken following his hospitalization after being wounded on Tinian. There was also a copy of his military diary and various other books that had been in his possession.

The staff gave the material to Bleckler to donate to the museum in honor of Joe Layden.

Bleckler in her capacity as Missouri State President of American War Mothers took the material to the museum in February.

"This is the finest collection I've seen," Paul Arnold, museum curator, said of the donation. "It is an outstanding addition for our planned exhibit on area Medal of Honor recipients.

Other Southeast Missouri Congressional Medal of Honor recipients include 1st Lt. George Kenneth Sisler, (Vietnam), Dexter; PFC Richard G. Wilson, (Korea), Cape Girardeau; and Pvt. Billie G. Kannell, (Korea), Poplar Bluff.

For many, Stars and Stripes represents more than just our American flag. They recognize it as the newspaper that serves U.S. military personnel.

On Nov. 9, 1861, 10 Illinois Union soldiers, using the vacated press of the Bloomfield Herald, published the first Stars and Stripes, which they named after the American flag. One of the original copies of that 1861 paper is now owned by the Stoddard County Historical Society. It is being preserved at the Stars and Stripes Museum/Library.

The facility serves historians, students and writers as an invaluable research tool. It also provides the general public with an educational opportunity to share the history and experience of veterans and Stripers alike. The museum/library is located in Stoddard County between Bloomfield and Dexter on State Hwy. 25.

The museum/library is open weekdays, except Tuesday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Sundays from 1 to 4 p.m.