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Matagorda County, Texas
Veteran Memorials
Casualty Pages
Information and
photos courtesy of Kenneth L. Thames
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QUEEN-HAMLIN POST 2467 VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS
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Queen-Hamlin VFW Post 2467
The Queen-Hamlin VFW
Post 2467 was originally chartered as the William Lloyd
Queen Post 2467 on March 20, 1944. It was
organized by Warren W. Bybee, who was stationed at Camp
Hulen. The post was named
for Lt. William L. Queen, USAAF, a graduate of Palacios
High School, who was killed in an aircraft accident on
December 24, 1943 in Italy, during World War II.
After the Vietnam War, the post was re-named the
Queen-Hamlin Post 2467 in honor of Sp.4 William Lloyd
“Dub” Hamlin, USA, a nephew of Lt. Queen, who was killed
in action in Vietnam on June 23, 1967. Both Lt.
Queen and Sp4 Hamlin were buried with full military
honors at the Palacios Cemetery.
General John A. Hulen
and his brother, General Harry Hulen were members of the
post.
Through the years the
post sponsored Little LEague, baseball and basketball
teams as well as Boy Scouts. They led Memorial Day
programs and Wreaths Across America at the Palacios
Cemetery.
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Lt. William L. Queen |
Sp.4 William Lloyd “Dub” Hamlin |
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Photo courtesy of Bonnie
M. Benson
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Lacking New Members, VFW Post Nears
End
By Alan C. Schulman, Palacios Beacon
It’s only a matter of time until Palacios’ local
Veterans of Foreign Wars post could be forced to shut
down. The Queen-Hamlin VFW Post 2467 has been a
neighborhood institution for the past 75 years. The Post
estimates that it could have only months, at best, and
is calling on the community to help keep it going.
The Post Commander and Quartermaster, who have been
members for years, say the issues at hand are similar to
those in other posts.
“Like a lot of organizations, we’re not gaining
membership,” they said, “Our younger veterans don’t seem
to be interested in joining service organizations.”
Most of the small membership consists of a few Vietnam
veterans like Commander Charles Tyler and Quartermaster
Gary Taylor, who said the deaths of members in recent
years further shrank the membership.”Our younger
veterans perhaps only picture older folk telling war
stories at the post. That’s not our mission,” they said.
VFW posts commonly act as social gathering places for
military veterans, and also help guide them through
available programs and services. They also participate
with community organizations and ceremonies. The
Palacios VFW holds events for holidays like Independence
Day, Memorial Day, and Veterans Days. One of the most
important services the VFW post members provide is
performing as honor guard at funerals of deceased
veterans that includes the folding and presenting of the
American flag to the next of kin and the playing of
taps.
Palacios Beacon,
Wednesday, June 5, 2019 |
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CECIL LEE AMERICAN LEGION POST NO. 649
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Sgt. Cecil L.
Lee
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The Cecil
Lee American Legion Post 649, Blessing,
Texas was chartered on April 24, 1948 and
named in honor of Sgt. Cecil L. Lee, USMC
who was killed in action during the invasion
of Guam on July 27, 1944. He is buried at
the National Memorial Cemetery of the
Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii. The post is
still active in the community. |
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PALACIOS HIGH SCHOOL
MEMORIAL
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BAY CITY FIRST PRESBYTERIAN MEMORIAL FOUNT
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Captain Philip H. Parker, USAAF, PVT Jack W. White,
USA, SGT Robert W. Walker, USA, and MOMM1/c* Joseph
Paul Lamb, USN, with their families, were all
members of the 1st Presbyterian Church of
Bay City. All four service members died during
WWII.
After the cessation of hostilities, and the close of
WWII, their grieving surviving families united
together, and donated the funds required to purchase
a beautiful polished red granite baptismal fount, in
their memory and honor.
In the church Minutes of Session of December 18,
1945, the following brief entry is found: “Session
accepted in the name of the church the Baptismal Urn
which is being presented as a memorial to the boys
who served in World War Two.”
*MOMM1/c is an abbreviation for the Navy rank of
Motor Machinist Mate First Class.
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PALACIOS
MILITARY
MEMORIAL
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Sometime during c1960, the LT. Queen VFW Post 2467
(today Queen-Hamlin Post 2467) and the Greenwood-Curtis
American Legion Post 476 jointly dedicated a flag pole
and beautiful walled flag court to the Palacios
Cemetery. A bronze monument was mounted on the uppermost
part of the wall, beneath the flag pole, dedicating the
court: "In memory of all who honorably served in the
military services of our country". Due to age and
disrepair, the flag court was demolished and replaced
with a pavilion in March 2005. The bronze plaque and the
top portion of the original flag court wall where it was
mounted, were retained and placed on the Northeast
corner of the pavilion.
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Palacios Cemetery
In Memory of
All Who Honorably Served
In the Military Services
of
Our Country
Greenwood-Curtis
Post 476
The American Legion
Lt. Wm. Lloyd
Queen Post 2467
Veterans of Foreign Wars of the
United States
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GENERAL JOHN AUGUSTUS
HULEN, PALACIOS & SITE
OF CAMP HULEN, PALACIOS
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MATAGORDA CITY PARK MEMORIAL
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Matagorda City Park
Within the Matagorda City Park, a war
memorial group monument was erected with a flagpole on
the corner of Fisher and Laurel Streets. The memorial
recognizes members of the community who were killed in
action in World War I and World War II. These
individuals include*: PFC Boyd Scott Dunbar, USA - WWII;
PVT Joe Yeamans, USA - WWI; FO Joseph Beverly Lawhon,
USAAF - WWII. It is unknown when the monument was
dedicated.
*In addition to these casualties, the
following sons of Matagorda also made the highest
sacrifice on the Altar of Freedom: PVT John May
Williams, USA - WWI; PFC Lawrence J. Culver, USA - WWII
and PFC Ruben Cuellar Rodriguez, USMC - KO.
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SACRED HEART CATHOLIC CHURCH
MEMORIAL
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PFC Lawrence
J. Culver
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IN
MEMORIAM
PRIVATE
FIRST CLASS
LAWRENCE JAMES CULVER
UNITED STATES ARMY
AUGUST 3, 1926-MAY 4, 1945 |
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ALTAR BOY SACRED HEART CHURCH EAGLE SCOUT DEFENDER OF HIS COUNTRY FIRST OF HIS PARISH TO DIE IN
WWII REQUIESCAT IN PACE |
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A United States flag has been on public display at
Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Wadsworth, Texas for many
years as a memorial tribute to the memory of PFC
Lawrence J. Culver, USA, who died on May 4, 1945 during
the invasion of Nazi Germany near the end of WWII. It
is unknown who donated the flag, or specifically when it
was placed in the church nave.
Lawrence, as a youth, had served as an altar boy at
Sacred Heart, was an Eagle Scout, and is recognized as
the first person from his parish to die in WWII.
Originally, the flag was proudly hung from a staff and
flag stand near the entrance to the church. Due to its
deteriorating condition as a result of age, the flag was
taken down in 2011 and given to Philip H. Parker VFW
Post 2438 to be ritually destroyed during its annual
flag retirement ceremony. Rather than destroy the flag,
the post carefully cleaned it in 2012, then encased it
in a flag display case, donated by the post. The
encased flag was returned to the church, and placed
above the confessional, near to where it had originally
stood.
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