Special Exhibit for Sept. 2-Oct. 4: Philippines Campaign
Camp Gordon Johnston WWII Museum in Carrabelle is presenting a special exhibit on the Philippines campaign. This exhibit will open on Tuesday, September 2 and be on display until Saturday, October 4. The museum is open every Tuesday through Saturday from 11 am to 5 pm ET. There is no charge for admission, but donations are gladly accepted.
Visitors are invited to learn about the Japanese assault on the Philippines including the Bataan Death March, a brutal forced march of Allied prisoners of war through tropical heat, humidity, and rain. Thousands died along the way due to being starved and beaten and being denied medical care.
The exhibit also explores the long campaign to liberate the islands, starting with the U. S. landing at Leyte on October 20, 1944. In an effort to hold Leyte at all costs, Japan sent five naval forces to challenge the American fleet, leading to the largest and most complex naval battle of World War II, the massive Leyte Gulf Naval Campaign.
The 38th Infantry Division, which trained at Camp Gordon Johnston, earned the nickname “Avengers of Bataan”. This division played a critical role in this campaign. In December 1944, they landed at Leyte under enemy fire with the battle still raging. In the spring of 1945, they fought a tough campaign at Zig Zag Pass in Luzon. After intense combat, the division had cleared Bataan and accepted the formal surrender of two of the most powerful Japanese army groups in the Philippines. General Douglas MacArthur is said to have personally honored them with the title “Avengers of Bataan” for their victory.
Funded in part by the Franklin County Tourist Development Council.
Special Exhibit for Oct. 7 – Nov. 1: Operation Paperclip
Camp Gordon Johnston WWII Museum in Carrabelle is presenting a special exhibit about Operation Paperclip. This exhibit will open on Tuesday, October 7 and be on display through Saturday, November 1. The museum is open every Tuesday through Saturday from 11 am to 5 pm. There is no charge for admission, but donations are gladly accepted.
Operation Paperclip was the secret US campaign to move German scientists, some of whom had Nazi records of wrongdoing, to the US to help develop the rocket technology for defense and eventually space exploration. Keeping these human assets out of the hands of the Soviet Union as the Cold War ramped up required turning a blind eye to their pasts as operatives in the Nazi Regime. These scientists, led by Werner Von Braun, were key to the success of the US missions into space.
This exhibit is a cooperative venture between the Camp Gordon Johnston Museum and the Challenger Learning Center in Tallahassee. The Challenger Learning Center is the K-12 Outreach Facility for the Florida A&M University-Florida State University College of Engineering. Portions of this exhibit will be presented in November at the Challenger Learning Center located at 200 S. Duval Street in Tallahassee.
Funded in part by the Franklin County Tourist Development Council.
Past Events
Sidney A. Winchester Building Dedication at Camp Gordon Johnston Museum
The Camp Gordon Johnston Association and WWII Museum was honored to dedicate our museum building on September 21, 2019 to the late Sidney A. Winchester, a Carrabelle native, U. S. Army veteran and key supporter of Camp Gordon Johnston Museum. We were joined by U.S. Congressman Neal Dunn, M.D. (FL-02) who made two very special presentations during the ceremony. Congressman Dunn presented a container of sand from Utah Beach, Normandy, France to the Camp Gordon Johnston WWII Museum and then presented an American Flag that had flown over the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington D.C. to Sidney Winchester’s wife, Bobbye, who accepted the flag on behalf of the Museum in honor of Sidney’s service both as a paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne and as a charter member and champion of the Camp Gordon Johnston Association. The sand from Utah Beach and the flag will be on display at the Museum. Also on this day, Camp Gordon Johnston Museum celebrated Smithsonian magazine’s 15th annual Museum Day. This national celebration honors museums that follow the example of the Smithsonian with free admission.
Click Here to see the Video of the Dedication Ceremony and Congressman Neal Dunn’s special presentations. Thanks to Mayor Brenda La Paz for this video! Click here to learn more about these events.
