Special Exhibit for May 2-June 3: Operation Husky, the Invasion of Sicily
Camp Gordon Johnston WWII Museum in Carrabelle is presenting a special exhibit on Operation Husky, the invasion of Sicily. This exhibit will open Tuesday, May 2 and will be on display at the museum until Saturday, June 3. The museum is open every Tuesday through Saturday from 11 am to 5 pm. The Camp Gordon Johnston WWII Museum will open Sunday May 28 and Monday May 29 to commemorate Memorial Day. Hours will be 12:00 to 4:00 both days. There is no charge for admission, but donations are gladly accepted.
Operation Husky was the invasion of Sicily in 1943, planned by the Allies in North Africa as they swept the Germans and Italians from that continent and prepared to move on Italy. This operation involved a set of top secret diversions, including fake units and communications and the famous ruse by British Intelligence known as Operation Mincemeat, which convinced the Germans that Sicily was not the intended landing after North Africa.
The Museum will reference a set of top secret plans that were printed just 20 days before the commencement of the operation, which involved amphibious landing of infantry and armor as well as parachute operations by the 82nd Airborne. It is also a secret as to why the museum holds this set of plans!
Camp Gordon Johnston WWII Museum is located in Carrabelle, directly across from Carrabelle Public Beach Park at 1873 Hwy 98 West. For more information, contact the museum at (850) 697-8575 or museum@campgordonjohnston.com. Funded in part by the Franklin County Tourist Development Council.
*********************
Special Exhibit for June 6-July15: Commemorating D-Day
Camp Gordon Johnston WWII Museum in Carrabelle is presenting a special exhibit Commemorating D-Day. This exhibit will open on the anniversary of D-Day, Tuesday, June 6, and will be on display until Saturday, July 15. 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.
When Camp Gordon Johnston opened in 1942 in Carrabelle, FL, its main purpose was to train entire infantry divisions, including the U. S. Army’s 4th Infantry Division and their support units in amphibious warfare. This training and the men who trained here would be put to the test on the heavily fortified beaches of Normandy, France on D-Day, June 6, 1944. The first amphibian infantry assault teams to arrive on French soil were from the 4th Infantry Division at Utah Beach. The D-Day invasion was the largest seaborne invasion in history and included over 100,000 Allied troops.
This D-Day exhibit will include the personal papers and other items from the family of Capt. John E. Mellen, who commanded the 818th Amphibious Truck Company and was with them from their training at Camp Gordon Johnston through the end of the war and beyond. The 818th trained at Camp Gordon Johnston late 1943-early 1944. The 818th deployed to England to prepare for the invasion of Normandy and was attached to the 1st Engineer’s Special Brigade and landed on Utah Beach, June 6, 1944. For this they received a Meritorious Unit Citation and Croix de Guerre with palm. Five members of the 818th received Bronze Stars for their actions on that day.
The Carrabelle Beach Assault video will be shown throughout the day running every 10 minutes. This Army training short film shows the D-Day training as it happened on Carrabelle Beach during March of 1943. There are several well-recognized photos of the Carrabelle Beach assaults taken from this video footage, which was filmed by the U.S. Signal Corps. The amphibious training conducted at this site was to be the last training before shipping out to England.
Also during this exhibit, there will be other displays to honor D-Day, including an interview of a 28th Infantry Division veteran that trained at the Camp, the three WWII military vehicles and the replica Higgins Boat on display.
Camp Gordon Johnston WWII Museum is located at 1873 Hwy 98 West, directly across from the very beach where the beach assault training occurred in 1942-1943. Carrabelle Beach was the site of many practice beach assault landings. For more information, contact Camp Gordon Johnston Museum at (850) 697-8575 or museum@campgordonjohnston.com. Funded in part by the Franklin County Tourist Development Council.
*********************
Past Events
Inaugural Camp Gordon Johnston Benefit Golf Tournament Honors Pearl Harbor Day
Camp Gordon Johnston WWII Museum and St. James Bay Golf Club hosted an Inaugural Camp Gordon Johnston Benefit Golf Tournament on the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. This tournament was held on Pearl Harbor Day to honor the brave men and women who responded to our country’s need and served in the armed forces at home and abroad on Saturday, December 7, 2019 at St. James Bay Golf Club in Carrabelle, FL. The Camp Gordon Johnston Museum displayed vehicles and artifacts on site during the tournament. There was be a buffet at the Crooked River Grill in the St. James Bay Clubhouse following the tournament.
All proceeds are earmarked to help fund a new building to house Camp Gordon Johnston’s three historical military vehicles, including the famous WWII DUKW. These historical military vehicles are still operable and because of the lack of space onsite at the museum, currently they must be kept at a separate location.
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.