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How are the 55 Aggies who served in World War I and died on active duty commemorated?

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Fifty-five flags fly over Kyle Field at each football game, there is a granite memorial located at the West Gate, and their names are on the plaques in the entrance to the Memorial Student Center.

We were taught that the 55 trees surrounded the main drill field were memorials for these Aggies as well. Does anyone else remember that?

That was in the book, except it said 53 trees (and KIA) when I was a fish and 51 when I was a sophomore. Then as a junior it said there was a plaque attached to the base of each tree (which doesn't exist). Then we went to count the trees and found 30-something. That part of the campo was removed the next year

When I was there some 4+ years ago it was something along the lines of

"There are commemorative plaques attached to each of the 55 trees that surround Simpson Drill Field, 55 five flags fly over Kyle Field at each football game, and there is a granite memorial located at the West Gate."

Although that doesn't sound 100% accurate, I'll need to pull out my cadence and look it up at some point.

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their names are on the plaques in the entrance to the Memorial Student Center

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The names on the bronze plaque at the north entrance to the MSC are Aggies who died in WWII, not WWI.

Why is bigtruck's post yellow?

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Then as a junior it said there was a plaque attached to the base of each tree (which doesn't exist).

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I remember seeing plaques by the trees in the 80's

This is what it was

"A commemorative plaque is attached to the trunk of each of the 55 trees that surround the Simpson Drill Field. 55 flags fly over Kyle Field at each football game, and there is a granite memorial located at the west gate"

But I'm fairly certain that even as a fish there weren't 55 trees, and there weren't any plaques.

I also seem to recall reading an article in the batt, or hearing somewhere, that several of the trees were infected with something and had to be removed.

[This message has been edited by bigtruckguy3500 (edited 7/22/2013 9:18p).]

I never counted the trees, but in my day there were plaques at about eye level on the trees, facing the street. I recall it was about a 3 inch by 8 inch bit of silver metal, with the name and class year engraved. Below that was the place of death, and of course, many of those were famous battles: Argonne, Château-Thierry, etc.

I recall one that said simply: "Submarine".

What Canyon describes was still in place Fall '88 when I was a fish. I definitely remember the plaques with names, dates, battles.

As for the number of trees, thanks for the link to the article.

The talk of replacing trees and taking trees out reminds me of the big uproar over the (I think it was 3) Live Oak Trees that were removed over Christmas Break '89 at the MSC. Students protested during Fall '89 so... they just waited until the students went home. When REM played at G. Rollie White, Michael Stipe even mentioned it.

Wasn't the WWI West Gate Memorial moved over to the Quad a few years back due to construction in the West Gate area? Seems like I've seen it over there sometime recently...

[This message has been edited by DogCo84 (edited 7/24/2013 8:56a).]

The Texas Aggie Corps of Cadets Association has a plan underway to replace each of the plaques at the base of each tree. To do this right is going to cost somewhere in the $10,000 range.

If you need more information please call Don Crawford'64 at (877) 892-4222.

These plaques have been gone for too long. This project needs to happen in 2013-2014 school year.


Out

"Never forget who we are or where we come from, never forget the Aggie Code of Honor and never forget Duty, Honor, Country." President Gates

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This project needs to happen by the end of the 2017-2018 school year, to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the end of WWI.

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FIFY

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Wasn't the WWI West Gate Memorial moved over to the Quad a few years back due to construction in the West Gate area?

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Original construction of the Bell Tower caused the WWI memorial to be moved off campus to a storage site. Unfortunately the class of 1924 was celebrating their 60th reunion that year and no one had told them that the memorial had been moved. As expected those members of the class of 1924 were not too happy to not see that memorial in the spot that it had occupied for 55+ years.

The plaques were on the trees around the Drill Field when I was a fish in 1970-1971. Remember having to clean one that spring. I am thinking they were stainless steel, about the size of an index card. LTG Simpson '36, USMC (Ret), did not show up on campus until my zip year - he had gotten some civilian type job with the Student Services band of gypsies. He was rather dour and had the entire Corps attend a briefing in the brand new MSC theater in April 1974 to chew us out for treating fish so bad and how our procedures for whipping out were atrocious in his mind. The White Band tinkle tops had placed 2 chickens into the 1SG's room over spring break, along with enough chicken feed to keep them alive. Once this was discovered by said 1SG upon return to Dorm 11 that Sat afternoon, those tinkle tops were 'taken off' stairwell privileges starting Sun CQ. It was amusing watching p-heads crawl up the handrails from floor to floor. And the fish acting like they were invisible. This lasted for a few days until the Trigon got wind of it. Simpson talked about this crime in detail at that briefing. We laughed it off and thought the old guy batty. Years later they name the Drill Field for him. Yawn.



[This message has been edited by WBBQ74 (edited 7/28/2013 10:11p).]

WBBQ74 - that's hilarious - thanks for sharing!
Closest I can come during my era was when a couple of class of '89 guys took one of the big green "Gumby" mattresses and blocked in the shower on the south end of 3rd floor Dorm 11 and made it into a swimming pool. Then somebody thought it would be hilarious to put a duck in there. So there was this duck swimming around in the pool created in the shower.