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KINGSTON — The Kingston Historical Society is hoping to finance a memorial to those from the borough who served in World War II by selling a bit of history.
The society plans to sell a revised edition of the “ABCD Club Book,” which was originally published in the 1940s and provided to men and women who served in the military during World War II.
The book contains photos of the West Side and downtown Wilkes-Barre, which society member Tom Mooney said would have been young person’s “whole world,” before they entered the service.
The society will hold a kickoff event for sales of the book at its next meeting at 6 p.m. on Nov. 10 at Hoyt Memorial Library. Proceeds from sales of the book, which will be $5 at the event, will go to a memorial for those from the borough who served in World War II.
Originally, an Honor Roll with the names of about 2,500 borough residents stood in front of the Hoyt Library. Mooney said he is certain that the original memorial was taken down sometime before 1963.
“I have a photo that clearly shows that the area of the lawn where the WWII Honor Roll originally stood was clear by 1963,” he said. “It was removed well before the flood of 1972.”
The group has possession of a photo of the memorial from 1943 with about 1,600 veterans named on the memorial.
According to society President Judi Nunemacher, about 1,000 more veterans were added during the course of the war.
Mooney said the war had a marked impact on the borough.
“Eighty-two people lost their lives,” he said. “And others were prisoners of war.”
Approximately 20,000 residents lived in Kingston at the time of the war and about 2,600 served in the military, according to Mooney.
As for the club behind the original book, Mooney said it seemed to have existed solely for the purpose of publishing the book.
“It seemed to have been an ad-hoc organization,” he said. “We have no record of it except in regard to the publication.”
In addition to sales of the updated version of the book, Mooney hopes that residents will bring out World War II memorabilia to share with the public for the event.
Mooney’s offering will be a 5-foot-by-7-foot, World War II flag, which is one of the largest of its kind in the area.
Society Vice President Isabel Pisaneschi said memorabilia offered for the event could range from military-themed items to items from the home front that reflected the realities of war.
“They didn’t make toys out of metal at the time because metal was needed for war,” she said. “So people have paper mache toys — toy soldiers or even model trains.”
Nunemacher said the exact specifications of the memorial have yet to be determined.
“It all really depends on how much money we raise,” she said.
Club members said at the very least a enlarged framed photo of the original Honor Roll with the names of those it honored will be commissioned by the organization.