New Bedford Guide Your Guide to New Bedford and South Coast, MA
The Fort Taber Fort Rodman Historical Association, Inc. will host its annual Veterans’ Appreciation Day on Friday, November 11th. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the museum hosting this annual open house that follows the annual Veterans’ Day parades and observances throughout the Greater New Bedford area. The museum will be open, free to the public. To date approximately 90,000 people have visited the museum where “Every Day is Veterans’ Day.”
From 6:00AM to 10:00AM, Phil Paleologos and the WBSM Morning Program will broadcast from the museum. Veterans and family of military veterans are encouraged to drop by and say hello to Phil.
Starting at 1:00PM the museum will offer light refreshments to recognize our area veterans and their families.
And at 2:30PM the museum will host an awards ceremony to honor Mattapoisett resident Theodor “Ted” Pedersen who will receive the Norwegian Defense Commemorative Medallion for his service as part of the 99th Battalion of the United States Army during WWII.
The 99th infantry Battalion (Separate) was activated at Camp Ripley, Minnesota on August 15, 1942 as per written instructions by the War Department. This unique elite unit was to consist only of Norwegians and Americans with direct Norwegian descent. Soldiers picked out for this elite unit had to have a working knowledge of the Norwegian language and preferably already knowing how to ski. The unit was set up for a possible invasion and liberation of Norway, but saw combat action in France, Belgium and Germany before becoming the 99th Battalion of the 474th Infantry Regiment (Separate) and being sent to Norway in June 1945 to disarm the German occupational force.
Many Norwegian seamen were stranded on Norwegian ships around the world, and for those that wanted to fight for Norway, the 99th Battalion became a solution. In addition there were of course a relatively large number of soldiers in the United States Army which were either first or second generation Norwegian immigrants and were hand-picked for this unit.
For further information please contact Joseph Langlois 508-996-3850 or Bob Bromley 774-357-9591
