Header Image - Army Museum Memo - Apr/May 2006 Issue

REPORTS FROM JACKSON BARRACKS

Photo: David Hanselman, (left) Director, U.S. Army Transportation Museum and Stan Amerski, Curator, Jackson Barracks Military Museum, in the ruins of the museum's theater.  Photos courtesy of David Hanselman and M. Sgt. Dennis Lapic, Military History Detachment.
David Hanselman, (left) Director, U.S. Army Transportation Museum and Stan Amerski, Curator,
Jackson Barracks Military Museum, in the ruins of the museum’s theater.
Photos courtesy of David
Hanselman and M. Sgt. Dennis Lapic, Military History Detachment.


The Army Museum System
Jackson Barracks Assessment Team Report

7–10 October 2005
David Hanselman, Director
U.S. Army Transportation Museum
Fort Eustis, VA

Soon after the water began to subside from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, members of the Army Museum System began preparations to lend assistance to those hit the hardest, but before a team could be deployed Hurricane Rita struck the coast with an additional devastating blow.

On 3 October, the Center of Military History received the official request from the Louisiana National Guard to

 

deploy an assessment team into the New Orleans region. The mission of the team was to conduct an initial assessment of the Jackson Barracks Museum and formulate a recovery action plan.

A four member team was established consisting of Dennis Mroczkowski, Director of the Casemate Museum and the team leader, Lynden Couvillion (Couvi), Supervisory Curator of the Army Historical Clearinghouse at Anniston Army Depot, Jeffrey Kimball, Chief Conservator of the Army Museum System and myself, the local interpreter, headed for New Orleans on 7 October. Couvi and I linked up in Alabama and drove a van full of supplies to New Orleans, while Dennis and Jeff flew into New Orleans to begin the coordination efforts. The team was headquartered at the Belle Chasse Naval Air Station in tents and once we linked up and conducted initial meetings with senior members of the Joint Emergency Operations Center (JEOC), the then team traveled to the hard hit Ninth Ward.

The entire city and surrounding areas were reeling from the effects of the hurricanes, but the Ninth Ward was reminiscent of the war torn streets of Baghdad. The entire area was void of civilians. With a military blockade of the area, only military personnel and authorized government agencies were allowed into the region. With armed roadblocks and roving patrols moving through areas of total destruction, it was hard to believe we were still in the United States.

When we arrived at Jackson Barracks, we found an area totally devastated by both hurricanes. Mr. Stanley Amerski, Curator of Jackson Barracks greeted the team and gave all the members a quick overview of the destruction. During the next three days, the team conducted thorough inspections of the museum buildings and grounds, the macro artifacts and collections. My 305th Military History Detachment was also deployed to the area and I joined the team for two days to help photograph the damage. The team also met with Alan Aiches of FEMA to initiate requests for FEMA support and brief him on the team’s findings.

Every building on site was flooded with ten to fourteen feet of water and nothing was left undamaged. To add to the misery of the devastation, a forty foot refrigerated van was dumped onto the front gate by the floods. Filled with four week old rotting meat, the area became a haven for flies. Polluted water, mold, rust and mildew were rampant throughout the collection and buildings, and with no electricity or running water, recovery would be an incredible challenge.

Despite the epic challenge confronting Stan, his attitude and dedication to saving the museum was inspiring. His spirit made it very difficult for the team to leave, but the mission was to develop a recovery plan and submit it to CMH where follow-on support could be coordinated. On the last day, Dennis briefed Brig. Gen.

 

Downer, LaARNG, on the critical needs of the museum and immediate support from the National Guard was initiated. The team departed on 10 October with a photo

 

Photo: A collapsed fence around Jackson Barracks. Photograph courtesy of David Hanselman.
A collapsed fence around Jackson Barracks.
Photograph courtesy of David Hanselman.

 

Photo: Damage to the exhibit area at Jackson Barracks. Above and below photographs courtesy of Dennis Mroczkowski, Assessment Team Leader.
Damage to the exhibit area at Jackson Barracks.
Above and below photographs courtesy of Dennis Mroczkowski, Assessment Team Leader.

Photo: Damage to the exhibit area at Jackson Barracks. Above and below photographs courtesy of Dennis Mroczkowski, Assessment Team Leader.

     
 
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Photo: Gen. Pershing’s car already showing signs of rust.
Gen. Pershing’s car already showing signs of rust.

 

Photo: The Collections area after the storm.
The Collections area after the storm.

     
 
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Photo: David Hanselman observes the eleven foot waterline mark near the top of the flag stand.
David Hanselman observes the eleven foot
waterline mark near the top of the flag stand.

Photo: Stan Amerski in the water damaged Collection area.

Stan Amerski in the water damaged Collection area.
     
 
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Photo: Stan Amerski inspects mold on artwork.
Stan Amerski inspects mold on artwork.

 

Photo: The triage area.
The triage area.

     
 
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Photo: Triage on a scabbard.
Triage on a scabbard.


Photo: Rusting blades from the storm’s water.
Rusting blades from the storm’s water.

     
 
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Illinois Team Helps Louisiana Guard Preserve History: Jackson Barracks Museum in Recovery of Damaged Military Flags, Guidons
Tim Franklin, Public Affairs
Illinois Army and Air National Guard
Springfield, IL

Editor’s Note: This article is reprinted with permission from the Department of Military Affairs, Illinois Army and Air National Guard.

Photo: Maj. Mark Whitlock displays a framed flag that was submerged under the flood water and sustained extensive damage due to prolonged exposure and saturation within the frame. All photographs courtesy of James W. Patton, Museum Volunteer, Illinois State Military Museum.
Maj. Mark Whitlock displays a framed flag that was submerged under the flood water and sustained extensive damage due to prolonged exposure and saturation within the frame. All photographs courtesy of James W. Patton, Museum Volunteer, Illinois State Military Museum.
A team from the Illinois National Guard and Illinois State Military Museum recently returned from an eighteen-day tour in New Orleans where they worked to help the Louisiana National Guard recover and preserve military artifacts damaged as a result of Hurricane Katrina.

Louisiana called upon the expertise of Maj. Mark Whitlock, director of the Information System Security Manager (ISSM) at Camp Lincoln, and a team of assistants from the Illinois Guard to assist in the Katrina recovery effort at the Louisiana National Guard’s Jackson Barracks Military Museum. The Illinois team’s mission was to recover the Louisiana museum’s historic collection of flags and guidons. The team consisted of three museum professionals with specific knowledge in object handling and the preservation of historic flags.

Joining Whitlock was James Patton, a retired employee of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency with more than 30 years of military and preservation experience, who volunteered to assist in the recovery efforts. Also on the recovery team was Spc. Paul

 

Golladay, an Illinois Army Guardsman who works at the Illinois State Military Museum.

“With this team I knew that we could offer useful assistance and help preserve a portion of the military heritage of the Louisiana National Guard damaged by the hurricane,” said Whitlock. “I felt that it was important for the National Guard ‘museum community’ to come to the aid of one of our most prized and significant museums in a time of need.”

The Illinois team arrived at Jackson Barracks Dec. 5, 2005, where they joined with a team from West Virginia and toured the flood-damaged museum facility to work out a game plan for recovery operations. The first several days of the museum recovery operation involved establishing a suitable recovery location, set-up and locating and moving flags, guidons and other artifacts to the recovery facility.

“We faced a challenge in removing large framed flags that were stored in the mobile aisle system in the

Photo: Gentle Cleaning: Spc. Paul Golladay of the 644th Personnel Services Battalion and Illinois State Military Museum staff uses a spray bottle of water to gently clean a historic guidon of the Louisiana National Guard. The guidon was submerged in mud and flood waters at Jackson Barracks Military Museum during Hurricane Katrina and Rita.
Gentle Cleaning: Spc. Paul Golladay of the 644th Personnel Services Battalion and Illinois State Military Museum staff uses a spray bottle of water to gently clean a historic guidon of the Louisiana National Guard. The guidon was submerged in mud and flood waters at Jackson Barracks Military Museum during Hurricane Katrina and Rita.

     
 
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conservatory because the flood water had caused the system to stop working,” said Whitlock. “As we removed the frames and glass from the large Spanish-American War flags, we found they had originally been taped and stapled to their cardboard backing, which made it nearly impossible to remove them without causing additional damage.” In most cases the guidons were submerged in fresh water and gently cleaned by hand with a soft sponge and hung up or laid flat to dry. However, in the case of several flags, such as a World War II Japanese flag, it simply dissolved when placed in the clean water. After the washing process, which eventually included small amounts of liquid Lysol to eliminate odors and kill mold, the flags and guidons were hung on a clothes line or supported flat to dry.
Photo: Maj. Mark Whitlock (left), Director Illinois State Military Museum and Specialist Paul Golladay inspect the condition of a damaged guidon prior to completing the delicate cleaning process.
Maj. Mark Whitlock (left), Director Illinois State Military Museum and Specialist Paul Golladay inspect the condition of a damaged guidon prior to completing the delicate cleaning process.
During the eighteen-day deployment to Jackson Barracks the team recovered, cleaned, identified, registered, tagged and rested 127 guidons and flags and began the recovery process on about another twenty. These additional items will be treated by the museum curator with assistance by our team, during our follow-on visit in February. According to Whitlock, many lessons were learned from the recovery effort that will provide a broader understanding and appreciation of museum planning, collections management, accountability, disaster planning and disaster recovery. The Illinois team plans to return to Louisiana during the first week of February to provide follow-on help in the effort to recover the military history of the Louisiana National Guard damaged by Katrina.
 
Photo: Careful handling was required to recover and preserve many of the delicate historic military artifacts. A three-person team and later an eight person team from Illinois and Pennsylvania, spent a total of four weeks in New Orleans supporting the Museum Curator Stan Amerski with his salvage efforts.
Careful handling was required to recover and preserve many of the delicate historic military artifacts. A three-person team and later an eight person team from Illinois and Pennsylvania, spent a total of four weeks in New Orleans supporting the Museum Curator Stan Amerski with his salvage efforts.
 
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Helpful Sources for Common Sense Conservation
John Paschal, Museum Specialist
Museum Division
U.S. Army Center of Military History
Fort McNair, DC

Anyone who has tried reading a book on conservation practices has more than likely found themselves lost in a maze of mathematical and chemical equations. By no means does this mean that you should give up on reading conservation manuals or looking at conservation web pages. Many of these same manuals and web pages contain helpful information to the average museum professional that can be used almost anytime. The Getty Conservation Institute has an excellent book on the design and construction of oxygen free cases. As you start reading the book it will quickly become apparent that, 1. the book is filled with chemical equations; and 2.
the costs associated with building this kind of case is cost prohibitive for most museums. But this book has a lot to teach you with regards to materials, chemicals and design techniques for building cases. If you give the books and web pages meant for conservators a chance, you will find yourself able to glean a large amount of useful information from them.

The following is a list of helpful sites.

♦ Canadian Conservation Institute
www.cci-icc.gc.ca/
Excellent site from the Ministry of Culture. You can go into the Conservation Information database (left side of screen) and find several excellent publications available as free downloads. These include:

Jean Te’treault, Display Materials; the Good, the Bad and the Ugly; Guidelines for Selecting Materials for Exhibit, Storage and Transportation; Oak display cases; Conservation Problems and Solutions; Guidelines for Selecting and Using Coatings

♦ National Park Service, Harpers Ferry Center:
www.nps.gov/hfc/products/exhibits/index.htm
Great site that covers general museum exhibit practices. A National Park Service publication well worth the money is Exhibit Conservation Guidelines, available on CD ($49.95).

♦ Getty Conservation Institute:
www.getty.edu/conservation/
A very good site with many of the Getty publications, which are very specific (textiles, preservation of historic structures). I would suggest the following publications both of which are now available as free PDF downloads;

 

The Feasibility of Using Modified Atmospheres to Control Insect Pests in Museums, by Michael K Rust and Janice M Kenney, and Oxygen Free Museum Cases, by Shin Maekawa

♦ Conservation on Line (COOL):
http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/

This is basically a catch all site that lists suppliers, other web pages, etc. It contains a large section of published studies and technical papers covering every topic imaginable.

One of the Army Museum Systems best resources is Jeff Kimball, our full time Conservator here in the Museum Division. Jeff is available online at Jeffrey.Kimball@hqda.army.mil, or by phone 202-685-
2455.

Photo: Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, Gen. Richard Cody (right) with Maj. Gen. Thomas Turner (center) and Cmd. Sgt. Maj. Frank
Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, Gen. Richard Cody (right) with Maj. Gen. Thomas Turner (center) and Cmd. Sgt. Maj. Frank

Vice Chief of Staff Visits the Don F. Pratt
Museum (FWD) in Iraq

John O’Brien, Installation Historian
Fort Campbell, KY

Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, Gen. Richard Cody, visited Task Force Band of Brothers, the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), at FOB Speicher last month. Gen. Cody has a long association with the 101st. He served as commander, 1-101st Aviation Battalion during OPERATION DESERT STORM and led the famous “Task Force Normandy” attack helicopter raid to Baghdad in order to cripple Iraqi air defense in preparation for the beginning of the air campaign in January 1991. Gen. Cody also served as Division Commander of the 101st during the 9/11 time frame and oversaw the deployment of the Division’s “Task Force Rakassan” to Afghanistan in 2002.

While with the Division in Iraq last month Gen.

     
 
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Cody reenlisted twenty-five Soldiers at the Don F. Pratt Museum (FWD) also located at the Division’s Headquarters. A central feature of the Headquarters, our mini-museum, is under the control of Capt. Jim Page, the division’s forward deployed historian, and supported by the museum staff back at Fort Campbell. The Don F. Pratt (FWD) serves as a reminder to our deployed Soldiers that they take our history and heritage with them wherever they go and that we, the professional history and museum staff who support them, are with them to chronicle our continuing rendezvous with destiny.

The Winedale Museum Seminar Returns

The Winedale Museum Seminar Returns
John O’Brien, Installation Historian
Fort Campbell, KY

Many of the seasoned members of the Army museum community will remember the Winedale, TX, museum seminars that for such a long time filled the gap in Army Museum professional education. Winedale is one of four divisions of the Center for American History and is located in in Round Top, TX. It is associated with the University of Texas at Austin and provides the facilities and location for a collection care core curriculum course conducted by the university’s Austin staff and augmented by noted museum professionals.

The Army Museum System’s close association with Winedale waned for a time with the development of our own Army Curatorial Methods Courses. The university scaled back the Winedale program for several years, but this year, the University of Texas is back in the professional museum development arena is a big way.

Included in a major expansion of their museum studies degree program has been a renewed commitment to bring back Winedale seminars for the new and midcareer museum professional. The reinvigorated program will feature an annual program on even years for new professionals (a curatorial course) and a professional development course on odd years for mid-career

 

professionals (specific topics in museum management).

This past January, Amy Decker of the Military Police Museum, Bob Anzuoni of the Signal Corps Museum, and John O’Brien of the Don F. Pratt Museum attended one of these reinvigorated Winedale seminars. The consensus was that the staff, facilities, expert guest instructors, field trips to local museums and public history sites, and camaraderie with a very fine group of museum professionals was truly first class. It is our recommendation that museum directors consider the Winedale experience when developing their annual professional education training plans for their staffs.

Additional information about the Winedale program can be found at http://www.cah.utexas.edu/divisions/ Winedale.html. Denise Mayorga is the POC at Winedale and her email address is d.mayorga@utexas.edu.

 

 

 

The Army Museum Memo is published bimonthly (except for the Nov/Dec/Jan issue) and distributed to all activities that comprise the Army Museum System. The primary objective of the Memo is to inform Army museums and museum activities of recent developments and operations that may affect the Army Museum Program. The information contained in this publication is provided for the edification of the reader only. In no way shall any information contained herein be construed as a recommendation or endorsement of any product, program, or service.

Terry Van Meter (DAMH-MD)
Director of Army Museums

J. Terry Dougherty (DAMD-MDM)
Acting Chief, Museum Division

Lynden Couvillion (DAMH-MDH)
Chief, Historical Clearinghouse Branch (Anniston)

Walter Bradford (DAMD-MDC)
Acting Chief, Collections Branch and Staff Curator

Julia Simon (DAMH-MDM) Army Museum Memo Staff

     
 
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Last updated 12 September 2006