American Battle Monuments Commission adds new panels to Netherlands American Cemetery

The American Battle Monuments Commission is pleased to announce the introduction of several new pieces of exhibit content at the Netherlands American Cemetery Visitor Center in the Dutch village of Margraten in the coming weeks.

Among the new displays is an exhibit recounting the cemetery's early foundation in November 1944 as a temporary site to bury fallen American troops prior its formal dedication in 1960-a process similar to most of ABMC's other cemeteries. The text recognizes the service of both the American military units and the Dutch civilians whose efforts helped to create the original site in Margraten.

"These new displays have been methodically designed and researched to ensure they are not only historically accurate, but that they also fit within the thematic design of the original space," said ABMC Historian Ben Brands, Ph.D. "Adding content also allows us to tell more stories of the individuals we commemorate."

The cemetery staff is also adding nine new U.S. Army service member panels to the visitor center's existing rotation.

Above: The new service member panels at the Netherlands American Cemetery feature (left to right, alphabetically): 2nd Lt. Arthur Barks, 1st. Lt. Christine Gasvoda, Pfc. Lawrence Grimes, Pvt. Wilbur Grimes, Pvt. Jacob Herman Jr., Sgt. Kenneth Kim, 2nd Lt. Russell Morse, Pfc. Paul Paternell, Pfc. Caswell Taylor, and Pvt. Richard Willoughby.

The new panel displays include:

• 2nd Lt. Arthur E. Barks, a Rhode Island native who served as a navigator in the 701st Bomber Squadron. He was mortally wounded on Dec. 22, 1943, and buried at sea. His name appears on the cemetery's Walls of the Missing.
• 1st Lt. Christine A Gasvoda, a Michigan native and flight nurse with the 817th Medical Air Evacuation Squadron. She was killed in a plane crash on a resupply and evacuation mission from France to Germany.
• Pfc. Lawrence A. Grimes and Pvt. Wilbur E. Grimes, brothers from Ohio who were killed within nine days of each other in Germany and Italy, respectively. They are one of 41 pairs of brothers buried at the cemetery.
• Pvt. Jacob T. Herman Jr., a South Dakota native of the Ogala Sioux Tribe who served as a paratrooper in the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment. He took part in Operation Market Garden, and was killed on Sept. 22, 1944, at age 19.
• Sgt. Kenneth H. Kim, a native of Pennsylvania, who was assigned to the 309th Engineer Combat Battalion. He was grievously wounded while clearing enemy mines in Germany, and was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star.
• 2nd Lt. Russell C. Morse, a native of Indiana who served in the 3rd Civil Affairs Regiment, tasked with rebuilding civil governments in Europe. He was killed by a mortar explosion on March 10, 1945.
• Pfc. Paul Paternell, a native of Pennsylvania who served in the 121st Infantry Regiment. He went missing while fighting on Hill 400 in the Hürtgen Forest in Germany. His name is etched in the cemetery's Walls of the Missing, though his remains were later recovered and buried at ABMC's Ardennes American Cemetery in Belgium.
• Pfc. Caswell Taylor, a native of Illinois who served with the 1510th Engineer Water Supply Company, which was assigned to construction and water systems installations. One month before V-E Day-on April 9, 1945-he was killed in vehicle collision in Holland.
• Pvt. Richard Willoughby, a native of North Carolina, was a member of a platoon of African Americans who volunteered as infantrymen and were integrated into the 273rd Infantry Regiment. He was killed in action during the capture of the town of Hann Munden on April 7, 1945.

"ABMC does not hold wartime records, so our interpretive guides and historians have to conduct research using primary source material, and it can be difficult to piece together ample information on each of the service members commemorated at our sites," said Brands. "We are always grateful when we can develop a fuller picture of who these individuals were, as a means of sharing their legacy and honoring their sacrifice."

In addition to being shared at the Netherlands American Cemetery's Visitor Center and as part of the site's guided tours, the information from these new displays can help to further populate ABMC's Burial and Memorialization Electronic Directory-known as BMeD-the agency's publicly searchable authoritative source on commemorative records across its cemeteries.

The visitor center was dedicated in December 2023, and tells the story of more than 10,000 U.S. service members buried or commemorated at the cemetery who were killed in the efforts to liberate Europe during World War II. The exhibits highlight the different campaigns and battles of the war through a mix of narrative text, photos, artifacts, a short film, and the personal stories of some of the service members buried in the cemetery.

About Netherlands American Cemetery:

Netherlands American Cemetery | American Battle Monuments Commission

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