by Geoff Fox
After students from Hancock High School made a trip to the town’s museum in the basement of Town Hall, members of the Hancock Historical Society realized they needed to update the military pictures and information in the museum.
Former Mayor Dan Murphy said it had been a dream of his for some time to have high school students, or even elementary students, make it a point to see the museum.
A group of ninth grade students from the high school went to the museum on November 12 to connect with local history and the migrant workers in the orchards around Hancock.
The students had been reading Of Mice and Men which had a lot of information about migrant workers.
By going to the museum, students could discuss the town’s history with migrants as well.
After learning about the orchard workers from members of the Hancock Historical Society, students were able to walk around the museum and look at the pieces of history and ask questions.
Along the way, they saw pictures of relatives, especially in the room dedicated to Hancock’s veterans and military history.
Murphy said students would see the pictures and say, “That’s my pap!”
“It was fun to answer questions and ask them what they knew about their family’s background with military service and what the assembly had been like,” Murphy said referring to the high school’s annual Veterans Day Ceremony held the day before.
photos by Geoff Fox
Murphy said it inspired the Historical Society members to see the kids respond the way they did, but it also reminded them it’s been a while since they’ve had any updates to the veterans’ room.
It’s been since before covid that the Historical Society had put out a plea for any Hancock veterans to submit their information.
“You got a bunch of young men and women who served since this new millennium or this new century, or whatever,” Murphy said.
The veterans collection used to be a rotating collection put out for Veterans Day, Memorial Day, and when the museum was busy. Now it just stays up.
So, Murphy and the Hancock Historical Society is putting out a plea to those who have served that might not have their picture and service recorded in the museum.
All the Historical Society is looking for is a picture, be it an official military picture, candid picture, or whatever can be provided.
There are pictures of all sizes currently on display in the museum ranging from 8×10’s to smaller and larger sizes in the museum.
“If they have it in a frame, that helps us, but if they don’t, we’ll frame it,” he said.
Murphy said photos should be accompanied with information including the veterans name, branch, rank, when and where they served, and any job they might have had during their service.
In giving an example, Murphy looked at a picture of Buck Cubbage from WWII who served in the 3rd U.S. Army Infantry and was killed in 1944 while serving in France.
Any stories the veteran might have can be included and any awards they might have earned during their service.
Any relics or items brought back as a trophy could also be donated.
As it sits, the museum is heavy on WWII, with few from Korea, and some from Vietnam.
There’s relics from WWI through Vietnam, such as uniforms, flags, newspapers, books, medals, and displays.
Murphy pointed out a unit flag from Vietnam and a list of soldiers from Hancock in that unit.
When it comes to veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, “I’m not sure if we have any of those young people here,” he said about the collection.
Murphy added he knows of a few who had served in those wars.
“We need to get them up,” Murphy said.
If you are a Hancock veteran and haven’t donated a picture and information to the Hancock Historical Society’s museum, you can drop it and information off to the town office at Town Hall.
Murphy said he’s already cleared it with the secretaries at the office since no one is at the museum on a regular basis.
“Right now, it’s certainly heaviest on World War II, which would have had the most number of guys from our community, but we need to make sure the Korean Veterans, the Vietnam Veterans, and then the Desert Storm and the Iraq, Afghanistan stuff is included, too,” he said.
Murphy said the Historical Society has names recorded back to the Revolutionary War, of which the town’s namesake, Joseph Hancock, served.
The Hancock Museum is located in the basement of Town Hall and is open the second and fourth Sunday of the month from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
