"This 5 ton anchor taken from the Drake Victory is a memorial to Merchant Marine Veterans of WWII wherever they are. Their casualty rate of 1 to 12 was one of the highest of all services. Dedicated May 22 1993 American Merchant Marine Veterans. Roadrunner Chapter, Albuquerque, New Mexico"
Welcome to my new blog! I have joined The Graveyard Rabbits and am excited about this journey. I am starting this with the Fort Stanton Merchant Marine Cemetery. This cemetery has haunted me since I first came across it. We are in New Mexico, nowhere remotely close to any ocean. Ft. Stanton is up in the Sacramento Mountains and the closest town is Capitan-birthplace of Smokey Bear. Ft. Stanton was established in 1855 to protect the settlers from the attacks by the Mescalero Apaches. The fort had many incarnations, and many famous people were stationed there. Lew Wallace, the territorial governor of New Mexico wrote part of Ben Hur while at the fort. Kit Carson was there along with Buffalo Soldiers, as well as John J. "Blackjack" Pershing. Union soldiers held the fort and so did the Confederate soldiers. Survivors from the German luxury liner The Columbus were brought here after Hitler ordered it scuttled creating the first internment camp on American soil. Later, the fort became a sanitorium and TB patients were brought here. Most of them were merchant marines and thus the graveyard. There are only a few of the stones with dates and names. I have photographed all of the older ones. There are a few of the crew members from The Columbus on the side buried apart from the rest. Recently, local veterans have been allowed to apply to be buried there and there is a new section in the cemetery. It is a vast landscape that greets you as you approach the cemetery and it is starkly beautiful.
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