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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Jan. 29, 2010
CONTACT: Jeff Mammenga, Media Coordinator, (605) 773-6000, Jeff.Mammenga@state.sd.us
Scrapbook of WWII Honor Guard Veteran Donated to State Historical Society
PIERRE, S.D. – The South Dakota State Historical Society-Archives recently received the military scrapbook of the late William Adney.
Adney, a Watertown native, served in General Douglas MacArthur’s Honor Guard in Japan after World War II.
The Honor Guard originated in May 1945 for the purpose of guarding MacArthur’s headquarters and residence. Nearly 2,000 men served in the general’s Honor Guard during its six-year existence. Members of the elite unit were selected on the basis of military bearing, intelligence, and physical stature. MacArthur’s Honor Guard had representatives from every combat division of the U.S. Army in the Pacific.
Adney was the only South Dakotan to serve in MacArthur’s Honor Guard. Adney’s scrapbook includes a number of black-and-white snapshots taken in Japan of the Honor Guard members.
Adney also was a Korean War veteran and served with the Army’s 25th Division, 35th Regiment. His scrapbook includes both black-and-white and color images taken in Korea during the war. The scrapbook also contains currency from Japan and Korea.
William Adney died in 2006. His niece, who lives in Wisconsin, donated the scrapbook.
Adney mentioned in a May 2001 interview for the Selby Record, “Today, the members of the Honor Guard are in their seventies, some their eighties. We are at that stage in life when we see events of the past in better perspective and have deeper appreciation of the greatness of our country and the outstanding contributions made by General MacArthur.”
Two additional State Archives collections, the Gerald Martinmaas and Joseph J. Selzler collections, include photos taken by South Dakota Veterans who served during the Occupation of Japan.
The State Archives, located in the Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre, is open Monday through Friday and the first Saturday of each month from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. CST. Contact the archives by phone at (605) 773-3804 or e-mail archref@state.sd.us
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The South Dakota State Historical Society is a division of the Department of Tourism and State Development and strives to help the state meet the goals of the 2010 Initiative by enhancing history as a tool for economic development and cultural tourism. The society is headquartered at the South Dakota Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre. The center houses the society’s world-class museum, the archives, and the historic preservation, publishing and administrative/development offices. Call (605) 773-3458 or visit www.history.sd.gov for more information. The society also has an archaeology office in Rapid City; call (605) 394-1936 for more information.