Office of the Governor
For Immediate Release: Friday, December 13, 2002
For More Information: Bob Mercer or Mike Mueller, 773-3212

Bridge Dedication To Honor Lieutenant Commander Waldron  

(Pierre) – Only a handful of highway bridges span the Missouri River in South Dakota linking the two sides of the state, and one will be dedicated Dec. 30 in memory of a World War II hero, Lieutenant Commander John C. Waldron.

Gov. Bill Janklow said he chose to dedicate the U.S. 14-83 bridge between Pierre and Fort Pierre as the Lt. Cmdr. John Waldron Memorial Bridge as a way to permanently honor the Fort Pierre native and remind future generations of the sacrifices made by Waldron and other veterans.

“Every time someone crosses the bridge, they will see his name. For the people who know his story, the signs will be a reminder. And people who don’t know it, they will wonder, ‘Who was this person, this hero?’” Janklow said.

More than 200 people including members of the Waldron family have been sent special invitations to the noon CT ceremony, which is open to the public. The dedication will take place on the cul-de-sac at the foot of the bridge on the Fort Pierre side, where a bronze marker on a stone will be unveiled.

Lt. Cmdr. Waldron was leader of a torpedo bomber squadron based on the USS Hornet. Knowing they had no fighter protection and couldn’t carry enough fuel to return to their aircraft carrier, he led the 15 planes on an attack on the Japanese fleet at the Battle of Midway on June 4, 1942. Only one of the 30 men survived the attack. Midway was the turning point of World War II in the Pacific theater.

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