DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker at this site tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Now, Palestine, Texas has had the railroad running through its veins since 1872 — and if you understand that one fact, the rest of this story falls into place like a good hand of cards. World War II comes rolling in, and Palestine finds itself more than a hundred miles from the nearest military installation.
No base nearby, no obvious way for a small East Texas town to put its hand on the war effort. But then — those tracks. Those same tracks that had been defining this town for decades.
Trainloads of soldiers started passing right through, and the people of Palestine looked at each other and said, we can do something with that. In June of 1942, area residents organized a service group — inspired by the USO, but standing on its own two feet, independent from it. A woman named Zula Hanks stepped up to oversee the whole operation: the fundraising, the chaperoning, the day-to-day management.
And she had scores of local women working alongside her, volunteers every one. They set up their club in a room at the O'Neil Hotel — right here, right across Spring Street from those railroad tracks. Now think about what they were offering.
Refreshments. Letter-writing materials. Music.
Dancing. Conversation. Simple things, maybe, but to a young soldier on a troop train headed somewhere he didn't want to think about too hard, those things were about as far from simple as you can get.
And for the soldiers who couldn't leave the trains — couldn't even step off for five minutes — the women took sandwiches and cookies right down the line to them. They came to the soldiers when the soldiers couldn't come to them. Here's a part of this story that deserves to be said plainly and without rushing past it: the Palestine group also financially supported a separate Negro Service Club, one that served African American troops who often rode at the back of the trains, farther down the line from this point.
The community recognized that obligation and met it. That matters. From around the country, military service people sent their thanks back to Palestine — through letters, and through recorded messages on what they called Recordgrams.
Voices preserved, gratitude made permanent. The volunteers never let up. They kept at it through the final days of the war, and when the last troop train came through Palestine, it was January 1st, 1946 — the first day of a new year, and the closing of a chapter.
A town more than a hundred miles from the nearest military installation had figured out how to be right at the center of the war effort anyway. All it took was a set of railroad tracks, a room at the O'Neil Hotel, and the kind of people who show up.
What the marker says
Since 1872, the railroad has been a defining aspect of Palestine. During World War II, with the town more than a hundred miles from the nearest military installation, the railroad gave local citizens the opportunity to show their support to trainloads of soldiers passing through the city. In June 1942, area residents organized a service group inspired by, but independent from, the United Service Organizations (USO). Zula Hanks oversaw the fundraising, chaperoning and management of the club, operated by scores of local women. Volunteers offered refreshments, letter-writing materials, music, dancing and conservation in the club's room at the O'Neil Hotel at this site across Spring Street from the railroad tracks. The women also took sandwiches and cookies to distribute to the soldiers unable to leave the trains. Additionally, the Palestine group financially supported a separate Negro Service Club that served African American troops who often rode at the back of the trains farther down the line from this point. Military service people from around the country voiced their gratitude for Palestine's hospitality through recorded messages on "Recordgrams" and in countless letters. The volunteers continued their outpouring of support through the final days of the war, and the last troop train came through town on January 1, 1946. Today, the story of the Palestine club demonstrated the community's commitment to World War II service on the home front. (2006)