100 years later: Bollinger County Museum honors WW1

Bollinger County Museum of Natural History in Marble Hill, Missouri, is commemorating the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I with an exhibit highlighting relics gathered by locals, including a compilation of heirlooms by Lisa Santi.

Santi serves on the Will Mayfield Heritage Foundation board and is allowing the museum to display her well-preserved 100-year-old U.S. Navy artifacts, once owned by her great-uncle, Samuel Alvin Baker.

�Anytime there�s an anniversary, it brings out a certain amount of interest,� Santi said. �And America, I think, is fascinated with things turning a century old.�

Baker was a seaman, second class and aviation machinist mate in the U.S. Navy during World War I. He enlisted in the Navy in St. Louis on July 13, 1918, and was sent to the Naval Training Station at Great Lakes, Illinois, on July 16, 1918.

His ship was the U.S.S. Rijindam, and Baker spent time in France at St. Nazaire, a major port and transit hub for U.S. troops, according to Santi.

World War I memorabilia rests in a display Saturday at the Bollinger County Museum of Natural History in Marble Hill, Missouri.BEN MATTHEWS

Baker grew up in a 12-member family, Santi said, with two brothers who also served in World War I � Ira Lee Baker and John Wesley Baker.

All three returned home alive after the war, Santi said.

Relics present at the museum from Santi�s collection include clothing and Navy-issued uniforms worn by Baker, along with photos and other irreplaceable memorabilia.

�I was amazed at how much he kept,� she said. �I remember asking my mom, because my dad was in World War II, �What happened to his uniform?� She said, �Hey, that was a good coat. He wore that.��

Santi said, �When you came back home, you wore the heck out of it. You didn�t save it for good.�

A medal awarded to Navy veteran Samuel Baker is displayed at the Bollinger County Museum of Natural History on Saturday in Marble Hill, Missouri.BEN MATTHEWS

Standing proud behind the museum glass and among the other relics is Baker�s 100-year-old wool double-breasted pea coat � in excellent condition and weighing nearly 6 pounds.

His cotton flannel shirt is positioned nearby along with a white cotton sailor�s cap, often referred to as a �dixie cup,� trousers and weather-resistant duffel bags.

�That Navy pea coat, it�s heavy material that would�ve been very valuable in a Southeast Missouri winter,� Santi said.

Santi said she is sure any tales Baker told her were �very sanitized,� and is amazed her uncle chose the Navy to go into, because she never saw Baker swim.

�I don�t know if he could (swim),� she said, �but there were a lot of sailors who couldn�t swim, so I don�t think that kept you out of the Navy.�

Santi said along Baker�s journey he contracted the flu; she isn�t exactly sure of when or where, but it was one of the roughest stories Baker shared with her, she said.

According to Santi, Baker perceived the flu as receiving �a death sentence.�

�You didn�t want to be sent to the flu barracks,� Santi said.

She told a story of a once flu-ridden Baker holding his mouth open, in an attempt to keep his fever down.

Santi said of Baker�s recollections, �You would cough and cough at night, until your pillow was slick with blood, and you would turn it inside out ... and when you woke up the next day, the odds were very good that at least one of the guys on either side of you would be dead.�

�He said the Salvation Army people would come through the barracks and hand out candy ... one of the first things that tasted good to him was lemon drops. He said, �When I finally began to taste again, I felt like I was going to live,�� according to Santi.

After that, Santi said, Baker was unable to pass a Salvation Army bucket without putting something in it.

Baker spent most of his life in Southeast Missouri and became sheriff in Bollinger County after returning from World War I and also served as county collector while becoming involved with local politics.

jhartwig@semissourian.com

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