Port City marks 80 years since start of World War II with 'Wartime Wilmington Week'

Eighty years ago, residents of Wilmington, along with the rest of the country, were shocked to hear of the deadly Japanese attack on the Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii, an act that marked the beginning of the United States' entry into World War II.

In Wilmington, Wilbur Jones was only 7 years old on Dec. 7, 1941. But he still remembers where he was and what he was doing when he heard about the attack: playing in the sun room of his family's Forest Hills home while listening to a radio broadcast — on WMFD, the only Wilmington station at the time — of an NFL game between Washington and Philadelphia.

World War II changed the course of his life, Jones said recently. As a child, he closely followed the war in the papers. Time spent reenacting battles in the woods near his home led him to a career in the Navy, where he would go on to serve for 41 years.

After returning home to Wilmington, Jones, who's also a published author with multiple books to his credit, focused his efforts on preserving the history of what's now known as the Hannah Block Historic USO/Community Arts Center downtown, which, as it happens, first opened 80 years ago, in December of 1941.

Then, 14 years ago, Jones embarked on a quest to have Wilmington named America's first "World War II Heritage City," a designation the Port City achieved last year.

Now, along with Susan Habas of Thalian Association Community Theater, which runs the city-owned Community Arts Center, Jones and his World War II Wilmington Home Front Heritage Coalition have organized a week's worth of events to mark the 80th anniversary of the start of World War II and the 80th anniversary of the historic USO building at Second and Orange streets, which will be the center of the week's activities.

Billed as Wartime Wilmington Week, the events include a living history demonstration on Dec. 4, and a presentation Dec. 7 on Wilmington’s connection to Pearl Harbor featuring a ceremony marking Wilmington as the first WWII Heritage City and free birthday cake and coffee to celebrate the historic building's 80th year.

On Dec. 10, a USO-style swing dance will be held with the Duke Ladd Orchestra and an Andrews Sisters tribute singing group. And on Dec. 12, Wilmington actress Elizabeth Michaels will perform the one-woman show "Rosie the Riveter: American Women in World War II.” (The dance and the performance are ticketed events; go to WilmingtonCommunityArts.org for details.)

In addition, the lobby of the building will be outfitted with new exhibits, including a tribute to the Black USO at 9th and Nixon streets, and a display honoring two Wilmington aviators who helped sink a Japanese warship during the WWII Battle of Midway.

In addition, some mid-century modern furniture and a new display of historic photos have been added to the Donn Ansell studio downstairs.

Jones calls the building "the heart and soul, the hub of our preservation activity."

Habas said the arts center's new slogan is "history in the making," a reference to both the CAC's historic status and the new history that's made each time a performance is held. It's that mix of World War II history and the building's longtime use as an arts space that makes it a unique and beloved place in Wilmington.

As one might expect, there's also some WWII-related activity going on at another Wilmington institution, the Battleship North Carolina, which participated in numerous battles in the war before being permanently moored on the Cape Fear River across from downtown. The Azalea Coast Amateur Radio Club will host an event Dec. 7 during which HAM radio operators worldwide can contact the ship via voice, digital or Morse code. Also, the Friends of the Battleship have resumed guided tours of the ship, and those will be available on Pearl Harbor Day, as well as other times.

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It was at the Battleship in 2020, during a campaign visit by former President Donald J. Trump, that Wilmington was officially designated a WWII Heritage City. The process of getting to that moment, Jones said, took more than a decade, and was the "best experience of my life," he said.

It included working with a bipartisan series of Congressmen, including former U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre, a Democrat, and current Rep. David Rouzer, a Republican. (Jones was an aide to former President Gerald R. Ford.) They helped write and pass legislation creating the program and its parameters, which include documentation of a city's war efforts and, more importantly, Jones said, showing what has been done to preserve a city's WWII history.

He expects other cities will achieve the WWII Heritage City title, but "we wanted to be the first," Jones said. "It was our idea. We did all the work."

The work around the city's WWII history is ongoing, Jones said.

The Wilmington and Beaches Convention and Visitors Bureau has helped promote Wilmington as an area rich in WWII history, and the N.C. Dept. of Transportation has erected signs noting Wilmington's status as a WWII Heritage City.

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Jones is working with the city to create a guide map of WWII sites, such as the POW camp near current-day Williston Middle School and the shipyard.

At some point, Jones said, he'd like to display the collection of boyhood memorabilia he amassed in Wilmington during WWII.

"I kept all kinds of stuff," Jones said, from helmets and toys to WWII-themed comics and magazines, "just what a 7-, 8-, 9-, 10-year-old boy would collect."

There are even some drawings of battles he did "when I should've been doing my schoolwork."

At any rate, it's safe to say that, without Wilbur Jones, Wilmington's World War II history would be much less known, and much less acknowledged. He said he sees all the volunteer work he's done making sure that history is remembered as "my way of paying back my hometown."

Want to go?

Dec. 4-12: The Thalian Association Community Theater and World War II Wilmington Home Front Heritage Coalition will showcase our WWII legacy with several events at Hannah Block Historic USO/Community Arts Center,120 S. Second St., Wilmington

Dec. 4: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. (free): WWII living history: re-enactors, weapons, equipment, and a jeep. Cliff Tyndall (Camp Davis) and John Moseley (Fort Fisher) groups perform.

Wilbur Jones books signing, including “A Sentimental Journey” and “The Journey Continues,” about wartime Wilmington.

Dec. 7, 1:25 p.m. (free):

• PowerPoint: “Wilmington’s Connection to Pearl Harbor.”

• HBHUSO/CAC 80th birthday cake and coffee.

• WWII Heritage City recognition.

Dec. 10, 6:30-9:30 p.m.: USO-style swing dance, with Duke Ladd Orchestra and Andrews Sisters Tribute. Details, tickets: wilmingtoncommunityarts.org.

Dec. 12, 3 p.m.:

• PowerPoint: “Rosie the Riveter: American Women in World War II.”

• Elizabeth Michaels performs as Rosie.

Details, tickets: wilmingtoncommunityarts.org.

New exhibits at Hannah Block Historic USO/Community Arts Center

• Heritage City proclamation.

• Tribute to 9th and Nixon Black USO.

• Wilmington aviators at the Battle of Midway.

• Capt. W. Allen Cobb war memorabilia.

• Refurbished football scoreboard.

• Donn Ansell Room gallery.

Contact John Staton at 910-343-2343 or John.Staton@StarNewsOnline.com.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Wartime Wilmington Week: City marks 80 years since start of WWII