WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES MAY 9, 2019 27
OUR NEIGHBORHOOD: THE WAY IT WAS
The memorial trees of Forest Park
PRESENTED BY THE WOODHAVEN
CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL SOCIETY
PROJECTWOODHAVEN@GMAIL.COM
On a hill overlooking Woodhaven
sits a few dozen trees planted
one hundred years ago in
memory of the young locals who went
off to fi ght in World War I but never
came home.
In the days leading up to each
Memorial Day, the ladies of the
American Legion Auxiliary would
decorate the trees in red, white, and
blue ribbons. Friends and family
of the fallen soldiers that the trees
were dedicated to would leave notes
and fl owers at ‘their’ tree. And so, the
Memorial Trees in Forest Park became
established as part of Woodhaven’s
Memorial Day tradition.
However, this tradition faded away
in the early 1940s and the purpose of
the trees along Forest Park Drive was
forgotten for nearly 75 years. Why
did it fade away? An integral part of
the memorial in the park was a large
granite monument with the names of
the fallen soldiers.
It sat directly across the street
from the old Golf Clubhouse, known
today as Oak Ridge, which houses
the administrative offi ces of Forest
Park.
When Woodhaven Boulevard was
widened, the old Legion home was
torn down and a new one erected
at 91st Street and 89th Avenue. It
was decided to move the monument
from Forest Park to the new home of
Post 118. As a result, the parade was
rerouted and over time, the meaning
behind the trees was forgotten.
How did unique living war
memorial come to be? Aft er the war
A look back on the post-WWI days when the people of southwestern Queens came together to remember
fallen soldiers who hailed from the surrounding communities.
ended, communities around the
country were looking for ways to
memorialize the sacrifices of the
young men who never came home.
Less than two weeks aft er the war
ended, Queens Parks Commissioner
Albert C. Benninger announced plans
to “erect a memorial tablet in one of
the parks in Queens, probably Forest
Park, for the soldiers of this borough
who lost their lives in battle.”
While the plans for a borough-wide
memorial were eventually moved
elsewhere, Forest Park was still
eyed as the site for a more localized
memorial. In early 1919, The Patriotic
League of Woodhaven brought
together a group of sixty delegates
representing the civic, fraternal,
religious, political and other
organizations in the community to
plan for a way to commemorate the
young men who gave their lives in
defense of their country.
The resulting organization, known
as The Woodhaven War Heroes
Permanent Memorial Committee,
sought to use a site near the golf
clubhouse in Forest Park and plant
one oak tree for each of the young
heroes. The trees were planted near
the end of April and the dedication
ceremony took place just six-months
aft er the war had ended, on Sunday,
May 11, 1919.
On that day, the families of
the fallen soldiers attended the
dedication of the oak trees in front
of the golf clubhouse in Forest
Park. The ceremony was presided
over by one of the soldiers who did
return home: James Pasta, one of
the chief members of the Permanent
Memorial Committee (he would go on
to become the very fi rst Commander
of Woodhaven American Legion Post
118).
Prayers were off ered by Reverend
George Sherman of St. Thomas the
Apostle Church and local boys and
girls took part in the ceremony. As
each name was called, they would
place a red carnation in a large white
cross.
At the end of the roll call, the cross
and carnations were placed in an
upright position among the Memorial
Trees in the park overlooking the
community the fallen heroes had
lived in.
One hundred years later, the
sacrifice the young men of
Woodhaven made far from home is
still remembered in the form of this
living memorial. In 2017, the road
which the trees line was offi cially conamed
Forest Park Memorial Drive.
Each year, the Woodhaven Cultural
& Historical Society keeps the
decoration tradition alive and honors
the fallen soldiers by adorning the
trees with patriotic ribbons. Everyone
is welcome to join; if interested, email
us at woodhavenhistory@gmail.
com or call 718-805-2002 for more
information.
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