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North Platte Canteen An Account of Heartland Hospitality Along the Union Pacific
Railroad |
Just 10 days after Pearl
Harbor, the residents of North Platte,
Nebraska, learned that their own Company D, Nebraska National Guard, which
had been training in Arkansas, was going to pass through the city en route to
the West Coast.
About 500 family members and friends hurried to the Union Pacific Railroad
station with cookies, candy, cakes and cigarettes. After a long wait, a troop
train rumbled into the station -- a unit from the Kansas National Guard. The
residents were disappointed until someone in the crowd said, "Well, what
are we waiting for? Welcome to our city, sons, and here's a little something
for you." They then passed out to these boys the gifts they had arranged
for their own.
This was the beginning
of the North Platte Canteen. Every day, from 3,000 to 5,000 soldiers, sailors
and marines visited the North Platte Canteen in the Union Pacific station.
During a 10-minute stop, they were supplied with coffee, sandwiches and
cigarettes, given a handful of current magazines and sent on their way, warmed
not only by the hot coffee but by the smiles and friendly greetings of the busy
canteen workers. North Platte Canteen highlights what still persists as one of
the most endearing examples of gratitude expressed toward those who have served
in America's defense.