Passenger Trains > NJT's Erie Lackawanna unit & John Basilone Parade

On Sunday attended the John Basilone Parade in Raritan, New Jersey. This parade is the only one in the United States to honor a World War II hero and has been held since 1981 except in 2020 due to COVID. Forty-one years later it is still going strong! Basilone was a Marine who won the Medal of Honor for his heroism on Guadalcanal in 1942. He was later killed during the Battle of Iwo Jima in 1945. The place where I watched this parade allows me to see NJT's RVL Thompson Avenue grade crossing. During the parade and leading the westbound train was the Erie Lackawanna unit of which I managed a quick grab shot. Also included a few parade scenes. That second image was a group from the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota. They include the Mandan, Hidasta and Arikara tribes. The USMC Band from Quantico, Virginia also returned after a two year hiatus. Hope you enjoy them! 

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" Manila John" Basilone
His story was a major part of "The Pacific" miniseries...
His gravesite at Arlington, VA.

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His headstone says he was awarded the Medal of Honor, but, didn't his wife return the medal?

PHall Wrote:
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> His headstone says he was awarded the Medal of
> Honor, but, didn't his wife return the medal?

She returned oit to the family and the medal eventually ended up in the National Museum of the Marine Corps down in Virginia.

Classic small-town America scenes where people who love their country still have parades to honor American heroes.  Such parades are no longer allowed in most big cities in America.

Raritan NJ is a lovely little town. Several good restaurants, bakeries, and a fine fish market.

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