A ceremony commemorates a tragedy in Annandale
By Shane Gomez
A small crowd gathered at Howrey Field Park in Annandale on May 31 to honor the six U.S. Army soldiers who died there while installing a flagpole 58 years ago.
A ceremony is held every year at a memorial commemorating the tragedy. The memorial consists of a flag, a plaque for each soldier, flowers, benches, and an interpretive sign surrounded by a fence.
In May 1967, a team of U.S. Army soldiers from Fort Belvoir was assigned to upgrade the baseball fields at Howrey Field Park, primarily by installing light poles for night games, as part of a community service project. On June 1, six of the soldiers were setting a new flagpole into its base when the pole began to sway in the wind. As the soldiers tried to steady the pole, it fell onto a 7,200-volt power line, electrocuting them.
Those killed were Private Paul Briggs, 17, from Texas; Private Anthony Evans, 18, from Pennsylvania; Private First-Class Marvin Harrison, 17, from Florida; Private Charles Oliver, 17, from Ohio; Specialist Kenneth Steiner, 20, from Missouri; and Private Charles Whaley, 19, from Kentucky.
At the ceremony, Braddock Supervisor James Walkinshaw, who is running for Congress, spoke about the soldiers’ service and “quiet heroism,” saying, “They were here in our community, working to make things a little better.”
The ceremony also included remarks by retired Col. R.J. Levin and a benediction by local resident Keith Elliott. A member of the U.S. Army Band sang the National Anthem and another played taps. The Lake Braddock High School JROTC posted the colors, led the Pledge of Allegiance, and laid a wreath on the memorial.
The ceremony, in its third year, marks a long and dedicated effort by local residents to commemorate the tragedy at the park, located at Braddock Road and Glen Park Road. Each of Howrey Field Park’s three baseball fields is named for two of the soldiers.
Local resident and Army veteran Terry Powers and others formed a nonprofit organization, the Friends of the Soldiers Memorial at Howrey Field Park, to campaign for a better memorial – which previously consisted of a plaque, flag, and flowers – and greater recognition from the county.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in 2021 proclaimed June 1 as Soldiers of Howrey Field Day. The first ceremony was held in 2022.
Related story: Annandale resident seeks more recognition for memorial to tragic accident
Glenn Curtis, a first responder at the tragedy and a firefighter with the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department from 1956 to 1982, was also honored at this year’s ceremony. Curtis died on May 3 at age 94. Relatives of Curtis and the six soldiers were in attendance.
Richard Elliott, president of the Friends organization, was 11 years old when the tragedy happened and remembers hearing the boom of the collision and the sirens that followed. Elliott said they will hold the ceremony every year, as long as they are able to.
“It means a lot,” he said.
Shane Gomez is Annandale Today’s intern. A graduate of Annandale High School, Shane is a student at The New School in New York City.
