Re: Gold star in the window

On Apr 28, 5:01 pm, "John Dean" <john-d...@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
I've been re-reading Cormac McCarthy's Border Trilogy. In 'The Crossing' I
came across a reference to the hero drifting through northern Texas and New
Mexico in 1945 and the quote that "... there was hardly a ranchhouse in all
of that country that did not have a gold star in the window."
Research online suggests that the gold star signified the death of a family
member in the services during the war.
I'm a little surprised that he suggests so many places had suffered a death
in service. The USA, like the UK, had less than 1 per cent of the population
killed in the services in WW2 so I'd expect well over 90% of the houses
*not* to have a gold star. Or was there some special reason why casualties
were greater in that part of the USA?
--
John Dean
Oxford

Guess what segment of society usually get the lion's share of
casualties?

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Gold star in the window
    ... of that country that did not have a gold star in the window." ... Research online suggests that the gold star signified the death of a ... except that blacks were not allowed in the front lines. ...
    (soc.history.war.world-war-ii)
  • Re: Gold star in the window
    ... Research online suggests that the gold star signified the death of a family ... Or was there some special reason why casualties ... except that blacks were not allowed in the front lines. ...
    (soc.history.war.world-war-ii)
  • Re: Gold star in the window
    ... Research online suggests that the gold star signified the death of a family ... Or was there some special reason why casualties ... IIRC, blue stars indicated a family member in the service, one star ...
    (soc.history.war.world-war-ii)
  • Re: Gold star in the window
    ... Research online suggests that the gold star signified the death of a family member in the services during the war. ... A single service death could result in multiple houses displaying the gold star service flag - the parents, the widow, and each of the deceased's eight brothers and sisters. ...
    (soc.history.war.world-war-ii)
  • Re: Gold star in the window
    ... came across a reference to the hero drifting through northern Texas and New ... Research online suggests that the gold star signified the death of a family ...
    (soc.history.war.world-war-ii)