Anuilagi Nguyen
Staff Writer
Over a dozen vendors—many dressed in interesting period attire—and history buffs shared their vast collections of military memorabilia at the annual Military Swap Meet held at Ft. Steilacoom this past weekend.
Lawrence Bateman, president of the Historic Ft Steilacoom Association, coordinated the Swap Meet. The Military Swap Meet has been successfully held at Ft. Steilacoom for the past seven years. One of the displays, The Philippine Scouts Heritage Society, had Art Garcia on-hand to discuss the role Filipinos played during President McKinley’s 1897 administration and their importance during the Spanish-American War.
President McKinley directed Major General Henry Ware Lawton to subdue the Philippines and to gain control of the Philippines from the Spanish during the Spanish-American war. Major General Lawton’s claim to fame was his association with the Apache great, Geronimo. General Lawton’s troops were successful in gaining Geronimo’s surrender. Ironically, a Filipino sharpshooter killed General Lawton in the Philippines, whose commanding officer held the name Licerio Geronimo.
Another display featured memorabilia from Fort Stevens, Oregon. The Fort Stevens display belonged to Aaron Buda. Fort Stevens became forever etched in history because of a Japanese Submarine attack on the fort during World War II. Aaron’s display included a WWII yearbook of the Oregon Guard and other WWII memorabilia.
Located next to Aaron’s display was a Navy Reservist, Bryan Ilyankoff’s myriad and impressive assortment of cameras dating as far back as the 1940s. Bryan’s expertise knowledge of each camera was evident when he explained how certain cameras worked and the features of each one.
Bryan commented that the majority of his collection came from eBay. He stated that due to the popularity of certain types of cameras, finding them in antique shops was an extremely rare find. Bryan Ilyankoff is currently serving as a photojournalist in the Navy Reserves at Navy Air Station Whidbey Island.
Lawrence Bateman, the current president of the Historical Ft Steilacoom Association, is prior service Army, having served with the 82 Airborne Division. He participated in the 1989 Invasion of Panama and the Gulf War.
The building that the Military Swap Meet was held in is 1 of 4 of the original quarters for soldiers in 1849. Fort Steilacoom was an established American presence in the Puget Sound. Because of the California Gold Rush, rapid settlement of the west called for American presence and the need to protect American interest in the Puget Sound area. The state now owns Ft Steilacoom and hosts Western State Hospital.
Anyone interested in displaying their historical memorabilia or hoping to se;; military gear should Contact Ft. Steilacoom at [email protected] or by calling Ft. Steilacoom at 253-582-5838.
