A newly discovered piece of art just outside Neosho is believed to have been started during World War II, and an effort is underway to restore it.
Neosho Arts Council President Sarah Serio said the recently-discovered piece of military and local history is in the form of a mural, which was originally located at Camp Crowder, "and Camp Crowder was an Army Signal Corps training facility during the second world war," she said.
At its peak, Camp Crowder covered more than 42,000 acres and housed up to 47,000 soldiers. Hundreds of buildings were constructed, according to the arts council, including barracks, mess halls, chapels, training facilities and more.
The military has a long history of being supportive of fine arts, according to Serio, from military bands to lesser-known art programs. During WWII, artists were sent to draw and paint battles to document the events, but they also decorated barracks, chapels and mess halls, including at Camp Crowder, she said.
The U.S. Army post closed in 1958, and the 60s, its buildings were sold at auction and went on to serve a variety of purposes.
One building, a Community Day Room, was sold to a family near Neosho and was used in agriculture. The 24-foot-long mural remained.
“What it appears to be depicting is a group of soldiers as well as some regional features," said Serio. "So there's some nods to agriculture as well as railroad and stuff like that, and what makes this piece kind of unique is the fact that it's not a finished painting, it's actually in progress. And we can only imagine what happened that made the artist have to stop mid-work.”
The artist is unknown, but it's believed the soldier was passing through the camp for training before being deployed overseas.
Now, the Neosho Arts Council is raising money to move, restore and preserve the mural so it can be displayed in downtown Neosho. The goal is $25,000.
"We will never find a piece of World War II mural art like this again," said Serio. "Before this work is lost, we want to save it, and we need support from the community to accomplish this goal."
You can donate to the cause at neoshoarts.net or mail checks to P.O. Box 605, Neosho, 64850.
