Minonk resident Wayne Tucker and Judy Hurdle
with Nazi flag.
Minonk resident Wayne Tucker was given a Nazi flag that he and his fellow soldiers captured at the end of World War II. The owner of the flag, Judy Hurdle of Bath, IL, bought the flag at a Princeton antique mall in 1995. After her retirement from teaching, she began to do research on the origin of the flag.
The flag was captured by members of the 13th Armored Division near Unterturken, Bavaria in Germany on May, 1945. The flag was signed by 144 members of the Division, including Wayne's signature although Wayne says he doesn't recall signing the flag.
Wayne said he thought the flag had been lost. He thinks only 11 members of the Division are still living.
The flag measures 109" by 48" with a 23 inch center. Hitler himself chose the design for the flag according to Mrs. Hurdle.
Mrs. Hurdle contacted many of the soldiers whose signature was on the flag in order to uncover the story behind the flag. In October, 2008, she attended the 13the Armored Division Association reunion where she met Wayne Tucker and other members of the division.
In January, 2008, Mrs. Hurdle and her husband traveled to Minonk to give the flag to Wayne Tucker and his family. The Tuckers have a long history of military service. Wayne’s father served in World War I, he lost a brother in World War II, his son served in Vietnam, and now a grandson is in Iraq. Wayne, of course, as one of the flag signers, also served in World War II.
Mrs. Hurdle plans to assemble her history of the flag and all the information gathered along with a large full sized scan of the signatures and donate them to the l3th Armored Archive. The archive will be given to the Patton Museum and eventually transferred to Ft. Benning, Georgia when the armored museum moves there during the next few years.
For a more detailed report on Mrs. Hurdle's research on the flag,
click here. Below is Wayne Tucker and his fellow soldier John Holt of Texas holding the flag.
Below is the signature of Wayne and John Holt on the flag.
Below is a photo taken of members of the 13th Armored Division after
capturing the flag at the end of World War II.
