Photos Courtesy of Amy Miller | Times News Shown above, is the memorial set in place in Nesquehoning, Penn. in honor of Bark River Township veteran Lt. Fred J. Knauf. Knauf was killed in a plane crash just outside of the town on March 28, 1942. A memorial has been in place for him for 75 years in Nesquehoning.

ESCANABA — A small town in Pennsylvania has been honoring an Upper Peninsula veteran with a special memorial that was established in his honor. For 75 years, the town of Nesquehoning, Penn. has been remembering Lt. Fred J. Knauf after his plane went down on Broad Mountain outside of the Pennsylvanian town on March 28, 1942.

Lt. Fred Knauf, who was the first man to be killed from Bark River township from WWII, crashed his plane, a Curtus P-36, into Broad Mountain just outside of Nesquehoning, on a foggy day in March of 1942.

According to Knauf’s niece, Jan Hood of Bark River, it is believed that Knauf may have been trying to get his location by circling a fire tower. For an unknown reason, his plane may have gone into a fatal dive, leading to the crash.

Now on the 75th anniversary of Knauf’s death, Hood and 58 of Knauf’s other relatives are heading out to the memorial that was erected in the lieutenant’s honor to remember their fallen solider for Memorial Day, a day recognized around the U.S. to remember fallen service members.

“They’ve enshrined him,” said Hood. “I can’t emphasize enough what they (the people of Nesquehoning) have done for him.”

Hood and the rest of her family left for Pennsylvania last week to visit the crash site and memorial, which has been maintained and kept by members of the Nesquehoning American Legion and VFW. Every Sunday before Memorial Day, members visit and place a wreath on the site, along with raising a new flag in tribute of the fallen solider. In addition, Boy Scouts in that area have used the site as an Eagle Scout project, updating it with a bench and fence that surrounds the memorial. There is also an American flag flying above the memorial at all times, according to Hood.

Not only is Knauf remembered in Nesquehoning, but also locally in Bark River. The Rheame-Knauf Legion Post was named after him and one other fallen solider who died during WWII from Bark River Township, said Hood.

Fred J. Knauf was born in Rudyard in 1920 and was the eighth child of a family of nine. Knauf and his family later located to Bark River. He attended Bark River School and graduated from St. Joseph High School in Escanaba in 1938.

He then attended college in Detroit until he entered the Army Air Core in 1941. He earned his wings in December of 1941 from the Air Corps Advanced Flying School in Victoria, Texas.

“He was 22, just fresh out of flight school,” said Hood of her uncle, adding that during his time in the service he was considered one of the top pilots in his division.

Hood explained that in a military investigation report about the crash, the plane was believed to be traveling at 200 plus miles per hour when it collided into Broad Mountain. Debris from the plane was found 500 yards from the initial impact point. The plane was discovered in engulfed in flames.

Although the story of Fred’s plane crash is one for the history books, Hood said the tribute from the small Pennsylvanian town is even greater.

“It’s unbelievable,” said Hood. “To me, it’s like I had a celebrity in my family.”

In July of 1942, Knauf’s parents and sister went to the town of Nesquehoning to pay their respects to their fallen son/brother, said Hood. As the year’s went on, more and more of Knauf’s family has visited the site, noted Hood, including Knauf’s brother on Memorial Day in 1991. Hood, her father, and over 40 relatives made their way to the memorial and crash site. Hood’s father (Knauf’s brother) had recently been diagnosed with cancer and wanted to share the special moment with his family at his side.

Hood said family members wore T-shirts with a photo of Knauf on them so the people of Nesquehoning could put a face to the name of the veteran they have “adopted” as their own.

“I can’t describe what it was like. We were treated like celebrities,” said Hood of her first visit, adding this time around, the town has welcomed them again with open arms.

Hood said she was excited to go again and visit her uncle’s rememberance site, and honor Knauf, who is considered a hero in the eyes of the people of Nesquehoning, Penn.

The tradition of honoring veterans has continued in the Knauf family, as Scott Knauf (Hood’s nephew) is the president of the Upper Peninsula Honor Flight, which takes U.P. veterans to the memorials erected in their honor in Washington, D.C.

On top of the memorial site, a scholarship was made in Fred Knauf’s name and a member of the Panther Valley JROTC is awarded the scholarship each year by the Nesquehoning VFW.