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tarhoosier's avatar

Or, as said and written in UK English, the flag was at half mast. Sailing tradition and blah, blah.

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Jeremy Markovich's avatar

Believe it or not I did a TINY bit of research into the half mast/staff thing and I came down on the side of "when it's on land, it's a staff, but when it's on a ship, it's a mast," but yes, I know this is a fuzzy area between the Queen's English and naval tradition and speakin' 'merican and whatnot SO JUST DEAL WITH IT

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TG's avatar

There is also a tiny British Cemetery in Buxton where the remains of two WWII British sailors were laid to rest.

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Mary Delaney's avatar

Thank you for this article. Last Independence Day, at the Capitol Fourth celebration. Antonio Rivera thanked our American soldiers who served in the Pacific. My dad (Army Air Corps) flew in the Atlantic, along with British and Canadian Air Forces, defending our East Coast against U-Boats. Thirty thousand German husbands, sons, fathers, and brothers didn't make it home, thanks to these brave men. They are often forgotten.

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Vicki Winslow's avatar

What a touching story. When I worked in Fernandina Beach, FL, I was told by the woman who grew up at the Amelia Island Lighthouse about a book called "Operation Drumbeat" that recounted some of the stories of U-boat operations off the east coast during WWII. Great read.

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