On November 11, 1919, President Woodrow Wilson dedicated Armistice Day, which would later evolve into the modern National holiday Veteran’s Day with these words.  “To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with lots of pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations.”  But across the nation, families were mourning their lost loved ones.

When I first found this shadow box in an antiques store in Lewisville, Texas; my thought was “Who will remember Wagoner Edgar Sparks, a century after he gave his life for his country?”  As I began to research Edgar’s life, I realized the story was much more nuanced than that initial thought.

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