Remembrance New London School explosion

the top of london school cenotaph sculptor matchett herring coe



london museum

a large granite cenotaph on median of texas state highway 42 across school site, erected in 1939, commemorates disaster.

over years, new london school explosion received relatively little attention, given magnitude of event. explanations speculative, center around residents unwillingness discuss tragedy. l. v. barber said of father lonnie, can remember newspaper people coming around every , then, asking him questions day, never had say. nevertheless, in recent years, disaster has gained historical perspective, has been increasingly covered researchers , journalists.

in 1973, texas filmmaker michael brown produced half-hour documentary on explosion thought first ever made on subject. called new london: day clock stood still, film features survivors of blast , recollections of day.

the 50th anniversary of event, in 1987, commemorated in part release of documentary, day generation died, written, produced, , directed jerry gumbert.

in 1998, london museum , tea house, across highway school site, opened. first curator mollie ward, explosion survivor.

in 2008, of last living survivors of explosion shared personal stories of experience documentary filmmaker , east texas native, kristin beauchamp. feature-length documentary, when angels wept, released in 2009 , first-hand account of disaster. told exclusively survivors , eyewitnesses. share experienced on afternoon leading blast spend days searching east texas towns, hospitals , morgues missing loved ones.

a 1 act play event, written dr. bobby h. johnson, journalist , professor emeritus of history @ stephen f. austin state university, called texas tragedy, has been performed students @ huntington high school in huntington , in other regional venues.

in march 2012, survivors , others gathered @ town s rebuilt school in remembrance of 75th anniversary of disaster.

in 2012, texas filmmaker michael brown began work on new documentary east texas oil field discovery , eventual role in new london school disaster. film, scheduled completion spring of 2013 , carrying working title of shadow across path, features excerpts hour-long interview brown conducted walter cronkite in new york office @ cbs. interview has never been seen or published. new london school explosion then-20-year-old cronkite s first national story. new work feature recent interviews blast survivors.

in 2012, book gone @ 3:17: untold story of worst school disaster in american history, journalists david m. brown , michael wereschagin, published potomac books. in 2012, ron rozelle, member of texas institute of letters, wrote book tragedy called boys , girls in there . book released coincide seventy-fifth anniversary of disaster.

the 2015 historical novel out of darkness ashley hope pérez depicts explosion incident.