Ed Galavotti spent a significant portion of his life serving in the U.S. military. Now, he’s raising funds for a memorial to commemorate every Wyoming resident who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country.
Galavotti, a former U.S. Navy submarine commander, is the driving force behind a new military memorial to be built in Cheyenne. The central feature will be pedestals inscribed with the names of every Wyoming man and woman who died serving their country.
The memorial will be more than a tribute. Galavotti says it will be the first memorial to include the name of every Wyoming service member killed or missing in action in U.S. military history, from the Spanish-American War to today.
“Wyoming has over a thousand military members who have made the ultimate sacrifice to keep us free,” he said. “This memorial is where they will all be recognized, and their families and loved ones can pay tribute.”
The Memorial
Galavotti envisions a 6,000-square-foot memorial to be built on a plot of private land next to the Cheyenne National Cemetery. He hopes the memorial will eventually be annexed into the cemetery, but he has to build it first.
“I can't tell you exactly how much it’ll cost, because I really don't know yet,” he said. “You can't do it until you get a base, and you know what footings you need. That's the technical details.”
The finished memorial will include stone pedestals topped by bronze sculptures. Those pedestals will be inscribed with the names of every Wyoming service member who was killed or missing in combat from every war where Wyomingites served.
“They will be alphabetical, by last name, so that people can find their names and pay their respects,” Galavotti said.
The memorial will also include pedestals honoring the Wyomingites who received the Medal of Honor, including Vernon Baker, William Edward Adams, and Charles F. Carey. Those pedestals will be topped with bronze busts of each recipient.
A curved wall will stand behind the pedestals, inlaid with a separate medallion for each branch of the U.S. military. Flagpoles, identical to those in the National Cemetery, will fly the American and POW/MIA flags.
“That’s the size and scope of it,” said Galavotti. “These people put their lives on the line, gave their lives for our freedom, and nobody knows about them. That’s what started the project.”
The List
Nearly every Wyoming community has a memorial commemorating its local heroes who died serving their country. Galavotti is visiting every one of those memorials as he compiles something that, remarkably, doesn’t exist: a complete, comprehensive list of every Wyoming-born man and woman who was killed or missing in action.
“You're not going to believe this, but there is no single consolidated database with everybody's name on it,” he said. “I have lists from memorials, the Wyoming National Guard, the State Archives, and Ancestry.com, and you can't find any two lists that agree.”
Galavotti recognized the magnitude of the problem when he visited the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C. Over 58,000 Americans died in Vietnam, including 119 Wyomingites, whom he endeavored to find on the black granite panels.
“That’s the only consistent list and number I’ve found,” he said. “Other lists from other wars have extra names, missing names, or duplicate names, so I’m focusing and condensing it all down to all the names from Wyoming.”
Galavotti has a network of people helping him in Cheyenne, Laramie, Casper, and Cody. They can provide the lists from their city and county records and memorials, but there’s more work to do.
“I need to check the memorials in Rock Springs, Jackson, Dubois, Sheridan, and Gillette,” he said. “There's a memorial in Byron I need to see. I didn't even know what Byron was, but they’ve got a list, too.”
After months of research, Galavotti doesn’t have an official number of Wyoming’s war-dead, but he’s getting closer.
“I’ve compiled over a thousand names so far,” he said. “Once I sort out the duplicates and add the missing names, there will probably be between 1,100 and 1,400 names on that list.”
No One Left Behind
Some names have been easier to confirm than others. However, even the easy work has led Galavotti to dive deeper to ensure every Wyomingite who was killed in combat is identified and recognized.
For example, the first Wyomingite to win the Medal of Honor was Edward L. Baker, an African American man born in Laramie County in 1865. That was when Wyoming was still the Dakota Territory.
Sergeant Major Baker fought with the 10th Cavalry at the Battle of San Juan Hill during the Spanish-American War. He was recognized for braving enemy fire to rescue a drowning, wounded comrade on July 1, 1898.
Baker survived the war, earning the rank of captain and retiring as one of the highest ranking African American officers in the U.S. Army at the time. His gallantry and history are well documented, but the circumstances raised questions in Galavotti’s mind.
If Baker, a Wyomingite, fought in the Battle of San Juan Hill, were there others who fought and died there?
“They were Buffalo Soldiers, but there’s no list of any names,” he said. “I've contacted a historian so I can find out if any of the Buffalo Soldiers of the 9th and 10th Calvary were from Wyoming, and if any of them died in Cuba,” he said.
There was at least one other Wyomingite who fought in Cuba. Charles DuVal Roberts was a Second Lieutenant in the 17th U.S. Infantry when he rescued several wounded soldiers during the Battle of El Caney, which occurred on the same day as the Battle of San Juan Hill.
This is also well documented, as DuVal received the Medal of Honor for his heroism. If two Wyomingites survived separate battles on the same day during the Spanish-American War, Galavotti can’t assume they were the only ones, and he’s determined to ensure no Wyomingite is left behind.
“It’s an extensive and exhaustive effort,” he said. “When it’s done, I hope everybody appreciates it.”
Gone But Not Forgotten
Galavotti spent 22 years in the U.S. Navy, serving in underwater demolition, joining the U.S. Navy SEALs, and briefly commanding the 6th Fleet’s submarine base in La Maddalena, Italy.
“After retiring from Lockheed Martin, and my last kid left the nest, I wanted space,” he said. “I was in Colorado, so I started to look in Wyoming, and found some acreage in Cheyenne. I knew this was where I wanted to stay, and I’ve been here since 1998.”
Galavotti took a keen interest in Wyoming’s veterans after working with the Cheyenne Capitol Bronze Project to install a bust of U.S. Army First Lieutenant Vernon Joseph Baker, another Wyoming-born recipient of the Medal of Honor.
A Cheyenne native, Baker received the medal from President Bill Clinton for his heroic actions during World War II. On April 5, 1945, he led an assault that destroyed three entrenched German machine gun battalions near Viareggio, Italy, saving several wounded soldiers, only to successfully lead another assault through a mine field to take another entrenched position the next day.
“Baker was credited with the Distinguished Service Cross in 1945, but he didn’t receive the Medal of Honor until 1997,” Galavotti said. “The U.S. Army said no black soldier had been given or recommended for the Medal of Honor, so they awarded him and six others.”
Exploring Baker’s history made Galavotti realize how much of Wyoming’s servicemen and women, and their history, has been forgotten. That was the genesis of the memorial project he’s committed to seeing to fruition.
A Dedication of Values
Galavotti has the drive and vision for the new memorial, but he’s also willing to do the legwork. As he continues to visit memorials and compile names across Wyoming, he’s eagerly arranged to meet anyone who wants to hear about his vision and how they might contribute.
“I have already contacted two sculptors to do the bronze work, and I have talked to the flag companies for their flagpoles and the flags,” he said. “A lot of people are helping. The hard job is to raise all the money, because nothing happens until you can pay people.”
Galavotti is seeking donations to cover site evaluations and architectural renderings for the memorial. Once that’s accomplished, the work of commemorating Wyoming’s fallen can begin.
“We’re raising money while we work through all the technical details,” he said.
For Galavotti, the project is much bigger and more important than his vision. He deeply feels Wyoming’s fallen military men and women need to be identified, recognized, and honored forever.
“Wyoming has always answered the call to serve,” he said. “This is more than a monument. It is a dedication of values – courage, service, sacrifice, and love of country. It is Wyoming’s promise that those who gave everything will never be forgotten.”
Anyone interested in donating can visit the VA Cemetery Memorial Project website.
Andrew Rossi can be reached at arossi@cowboystatedaily.com.
