Great War & Grapevine – A Centennial Look at World War I Through the Eyes of Home,”a two-case exhibit in the Lobby of the Grapevine Convention & Visitors Bureau building at 636 S. Main St., offers a local perspective on World War I in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Americaentry into the Great War. The exhibit features photos and artifacts from the time period. The exhibit is free and will be on display now through May 6.

The exhibit focuses on eight topics: The Great War; The Ones Who Served; The Ones At Home; The Terrible Cost of Freedom; The Aviators; The Red Cross; The Gift of Time; The Grapevine Sun. Each shelf gives a local perspective on the topic and shows its national relationship including:

• The Great War tells what happened in town when the war was over – including the story of the bullet fired in celebration that landed in the Cotton Belt Depot wall;
• The Ones Who Served focuses on over 40 soldiers who listed Grapevine as their hometown and mini-histories about them where available
• The Ones At Home salutes the mothers, grandmothers, children, churches and organizations that did all to support the war including Harmon Burrough, Boy Scout, and his official card and letter from President Woodrow Wilson;
• The Terrible Cost of Freedom recognizes the ultimate sacrifice of James Eli Torian, whose family home – the Torian Cabin – is now on GrapevineMain Street;
• The Aviators showcases flyers from Hicks-Taliaferro Field in Fort Worth who landed their bi-planes in Grapevine just north of the Grapevine Public School;
• The Red Cross tells of the work done by local men and women and a comedy performance of Womanless Wedding” that was enacted by town leaders to raise funds for the Red Cross;
• The Gift of Time features a beautiful carved wooden clock made from the propeller of a bi-plane and given to Mary Virginia Wall Simmons by British soldier, Flight Sergeant Langridge, now a family heirloom and
• The Grapevine Sun showcases the hometown papercoverage of the war and some of the advertisements of 1917-1918.

“This anniversary is an opportunity to reflect on the interesting and varied local perspective of Grapevine citizens during World War I,”says David Klempin, manager of Historic Programs & Preservation, Grapevine Convention & Visitors Bureau.