Downtown Mural Honors Tuskegee Airmen with Kokomo Ties
In the heart of downtown Kokomo, a new mural is in progress with a testament to valor and perseverance.
TKP Photo | Heidi Pruitt
Stretching across the bricks of the Dechert Law Office at 217 N. Main St., Kokomo, this masterpiece is the latest addition to a traveling project curator Robin Williams hopes starts conversations about the often overlooked importance of the Tuskegee Airmen in World War II.
“All good public art starts a conversation. Art is meant for that,” said Williams. “It's a reflection of the human experience and the human spirit and it’s meant to start conversations and to elevate a collective consciousness for our community.”
Crafted by artist Malcolm Byers from Amarillo, Texas, the mural pays homage to the courageous aviators who soared through the skies with unparalleled determination and their connections to Kokomo.
This piece, which will be unveiled to the public at 5:30 p.m. May 14, features Lt. Col. Bennett Hardy, Lt. John McClure, Maj. John Cunningham, Andrew Dunigan Jr., and Gordon Morgan, all of whom served among the esteemed ranks of the Tuskegee Airmen.
As the project unfolds, different artists across the United States will lend their vision throughout cities to honor these trailblazers in their respective hometowns, ensuring that their legacy continues to inspire and uplift communities far and wide.
A collaboration between the Howard County Memorial Corporation and the Arts Federation funds this mural. As well as grants from the Community Foundation of Howard County and contributions from the UAW 685 and dozens of other community organizations.
About the Airmen:
(Information provided by Howard County Historical Society -https://hchistory.stqry.app/1)
Bennett Hardy - Bennett Hardy was born in Kokomo in 1921. He was drafted into the Army, had completed training, and was awaiting overseas duty when he was selected for the Tuskegee Airmen program. He was enrolled in pilot class 45-F and graduated in August 1945 with the rank of Second Lieutenant just as World War II was ending.
John W. McClure - John McClure was born in Princeton, Indiana in December 1919 and raised in Kokomo. In 1942, he entered pilot training class 42-G at Tuskegee, Alabama, the first African American pilot from Howard County trained by the U.S. Army.
John Cunningham - John Cunningham was born in Indiana in 1915. He was recorded living in Howard County’s Monroe Township with his father and two brothers in 1920. He later moved to Muncie and joined the Army in 1941. As a member of Class 43-2, Cunningham trained to fly liaison aircraft at Tuskegee, Alabama. The Army used these aircraft to assist artillery’s aim from the air.
Andrew T. Dunigan Jr. - Andrew Dunigan Jr. entered the United States Army on Nov. 1, 1942. According to his enlistment record, he was trained as an aircraft mechanic. He worked maintaining aircraft where Tuskegee Airmen were stationed during World War II.
Gordon Morgan - During WWII, Gordon Morgan served his country as a Tuskegee Airman. Following his honorable discharge, he was Kokomo’s first African American mail carrier - a job he held for the next 40 years. In 1968 he was the first African American member of the Kokomo Center Township School Board, serving until 1977. He was also on the Carver Center Board of Directors for many years.
NOTE: More in-depth information about the airmen will be available in a curated historical exhibition at Grissom Air Museum at Grissom Air Force Base at 3 p.m. on Memorial Day Monday, May 27 through January 2025.