• Editor’s Note: This article is part of a weekly series on Kane County’s amazing history. Today’s article was contributed by Jennifer Putzier, director of the Batavia Depot Museum.

With Memorial Day just around the corner, it is a fitting time to feature this unique trapunto embroidery, a recent gift to the Batavia Historical Society from Patricia Entile in 2018.

Trapunto banners were popular souvenirs from China, Japan and Southeast Asia, and were custom ordered to feature details about the trip. Most often, they were commissioned by sailors, and were popular from the late 1890s to the start of World War II.

Trapunto is a layered or filled embroidery that has additional stitching, padding or loft to give the embroidery a three-dimensional effect. These banners were often made from silk, making them as delicate as they are beautiful.

This trapunto banner was commissioned for Julius Amandus Anderson, who rose to the rank of quartermaster after enlisting in the Navy on April 12, 1916. It reads “In remembrance of my cruise Hawaii Philippine China and Japan.”

It’s unclear what ship he would have been on that took such a route, but there were several German ships that were harbored in the Philippines that the United States seized and converted for use by the Navy when it entered into World War I on April 6, 1917.

The banner is brightly decorated with the flags of the nations visited as well as the U.S. flag. In the center is a photo of Julius Anderson in uniform, and at the bottom are photos of his parents, Charles and Anna Anderson. There are two painting of ships attached as well — likely ones Anderson served on either during that cruise or preceding it.

Anderson’s military career was cut short, not as a casualty of war, but from illness. He died at sea while his ship, the USS Pocahontas, was on route to France on Oct. 3, 1918. The USS Pocahontas was another seized and repurposed German vessel that was serving as a troop transport in the Atlantic.

Though the cause of death is listed as lobar pneumonia, Anderson may have been a secondary victim of the Spanish influenza, which was raging across the globe during WWI. Having the flu weakened the lung tissue, making survivors very susceptible to lung infections.

Risk of death from the Spanish flu and subsequent infections was highest for young adults, ages 25 to 30 — and Anderson was 26.

Julius Anderson memorial at West Batavia Cemetery.

If he died of the flu, he was not alone. In just the first two weeks of October 1918, there were three deaths caused by influenza and lobar pneumonia on the USS Pocahontas.

There were eight Batavians who died in service during World War I: Andrew M. Anderson, Julius Anderson, J.M.P. Benson, Victor Benson, John Duffy, John Kelly, Carl B. Mier and Elmer Peterson.

A memorial stands for all who gave their lives during both World Wars, as well as the wars in Korean and Vietnam.

An additional marker stands for Julius Amandus Anderson in West Batavia Cemetery, in tribute to his life and service and in memory of his shipmates on the USS Pocahontas.

About the Batavia Depot Museum

The Batavia Depot Museum opened in 1975 as a partnership between the Batavia Park District and the Batavia Historical Society. The Chicago Burlington and Quincy Railroad Depot was the first of its kind built in 1854, and is recognized on the National Register of Historic Places.

Inside, the city’s past comes alive through exhibits detailing the history of rail transportation, manufacture of windmills, agriculture, banking, commerce and a brief stay by Mary Todd Lincoln at Bellevue Place. Open seasonally, March through November. Hours are 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Read The Kane County History Series!

• 1850-1925 Geneva — When Penmanship Was Mightier Than The Sword
• St. Charles Museum Site — From Serving Gas To Preserving History
• Elgin Puts 3,500 Priceless Photos Online
• Batavia-Inspired Miniatures Thrilled a Nation
• Aurora’s Maud Powell, World Famous Violinist
• Waxing Nostalgic on Geneva’s WGSB, WFXW
• American Doughboys of WWI — in St. Charles, IL
• Experience High-Tech History at April 21 ‘Open Elgin’ Event
• Batavia, IL — ‘Windmill Capital of The World’
• Meet Andy Aurora, Man About Town
• Celebrating The 50th Anniversary of 9-1-1 in Geneva
• Blue Goose And Evergreen Pub — ‘Shop Local’ 90 Years In The Making
• Elgin Is The Apple of Illinois Bicentennial’s Eye
• Nordens Soner And Batavia’s Swedish Society
• Aurora’s Melting Pot ‘Yearning To Breathe Free’
• Candles, Timing Devices, Phonographs And The ‘Life Cup’ — All Things Made in Geneva
• Hotel Baker, The ‘Masterpiece’ of The Fox Valley
• Elgin Celebrates Our Once-Burgeoning Dairy Business
• Reflections of Batavia’s Quarry Beach Pool
• Aurora’s Mabel O’Donnell, Author of “Alice And Jerry’ Books
• As Alice (Davis) Says, ‘Schools Out For Summer!’
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• Nationally Renowned Summer Camp in St. Charles
• The Harrowing Story of William Lynch, Elgin’s Civil War Brigadier General
• Batavia Powered The Aurora, Elgin & Chicago Railway
• Corsets Doing Big Business in Aurora? Scandalous!
• One Block of Geneva Tells 1,001 Fantastic Stories
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• 1917-18 — When Elgin Artists Went to War
• Thomas Cleveland — Batavia’s Presidential Connection
• Do Your Wurst — Aurora Meat Markets Are ‘In’ Again
• Geneva Is The Place For Graveyards And Ghosts
• Visit Amelia Anderson At St. Charles’ North Side Cemetery
• Calling All Artists! … For a Cobblestone Reflection in Elgin
• Batavia’s 108-Year-Old Gazebo Still Lights The Way
• The Compelling, Tragic Story of Aurora’s Black WWI Hero Frank Boger
• Geneva History Museum Invites Artists To Celebrate Cultural Heritage
• Elgin’s Anson Clark Soared in The Great War … And Life
• What It Meant To Be a Patrol Boy and Louise White School
• ‘Men’s Night’ Christmas Shopping Was a 1950’s Aurora Phenomenon
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• Blansford Astronomical Clock Is Aurora’s Treasure
• St. Charles Returns Family Heirlooms From WWII
• Museum Lands Painting By Elgin Artist Albert Kenney
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• A Bird’s-Eye View of 19th Century Geneva
• Sheldon Peck: Kane County’s Connection To The Underground Railroad
• Elgin High School Celebrates 150 Years of ‘Education For All’
• Batavia’s Incredible Roller Skating History
• The Fabled History of Jewelry Stores in Geneva
• Astonishing Buried Treasure Discovered in Aurora Outhouse
• Lincoln Elementary School in St. Charles Celebrates 90 Years of Education
• Remembering Elgin High Grad, Renowned Composer Daniel Brewbaker, 1951 – 2017
• Meet Batavia’s Sharron Moran, LPGA Star, ‘Most Beautiful Golfer’ of 1966
• The Many Iterations of Geneva’s National Food Store
• The Burlington Zephyr — A ‘Silver Streak’ Through Aurora
• What IS That Thing in Downtown St. Charles?
• 18 Events, Limited-Edition Poster For Preservation Month in Elgin!