I designed and constructed a shadow box to display my late father’s medals and wings from his service in the Army Air Forces during World War II.
Actual medals were generally not issued during the war, and I doubt my father ever received them after the war. I applied for replacement medals from the National Archives and Records Administration through their eVetRecs program. Since a majority of veteran records from that time were lost in a fire, I had to provide his discharge papers and wait about six months.
The frame I made is 8 by 10 inches and made of 1×2 Douglas Fir stock. I used a router to make a rabbet on the back edge to receive a pressboard backing. Inside near the front is a grove to receive a piece of stock 8×10 clear plastic. The inner front edge is chamfered and the outer front edge is rounded over. The frame is stained with a light honey oak stain.
Once I decided on the layout, I used a word processor to position the phrases that describe each of the wings: Gunner, Bombardier and Navigator. I printed this on a sheet of quality paper, such as one might use for scrapbooking. I used a subtle beige-on-beige stripe pattern, but I may change this to a blue sky and clouds motif.
I used small blocks of poplar to mount the wings and medals. I drilled a small hole from side to side near the upper front surface of each block. The wings and medals each have straight-pin backs with clasps. The pin slides through the hole and the clasp is closed. Most of a wing’s back surface rests on the front surface of the small block. This keeps it perpendicular and gives it a three dimensional look. Each branch insignia (winged propeller) has two pins, so I simply drilled two holes in the front of the blocks. All the poplar blocks are screwed to the pressboard backing from behind.
I designed a “Keep ‘Em Flying” banner based on a vintage poster I saw at the Library of Congress website. I printed my graphic on glossy photo paper and pasted it onto card stock. I then pasted that on a small strip of wood, and pasted that in turn to the background paper.
I repeated the same 3D-effect for the other images you see: I scanned, resized and reprinted my father’s graduation picture from the navigation school at San Marcos Army Air Field. This was originally taken at San Marcos, Texas in April 1945. Having a picture really personalizes the collection beyond just a collection of medals. I also scanned, printed and mounted the obverse image of each medal. The viewer can thus see the back of each medal, which would otherwise not be possible once enclosed in the shadow box.
The shadow box hangs in my study and I can now easily view and enjoy these mementoes. Do you have other ideas for such displays? Please add your comments.