Medford to honor WWI veteran who died for country

MEDFORD, Ore. (AP) — A stone marker recognizing a Medford veteran who died for his country will be unveiled on Veterans Day.

The Mail Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/2emyHQy ) that Newell Barber was killed when his plane was shot down over France in August 1918. Medford named its first public airfield after Barber two years later.

The Newell Barber Field became obsolete as the aviation industry advanced, and the area eventually became Jackson County’s baseball park.

Municipal airport Director Bern Case says he began thinking about how it would be sad to lose the memory of the airfield’s history and Newell Barber’s story.

Historian Bill Miller will talk about the young aviator during a ceremony Friday and the stone marker engraved by Brice Campman will be revealed.

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Information from: Mail Tribune, http://www.mailtribune.com/