Parish History
The following is an article from the March 1999 Newsletter of the Larchmont Historical Society and is reprinted with their permission.
Lest We Forget: Anne Kathleen Cullen (1918-44)
By Jan Northrup
Vincent Cullen learned of the birth of his daughter while fighting in France during World War I, "the war to end all wars." Twenty-six years later, this little girl-known as Kay-was killed in Belgium while serving as a Red Cross volunteer during World War II. The first Red Cross woman and the only female Larchmonter killed by enemy action, Anne Kathleen (Kay) Cullen is remembered locally with an inscription on the monument in Memorial Park (intersection of Myrtle Boulevard and Chatsworth Avenue).
At the time of her death, H.I. Phillips dedicated this poem to her, published in his column in the New York Sun:
"Dear Vincent... It's a girl... Arrived today..." The father in the last war read the news,/ There on the shell-torn field of battered France, beside the crimsoned waters of the Meuse...
It gave new light and luster to the things that he and all his kind were fighting for.../ "To end all wars" kept ringing in his ears... by day and through the night, "To end all wars"...
Now in a Christmas season she is dead, not far from where he once opposed a tide:/ Anne Cullen, born in that far distant war... How long must mankind be so crucified?
Kay Cullen had an idyllic childhood. Born in Baltimore, Maryland, she came to Larchmont as an infant and grew up in the house at 11 Woodbine Avenue. She graduated from the Ursuline School in New Rochelle and attended Georgian Court College in New Jersey, the Art Students' League, and the Traphagen School in New York. Her family was active in St. Augustine's Church, where she sang in the choir. Her two brothers, Robert and Vincent, became priests; her sister, Nancy, now lives in Rye.
Larchmonter Jane Trenholm (born Bevier) was a close friend of Kay's from childhood, and they volunteered together Stateside in the early months of World War II. "Kay was an extremely attractive girl with beautiful long blond hair," Mrs. Trenholm remembers. "Her looks, warmth, and friendly personality made her especially suited to being a Red Cross hostess."
The two friends had spent the summer of 1941 sailing and socializing at the Larchmont Yacht Club. Then, shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, they--along with Larchmonters Gloria Hatrick (later Mrs. Jimmy Stewart) and Priscilla Sheppard--joined the Ambulance Ferry Command of the British American Motor Corps. Their job was to drive American-made ambulances to ports from which they would be shipped overseas. They hoped their unit would be sent overseas, but when it was not, Kay and Priscilla joined a Red Cross unit that organized social activities behind the front lines for soldiers on temporary leave for rest and recuperation.
Kay had two close brushes with death during her 20 months in Europe-from a robot bomb in England and from a shell that struck a convoy in which she was traveling. Her work was dangerous, and she knew it. On December 20, 1944, her luck ran out.
The Red Cross nurses and workers were staying in a convent beside a railhead from which the wounded were being evacuated to Antwerp. Kay was not feeling well that day and lay down to rest in her second-floor bedroom of the six-story building. About 4 p.m. a rocket-assisted projectile hit the center of the building. There was no artillery fire at the time; it was an isolated shell. The New York Sun reported:
The concussion following the shell's explosion blew her down the hall, causing internal injuries of which she died two hours later. She was the only person injured by the blast. Everything humanly and medically possible was done for her. Kathleen, an ardent Catholic, had the solace of a Catholic chaplain who was called to her side and who remained with her until she died. She was buried on December 21 with full military honors in the American military cemetery at Henri Chapelle. Her coffin was draped with the American flag.
Larchmonter George Straub may have been only 500 feet away when Kay died. He was the executive officer of the 72nd Ordnance Group, camped on the other side of the railhead. A soldier in his unit told him about Kay's death on the morning of her funeral. He didn't recognize her name. After returning home, he heard prayers for Anne Kathleen Cullen at St. Augustine's and realized she was the girl killed in Belgium.
Kay's parents received 400 letters from all over the world. One letter, signed by all the officers and men of 188th Medical Battalion, said, "We pay humble tribute to one who was held in very high regard by all and whose pleasing personality and outstanding character was impressed indelibly upon us." Another spoke of "her constant concern for the spiritual welfare of the boys to whom she dispensed coffee and donuts-how she urged them to seek out their chaplain and renew their religious contacts."
In the words of a resolution passed by the Larchmont Board of Trustees, Kay was "well known for her winning personality and zest for life, her many talents and fine character, her generous and tolerant view of all people, her strong sense of duty and her tireless participation in all civilian defense and Red Cross activities in the community."
Each spring, the Larchmont Yacht Club awards the Anne Kathleen Cullen Trophy during the Race Week. Every Memorial Day she is honored as the only Larchmont woman killed in wartime action. When you hear the name of Anne Kathleen Cullen, think of the young woman for whom working safely on the homefront was not enough, who left her comfortable and pleasant surroundings to support the men fighting in the war so far away. She was a shining reflection of her times.
Reprinted with permission from the Larchmont Historical Society
