Just who is Kilroy?
Kilroy Was Here: The Story Behind the Iconic WWII Graffiti
For many, especially those born between 1913 and 1950, the name "Kilroy" brings back a flood of memories. This piece of American history is immortalized in stone at the National War Memorial in Washington, DC, hidden away in a small alcove.
Perhaps no other symbol, gag, or character is as WWII recognizable as “Kilroy”. There are as many veteran stories of having seen this during the war, it seems, as there are veterans to tell them.
Every battle ground or rear area, of every theater, has spawned these stories of having seen “Kilroy” scrawled on a wall somewhere –supposedly placed there before the troops arrived.
"Kilroy" was always there to take care of your home, girl, automobile, job, or anything else you left back at home, “Kilroy” was the graffiti they say was already awaiting you when you hit the beach, knocked over the next enemy town, or went down the wrong alley when carousing in London.
There are plenty of stories concerning who or where “Kilroy” originated. The one constant in soldiers' stories was that “Kilroy” was ALWAYS there before you got there. No one ever saw who put it there. Many credited UDT or Combat Engineer troops, who cleared the way in beach operations.
Apparently, many servicemen had occasion to mention the character to those at home, because by 1945, news stories concerning the everywhere “Kilroy” were surfacing.
So, who was Kilroy?
In 1946, the American Transit Association sponsored a nationwide contest through its radio program, "Speak to America," to find the real Kilroy, offering a prize of a real trolley car. Almost 40 men claimed to be the genuine Kilroy, but only James Kilroy from Halifax, Massachusetts, provided the necessary evidence.
James Kilroy was a 46-year-old shipyard worker during WWII, employed as a checker at the Fore River Shipyard in Quincy. His job involved counting the rivets completed by the riveters, who were paid by the rivet. To prevent double counting, Kilroy marked the inspected rivets with semi-waxed lumber chalk. However, riveters would erase his marks to get paid twice.
To combat this, Kilroy began writing "KILROY WAS HERE" in large letters alongside his checkmarks, eventually adding a sketch of a chap with a long nose peering over a fence. This made it difficult for the riveters to erase his marks, and soon, his graffiti began appearing on ships leaving the shipyard.
With the war in full swing, these ships often went unpainted, leaving Kilroy's markings visible to thousands of servicemen who boarded them. The troops, amused and intrigued by the mysterious graffiti, began spreading the "Kilroy was here" message across Europe and the South Pacific, claiming it was already there when they arrived.
Kilroy became a symbol of the U.S. servicemen's presence, appearing in unlikely places such as atop Mt. Everest, the Statue of Liberty, the underside of the Arc de Triomphe, and even in the dust on the moon. The legend grew, and it became a challenge for troops to place the logo in the most improbable locations.
In 1945, during the Potsdam Conference, Stalin used an outhouse built for Roosevelt, Stalin, and Churchill. After emerging, he reportedly asked, "Who is Kilroy?"
To prove his authenticity in 1946, James Kilroy brought officials from the shipyard and some riveters to the contest.
He won the trolley car, which he gifted to his nine children as a Christmas present, setting it up as a playhouse in their yard in Halifax, Massachusetts.
Eventually, James Kilroy faded from the scene, his 15 minutes of fame having played out. Kilroy passed away on Novemebr 24, 1962 in Massachusetts where he had lived his entire life. He is credited with being “That Kilroy” in almost every obituary or write up that can be found.
The tradition of Kilroy continues, a testament to the spirit and humor of the WWII generation.