"The street is really not much, just mud and ruts,
but right now to me it is the greatest street in the world."
-Claro Solis (Soliz)
Only a block and a half long, Second Street in Silvis, Illinois lost six young men in World War II and two in the Korean War, more than any other street in America. Hero Street, as it is now known, has provided over 100 service members since Mexican-American immigrants settled there in 1929.
Hero Street, a multi-part documentary series by Emmy® Award-winning filmmakers Kelly and Tammy Rundle, will explore the compelling true story of eight heroes: Tony Pompa, Frank Sandoval, William Sandoval, Claro Solis, Peter Masias, Joseph Sandoval, Joseph Gomez and John S. Muños.
The series will combine interviews with family members, friends, veterans, community leaders and historians with vintage photos, film, and archival materials to tell an unforgettable story of American courage, character and perseverance.
2nd Street was renamed Hero Street, USA.
Letters Home to Hero Street, the Emmy-nominated and award-winning 30-minute documentary produced by WQPT-PBS and Fourth Wall Films with a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, focuses on a young Mexican-American veteran's personal view of World War II, as told through the letters and V-Mail (Victory Mail) he sent home to his family on 2nd Street in Silvis, Illinois.
Frank Sandoval was just beginning a new job at the Rock Island Arsenal when he was drafted by the Army in 1942. He sent dozens of letters to family and friends during the two years he was in the service and the more than 100 letters that remain tell a story of one man's epic journey from Illinois to India.
Killed on the Irrawaddy River in Burma in June 1944, Frank becomes one of eight veterans of WWII and the Korean War killed in combat from the same block-and-a-half long street--more than any other street in America.
Letters Home to Hero Street is dedicated to the Hero Street Eight.
To purchase Letters Home to Hero Street on DVD, click HERE.
Riding the Rails to Hero Street, the first film in the Hero Street documentary series, tells the story of the immigrants’ early 1900s flight from the ravages of the Mexican Revolution to Cook's Point in Davenport, Iowa; Holy City in Bettendorf, Iowa; and the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad train yard in Silvis, Illinois. Many lived in boxcars supplied by the railroad.
Families experienced both acceptance and discrimination as they built their new community in what is now the Quad Cities. Around the time of the Great Depression, the boxcar village residents were forced to move to 2nd Street in Silvis. Some built houses and some moved their boxcar homes to the new site.
The sons of these workers grew up in America and answered the call to service during WW II and the Korean War. Eight were killed in combat from this same block-and-a-half long street--more lost than any other street in America.
In memory of Frank Sandoval, Tony Pompa, Claro Solis (Soliz), Joseph Sandoval, Peter Masias, William Sandoval, Joseph Gomez and John Munos, 2nd Street was renamed Hero Street, U.S.A.
Riding the Rails to Hero Street was funded in part by Humanities Iowa and The Moline Foundation.
To purchase Riding the Rails to Hero Street on DVD, click HERE.
A Bridge Too Far From Hero Street follows William Sandoval's journey from a boxcar in Silvis, Illinois to a battle in a forest in Holland. Born into an impoverished family of twelve, Willie performed migrant farm work alongside his parents and siblings until his father took a job with the Rock Island Railroad. The Sandovals and other Mexican immigrants made their homes in boxcars in the rail yard. As a young man Willie became an accomplished boxer.
Answering a call to service following the attack on Pearl Harbor, Willie became an Army paratrooper. He survived several battles over the next two years (Salerno, Anzio), before he was killed at age 21 in October 1944 following his involvement in the largest air assault in history--Operation Market Garden. An interview with military historian John C. McManus, the author of "September Hope: The American Side of a Bridge Too Far", highlights Willie's participation. Marc Wilson, the author of "Hero Street, USA" is also featured.
Eight sons of Mexican immigrants from the block-and-a-half long 2nd Street in Silvis, Illinois were killed in combat in World War II and Korea--more lost than any other street in America. The street was renamed Hero Street in 1968.
Through its fiscal sponsor the Moline Foundation, A Bridge Too Far From Hero Street was funded in part by the Regional Development Authority, Illinois Humanities Council, and Quad City Arts. The documentary also received a grant from the Moline Foundation, the Quad Cities Community Foundation, and funding support from the League of Latin American Citizens (LULAC)--Iowa, the Mexican American Veterans Association (M.A.V.A.)--Hero Street Chapter #4, the City of Silvis, Bob Ontiveros and Marc Wilson.
To purchase A Bridge too Far from Hero Street on DVD, click HERE.
An Infantryman from Hero Street tells the true story of Pvt. Joseph Sandoval, who was born in a boxcar in the Silvis, Illinois rail yard to Mexican immigrants. Joe’s brother Frank went off to war in 1942. In 1944, Joe—now married with two young children--was drafted and shipped to Britain with the 41st Armored Infantry Regiment. His unit helped fight the second stage of the Normandy Invasion in France.
News of his brother Frank’s death near the Irrawaddy River in Burma reached Joe by letter. In April 1945, the Allies reached an agreement regarding post-war Germany, and Joe and his fellow soliders were told the war was essentially “over”. On April 14, 1945 Joe was killed during a German counter attack near the Elbe River in Schönebeck, Germany. Two weeks later Adolph Hitler committed suicide.
An Infantryman From Hero Street also features commentary by Captain Kevin Braafladt, First Army Support Command Historian; Dr. Yurida Ramirez, Professor of Latin American Studies, University of Illinois-Urbana; author Marc Wilson “Hero Street, USA”; and members of the Joe and Frank Sandoval family, including Tanilo Sandoval, Georgia Sandoval Herrera, and Irene Mawson.
“They gave their lives to preserve our freedom,” said Captain Braafladt. “It would be their hope, and the hope of their families, to have their service and stories remembered.”
An Infantryman from Hero Street was funded in part by a grant from the Illinois Humanities, with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Illinois General Assembly; and, through its fiscal sponsor the Black Box Theatre, a Quad City Arts Dollars grant—provided by Illinois Arts Council Agency, Hubbell-Waterman Foundation and John Deere.
To purchase An Infantryman from Hero Street on DVD, click HERE.
The Last to Fall from Hero Street, the fifth in the series, will tell the story of Mexican-American John Muños from Silvis, and his Korean War military service. The film profiles his family’s journey from Mexico as they fled the Revolution. John’s father, Isabel, worked in the rail yards in Silvis, and his mother, Victoria, made their home in a boxcar provided by the railroad. The families of the boxcar village experienced both acceptance and discrimination in their new community.
Around the time of the Great Depression, the families living in the railroad village were moved to 2nd Street in Silvis, a former dumpsite. The Muños family was one of several families that moved their boxcar to 2nd Street and built a home around it — the home is still standing. After high school, John was working on the International Harvester combine assembly line in East Moline, when his draft notice from the U.S. Army arrived Sept. 15, 1950. He quickly married his sweetheart, Mary Louise Bessera, before he was sent to Korea with Company F of the 38th Regimental Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division.
Sometimes called “the Forgotten War,” the film will show how John’s wartime experiences fit into the overall Korean War story. On Aug. 27, 1951, John was among 740 Americans killed in the Battle of Bloody Ridge, at age 23. His body was never recovered.
The Last to Fall from Hero Street will premiere November 9, 2024 at 2pm at the Putnam Museum.
The Hero Street documentary series is made possible by the generous support of