George Edward Iskow was a young man of American immigrant background whose life and military service reflected the wide-reaching consequences of World War I, including its ties to the Territory of Hawaii. Although Iskow was born and raised in California, his parents and family later moved to Honolulu, making the islands their home. In death, he would be remembered not just in California but also in Hawaii.
From California Roots to Military Service
Born around 1895, George E. Iskow was living in Hanford, California, when he enlisted in the United States Army during World War I. He became a member of Company A, 160th Infantry Regiment, part of the 79th Infantry Brigade of the 40th Division (Ancestry.com, n.d.). This division was composed largely of National Guard units from the western states, including California.
The 40th Division deployed to France in August 1918, where it served as a replacement division, providing troops to front-line units during the final months of the war (Hanford Kings County Sentinel, 1919, February 6).
Final Service and Death in France
Iskow reached France in late 1918 and took part in military operations during the final Allied offensives. Like many others, he never reached the battlefield unscathed. On December 30, 1918—just weeks after the armistice—Private Iskow died from pneumonia, likely a result of the 1918 influenza pandemic that ravaged troop camps across Europe (Ancestry.com, n.d.; The San Diego Sun, 1919, January 31).
He was just 23 years old.
Though he died far from home, Iskow was laid to rest with dignity. He is buried at the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery in France, in Plot C, Row 30, Grave 33 (Ancestry.com, n.d.). The cemetery, one of the largest U.S. burial grounds in Europe, holds the remains of over 14,000 Americans who died during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive and related operations.
Remembered in Hawaii
While George Iskow entered military service from California, his connection to Hawaiʻi came through his family. His parents moved to Honolulu after the war, where they became part of the local community. In a 1930 article, his mother was listed among Gold Star Mothers in the Territory—women who had lost sons during the war (Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 1930, March 15). This inclusion affirms the family’s deep ties to the islands and reflects how Hawaiʻi’s residents—whether born there or adopted it as home—became part of the territory’s military legacy.
Further evidence of this connection appears in a 1928 memorial listing in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, which noted George Iskow among Hawaiʻi’s fallen servicemen (Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 1928, February 4). Though he had enlisted from the mainland, Hawaii claimed him in memory and grief.
“The debt that we owe these men who gave their lives in France cannot be paid… but we can remember them always.”
— (Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 1928, February 4)
Legacy
Private George Edward Iskow’s story bridges two coasts and two regions of American identity. He represents the thousands of young men who went to France with hope, endured war and illness, and did not return. His death is a part of both California’s and Hawaiʻi’s wartime history—an emblem of sacrifice that transcended geography.
Sources Cited
- The Daily Herald (Everett, Washington). (1919, January 31). War casualty list includes G. E. Iskow, p. 11.
Listed on the plaque outside the War Memorial Natatorium for giving his life in the Great War. - Ancestry.com. (n.d.). Edward J. Iskow in the U.S., Headstone and Interment Records for U.S. Military Cemeteries on Foreign Soil, 1942–1949. Retrieved from https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/9170/records/30168166/
- Hanford Kings County Sentinel. (1919, February 6). Private George Iskow dead in France, p. 10.
- Honolulu Star-Bulletin. (1928, February 4). Honor Roll of Hawaiʻi’s World War I Dead, p. 1.
- Honolulu Star-Bulletin. (1930, March 15). Gold Star Mothers of Hawaiʻi honored, p. 28.
- The San Diego Sun. (1919, January 31). List of men from California dead overseas, p. 4.
