Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, leading to America's entrance into World War II. Shown here is the 3rd Extra edition of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, which had a paper out with news of the attack within three hours. This edition reported that "Honolulu and Oahu came through a baptism of fire today with calm determination as wave after wave of Japanese bombers rained missiles all over the island." See the full front page on our site:. Attack on Pearl Harbor, 3rd Extra edition Honolulu Star-Bulletin Honolulu, Hawaii 07 Dec 1941, Sun, Page 9 staff_reporter Member Photo, Clipped by staff_reporter.
Five servicemen from Fort Wayne died during the attack on Pearl Harbor. Aboard the battleship USS Oklahoma were Seaman Raymond Boynton, Machinist’s Mate Arthur Glenn and Seaman Maurice Spangler. [Arthur Glenn's remains were identified in 2017 and reburied August 21, 2018. More than 2,400 people died in the attack on Pearl Harbor, and 18 ships were sunk or damaged, according to the Pearl Harbor Visitors Bureau. A government report said few crewmen from the Oklahoma were identified in the years after the attack and the remains of as many as 400 unknown sailors were buried together. At least 46 sailors remain unidentified, according to the report. Glenn is no longer among them. Copied from Pearl Harbor casualty identified City sailor to be buried with honors by Matthew LeBlanc published August 17, 2018 in The Journal Gazette newspaper.] Aboard the battleship USS Arizona, Fort Wayne men who died were Gunner’s Mate Marshall Coffman and Seaman Harold Summers. None of the bodies of these sailors were ever recovered [until Glenn in 2017]. Dying amid the flaming chaos of the Pearl Harbor attack, these five men were just the first of many local residents to lose their lives during World War II. Copied from a letter to editor published December 13, 2013, but is no longer online at The Journal Gazette newspaper.
Pair of city submariners'final resting place found published December 7, 2019 in The Journal Gazette newspaper states: The Grayback, a U.S. submarine, left Pearl Harbor Jan. 28, 1944, on its final combat mission. Its whereabouts have been unknown for 75 years. Last month, the Navy confirmed a submarine found in June off the coast of Japan was the Grayback. It was the final resting place for 80 sailors, including two Fort Wayne men. The Journal Gazette reported the two men missing at sea on April 11, 1944. Lt. William Charles Roy Jr., 24, was an honor graduate of South Side High School's class of 1938. He joined the Navy after graduation and was admitted to the U.S. Naval Academy a year later, graduating on Dec. 19, 1941, less than two weeks after the Pearl Harbor attack that sent the nation to war. The son of William and Emma Roy of Wildwood Lane, he was married to Hilda May Roy. Machinist Mate Harold Xen Barbour, 22, was a 1940 graduate of Fort Wayne Central High School. He was the son of Harvey and Barbara Barbour of Maumee Avenue, according to the 1943 city directory. The “Lost 52 Project,” a group of explorers whose mission is to find the 52 submarines unaccounted for after World War II, located the Grayback about 50 nautical miles south of Okinawa, but the find wasn't verified by the Navy until last month.
Thanks to our newest partner, the Veterans National Memorial Shrine and Museum, the history of Baer Field and its war time works told through the pages of the base newspaper "The Beacon" will be shared digitally with the public. From 1942 to 1947, the Beacon was published weekly on base containing war news, local troop events, supportive Fort Wayne businesses and organizations and more. Stay tuned for more details to come.
Sugar was in short supply during WWII. It was the first food to be rationed after the war started. Pictured here are people lining up, waiting for their chance to buy rationed sugar: People line up to get sugar rations during WWII.
On December 1, 1942, the United States began nationwide gas rationing to help the American war effort during WWII. Pictured here is a WWII gasoline rationing book with stamps: http://fnote.it/6xcr
On December 1, 1942, the U.S. began nationwide gas rationing to help the American war effort. Between 1942 and 1945, the federal government regulated purchases of goods like food and gas. War Ration Books were issued to everyone. Each stamp or coupon authorized the holder to purchase rationed goods in the quantities and at the times authorized by the Office of Price Administration. Without the stamps, you were unable to buy them. Women had to learn to juggle the stamps (and budget the money) efficiently in order to keep their families fed. Rationing was part of the War effort to conserve and “guarantee a fair share of goods made scarce by war.” Rationing meant an enormous change in eating habits. Protein was in short supply and recipes were invented or adapted. Sources: Fold3 https://www.fold3.com/image/85518623...; and The Children's Museum of Indianapolis.
During WWII, the US lost access to 90% of the country's rubber supplies after Japan seized most of the rubber plantations in Southeast Asia. Rubber products were rationed, and old tires were reclaimed to bolster rubber supplies. http://fnote.it/6xve
During WWII, there was a shortage of nurses. Federal funds flowed to nursing schools, providing scholarships for women 17-35 who attended nursing school and committed to serve. If you had an ancestor who served in the Cadet Nurse Corps, search for them in this collection: US, WWII Cadet Nursing Corps Card Files, 1942-1948
During WWII, there was a shortage of nurses. Federal funds flowed to nursing schools, providing scholarships for women 17-35 who attended nursing school and committed to serve. If you had an ancestor who served in the Cadet Nurse Corps, search for them in this collection: US, WWII Cadet Nursing Corps Card Files, 1942-1948
On the 37th Northeast Indiana Honor Flight by Daniel Beals posted June 11, 2022 on YouTube WASHINGTON (WPTA) - Long before the sun began to rise over Fort Wayne, dozens of veterans were bright-eyed, eating breakfast to fuel up for a memorable trip to the nation’s capitol. They had yet to learn just how special the day would be, as they made final preparations for the 37th Northeast Indiana Honor Flight. Stops planned in Washington, DC include memorials for WWII, Vietnam, the Korean War, the Arlington Cemetery, and the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. “It’s going to be a full day. They’re going to be exhausted but they’re all going to be happy,” HFNEI board president Cathy Berkshire told us.
World War II Legacies: Stories of Northeast Indiana Veterans
The plucky women of World War II (100-year-old VETERAN SHARES HER STORY) by Daniel Beals posted March 17, 2022 on YouTube. DECATUR, Ind. (WPTA21) - Interviewing over 260 veterans, Bluffton author Kayleen Reusser continues to share stories of those who fought to protect their country. But in her 10th book, women are the heroes she hopes to honor. Reusser sat down with ABC21 to talk about Born to be Soldiers: Those Plucky Women of World War II.
LEGACIES OF THE KOREAN WAR: Walter ‘Bud’ Mendenhall - July 9, 2018 - “We were scared all of the time,” said Walter ‘Bud’ Mendenhall of Fort Wayne. During the Korean War, Mendenhall served as a gunner with the U.S. Navy, assigned to a destroyer minesweeper called the USS Carmick (DMS 33). “Many of our ships were hit by the enemy. We prayed a lot.”
LEGACIES OF WWII: Robert E. Lee – Navy Corpsman - June 25, 2018 - born in Van Wert, Ohio, in 1917, one of 12 children, Lee moved with his family first to a farm near Fox Island, then Auburn. His father, a sharecropper, plowed with horses. Robert attended school through the eighth grade, then quit to work on the farms. In 1940, Robert began working at International Harvester.
LEGACIES OF WORLD WAR II — Eugene Cogan’s recount of D-Day - May 28, 2018 - Eugene Cogan of Avilla was leading troops through an orchard on a steep bluff in the Normandy region of France on June 6, 1944, when a bullet hit him in the back, knocking him out.
LEGACIES OF WWII: Gordon Smith –Army /Europe - May 14, 2018 - Gordon Smith was discharged in April 1946 from Camp Atterbury in southern Indiana, but chose to re-enlist in the Army until 1949.
LEGACIES OF WWII: Wilbur L. Seibold – Huntington – B17 top turret gunner - December 25, 2017 - After more than 73 years since his flight crew was captured by German troops during World War II, Wilbur Seibold still values his dog tags, a photo of his flight crew and a plaque containing a piece of his downed aircraft.
WWII LEGACIES: Fort Wayne’s Wilbert Reinking- Navy - November 27, 2017 - Wilbert Reinking was at Great Lakes Naval Training Center near Chicago as a new recruit on December 7, 1941, when the alarming news arrived that the American naval base at Pearl Harbor had been bombed by the Japanese Imperial Navy.
MEMORIES OF WWII: Fort Wayne’s Robert Voelker was a singer for the Navy - November 8, 2017 - the Navy Local News Nov 8, 2017 Kayleen Reusser for The News-Sentinel Robert Voelker served the American military for one year, one month and 24 days before being discharged in August 1946. He graduated with a degree in business from Indiana University in 1950 and worked several years for Lutheran Insurance (now Thrivent) before retiring in 1990. (Photo by Kayleen Reusser) Robert Voelker served the American military for one year, one month and 24 days before being discharged in August 1946. He graduated with a degree in business from Indiana University in 1950 and worked several years for Lutheran Insurance (now Thrivent) before retiring in 1990.
A wartime tale of survival in the Battle of the Bulge - September 4, 2017 - Mark Flanagan's pre-med studies were interrupted for fighting on battlefield
Navy veteran witnessed Japanese surrender in Tokyo Harbor - August 25, 2017 - James Charles Wiegman of Fort Wayne He served on battleship USS New Mexico when bombs dropped.
These men survived the beaches of Normandy - June 6, 2017 - Leo Scheer and Eugene Dettmer, A sailor and a soldier, in Huntington and Fort Wayne, recall the invasion that began the end of World War II
Returning to WW II internment camp an emotional experience for retired teacher - August 20, 2016 - Nearly 75 years later, Dorothy Kittaka still finds it difficult to understand how it happened in America. In mid-1942, the U.S. government forced her family and about 120,000 other Japanese Americans – many of whom were U.S. citizens – to leave behind most possessions and move to internment camps in remote areas of the western United States because of fear they would support Japan in World War II.
Army Air Corps mechanic kept planes in top shape - December 28, 2015 - At 12:30 a.m. June 6, 1944 – D-Day – Lewis Harrison “Harry” Hull of Fort Wayne and other flight mechanics were awakened from their bunks at an air base in eastern England.
Local writer collects the stories of area World War II veterans - November 6, 2014 - Author Kayleen Reusser of Bluffton brings their stories to life and tries to share them with current generations through her new book, “World War II Legacies: Stories of Northeast Indiana Veterans.”
WW II MaterialsAbout this collection World War II changed everything in Indiana, either temporarily,or permanently. Men and women joined the military to face the uncertainty of war. Those at home planted Victory Gardens, contributed to scrap drives, bought war bonds and worked in factories. This growing collection illustrates the Hoosier story of WWII. At We Do History online digital collection by the Indiana Historical Society.
#ArchivesSalute Waist Gunners of the B 17 Invader II, S/Sgt. Eldon R. Lapp, Fort Wayne and S/Sgt. William D. King, Imperial, Texas. England. March 17, 1943 https://catalog.archives.gov/id/292574
The World War II Memorial in Washington D.C. honors the 16 million who served in the armed forces of the U.S., the more than 400,000 who died, and all who supported the war effort from home.
Merci Train in Fort Wayne a remembrance of good will after WWII by Louisa Danielson published September 16, 2013 in the The News-Sentinel newspaper.
December 6, 2011 Exactly seven decades ago Wednesday, about lunchtime for people in Fort Wayne, Clarence Cook was relaxing. He was in the Navy, and it was a Sunday, his only day off. So after breakfast he had taken off his shoes and laid down in his tiny bunk below deck for a nap. Then, a fire alarm went off, so Cook, as a member of a fire and rescue party that morning, grabbed a fire extinguisher and went on deck to see what was going on. He needed more than a fire extinguisher. Clarence Cook was aboard the USS Aylwin when the Japanese began their attack on Pearl Harbor. Read the rest of the story Date of infamy slowly fades away by Frank Gray of the Journal Gazette newspaper.
World War II Records Digitized by Amanda R Pritchard, posted May 31, 2022 on The Unwritten Record blog at The National Archives. World War II records from the Adjutant General’s Office of the War Department (Record Group 407) have been digitized and are available to view and download from the National Archives Catalog. This series consists of maps and charts, overlays, city plans, aerial photographs, photomaps, pencil sketches, and architectural drawings relating to the European, Mediterranean, and Pacific theaters of war during World War II. The records were prepared by Allied armies, corps, divisions, and subordinate engineer components and collected by the Adjutant General’s Office. Typical records found in this series include terrain studies, maps showing defenses, maps relating to military operations, maps showing engineer activities, maps showing roads and bridges, and maps showing administrative boundaries.
In honor of the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the Indiana State Archives would like to remind you that we have a large...
In honor of the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the Indiana State Archives would like to remind you that we have a large collection of separation records from WWII veterans.
We also have a searchable index for World War II soldiers, who died in service. Check out our World War II deceased database on the Research Indiana Index under the military category, along with our other military indexes: Indiana Archives Digital Index Records
To speed housing construction, many builders put up prefabricated homes, some of which could be assembled within a day. Most "prefab" homes came from General Industries' General Homes plant in Fort Wayne or the National Homes plant in Lafayette. General Homes' local plant, ironically, was built on the site of Camp Scott, which had held German prisoners during the war. "It was like a mission to house people," recalled Phillip H. Shirmeyer, whose father, the late Ralph Shirmeyer, became one of National Homes' highest-volume builders by constructing prefab homes in southeast subdivisions such as Mount Vernon Park. Prefabricated homes didn't offer much choice in size or style. National Homes' early models, for example, typically ranged from about 950 to 1,200 square feet, and cost about $6,000. "Today, couples with kids wouldn't even have a look at them," Phillip Shirmeyer said. "Back then, it was appreciated." The need for home lots stretched the city limits to the south and north. Subdivisions built during the late 1940s included Sherwood Heights, Mount Vernon Park, Harvester View, Anthony Wayne, Mauldin Amended and Woodhurst additions on Fort Wayne's south side. Building on the north side began with the North Highlands addition and exploded in the early 1950s. So great was the demand that the number of new homes built in Fort Wayne increased from 655 in 1946 to 1,003 by 1950. Copied from 1940-1949: IN THE SHADOW OF WAR Postwar era best, worst of times by KEVIN KILBANE of The News-Sentinel newspaper. Another article 1950-1959: DAYS OF CONFLICT, YEARS OF PROSPERITY North side boomed in postwar era has additional housing information. House + Home in November 1952 with house photos mentions Ralph Shirmeyer at least three times. This topic was discussed April 16, 2022 on Great Memories and History of Fort Wayne Private Facebook Group. BTW Fort Wayne has been called the Happiest Town at least three times!
Tin Village - Tiny Houses - McMillen Park Apartments
John Oscar Silvey, 96, died February 16, 2016, born May 5, 1919, grew up in Oak Hill, Ohio. He enlisted in the Army during World War II and was sent to study courses in advanced radar at MIT and Harvard. That information became invaluable when he was called upon to head up army communications for the assault on Iwo Jima. February 28, 2016 obituary.
