SSGT Kenneth Lawrence Morgan (WWII)


Remembering SSGT Kenneth L. Morgan (Fairmont)

September 16, 1920 - April 26, 1945

----

SSGT Kenneth L. Morgan (Service Number 20544885) was born in Fairmont, WV on September 16, 1920, the son of William and Lovie (McShaver) Morgan. MSGT William H. "Curley" Morgan was a veteran of more than 14 years of service, including in France during WWI.

At the time of Kenneth's birth, William was working as a policeman, and the family lived at 617 Spring Street. They remained there for a least a decade, before moving slightly further up the mountain to 723 Spring Street, between 1930 and 1935. By 1930, William was working as a fireman for the Fairmont Fire Department, which was his career until he retired as Fire Chief.

Education:

Kenneth attended Fairmont Senior High School, from which he graduated in 1939. Kenneth was a student at Fairmont State when WWII began overseas. While at Fairmont State, he was a member of the Tau Beta Iota (TBI) fraternity

Military Service:

He enlisted on January 1, 1941 in Fairmont while working as an architect (Army Enlistment Records).

A May 7, 1945 article from the Fairmont Times entitled "Kenneth Morgan Dies of Wounds" gave the following military history for Kenneth:

"When war broke out Sgt. Morgan was a student at Fairmont State college and within a short time he enlisted in the 201st Regiment of the National Guard. He left there with the Guard and served for nearly three years in Alaska and the Aleutians. Upon returning to the States several months ago, he was stationed at Fort Benning, Ga., for a time, and then went overseas again in January. Since then his family has heard little of his activities"

Kenneth served in the 14th Infantry Regiment, 71st Infantry Division, Company F. The 14th arrived in France on February 6, 1945, and worked their way across France and Germany. They participated in such activities as breaching the Siegfried Line (March 21, 1945) before crossing the Rhine River (March 30, 1945), and seizing Bayreuth, Germany (April 14-16, 1945) (25th Infantry Division Association). 

The 14th was participating in the seizure of the town of Regensberg on April 24, 1945, when SSGT Kenneth Morgan was wounded in action (25th Infantry Division Association). Kenneth received penetrating wounds to his buttocks and abdomen. He was taken to the 60th Field Hospital in Regensburg, Germany, but unfortunately succumbed to his wounds on April 25, 1945 (IDPF).

Legacy and Survivors:

Initially interred in Nurnberg, Germany, and St. Avold-Metz cemetery in France, SSGT Kenneth Morgan was laid to rest at the historic Woodlawn Cemetery in Fairmont, WV on December 9, 1948. Fairmont Post 17 of the American Legion presided over the military honors. 

Kenneth was survived by his parents, brother Lt William J. Morgan, and sister-in-law Mrs. Mary Agnes Morgan. Lt Morgan was wounded in action in Belgium, but returned home safely.

SSGT Kenneth Morgan is honored at the West Virginia Veterans Memorial in Charleston, WV. 

Sources and More Information:

  • 14th Infantry Regiment (Golden Dragons). 25th Infantry Division Association
  • 71st Infantry Division Campaigns during World War II. Holocaust Encylopedia
  • Fairmont Senior High School Yearbooks: 1937, Accessed through Ancestry
  • Fairmont State Teachers College Yearbook (Now Fairmont State University): 1941 (source of the above photo)
  • Family Search Profile: SSGT Kenneth L. Morgan
  • Findagrave Profile: Kenneth L. Morgan
  • Individual Deceased Personnel File (IDPF): 
    • Kenneth L. Morgan. Accessed with assistance from Fort Knox
  • Our Honored War Dead: Tau Beta Iota Fraternity at Fairmont State University
  • Newspaper Articles, in Chronological Order:
    • Kenneth Morgan Dies of Wounds. The Fairmont Times. 7 May 1945. Accessed with help from the West Virginia Regional History Center.
    • SGT. K.L. Morgan Rites on Thursday. The West Virginian. 7 December 1948. Accessed with help from the West Virginia Regional History Center.
    • Services Today for Sgt. Morgan. The Fairmont Times. 9 December 1948. Accessed with help from the West Virginia Regional History Center.
  • U.S. Census (Accessed through FamilySearch)
  • West Virginia Memory Project: 
  • West Virginia Death Record:


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

MSGT Richard Glassco Tennant (WWII)

Image
Remembering MSGT Richard Glassco Tennant (Farmington) October 3, 1918 - May 8, 1943 ---- Master Sergeant Richard Glassco Tennant (Service # 15012411) was born October 3, 1918 in Farmington, WV to Loren and Willa "Pearl" (Davis) Tennant.  Loren worked as a telegraph operator (1920 census) for the railroad. Unfortunately, Loren died in 1927, leaving Pearl unemployed in Farmington with their three children- Ruth (11), Richard (8), and Edna (7), living at Parish Run specifically. Richard attended Farmington High School, graduating with the class of 1937. While at Farmington High School, he played baseball and football ("Richard Tennant, Lost in May 1943, Is Reported Dead ," Fairmont Times) .  The 1944 Lincolneer Yearbook says of Richard: "Dick," a bombardier has been missing in the Pacific theater of war since May 8, 1943. He is a graduate of our school in the class of 1937. He enlisted in the Air Corps in 1939 and has been in Panama and the South Pacific sinc...
Read more

CPL Olen Jay Canfield (WWII)

Image
Remembering Tec5 Olen Jay Canfield (Levels Road) January 10, 1919 - September 6, 1944 ---- Tec5 Olen Jay "Skeeter" Canfield (Service #35275107) was born January 10, 1919 in Norton, WV, the son of John and Sarah (Fansler) Canfield. Norton is about six and a half miles from Elkins, in Randolph County. Their family spent the next few decades in Marion County (1920-1940 Census) with John working as a general laborer (1920), lumber cutter at the sawmill (1930), and WPA Road Laborer (1940). The 1940 Census specifies their location as Levels Road, and gives Olen's occupation as "new laborer."  Military Service: Olen entered the draft in Colfax on October 16, 1940. At the time, he was unemployed. Olen was 6'3 1/2" and 165 lbs with brown hair, brown eyes, and light brown skin. "Skeeter" enlisted on February 10, 1942 at Fort Hayes in Columbus, Ohio. His occupation was listed as "metal rolling." In the service, Olen was part of the ...
Read more

Nicholas Regnier (1884-1920)

When scrolling through Woodlawn Cemetery in Fairmont in March of 2023, I was surprised to come across a grave stone written in French. After taking pictures at a variety of angles for the best reading (the stone is fairly worn), I discovered that it read: "Ici Repose Nicolas Regnier mor à l'âge de 36 ans et un mois mor le 26 Décembre 1920". Roughly translated, that's "Here rests Nicolas Regnier died at the age of 36 years and one month died on 26 December 1920". Curious to learn more, I turned to  Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers , which includes newspapers from (among many many others) West Virginia. It had some pretty horrifying results. Here's Nicholas' story. Nicholas Regnier was born November 25, 1884 in Liège, Belgium, the son of Jean François Regnier and Marie Jeanne Sion . He had three siblings- Catherine and Jules, who were twins, and Dennis. Jules immigrated to the U.S. in 1901, with Nicholas following in 1903, as well as ...
Read more