Marion County Remembers

Remembering S1C Charles Walter Jeffery (Logan) October 6, 1924 - December 18, 1944 ---- S1C Charles Walter Jeffery (service number 8282188) was born in Logan, WV on October 6, 1924, the son of Robert & Carrie Mae (Hill) Jeffery. Robert (also referred to as "Jabb") worked at the Logan lumber mill, first as a laborer (1920 census), then as a shipping clerk (1930 Census). By 1935 they'd moved to the Oceana District of Wyoming County, where Robert worked in "goods loaded" at the saw mill. (1940 Census). Military Service 18-year-old Charles registered for the draft on December 18, 1942 in Cyclone, WV, two years to the day from when he'd die in a water cyclone (Typhoon Cobra). At the time, Charles was working for Jesse Maynard. He was 5'8" and 165 lbs, with gray eyes, brown hair, and ruddy skin. Charles enlisted in the US Navy Reserve on May 22, 1943 in Huntington, WV, and traveled to the  Great Lakes Training Center for training  (July 1943 Navy Must...

Typhoon Cobra: West Virginia Casualties From the National WWII Museum: "On December 18, 1944, Typhoon “Cobra” struck an American flotilla supporting General Douglas MacArthur’s invasion of the Philippines. Task Force (TF) 38, under the command of Admiral William Halsey, included seven Essex-class carriers, six light carriers, eight battleships, four heavy and 11 light cruisers, along with approximately 50 destroyers. Conducting combat operations in and around Leyte during the late fall as part of MacArthur’s return to the Philippines, many of Halsey’s vessels were running low on fuel and supplies. Planning to support future combat operations in and around the Philippine archipelago, TF 38 set sail for a replenishment rendezvous point 400 miles due east to meet with fleet oilers and associated support vessels. The planned rendezvous location allowed TF 38’s vessels to remain close to the area of operations but safely outside the range of ground based Japanese aircraft. Replenishing...

Remembering SK3 Charles Reed Bean (Moorefield) August 8, 1923 - December 18, 1944 ---- "It was only by the combined might of the winds and the seas that Spence was silenced and finally laid to rest—honorably buried at sea as is befitting a brave and rugged seaman!"  -Rear Admiral Henry A. Armstrong ---- SK3 Charles Reed Bean  (Service Number 8951357) was born in Moorefield, WV on August 8, 1923, the son of Orvon and Essye (Reed) Bean. For Charles' entire life, his family lived in Moorefield. The 1930 Census gave Orvon's occupation as bookkeeper for a local lumber company. Later, Orvon worked as a supervisor of  Liquor Store District Distribution (1940 Census).  Charles was a member of the Moorefield Methodist Church starting December 2, 1934 ("Dies When Typhoon Sinks Destroyer," The Moorefield Examiner ). Charles graduated from Moorefield High School in 1941, and went on to graduate from Tennessee Wesleyan College in Athens, TN in 1943 (WV Memory Project). W...

Remembering S1C Frank Bill Corder January 8, 1925 - December 18, 1944 ---- "It was only by the combined might of the winds and the seas that Spence was silenced and finally laid to rest—honorably buried at sea as is befitting a brave and rugged seaman!"  -Rear Admiral Henry A. Armstrong ---- S1C Frank Bill Corder (Service Number 8280798) was born January 8, 1922 in Raleigh County, WV, the son of Frank T. and Roena (Wadsworth) Corder. The 1920 Census shows their family as residing in Fayetteville, but Frank B's draft card lists Raleigh County as the place of his birth. In 1930, their family lived in Belle, WV, where Frank T. was a bookkeeper at the chemical plant (1930 census). They remained in Belle, though Frank T.'s position at the chemical plant evolved to Senior Foreman, Shipping and Filling (1940 Census). Frank attended DuPont High School for at least 8th grade and 9th grade, possibly longer though no yearbook verification has been available as of publication. Mi...

Remembering WT1C William Layton Slaughter, Jr. (Huntington) May 17, 1922 - December 18, 1944 ---- "It was only by the combined might of the winds and the seas that Spence was silenced and finally laid to rest—honorably buried at sea as is befitting a brave and rugged seaman!"  -Rear Admiral Henry A. Armstrong ---- WT1C Layton William Slaughter, Jr. (Service Number 5603473) was born on May 17, 1922 in Huntington, WV, the son of CPL Layton William Slaughter, Sr. and Georgia (Bias) Slaughter. CPL Slaughter, Sr. served in the Army in both WWI and WWII. Their family, which included Layton's older sister Carol, lived in Huntington through at least 1924 (1924 Huntington City Directory).  By 1930, Layton, Sr. and Georgia were divorced, and he had remarried (1930 Census). Georgia, Carol, and Layton (Jr) lived with Georgia's mom and brother on Hannan Road in Mason County (1930 Census). Georgia soon married Howard Dillard. Their family remained in Glenwood, Mason County, where H...

Remembering SoM3 Edward Nelson Davis (Huntington) December 5, 1922 - December 18, 1944 ---- "It was only by the combined might of the winds and the seas that Spence was silenced and finally laid to rest—honorably buried at sea as is befitting a brave and rugged seaman!"  -Rear Admiral Henry A. Armstrong ---- SoM3 Edward Nelson Davis (Service # 05604079) was born in Huntington, WV on December 5, 1922, the son of William Eliza (W.E.) and Margaret (Smith) Davis. W.E. and Margaret married in 1921 in Ohio. The 1930 Census shows the family living on Auburn Road in Huntington City (Wayne County), where W.E. worked as a salesman at a retail store. From there, they moved to 2208 Washington Street in Huntington (Cabell County), and W.E. worked as a post office clerk. Edward was a 1941 graduate of Huntington High School, where he was known as "Edison" and listed as a science major. The West Virginia Memory Project notes that he was also a graduate of the Huntington School of B...

Remembering MM2C Wallace William Whitehair August 22, 1922 - December 18, 1944 ---- MM2C Wallace William Whitehair (Service Number 02664611) was born August 22, 1922 in Detroit, Michigan (IDPF), the son of Charles and Justine Dorothy (Clevenger) Whitehair. In 1930, their small family was living at 55 Savoy Street in Tallmadge, Ohio. Charles was working as a "Pit man" at a rubber shop (1930 Census). Sometime between 1930 and 1938, Charles and Justine divorced. She married Joe Christy, and in 1940 Justine and 16-year-old Wallace were living with Joey, Justine, and Wallace's two infant half-siblings (Joe, Jr, and Julius). They lived at 281 Dunbar Avenue in Dunbar (Kanawha County), West Virginia, where Justine and Joe both worked as nurses. During his academic career, Wallace attended elementary school in Spencer (WV), Lincoln Junior High School, and graduated from Dunbar High School ( Sissonville Sailor Is Killed in Pacific , The Charleston Daily Mail) . The same article rep...

Remembering S1C Clyde Walter Pierce (Fairmont) November 24, 1924 - December 18, 1944 ---- "As a sailorman on the Hull he was intensely proud of his ship and of its ability to meet any situation presented by the enemy. But it was not the Japanese, but an unprecedented storm, that caused the Hull to founder and go to the bottom." - Clyde Peirce [SIC] Was Lost at Sea ( The Fairmont Times ) ---- S1C Clyde Walter Pierce (Service Number 05600436) was born in 1925, the son of Hinton "Doc" and Edna (Merrifield) Pierce. In some records, and on Hinton and Edna's gravestones, their last name is recorded as Peirce. Hinton was no stranger to war, having served in Headquarters Co of the 342nd Field Artillery during WWI. He and Edna married in 1922. In 1930, their family was living at 507 Guffey Street in Fairmont, WV, where Hinton was a clerk at a local printing office (1930 Census). By 1940, still at 507 Guffey Street, he was listed as a linotype operator for the Fairmont Ne...

Remembering TSGT Samuel "Sam" Fox II (Fairmont) July 11, 1924 - June 13, 1944 ---- TSGT Samuel Fox II (Service Number 15115126) was born July 11, 1924 in Braxton County, WV, the son of Samuel and Myrtle (McClung) Fox. When Samuel was born, his father was working as a book keeper for the Railroad Company (1920 census).  Sometime between 1920 and 1930, their family moved to 1303 Virginia Avenue in Fairmont so that Samuel Sr. could be the accountant for Consolidated Coal, a position that he continued through at least the 1950s (1930-1950 census records) even as they moved to various houses in Fairmont. Sam attended East Fairmont High School. The 1942 East Fairmont High School Orion yearbook, where this photo of Sam came from, said that his nickname was "Great Orie" and that he participated in Student Council. His future wife, Jean Mathias, was also in the EFHS class of 1943. Enlistment and Marriage: Sam entered into the Army Air Corps on June 15, 1942 (in Kentucky), th...

Remembering SSGT Leonard Leo Brown (Fairmont) June 22, 1921 - June 6, 1945 ---- SSGT Leonard Leo Brown (Service Number 15320201) was born June 22, 1921 in Fairmont, WV. The son of George and Mary Catherine "Katie" (Gooch) Brown, the Brown family lived in the Quiet Dell Community on 310. George worked as a core maker for a foundry (1920 Census) and as a foreman for Domestic Coke (1930-1940 Censuses). The Brown family lived just a few doors down from the family of Medal of Honor recipient Woodrow "Woody" Williams, and a plaque at the WV National Guard Armory in Fairmont, WV, describes the duo as childhood friends. Leonard attended East Fairmont High School, graduating in the class of 1941. No EFHS yearbooks denote activities for Leonard, but the 1940 Orion does list his nickname as "Lem McGee." It is unfortunate to note that Leo was not the only member of the EFHS class of 1941 to die in service during WWII. His classmates Howard Dodd ,  William "Bill...

Remembering PFC John Yelcich (Fairmont) June 5, 1922 - May 13, 1944 ---- PFC John Yelcich (service # 35744765)  was born June 5, 1922 in Fairmont to Thomas and Mary (Ribic) Yelcich. Thomas, born in Yugoslavia, worked as a coal miner.  In 1930, the family lived in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, but by 1935 had moved back to Fairmont, where they lived at 133 Bourbon Street. John was the oldest of eight children-- three boys, five girls. The 1940 census shows that John had only attended his freshman year of high school before entering the work force, most likely at Barnes School or Fairmont Senior High School. Military Service: On June 30, 1942, John entered the draft. He is listed as being 5' 10 1/2" and 155 lbs, with brown hair, brown eyes, and a dark complexion. At the time, he was working for Bethlehem Steel's Industrial Collieries Corporation in Barrackville, WV, Mine #7. John enlisted in Clarksburg on November 30, 1942, and became a member of the 338th Infantry, 85th Div...

Remembering PVT Steve Postellak (Farmington) July 31, 1924 - December 30, 1944 ---- Note: to the best of my knowledge, PVT Steve Postellak was the last Marion County man to die in military service in 1944. Postellak is also spelled with several different variations over the course of the records located. Most notably, Peter's declaration of intent for naturalization gives their last name as "Pasztellak" --- PVT Steve Postellak (Service #35756622) was born in Farmington, WV on July 31, 1924, the son of Hungarian immigrants Peter and Rosa (Zebo) Postellek. Their family lived in the "Big Laurel Run Road" area of Farmington (1930, 1940 Census), as Peter was a laborer at the Jamison Coal & Coke #9 Mine.  Somewhere between 1930 and 1935, Peter lost his right leg above the knee, and was no longer able to work (Naturalization Paperwork, 1940 Census). Steve graduated from Farmington High School in 1942. Military Service: Steve registered for the draft on December 17,...