The WWII Veteran Who Enlisted at Age 45

Looking at my hubby's family tree, I noticed something unusual about one World War II enlistment: my husband's 2c1r, Fred A. Rinehart (1897-1986), enlisted in October of 1942 and wasn't discharged until mid-1946 (see image at right).

This is the first time that I've researched anyone in the 20th century who joined the US Army at age 45, and served until he was nearly 49 years old.

Digging deeper, I located Fred's obit in the Sacramento Bee in January, 1986. Mystery solved.

Fred was a US Army Chaplain during World War II. He didn't become a minister until after he was married. (His brother Hugh S. Rinehart also became a minister, by the way.)

From painter to minister

Fred's WWI draft registration card shows him working for a body company in Cleveland, Ohio, supporting his parents. In the 1920 US Census, his occupation was "painter." He was supporting both his wife Lucille and his mother-in-law, Dora. His occupation changed after that Census.

In the 1930 US Census, his occupation was "pastor, village church" in Moorefield, Ohio. Also in the household were his wife and his 10-year-old daughter. In the 1938 city directory for Cincinnati, Ohio, Fred was listed as pastor of two Methodist Episcopal churches. 

In the 1940 US Census, he and his wife and 20-year-old daughter were living in Cincinnati, and his occupation was "minister." Fred's 1942 WWII draft card showed him living in Ohio, working for the Methodist Conference in Cincinnati. 

In the 1950 US Census, Fred and his wife and his daughter plus two granddaughters were living in California, where his occupation was "minister." City directories for various places in California show Fred as a clergyman from the 1950s through the 1970s. By 1981, his occupation in the city directory was listed as "retired."

Reverend Rinehart, Army chaplain

Fred's name appears in a detailed history of the 80th General Hospital unit in the Philippines. He served as a chaplain there from March to May of 1945, when the hospital was involved in evacuation activities and dealing with an overload of patients. I'm still hoping to learn more about his service before and after his time in the Philippines. 

In January 1986, Fred was laid to rest in Fairmont Memorial Park, Fairfield, Solano County, California. His obit mentions not only his decades of ministry but also his membership as a Mason and in the Order of the Eastern Star. He was survived by his wife, daughter, two granddaughters, and five great-grandchildren. In all, he served 48 years as a minister, including nearly 4 years as an Army chaplain.

It's my honor to write about Fred's dedication to service in peace and in war, keeping his memory alive for the future as Veterans Day approaches.

This week's #52Ancestors genealogy prompt, by Amy Johnson Crow, is war and peace.

Translating Facts and Artifacts into Family History

Last week, one of my younger relatives asked about the World War II service of our ancestors. Little did he know that he would get answers, lots of answers!

For this young man and other descendants, I'm preparing a little photo book with snapshots, documents, and stories of our ancestors who served. The focus is on my immediate family: Dorothy Schwartz (maternal aunt, a WAC), Fred Shaw (maternal uncle, US Army), Harold Burk (Dad, US Army), Sidney Burk (paternal uncle, US Army Air Corps). Plus a paragraph about my Mom doing her part at home (see below). After all, it is Women's History Month, so Mom and her twin should both be included!

Facts into stories

Dad's honorable discharge documentation recorded the facts of what he did overseas, but no details or explanation (see at top). I had other documentation, from Fold3 and other sources, as well as from family files. I wanted to translate the facts into readable snippets about his role in WWII.

Doing an online search for his 3163d Signal Corps unit, I stumbled on an oral history from someone who served at the same time in the same unit! After reading a summary of the background provided by Alan B. Conlin Jr. in 2013, I was able to write a few lively sentences about the unit's vital wartime role, exactly where they were stationed, and when. 

This fleshed out the facts of Dad's wartime service into a brief story of how the Signal Corps installed and managed communications such as radio and teletype, extremely vital for transmitting troop orders and bombing instructions in the European Theater. 

Artifacts into stories

Meanwhile, my wonderful husband was intrigued by the wartime shoulder patch my father had saved all his life. After a bit of online searching, hubby discovered a detailed explanation of the symbolism on the Pritzker Military Museum website. Someone had donated the unit patch and the museum summarized what each element means, as you can see here. 

In the book I'm preparing, the photo of the patch will be accompanied by a rephrased version of what the patch represents. For sure I wouldn't have recognized that the twin thunderbolts represent V for Victory. Now descendants will know that part of the artifact's story, along with a clear photo of Dad's own patch (being passed down to heirs).

On the home front

Not to leave out my Mom, Daisy Schwartz, I included this image of her Air Warden service in 1943. She didn't serve in the armed forces, but she did work as deputy communications director for the New York City units. 

My book will include a brief description of the function of an air warden, so the document is "translated" into a story of my Mom doing something meaningful to support the war effort on the home front.

With younger folks in mind, these bits of research helped me turn bare facts into actual stories to capture my audience's attention and bring family history alive. 

"Translation" is this week's #52Ancestors theme from Amy Johnson Crow.

Share It, Link It, or Lose It!

 

Although I've blogged often about my maternal Auntie (Dorothy H. Schwartz, 1919-2001), I'm nearly finished with a linking project to share a key element of her life. 

Sgt. Dorothy Schwartz served with the US Women's Army Corps during WWII, earning the Bronze Star for her contributions to the war effort and serving as historian of her WAC unit. She went on to a successful career as a high school teacher of typing and stenography. 

Donating artifacts and ancestor info

Since Dorothy had no descendants, my sister and I donated her WAC memorabilia to the US Army Women's Museum, with a detailed biography and an original copy of the WAC history she wrote. 

The museum is keenly interested in receiving artifacts, oral histories, and biographical information about women who have served in the Army. Sis and I believe this is the best possible home for our aunt's materials, because these things (and her life story) will be preserved and archived for the future.*

Happily, the WAC history has been digitized and is now available at HathiTrust for anyone to read or browse. The front cover is shown above. Want to take a peek inside? Here's the link.

Posting photos and links 

To be sure this important wartime aspect of my aunt's life isn't entirely lost as the years pass, I'm posting the history's cover and a link to the digitized book on multiple genealogy-related sites. 

Above, the cover is now the main photo on my aunt's MyHeritage profile, and the link is on her bio.

At left, I posted the book cover (and other photos) on Find a Grave, with a link. 

Below, the book cover is one of a variety of wartime images I posted on her Fold3 memorial page. 

The Fold3 page is also linked to Dorothy's profile on Ancestry. 

In addition, the cover and a link is on Dorothy's WikiTree profile page. 

Lots of posts and lots of links will help keep alive the memory of Sgt. Schwartz and her WAC service.

This is my week 42 post for #52Ancestors, following Amy Johnson Crow's theme of "lost."

*I explain the why and how of donating family history artifacts in my book, Planning a Future for Your Family's Past.

Yearbook Photos of Ancestors Who Served in the Military

This is a combination post for Memorial Day 2022 and for this week's #52Ancestors prompt of "yearbook," honoring two ancestors who served during World War II.

My Aunt, the WWII WAC 

My aunt, Dorothy Schwartz (1919-2001), served overseas as a US Army WAC in World War II. 

Dorothy and her twin sister Daisy Schwartz (my Mom, 1919-1981) graduated from James Monroe High School in the Bronx, New York, in January of 1936. 

This was the same south Bronx high school attended by their older brother Frederick (see below).

When World War II broke out, Auntie Dorothy was attending Hunter College in Manhattan. 

She enlisted in the Women's Army Corps on September 11, 1942, and later was promoted to become Sgt. Schwartz (see photo at right). 

Dorothy was awarded the Bronze Star for "meritorious service in direct support of operations against the enemy." Back in civilian life, she finished college, went to work, then returned to school for education courses and became a high school teacher.

My Uncle, the WWII Army Teacher

My uncle, Frederick Schwartz (1912-1991), graduated from James Monroe High School in the Bronx, New York, in June of 1928. He was only 16.

He worked part-time as he went to college, aiming to become a high school teacher.

By the time Uncle Fred was drafted into the US Army on Nov 10, 1943, he was teaching at Stuyvesant High School in New York City. He was also married with a baby just a few months old.

Following basic training, much of Fred's three years in the US Army was devoted to teaching. At the end of the war, he held classes teaching soldiers how to navigate the Army system to receive benefits and apply skills to civilian life. 

I dedicate this post to my aunt and uncle, with affection and gratitude for their service.

Black Sheep Sunday - Busted Because of a Coal Road

A Black Sheep Sunday story I remember my father telling. My dad, Harold Burk 1909-1978 (right, above), worked his way up to Sgt in the US Army during WWII, in charge of getting some supplies to certain Allied troops fighting in Europe. He was frustrated that he couldn't easily deliver coal to the barracks in a heavily wooded area, and with the weather getting very cold, and no official way to get the coal to freezing troops, he took matters into his own hands.

He ordered a tank (or heavy truck, not sure which) to knock down some of the smaller trees and create a narrow road that could then be used for transporting coal to the barracks! Higher-ranking officials weren't happy because they feared the narrow road would tip off enemy planes if they spotted the route, and my dad was busted, losing at least one stripe. But he always felt the men would not have survived the winter without some fuel for the stoves, so he made their day-to-day welfare his concern. 

Is this a Black Sheep story? My husband doesn't think so, but maybe that's because all ended well. 2022: No way to prove whether the story was true, but I'm retelling it anyway with the caveat that this is a "family legend" I heard directly from Dad.