Hitman_one Posted January 31, 2012 Share #1 Posted January 31, 2012 One of my other hobbies besides all things OD is metal detecting and today at work i met someone who is also keen and he went and got some of his finds to show me.In with all the Roman coins and other bits was this silver I.D bracelet.I saw straight away that is was a US serial number and this was confirmed by the NJ address engraved on the back.This was found over 5 years ago 'near an old US base in High Wycombe'... I've run the name through nara and got a match but thats all.The finder is quite keen to contact the relatives(if any?)and maybe return it. It reads: WARREN.W.SCHOEN. 32949680 and on the reverse is 111 Briarcliff court Haddonfield.NJ. If anybody could help with further info that would be great as im not very good at this geneolgy thing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman_one Posted January 31, 2012 Author Share #2 Posted January 31, 2012 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted January 31, 2012 Share #3 Posted January 31, 2012 If it was found in the vicinity of High Wycombe there could well be a USAAF link? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman_one Posted January 31, 2012 Author Share #4 Posted January 31, 2012 That was my first thought when i saw it...was there a USAAF base nearby? *325th recon wing according to wiki* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted January 31, 2012 Share #5 Posted January 31, 2012 US 8th AF HQ, WW2..."Pinetree". http://www.highwycombesociety.org.uk/aviation.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman_one Posted January 31, 2012 Author Share #6 Posted January 31, 2012 :thumbsup: thanks for that link.I'll have to ask the finder whereabouts exactly he found it.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted January 31, 2012 Share #7 Posted January 31, 2012 Here is your soldier. He died in 1963 and is buried in Laurel Hill Cemetary in Lower Merion, PA which is not far from me. He was in the 306th BG, 423 SQ which was stationed in Thurleigh,England. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman_one Posted January 31, 2012 Author Share #8 Posted January 31, 2012 MasonK.. :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :bravo: Thank you very, very much!!Thats awesome! Can i ask where you found that info? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted January 31, 2012 Share #9 Posted January 31, 2012 MasonK.. :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :bravo: Thank you very, very much!!Thats awesome!Can i ask where you found that info? No problem at all; just glad I could help! I found the info on Ancestry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack's Son Posted January 31, 2012 Share #10 Posted January 31, 2012 I hope someone can find the NOK ! That would be a real treat. :thumbsup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge8 Posted February 1, 2012 Share #11 Posted February 1, 2012 Thre is a woman on ancestry who has him listed in a very brief family tree. I have sent her a msg to see if related or knows of relatives. Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted February 1, 2012 Share #12 Posted February 1, 2012 Thre is a woman on ancestry who has him listed in a very brief family tree. I have sent her a msg to see if related or knows of relatives. Frank Ha! I sent her a message earlier today. Well, hopefully she gets back to one of us! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge8 Posted February 1, 2012 Share #13 Posted February 1, 2012 You got it! Could not find anything else on him. Marriage records shows a marriage to Joan Diffenback in 1951. May be the Joan listed on the death record shown above. The 111 Briarcliff address comes up as being built in 1926. Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted February 1, 2012 Share #14 Posted February 1, 2012 You got it! Could not find anything else on him. Marriage records shows a marriage to Joan Diffenback in 1951. May be the Joan listed on the death record shown above. The 111 Briarcliff address comes up as being built in 1926. Frank I saw the marriage record. Strange though as there is no census record for Joan Diffenback. My guess is she may have been born after the 1930 census? I also checked public listings for Joan Schoen but none in PA or NJ, at least born prior to 1934 (I figure if they married in 51, she would have been born no later than 1934 otherwise she'd be under 17). I also checked SSDI for Joan Schoen but again none in PA or NJ. Quite a few in other states though so it's possible she moved and was issued a SS# in another state. That or she is still living or remarried. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman_one Posted February 1, 2012 Author Share #15 Posted February 1, 2012 Thanks to both of you for this info.Hopefully we'll hear back from them?... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted February 1, 2012 Share #16 Posted February 1, 2012 I received a reply from the woman I reached out to on Ancestry. I've shared this with Hitman along with her contact info, however thought I would post a truncated version on this thread for others who may be interested... Eric, Thank you for your email. I am sure that the family will be most pleased to see a photo of the item you described. I am not directly related to Warren Schoen. It is my husband, actually, who is related. My husband is Camron Schwarmann. Camron's father is Carl Schwarmann. Carl Schwarmann's mother was Ruth Edith Happell. Ruth Edith Happell's mother was Martha Anna Schoen. Martha Anna Schoen was the daughter of Martha Weiczoreck who was also the mother of Alexander Conrad Schoen who is the father of Warren W. Schoen. Please let folks know that my husband is a collector of family memorabila and would be very interested in acquiring this item on behalf of the family if no direct decendents are able to be located. Please find my contact information below: Kristine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted February 1, 2012 Share #17 Posted February 1, 2012 A perfect example of this forum's initiative and teamwork. Well done lads! :twothumbup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman_one Posted February 1, 2012 Author Share #18 Posted February 1, 2012 Wow!Superb! My head is spinning slightly now...I will make contact with Kristine and then plan my next move.I know the original finder of this item was keen to return it and even better a relation is collecting family items. What a strange and unusual chain of events this has now started. Eric.Thank you so very much for your help and advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge8 Posted February 2, 2012 Share #19 Posted February 2, 2012 Well done, Eric! I love it when a plan comes together! Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted February 6, 2012 Share #20 Posted February 6, 2012 Hi All, I thought I would post some of the messages (continuation of the previous message I posted) that have gone back and forth between I and the woman I reached out to on ancestry listing Warren in her tree. It looks like the entire family is excited about the find and are working together to locate the closest NOK! Feb 1 4:51 PM GMT Hi Kristine, Thank you for getting back to me! I have passed on your message and contact info to the gentleman who is in possession of the bracelet. As I said, I have no connection with him other than being a fellow forum member, so it is in his hands to make the decision to return the item. However, based on his comments on the thread, this does seem to be his intention. As for photos of the bracelet, I will forward photos of it to your email. Thanks! Feb 2 2:56 AM GMT Eric, Thank you again for your email. I spoke with my father-in-law last night about this situation and he has asked me to try and find some direct decendents of Warren's. I have informed him that this may be difficult to do until further documents come out. As you know, Warren's life falls within that 72 year window for records. However, I have determined his wife's name and the year they were married. My father-in-law's aunt is the one who gave me pictures of Warren when he was a baby, so my father-in-law has suggested that I loop back around with the Aunt to determine if she might have some direct contact information for the family. I will continue to work on this end to find folks in the family through cousins, who may be directly realted to cousin Warren. Many thanks for reaching out to me and to my husband. He was so thrilled when I told him about your message, so thank you. It is nice to know that there are still good people in the world who do things just because it is the right thing to do. Many thanks and Best! -kristine Yesterday 2:24 AM GMT Hi Kristine, No problem, however I can't take any credit for this as it was the person who has the bracelet that is trying to find the NOK so it can be returned. I was just the person who read the thread and happened to have an Ancestry account. As for Warren's wife, I did some digging as well. I found the 1951 marriage record. In addition to that, she is listed on Warren's burial card from West Laurel Hill Cemetery, which is dated 1963. Beyond that, I was unable to find any notice of her death in the SSDI, however I was only looking for matching names from NJ and PA. It's of course possible she was issued her SS # in another state. In addition, there are no Public Record listings for her in PA or NJ either. Again, there is of course the possibility she moved. Hopefully you are able to find additional information by discussing this with family members. Quite amazing when you think about it; Warren lost the bracelet almost 70 years ago at a base in the UK, it is found by a metal detector and it now could be returned to the family of the soldier who lost it! Eric Today 1:45 AM GMT Eric, Thank you for your message. I must admit that your note has caused quite the stir among my inlaws family. The cousins are all abuzz about the news, so thank you so much for reaching out to me. My father in law has put me in contact with his Aunt in the hopes that we might be able to get more information on Warren from her and perhaps help find a direct descendent. Please know how grateful the family is that you reached out to me in order to share this news. Hoping that I can be helpful in getting more information for you all. Best, -kristine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge8 Posted February 6, 2012 Share #21 Posted February 6, 2012 Good job, Eric. Let us know how it turns out. Sounds like a good segment for "History Detectives" ! Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
36-tex Posted February 7, 2012 Share #22 Posted February 7, 2012 Awesome series of events guys! This is a true example of the greatness of this hobby. I bow in your honor for what you have accomplished so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman_one Posted February 8, 2012 Author Share #23 Posted February 8, 2012 ..all thanks to Eric! Watch this space as it (hopefully) looks like the bracelet will be travelling back stateside soon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vespa100 Posted February 13, 2012 Share #24 Posted February 13, 2012 What great thread, it just shows you what a great forum this is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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