Jump to content

Last find of 2016... Local KIA's Mother's Gold Star Pin


 Share

Recommended Posts

Garandomatic

I screwed up on New Years' Eve, was supposed to ship a package to a fellow and got almost to the post office when I realized the package was in the other car... So, not to waste an opportunity, I hit a local antique shop hoping to load up on collar brass and possibly a ruptured duck or two. I was pretty unaware of these pins until I was given a small grouping a couple of years ago that belonged to a cousin that died in a river crossing, to the best of my knowledge, with the 2nd Armored. I remembered that his were engraved with the next-of-kins' initials, and when I noticed this example, and figured that it may have some research potential. Sure enough it was. "CVV"

 

post-9670-0-42215400-1483470854_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Garandomatic

My county published a book about its participation in WWII, and in it can be found photos of nearly every local KIA/DNB/etc. Extremely touching, and I have spent hours looking at these fellows. This little town lost a man pretty much everywhere. Wake Island seems to be the exception, based on my non-scientific analysis of our 265 losses. I have about 7 or 8 copies of the book, and they happened to have about four across the room at the shop, so I quickly checked it, and there were only two men whose last name started with a "V".

 

When I returned home, I used findagrave to search the first possibility, and it ended up being the correct hunch. His page listed his mother and father's names, and his mother was Clara V. V-o-g-e-l.

 

This Marine was killed by a sniper on Peleliu on October 25, 1944, a month into the battle. According to the musters, he was in a Marine Aviation unit, so I suspect he was groundcrew. I can only imagine that a month into the battle, the airfields, which would ideally be secured by then, were quite a high-value target. I imagine there was trouble with snipers to the bitter end, and Technical Sgt. V-o-g-e-l was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

 

Here he is, as pictured in the local book "Muskingum County Men and Women in World War II" be a noted local historian. Given his dress blues, and the fact that he's smiling, whereas many others in the book are not, and maybe even the detail that it was a sniper that got him, his is one of a few faces that always jumped out at me over the years, and I am truly humbled to have found this reminder of his life and death.

post-9670-0-39273000-1483471599_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 5 weeks later...

Thanks for the compliments! If I wasn't given a set of stars by a relative, I'd never have known that they were initialed. Kind of opens up opportunities for research, so long as the county is known and findagrave or other sources have the family information. Based on that, these stars have got to be among the most vulnerable items in terms of comparing their importance to how likely they are to lose their story. I'll post the display shortly, got a shadow box and just need to get the tech guy at school to print his picture for me.

 

I haven't requested that info, didn't know it existed, actually. What's the website, and what kind of information does it include? Is there a cost?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 years later...
russ santangelo

For some interesting reading, look up the Gold Star mothers's trip to Europe in the 30's to visit grave sites. The government paid their way and there was a big stink about using government money to send people on a "vacation" as they put it, to Europe. I'd bet my life it was a trip that all of the mother's wished they were not eligible for.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...