owner of a Master Eye Dog, Dorian, who became a constant companion. When the various schools of the area would tour the Nehi Bottling Plant Harry would explain to the children about the use of guide dogs and their capabilities.

Harry married Martha Grace Wilkinson 2 Feb 1922 at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Chicago, IL. They had 3 children: Henry Irving; Ruth Shepard (24 Mar 1926-26 Mar 1926); and they adopted Diane (13 May 1926-10 Mar 1992).

Harry Montgomery was a kind, considerate, enterprising gentleman who died 16 Jul 1966 in Decorah. He is buried in the Montgomery plot at Phelps Cemetery.

Montgomery, Henry Irving

(Henry Montgomery)

Henry Irving Montgomery

Henry Irving Montgomery was born to Martha Grace Wilkinson and Henry Biggs “Harry” Montgomery. Henry attended Decorah Public Schools, graduating in 1942. He participated in debate, instrumental and vocal music, drama and journalism, and was active in the Congregational Church and its Pilgrim Youth Fellowship. After attending one year at the University of Iowa he volunteered for the draft in Jul 1943. He received his Infantry Basic training at Camp Fannin, Tyler, TX. Contracting pneumonia he was eventually sent to join the training cadre at Camp Howze, Gainesville, TX. After regaining his strength he joined the 8th Armored Division at Camp Polk, Leesville, LA. The 8th sailed to England in Sep 1944 and from there to France and combat.

Henry was a bazooka-man and an occasional sniper in an armored infantry line company. The 8th originally joined Patton’s 3rd Army but was pulled off the line and sent north to support the southern flank in the Battle of the Bulge. They then became a part of Bradley’s 9th Army through Holland and across Germany in a race with the Russians for Berlin. They were pulled back to Bad Lauterberg in the Hartz Mountains of central Germany to allow the Russians to capture Berlin. While there he taught himself German which he later improved working in a POW camp in Pilsen, Czechoslovakia. There he also wrote and published the history of his Company B, 7th Armored Infantry Battalion, “The Thundering Herd.” He re-enlisted for 6 months and transferred to the 82nd Infantry located in Kremsmunster, Austria.

Through a series of adventures he was recruited by the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) which was the forerunner of the current Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). He lived briefly in Vienna and was sent to Trieste, Italy to work as the Junior Officer in a covert office. The office had 2 Americans and 4 Europeans. The mission was running agents through the Balkans to obtain information of both military and economic value. During this period he taught himself Italian (a requirement for the position). He was discharged from the U.S. Army in Vienna, Austria in Jun 1946 as a Pfc (third time). In Jul 1947 his cover was penetrated by agents of the Yugoslav Secret Police (UDBA) and he had a published price on his head of $50 U.S. dollars. He was immediately flown back to Washington for debriefing.

Henry enrolled at the University of IA that fall and transferred the next year to Tulane University in New Orleans, LA. There he completed his Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree and pursued studies toward a graduate degree. Henry had met Barbara Louise Hook while he was at the University of IA prior to his military experience. They were married at Wapello, IA 14 Aug 1948. The couple then moved to New Orleans. From 1951 to 1964 he first managed and later purchased the Nehi Bottling Company of Decorah located at 421 W. Water Street. He sold Nehi in Dec 1964.

In 1965 Henry, wife Barbara and children, Ruth 11, Michael 10, Kelly 6 and Andrew 5 visited London, Paris, Amsterdam and Copenhagen. They then retraced Henry’s World War II footsteps with the 8th Armored Infantry through France, Belgium, Holland and Germany. They settled and lived in Trieste, Italy until the fall of 1966 when they returned to Decorah. While in Trieste he established “Montgomery Associates" a marketing consulting practice working with clients wanting to export to the Midwest and clients wanting to export to Central Europe. He also pursued this after the family returned to Decorah in the fall of 1966. They moved to Charles City, IA in 1967 when Henry became a stockholder and Vice President of Marketing of “Hydrotile”, a manufacturer of machinery that produced concrete pipe at Nashua, IA. In 1972 he moved to Minneapolis where he started an investment business, Planners Financial Services, Inc. PFS is a NASD Member Investment Brokerage firm as well as a Registered Investment Advisory firm and has clients in 7 states. He was President of the Twin Cities Chapter of the International Association for Financial Planning twice, and also served 6 years on the national board of directors. There he originated and chaired both the Chapter Development Committee and later the Regulatory Affairs and Liaison Committee working with both congressional staff and various national regulatory bodies.