VOLUNTEERS FOR JANUARY DRAFT
22 Out of List of 27 Offer Services For Armed Forces
Twenty-seven men left Sunday for Fort Crook, Neb., to be inducted into the armed services of the United States. Of this number 22 were volunteers, four coming from Beacon Airways.
Those selected for service in the Army will give the regular three weeks furlough and those taken by the Navy will have a week to get ready for service.
The following volunteered for service:
Bernard A. Markus, Akron
Iver H. Pollock, Akron
Robert A Wiedenfeld, San Diego, Cal. (transferred for induction to San Diego, Cal.)
Merlin H. Mohning, LeMars
Dick Mulder, LeMars
Dale D. Ahlfs, LeMars
Walter J. Johnson, Remsen
Robert L. Priborsky, Hinton
Arnold D. Morehead, Akron
Robert L. Kenney, Remsen
Robert L. Taylor, Westfield
James F. Pick, Remsen
Wayne J. Jones, Hinton
James W. Morris, LeMars
Robert J. Joynt, LeMars
Fred J. Schmidt, Remsen
Junior Herbert Barr, Akron
James W. Hauck, Kingsley
The following were included in the draft:
Leonard G. Dirks, Merrill
Alvas A. Hartman, Merrill
John M. Hart, LeMars
James F. Sampson, Kingsley
Five men were transferred to the local board for induction. Four of the group were flight instructors at Beacon Airways. They are:
Gordon O. Harper, LeMars
Clifford P. Adkins, LeMars
Kenneth C. Jeffrey, LeMars
Thomas D. Pomeroy, LeMars
Source: LeMars Globe-Post, January 24, 1944
LOCAL MEN IN ARMED SERVICE
The following interesting letter was received a few days ago by the editor of the Register-Tribune from Bernard A. Markus, Bkr. 3/c, of the U.S. Navy, who formerly operated the Akron Bakery until called into the service:
Hello Ray: Well, Ray, this is Wednesday and I have a little spare time, so will drop you a few lines. I am now in Camp Bradford, Norfolk, Virginia, so they have moved me quite a ways since the last time I was home. It is 3,300 miles from Farragut, Idaho, out here. We are living in tents out here and I think they would make better hog pens than they would places for men to live. We have no water in them and we have to walk about a block to wash or shave. And up to now I haven’t done any baking, but they are going to send me to a baking school out here and that will last from four to six weeks. Then I will have to go on one of the L.S.T. Ships, and, from what I hear about them, they aren’t going to be very nice to be on. They also sure do work a man out here. I have been unloading lumber and cement and digging ditches and that kind of work, and I don’t get along so well, because it is too hard on my hands. We also get more frilling and exercise thatn we did in boot camp, so you can see they keep us pretty busy. From what I hear around here, they are getting ready for a big invasion. That’s why they are making all these L.S.T. Units. They are the ones that open it up in front and haul supplies and troops. They go right to shore and unload. When they go out they stay from 19 to 20 months, and that is a long time to be on the water in one stretch.
I suppose Akron is getting to look pretty empty now, with the young fellows gone. I received a letter from Minnie yesterday and that is the first news I have had from Akron since I was home. My wife has been working for Bill and Opal Peterson in the café at Vermillion, so she hasn’t had time to get to Akron. She is coming down here the first of May, so I will get to see her and the girl before I have to leave, and that also will be nice vacation for them.
Well, Ray, this is all for this time, so will close. As ever, BERNARD MARKUS.
Source: Akron Register-Tribune, May 11, 1944
***Further Research:
Bernard August Markus was born Apr. 4, 1913 to Edward Bernard and Anna Wiens Markus. He died Apr. 2, 2001 and is buried in Saint Josephs Catholic Cemetery, Akron, IA.
Source: ancestry.com
