Four members of the family of Mr.and Mrs. G.B. Casto, of Ripley are serving in the armed forces. Daniel Casto is serving in the Army in the Pacific, Charles Anderson Casto, a son-in-law, is serving in the army also, and William Casto is serving in the Navy. Another son, George Casto, is also in the service. (Friday, Feb 2, 1945)

Basil L. Casto, who died Jan 30, 1940, was the son of Mr.and Mrs. Lloyd. (Memory Poem)

Eight members of the family of Mr.and Mrs. C.W. Tolley, including two sons and six grandsons are in the service. The sons are Pfc. Charles Tolley with the Marines in the Pacific and Pvt. William Russell Tolley who is taking Army basic training in Texas. The grandsons are Pvt. Edwin H. Lytton with the Army Corps in Texas, and Sgt. Kermit Lytton just back after 28 months overseas with the Army Air Corps. They are the sons of Mr.and Mrs. O.C. Lytton, of Dunbar, WV. Two other grandsons are Wendell McCrady in England, and Waldon McCrady in Texas, both the sons of Mr.and Mrs. O.C. McCrady, of Ripley, WV and serving in the Navy. The other two are William E. Rhodes, son of Mrs. Carl Lanham, of Ripley, with the Merchant Marines, and Melvin Rhodes, son of Mr.and Mrs. Charles Rhodes, of Charleston, who is serving in the Army Air Corps in Texas. (Friday, Feb 2, 1945)

Norfolk, Va., Jan 29: James S. Taylor, son of Mr.and Mrs. James S. Taylor, of Rt 1, Ravenswood, WV., has been graduated from the aviation ordnance school at the Naval Air Technical Training Center, Norman, Oklahoma, the Fifth Naval District here was advised today. He will be transferred for further instruction and work. Taylor, a Seaman, joined the Navy last May, prior to which he attended Gilmore High School.

Pvt. Brooks Lanham, serving with the Engineers of the Fifth Army in Italy, has recently been awarded the Good Conduct Medal. He is the son of M.B. Lanham, formerly of Ripley, but now of Charleston. (Friday, Feb 2, 1945)

The two sons of Harley Board, of Gay are serving in the United States Army. They are Cpl. Edgar Board, and M/Sgt. Thomas H. Board. (Friday, Feb 2, 1945)

Pfc. Ralph Ballard who is serving in the U.S. Army somewhere in England, is the brother to Macil Morrison, of Rockcastle, WV.

Teddy Paxton, who is with the Army somewhere on the German front is the son of Mrs. A. A. Profitt, of Long Bottom, (Friday, Feb 2, 1945)

Mrs. Canna Stutler, of Ripley, announces that her son, Pfc. Arden Sayre, of Sedalia, A.A.F. Warrensburg, Mo., has been authorized to wear the Good Conduct Medal for his good conduct in the Army for 28 months. (Friday, Feb 2, 1945)

S/Sgt. George Shinn, son of Mr.and Mrs. Clarence Shinn, of Mt Alto, WV, will wed Miss Bessie Mae Paxton, of Long Bottom, Ohio, (Friday, Feb 2, 1945)

Mary M. Rollins, of Fairplaine, was notified that her husband, Pvt. Herman D. Rollins had been missing in action in Belgium since Jan 14. It was the second time in recent months that such a report had been received concerning him. The other was in Nov., when he was also reported to be missing, but on the following day another message was received that he had reported back to his unit.

Mrs. Mary Riggs, of Sandyville, was notified that her son, Pvt. Glenn Riggs, had been slightly wounded while fighting with advance units on the Belgian front on Jan 14. His father, the late Grant Riggs, has been dead for several years.

Mr. and Mrs. Guy Burdette, of Liverpool, have been notified that their son, Pfc. Carroll H. Burdette, has been wounded by bursting shells at the fighting front of the Fifth Army in Italy, and is now being treated in a hospital. He has been overseas for more than a year, and wears the combat badge and numerous other ribbons.

Mrs. Gladys Harrison, of Kenna, has been notified that her son, Pfc. William H. Harrison, who had been reported missing in action, returned to duty on December 19.

Another casualty reported during the week was Major John A. Shinn, who was serving with the Medical Corps in General Patton’s Army at the German front. According to the message received later by his wife, who is with her parents in Alabama at the present time, Major Shinn’s arm was shattered and he is now in an Army base hospital where he is receiving treatment. He had been overseas several months at the time he was wounded while administering aid to wounded men near the front lines. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

Wilbur Chambers, former manager of the Feeders Supply Store in Ripley, is being heldhas a prisoner of war in Germany, his wife, Mrs. Bernice Chambers, was notified this week. He had been missing in action at the western front since early last fall and no word had even been received concerning him except the usual notification that he was missing in action. Chambers was serving in an infantry division. His wife and small daughter, Sharon Dean, have been with relatives near Parkersburg since he entered the service. On Monday afternoon Mrs. Chambers received a letter from her husband which bore the date of last Nov 22, in which he told her that he was a prisoner and was well. Men who are held as prisoners of war by the Germans are never permitted to say much in their letters, but it was sufficient to confirm the faith of the wife throughout all the long weeks of anxious waiting. She had never given up hope that he was still alive, and that she would eventually hear from him. (Friday, Feb 2, 1945)

With the 36th Texas Division, France: Squad leaders, S/Sgt. Roy F. Kuhl, of Ripley, WV, and S/Sgt. Floyd Rhodes, of Widen, WV, found a tough battle on their hands when they tried to take a small Vesges town which the Germans had supposedly evacuated. Their luck was to find that the Jerries had not only stayed in the town, but had been reinforced preparatory to the 36th “Texas Divison” assault. “We started off to search the houses one by one,”said Sgt. Kuhl. “A Frenchman had told us that no one was left. My squad went through the first three hoses on one side, then tried to enter the next one. We were driven back.” Sgt. Rhodes continued, “We were supposed to go on from there. We just got started when they opened up with machine guns and self propelled guns, then with mortars. They wanted to hold that town in the worst way. So we were stuck there. Every time we pulled out, they would drive us back into the houses. We laid there seven hours, until they put down a smoke screen. Under cover of the smoke, I sent a man to tell the Captain we would stay there until night, but I changed plans. Three men at a time. At the edge of the woods, we rain into twenty millimeter fire. We marked the spot and got back, called down fire from the cannon company to knock them out,” concluded Sgt. Kuhl. “It was a rough scrap.” A member of the crack 143rd Infantry Regiment since March 1943, Sgt. Kuhl has seen action in Italy and France, as well as the invasions of Salerno and the Riviera. He holds the Combat Infantryman Badge and the Purple Heart. His wife, Mrs. Hallie Kuhl, lives in Ripley, WV.

Parents of Sgt. Rhodes, Mr.and Mrs. James Rhodes, live in Widen, WV. In combat with the 143rd Infantry Regiment since April 1944, he has seen action in Italy and France, holds the Combat Infantryman’s Badge, as well as the Silver Star for gallantry in action. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

George Casto, Jr., son of G.B. Casto, of Ripley, is serving in the Army and at the present time is on the European front. He has two brothers and a brother-in-law, who are also serving in the armed forces. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

Pfc. Ronald Ferguson, who is serving in the Pacific war zone, is the son of Mr.and Mrs. R.F. Ferguson, of Ripley, WV. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

Mrs. Gladys Harrison, of Kenna, received a telegram from the War Department last night informing her that her son, William Harrison, had been wounded in Belgium. Earlier in the week she had been notified that he had returned to duty after being missing in action.

Mrs. Mary Wheeler, of Evans, was notified that her son, Robert Knapp, who entered the Army through an Ohio induction center, had been killed when struck by an automobile at the Army Air Base in Amarillo, Texas last Saturday night. The body is being returned to Evans for burial and will arrive here later in the week. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

Lester Johnson, who is stationed in Italy with the Signal Corps, is the nephew of Nina Howell, of near Ripley, WV. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

Pfc. William Pennington is serving with the Army overseas. His wife, Mrs Benice Pennington, is living in Dunbar while the husband is serving in the armed forces. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

Bud and Lawrence Scarberry, both serving in the armed forces, are the sons of Mr.and Mrs. Dave Scarberry of Mt Alto, WV. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

Sgt. Geroge Leonard Shinn, who has been stationed in India, is the son of Mr.and Mrs. Dave shinn, of Mt Alto, WV. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

An Eighth Air Force Bomber Station, England: S/Sgt. Walter C. Harpold, 20, of Gay, WV, ball turret gunner on an Eighth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortress, has completed more than thirty combat bombing missions over enemy territory. He is a member of the 338th Bomber Group, a unit of the Third Air Division. He took part in the bombing attacks on oil refineries at Merseburg, Bohlen, Lugwigshaven, Brux, Magdeburg and Politz, aircraft plants at Hanover and Nuremburg, submarine pens at Hamburg, the docks at Bremen, Kassel, Cologne and Duseldorf. Sgt. Harpold is the son of Mr.and Mrs. Clark Harpold, of Gay and was a student at Ripley High School before he entered the AAF in July 1943. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

15th AAF in Italy: Cpl. Earl Holley, 22, son of Mr.and Mrs. D.C. Holley, of Sandyville, WV, is nearing completion of a year’s service overseas as a clerk in a veteran Italy 15th AAF B-17 Flying Fortress group. He was graduated from Gilmore High, Sandyville, in 1939, and employed by the State Road Commission of West Virginia in Charleston, WV, when he was inducted into the Air Corps, April 20, 1943. After completing basic training Holley attended technical clerical school at Fort Collins, Colorado. Since arriving in Italy in March 1943, his duties as clerk to a squadron personal equipment section have been handing out and taking charge of flying equipment issued to combat personal. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

Sgt. Tom Shoemaker is now enjoying a furlough visiting among his relatives in Jackson County, this being his first visit home since he entered the armed forces four years ago. He has just returned from India where he spent three years with the Army Signal Corps. Feb 8, he will report to Hot Springs, Arkansas for further assignment. He is visiting with his father, Tom Shoemaker, his sister, Mrs. Mabel White, and his aunt, Mrs. Emmett Rawson, of Sherman, WV. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

With the 5th Army, Italy: Pvt. Eugene Summers, grandson of Mr.William Jordan, who lives in Ripley, WV, has been promoted to private first class. He is a mechanic with II Corps of the Fifth Army in Italy. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

Among those graduating from an intensive course of Gunner Mate training at recent Service Schools exercise was John Thomas, 19, son of Mrs. Elizabeth Thomas, of Ripley, WV. C.C. Paxton, of Kenna, WV, has received word from his son , Pfc. Otmer Paxton, that he landed safely sometime in Dec in the South Pacific. He was stationed at Harvard, Nebraska, before leaving the states. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

S/Sgt. Paul M. Tabor, of Sandyville, who has flown more than the required number of missions over enemy territory in Europe, has been sent back to the states, and is now at a camp in Texas. (Friday, Feb 9, 1945)

Pvt. Donald Skeen is Killed in Train Wreck in France: The list of war dead for Jackson County reached fifty-eight last Thursday morning when Mrs. Glada Skeen, of Ripley, was notified by the War Department that her husband, Pvt. Donald Skeen, had been killed in a train accident in France on Jan 17. Pvt. Skeen was a farmer in the Murraysville community of the county before entering the service several months ago. He had been overseas only a few days at the time he was killed. He was 35 years old, and was a native of the Kentuck community where his father, W.D. Skeen, still resides. His wife is the former Glada Carpenter, of Gay. They have three children, Louree, Anita and Larry, the former two being students in the Ripley schools. In addition to this wife and three children and his father, other survivors include the following brothers and sisters: M/Sgt. Delbert Skeen in Missouri, Lt. Clifton Skeen in England, Warrant Officer Glenn Skeen in North Carolina, Cpl. Claude Skeen in Calif., Denzil Skeen in Calif., Mrs. Mildred Boykin of Detroit, Mrs. Auvil Chancey of Charleston, Roderick and Arleen Skeen, of Charleston, and Collleen and Randall Skeen, of Kentuck. (Friday, Feb 16, 1945)

Lt. Col. Francis Morgan, son of Mr.and Mrs. F.A. Morgan, of Ravenswood, was killed by sniper’s bullets on Leyte, according to information the family and friends have received from fellow officers. According to the information, he went out to relieve a group of men, and he and all the members of the group were killed. Lt. Col. Morgan fought in World War I and made the Army his career, and for a time was an instructor in military tactics at army schools, and soon after the outbreak of the present war, sought and was given active duty, and was with General MacArthur in the invasion of Leyte. His widow is in North Carolina at the present time, friends of the family said. The aged parents learned of their son’s death Sunday afternoon, the message being brought to them by another son, Major C.R. Morgan, of Charleston.

As the body of one soldier, killed at a training camp in Texas, arrived here the first of the week, news was received by other families that sons overseas had been wounded, or killed in battle. The body was that of Raymond Lee Knapp, son of Mrs. Mary Wheeler, of Cow Run, near Evans. He was killed at Amarillo, Texas, last week and the body was shipped home for burial at the cemetery in the community where his mother lives. He was killed when struck by an automobile on Saturday night, Feb 3, according to information given the relatives. In addition to his mother, he is survived by two sisters, Mrs. Alton Brooks and Mrs. Elsie Holt, and a brother, Eugene Knapp, all of Columbus, Ohio. They arrived here the later part of last week to await the arrival of the body.

Mrs. Glada Skeen, who lives on the Coast farm on the Sandyville road just outside of Ripley, was notified that her husband, Pvt. Donald Skeen, had been killed in a train accident in France, only a , few days after he had landed at an overseas port. (Friday, Feb 16, 1945)

Jack Currey, son of Mrs. Ethel Pickens, of Sandyville, has been wounded in Germany and is being sent back to a hospital in the Untied States. Friends of the young man say that they have been told that he lost the sight of both eyes, and that there is no hope that he will ever be able to see again.

Mr.and Mrs. Criss Sayre, of Cottageville, have received word that their son , Cecil Sayre, is a patient in a Naval hospital in Hawaii, suffering from a a broken leg. He was with the Navy in the Pacific for some time.

Mrs. Frances Reed, of Gay, received a telegram from the War Department yesterday in which she was informed that her son, Pvt Ford R. Reed, had been wounded in Belgium on Jan 25. (Friday, Feb16, 1945)

With the new names being added to the list of the War II dead in Jackson County this week, it now totals 59, a number which is far in excess of the fatalities of the first World War, and with much of the hard fighting before the war is won still being in the future, (Friday, Feb16, 1945)

The 192nd General Hospital, England: wounded in the right leg and left thigh by German mortar shrapnel when his unit attacked German defenses at the edge of the Huertgen Forest, S/Sgt. John B. Swecker, of Sandyville, WV., is now recovering at this United States Army General Hospital. He has been awarded the Oak Leaf Cluster to the Purple Heart. “Sgt. Swecker is making excellent progress and will return to duty after a period of convalescence,” said his ward surgeon, Major Ernest Gaillard of Louisville, Ky. Sgt. Swecker’s rifle squad fought through the forest and reached the Duren sector. Their objective was a strong point in a town 200 yards across the open ground. They moved through an enemy artillery and mortar barrage to clean out a machine gun nest to the left of the village. It was here that Sgt. Swecker was hit. He walked through the forest to an aid station and was later flown to England. Mrs. Emogene Swecker, Sgt. Swecker’s wife, and their ten month old son, Stephen Boyd, live at Sandyville. His father, Mr.Joseph Swecker, lives on Rt 1, Fairmont, WV. Before entering the Army on Nov 12, 1942, he was a schoolteacher at Ripley High School, Ripley, WV. Sgt. Swecker was wounded earlier at Carentan, France. (Friday, Feb 16, 1945)

Sgt. Ronald W. Shamblin, son of Mrs. Cloah Shamblin, of Ripley, is a member of a Liberator Bomber Group in Italy which has just been awarded the Distinguished Unit citation for the completion of a highly successful bombing mission against the Florisdolf oil refineries at Vienna, Austria, according to an announcement made by the War Department this week.. (Friday, Feb 16, 1945)

Two brothers serving as chemical warfare service officers at eastern posts have been advanced in rank with Major Carl S. Casto, 31, promoted to Lt. Col, at Edgewood Arsenal, Md., and 2nd Lt. Charles Blaine Casto, 27, upped to first lieutenant at Latrobe, Pa. The sons of Mr.and Mrs. S.E. Casto, 1666 Manchester Avenue, both are North High School graduates. Col. Casto, also a graduate of Ohio State University, served as commanding officer of CC Camps in Ky., and W.Va prior to entering the service. His wife, Georgia and their two year old son, Don, are with him at the Maryland post. Lt. Casto, a former Ohio State University student, was employed by the Pa Railroad before entering the Army. His wife, Edith, and 5 month old daughter, Pamela, are with his parents at the Manchester Avenue address. The above is from the Ohio State Journal. The young men are the nephews of B.D. and W.C. Casto, of Cottageville, WV. (Friday, Feb 16, 1945)

With the Fifth Army in Italy: Cpl. Lewis R. Stewart, of Liverpool, is a unit foreman of the 39th Engineer Combat Regiment, the unit currently holding open Route 65, main supply route to the Fifth Army front in Italy. Beside building bridges and repairing roads, the 39th has three amphibious operations to its credit and has often functioned as infantry. (Friday, Feb 16, 1945)

With the Air Service Command, Italy: Promoted to the grade of Sergeant recently was awarded to Earl T. Sullivan, son of Mr.and Mrs. A.T. Sullivan, Sandyville, W.Va. Overseas for more than a year, Sgt. Sullivan is on duty in Italy with the Air Service command as a Medical Technician. His unit saw service in North Africa before moving to Italy. (Friday, Feb 16, 1945)

Tech/5 Virgil Crane who is serving in the European theatre of operations, is the son of Mrs. Cora Crane of Mt. Olive, WV. (Friday, Feb 16, 1945)

Elmer Parsons, son of John F. Parsons, of Ripley, is improving satisfactorily at an Army hospital in the European theatre, according to information received this week from the War Department. The son was wounded last Sept, in both the right and left legs, according to facts revealed by the father this week. He has been in the service more than four years and never had a furlough after entering. (Friday, Feb 16, 1945)

A U.S. Troop Carrier Base. France: The promotion of Captain Sidney A. Kay, son of Mr. Dudley Kay, Cottageville, WV, to the rank of Major has been announced by the Troop Carrier wing headquarters in France where he is Wing Chemical Officer. This is the second promotion. which the former school principal has earned since his arrival in the European Theatre of Operations in the fall of 1943. In mid August, Major Kay flew into France by glider with a control party just behind the advancing armor, of General Patton's 3rd Army. There he set up liaison by radio between his unit in England and the front line troops, enabling Troop Carrier aircraft to keep a steady supply of gasoline, rations, ammunition, and whatever else was most urgently needed to keep the armor rolling. After graduating from Union High School in Cottageville, Major Kay completed his education at Salem (West Virginia) College. (Friday, Feb. 16, 1945).

Cpl. Ray Sayre, son of Mr. and Mrs. Otho Sayre of Evans, has been awarded the Bronze Star Medal for heroic action in the European theatre of operations during which time he carried out his mission under severe hostile fire for a period of ten days during the past Dec., according to an announcement this week from the Commanding General of his sector on the European front. The citation, made by direction of the President, reads as follows: "Cpl. Ray Sayre, Field Artillery, Headquarters Battery, 359th Field Artillery battalion, for heroic achievement in connection with military operations against the enemy, from Dec. 5, 1944 to Dec. 15, 1944 in the victory of Saarlauter-n-Baden, Germany. From Dec. 5, 1944 to Dec. 15, 1944, Cpl. Sayre participated in the hazardous establishment and maintenance of wire communication in an Artillery Liaison officer at the Infantry Battalion Command post. For ten days Corporal Sayre, working tirelessly under severe hostile fire, was able to maintain uninterrupted communications between infantry and artillery, thereby contributing materially to the success of his unit's operation. Corporal Sayre's enthusiastic performance of duty in the face of enemy fire reflects great credit on him and on the military service," (Friday, Feb. 23, 1945).

The casualty reports received by families in this section up to press time, according to messages and information received by the Herald, revealed that three more young men have been killed, another slightly wounded, previously reported missing in action, had reported back for duty. The dead were O'Dell Parsons, son of Mr. and Mrs. G. E Parsons, of Ripley, Luther Oshe, son of Mrs. Ida Oshe, of Cottageville, and Glen Wines, son of Mr. and Mrs. Laife Wines, of Windy. The wounded included Robert Roy Reed, son of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Reed, of Gay, and Pvt. Herman D. Rollins, missing in action at the European front since January, was again back with his army unit. Mr. and Mrs. Parsons had received a telegram some time ago that their son had been missing in action since Dec 7, and this week received the message that it had definitely been established that he had been killed . He was a Technician, Fourth Class in General Patton's Army and was a tank driver. He had been overseas about a year at the time he was killed. He is survived by his parents and his wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Parsons, and four brothers, Ellsworth of Spencer, Delbert in Ohio, Dellard of Ripley, and William of Morgantown.

Luther Oshe had been reported missing in action last Dec, and while the mother has not yet been notified of his death, a letter came this week to Miss Juanita Rhodes, of Ripley, from one of Oshe’s fellow soldiers which told of his death. The soldier, Pvt. George Smith, told Miss Rhodes to whom Oshe had written letters while in the service, that he and Luther had agreed that if anything happened to Luther that he would write her. They had been together in battles through Sicily, Italy, France and into Germany and were in the same fox-hole at the time the end came for the young Cottageville soldier. He assured her that her friend died without pain, and that he had been a wonderful soldier and that his loss was deeply felt by all members of the company, and that if he ever got back to the states he would communicate with her further and inform her of details which would not likely be passed at the present time by censor in the battle zone.

Pfc. Glen Wines was serving in an airborne division and died on Jan. 19 from wounds received in action, according to the information given by the War Department to his parents, He had been overseas since last August, and before going into Belgium where he was killed, had participated in several of the battles on the continent. Pfc. Wines is ore of three sons in the armed forces. His brothers are Sgt. Ray L. Wines, of the field artillery in Belgium, Pfc. William Doyle Wines with the engineers in Luxembourg, and Roy Wines, of Parkersburg, WV.

Mr. and Mrs. Walter Reed, of Gay, have been notified by the War Department that their son, Robert ray Reed, 20 years s old, has been slightly wounded while fighting with the Army in Belgium. The parents were told that he was wounded in action on Jan. 25. Reed graduated from Ripley High School last spring and went into the armed forces soon after. He is a grandson of Marcellus Hart. (Friday, Feb. 23, 1945)

The War Department has notified Mrs. Herman D. Rollins, of Fairplain, that her husband, who was reported as “missing in action” on Jan 14, is again back with his unit. It was the second time Pvt. Rollins had been reported as missing, and each time has returned to his unit.

Pfc. Herman J. Schwarz, who has been living in Columbus, Ohio, and who is a nephew of B.F. Schwarz, of Ripley, has been missing in action in Belgium since Dec 18, his sister, Mrs. C.R. Duval, of Columbus, Ohio, has been notified. His wife is in Columbus at the present time.

Mrs. Hallie Kuhl, of Ripley, has been notified that her husband, S/Sgt. Roy Kuhl, has been seriously wounded in France. The telegram stated that he was wounded on Feb 3.

Mrs. Ethel Pickens, of Sandyville, has been notified that her son, Pfc. Homer Currey, has been brought back from the European battle zone to the Halloran General Hospital on Staton Island, New York. Pfc. Currey has lost the sight of both eyes. (Friday, Feb. 23, 1945)

George Hickman, who has been stationed in France, the first furlough in more than three years, is the brother to Mrs. Nora Williams, of near Ripley, WV. (Friday, Feb. 23, 1945)

Mr.and Mrs. P.G. Morgan, of Sandyville, had the pleasure recently of having their son, Carroll Morgan with them for a few days before reporting back to Greensboro, N.C. where he has his order for overseas shipment. His wife and his sister, Miss Katherine, who had been with him at Robbins Fields, Ga., remained at the Morgan home when the young soldier returned to duty. Another of their sons, Louis Morgan, recently returned to San Francisco, Calif, after spending a furlough at home and is now somewhere in the Pacific.

Mrs. Wavie Fisher, of Kenna, has learned that her husband, Pfc. Aubrey O. Fisher, has arrived safely with the 397th Medical Collecting Company. He entered the service on his 36th birthday, March 24, 1944. His wife and four children are residing near Kenna, WV.

Shelby A. Garnes, son of Mrs. Betty Garnes, of Liberty, WV, has been promoted to Pfc. He is stationed with a Military Police detachment at Camp Carson, Colorado.

Leon Leeson, who is serving in the Navy, arrived home Sunday from San Diego, Calif, to spend a leave with his wife, Mrs. Ruby Leeson, and small daughter, Louann, of Ripley, WV.

Ronald O. Ferguson, son of Mr.and Mrs. R.F. Ferguson, who is serving as an aerial gunner in the Marine Corps, and is stationed at the present time in the Carolines in the Pacific, has been promoted to Corporal.

James Bourgeois, who has been serving in the Navy and who has been in several naval engagements in the Pacific, is here to spend a leave with his wife and children of Ravenswood, and his parents, Mr.and Mrs. W.H. Bourgeois, in Ripley, WV.

Ensign Charles E. Jarvis, 23, was killed in an airplane crash last week in Calif. The body is being returned to Charleston, WV, for interment. He is the son of Mr.and Mrs. O.L. Jarvis, of Charleston. (Mrs. Paul King went to be with Mr.and Mrs. Jarvis in Charleston.) (Friday, Feb. 23, 1945)

Headquarters Third Air Division, England: At this Eighth Air Force Division Headquarters, where B-17 Flying Fortress bombing attacks on German targets are planned and studied, the promotion has been announced of a former postmaster of Evans, WV, who now works in an Army postal unit. He is Harry R. Kay, 38, son of Mr.and Mrs J.B. Kay, of Evans, WV, who has been advanced from the grade of technician fifth grade, equivalent to the rank of Corporal, to technician fourth grade, equivalent to the rank of Sergeant. (Friday, Feb. 23, 1945)

Pvt. Kenna Gordon Parsons, at home on furlough with his family on Trace Fork, has been given a third extension on his furlough, the first being granted because of an attack of influenza and bronchitis, and the last two because he has a severe case of the mumps. He will report back to duty as soon as his physician believes his condition is satisfactory. (Friday, Feb. 23, 1945)

S/Sgt. Arthur L. Parsons, of Duncan, WV, who is a mess sergeant, and Cpl. Ralph McCrady, of Gay, mechanic with a Fifteenth Air Force Service Command Air Service Squadron that received a commendation. S/Sgt. Arthur L. Parsons, is the son of Mr.and Mrs. Ira Parsons, Duncan. WV. He has been a member of the United States Army since April 3, 1942, and has been overseas since August 20, 1943.

Cpl. Ralph J. McCrady, son of Walter McCrady, Rt 1, Gay WV, has been a member of the United States Army since April 3, 1942, and has been overseas since August 21, 1943.

Robert Knighstep, who is serving in the Navy, is the son of Mrs. Flayo Miller, of Ripley, WV.

Cpl. Brooks S. Sheppard, who has been serving 18 months in the South Pacific area, is the son of Mr.and Mrs Peal Sheppard, of Sandyville, WV. (Friday, Feb. 23, 1945)

Three more stalwart young men from Jackson County have paid the supreme sacrifice in battle. O’Dell Parsons was a son of Mr.and Mrs. G.E. Parsons, of Ripley, and was killed in France on Dec 7, while fighting with a tank division in General Patton’s army. Dale Summers, a grandson of Mr.and Mrs. W.M. Jordan of Sidneyville, WV, with whom he made his home, was killed in Luxembourg on Dec 26. Donald Skeen, son of W.D. Skeen, of Kentuck, was killed in France on Jan 17. His wife and three small children live at Ripley. He was a farmer in the Murraysville community before entering the service last year. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Mrs Westa Lanham, of Ripley, has been notified by the War Department, that her husband, Pvt. Stanton Lanham, was wounded in action while fighting the Germans on Feb 7. He is 38 years old and his wife and five children live in Ripley. He is the son of Mrs. Celia Myers, of Advent, and a son-in-law of Mr.and Mrs. P. C. Jones, also of Advent, and a brother-in-law of Assistant County Superintendent Marshall W. Jones.

Jack, 3, Dick, ten months old, and Brenda, two, are the children of Mr.and Mrs Denzle Fisher, of Kenna, WV, whose father is serving in the U.S. Navy. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Charles Delford Rhodes, Jr, son of Mr.and Mrs. Guy Rhodes, of Ravenswood, celebrated his second birthday on Monday of last week. His father is serving with the Army in Italy at the present time. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Ruth Lee Miller, daughter of Judge Lewis H. Miller and Mrs. Miller, of Ripley, is serving in the WAVES and at the present time is stationed at Bronson Field, Pensacola, Florida. She was a teacher in the Charleston High School before entering the service. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Floyd Kessel, son of Walter Kessel, of Parchemnt, is home on furlough, the first in a long time. He spent two years in Alaska. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Clemon Good and Dale good, both serving in the Navy, are sons of Mr.and Mrs. W.L. Good, of Liverpool, WV, and both young men are with the fleets in the Pacific which have been pounding the Japs so effectively in the past few weeks. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Mrs. E.A. Stewart, of Evans, has been notified that her son , Pvt. Elvin Stewart, has been brought back to an Army hospital at Camp Edwards, Mass, from overseas. He has been ill for some time and has spent several weeks in hospitals in Europe. She had not heard from him since last November. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

The War Department notified Mrs. Audrey Raines on Feb 13 that her husband, Pvt. Junior L. Raines, had arrived safely at Helleron General Hospital, Staten Island, New York. She also received a telegram from her husband on Feb 17, and received another telegram from him that he is now at Oliver General Hospital, at Augusta, Georgia, where he will remain for treatment. He was wounded at Brest, France, on Sept 14, 1944. Mrs. Raines has received three letters from her husband in which he stated he had to have another operation very soon. Pvt. Raines was in the 29th Division, 116 Infantry, and fought in three major engagements. He returned to the States on the hospital ship, Queen Mary. Mrs. Raines has a brother, Pfc. Carl R Miller, who is now stationed in Belgium. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Pfc. Elfred Eugene Bennett, husband of Mrs. Madge Montgomery Bennett, of Ripley, has been awarded three Bronze Stars for participation in battles while serving with an Army Engineering Combat Battalion in France, the War Department announced yesterday. He has been overseas for the past ten months and is with Gen. George Patton’s army. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Sgt. Leon Roseberry, son of Mr.and Mrs. H.L. Roseberry, of Ripley, who is with the Army Engineering Corps in the European theatre of operations, has been commended by General George C. Marshall, Chief of Staff, for the work he had done, which cannot be divulged at the present time because of the military information which might be made available to the enemy.

Mr.and Mrs. Uriah J. Gandee and daughter, Helen, attended a ceremony at Lockbourne Army Air Base, near Columbus, Ohio, recently where they were presented with the Air Medal awarded to their son, S/Sgt. Harold E. Gandee, whose plane was shot down over Germany on April 11, 1944. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Three sons of Mr.and Mrs. J.D. Corbin, of Kenna, have gone to war, and two are on foreign soil. They are Oliver Paige Corbin, Chief Petty Officer in the Seebees and stationed at Guam in the Pacific, Technician Joseph Doyle Corbin, serving in the Army Signal Corps in New Caledonia, and Leftrich William Corbin, BM 2/c in the Coast Guard and stationed on the Great Lakes. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Pfc. Glen Hupp, who has been in the Bermuda Islands for the past two years, is spending a 30 day leave with his mother, Mrs. Anna Hupp, of Wilding.

Seaman First Class Rex R. Baker, who has been serving with Uncle Sam’s Navy in the South Pacific, returned to his duties Friday after spending a 21 day leave with his home folk, S.Z. Baker of Ravenswood. His sister, Sgt. Roxa N. Baker, who has been with WAAC in North Africa and Italy, spent her leave with home folk at Christmas time. She is now stationed at Miami Beach, Florida, waiting for further assignment. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

William H. Hickman, a brother to Mrs. Agee Bush, of Rockcastle and Dunbar, has returned from the Pacific after 14 months service there, and is now a patient in the Veterans Hospital at White Sulphur Springs. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

William Rhodes, of Ripley, known familiarly to his friends as “Bill”, is serving in the Merchant Marines. He is the son of Mrs. Carl Lanham, of Ripley, and is another grandson of Mr. and Mrs. C.W. tolley, of Ripley, who is in uniform. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Cpl. Ruby Lupardus, formerly of Belgrove, is serving in the Womens Army Corps, and at the present time is stationed at Pyote Army Air Field in Texas. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Golden Crane, who has spent three weeks’ furlough with his parents, Mr.and Mrs. E.B. Crane, has to report back to Miami, Florida today. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Cpl. D.D. Williams, son of Mrs. Elijah Williams, of Kenna, is serving in the Army Air Corps and is now stationed in the European theatre of operations. He is serving with a bombing squadron. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Pvt. Denver P. Burdette, son of Mrs. Lula Burdette, of Liverpool, was praised by the Fifth Army in Italy this week for his outstanding work in helping to ferry the wounded soldiers across a river and to get them to a field hospital for treatment. He is serving as a litter bearer in the 310th Medical battalion. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Petty Officer Roger O. Pinnell, enlisted in the Seebees in July 1943, and is now stationed in the Philippines. He is the son of Mr.and Mrs W.L. Pinnell, of Ctotageville. His son , Roger Ivan Pinnell, who is celebrating his second birthday anniversary on Feb 16, proudly wears a uniform, too, and can say “such big words as Philippines, where daddy is.” His grandparents are Mr.and Mrs. W.L. Pinnell of Cottageville, and Mr.and Mrs. W.D. Kiser, of Gay, WV. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Victor L. Skeen, son of Mr.and Mrs. E.J. Skeen, of Kentuck, has been promoted to Lieutenant, He is serving in the Army on the Italian front.

Sgt. Stewart Galford has returned home from Corsica to spend a furlough with his wife, Phoebe Galford, of Kentuck, WV. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945)

Pfc. John Paul Hunt, of 594 Whitney Avenue, Akron, Ohio, is the son of Mr.and Mrs. Ben H. Hunt, formerly of Ravenswood, WV. His wife, the former Miss Joan Shinn and small son Benny, reside with her parents, Mr.and Mrs. C.O. Shinn, of Ripley. Pfc. Hunt was awarded the Purple Heart.

U.S. Naval Station, Puunene, Maui, T H: The Navy Department announces that Daniel McDermott, now serving at this Naval Air Station, has been advanced from the rating of Seaman Second Class to Seaman First Class. McDermott is the husband of Mrs. Lucille McDermott, who now lives at Cottageville. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945).

William Davis Andrews has been awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received in action somewhere in Germany last Nov. He is recovering in a hospital somewhere in England. Cpl. Andrews was inducted into the U.S. Army 21 months ago, being overseas since last June. He has been in England, France, Belgium, Holland and finally in Germany where he was wounded. Cpl. Andrews was serving in the infantry with the 1st Army, and has been a Military Policeman since going overseas. Cpl. Andrews was born in Jackson County, and is well known here. He moved to Parkersburg a few years ago with his parents, Mr.and Mrs. O.B. Andrews. His wife, the former Helen M. Hunter, is residing with her parents at Linden, New Jersey. (Friday, Mar 2, 1945).

Another casualty report received in the county at about the same time was the information received by Mrs. Maude Wheaton, of Ravenswood, that Pvt. Wilford Allman had been slightly wounded. (Friday, Mar 9, 1945)

Hilton Wolfe, son of Mrs. Erva D. Wolfe, of Given, is now back in France, after on of the most harrowing experiences of the War. Wolfe, a paratrooper, was a member of the 101st Airborne divisions which held Bostonge for five days during the German breakthrough in December. These were harrowing days for these young men who held out until American tanks pushed through and rescued them. He has been in three invasions. (Friday, Mar 9, 1945).

The second tragedy of the war for the family of Mr.and Mrs. J.R. Wilkinson, of Sandyville, came this weeks in the form of a telegram which told them that their son, S/Sgt. Orland Wilkinson had been missing in action over Yugoslavia since Feb 10. No further information was given and as a result the Red Cross will begin its usual investigation to see if it is possible to determine for Mr.and Mrs. Wilkinson whether their son has been killed, or had fallen into enemy hands. The cause of worry is that with the exception of isolated pockets all of Yugoslavia is now under the control of Marshall Tito’s forces which are aligned with the Allies. Two sons from the Wilkinson family went to war, and the other, Pfc. Elbert Wilkinson, was killed in action in Germany last October 7 and the family received notification of his death around November 1. The other son had many times since gone over enemy territory to avenge the death of his brother, but according to information which the War Department has given the parents, he failed to return from a mission on February 10, and since that time nothing has been heard from him.

Bernard Wolfe, son of Mrs. Erva Wolfe, of Given, who is serving in the Army Air Corps in Corsica (Italy), has been promoted from the rank of Corporal to Sergeant, according to an announcement received by the Herald this week. He already has flown thirteen successful missions over enemy territory. (Friday, Mar 9, 1945)

Howard H. Casto, formerly of Ripley, has been promoted from Private to Private First Class, and has been awarded the Expert Rifleman’s Medal, the Good Conduct Medal, and several other citations. He has been stationed overseas for more than two years. His wife, the former Mildred Durst, and their son, Howard, Jr. Lives at Cottageville and are anxiously awaiting his return.

Pfc. Ottmer Paxton, a son of C.C Paxton, of Kenna, has arrived safely overseas n the European theatre of operations. He has been serving in the Army Air Force since December 1942 and trained at Harvard, Nebraska. (Friday, Mar 9, 1945)

Mrs. A.O. Fisher has learned that her nephew, Pfc. Edward W. Munday, has been awarded two medals for excellent work as a gunner on a tank. Pfc. Munday served in Africa, Sicily and Italy campaigns and is now in France. He is the son of Mr.and Mrs. Sigle Munday, of Liberty, WV.

Sgt. Leslie S.Swain returned on Sunday to the U.S. Army Air Base at Dayton, Ohio, after spending a 17 day furlough with his wife, Pfc. Juanita Vineyard Swain in Washington, D.C., and his parents, Mr.and Mrs. J.P. Swain, of Silverton, WV. (Friday, Mar 9, 1945).

Aley Smith, son of Mr.and Mrs. A.L. Smith, Jr., of Ripley, Rt 1, has been promoted to the rank of Major in the Army. He has served five years, participated in the invasions of Africa, Sicily, Italy, France and Germany and is now with the Seventh Army on the German front. Since going overseas two and a half years ago he has risen from the rank of second lieutenant to first lieutenant, to Captain and now to Major. (Friday, Mar 9, 1945).

Pvt. Aubrey O. Fisher, former merchant at Kenna, is serving with a medical unit of the army and is overseas at the present time. His wife and four children live at Kenna, WV.

Arliage Casto, Seaman First Class, enlisted in the Navy last April, and is serving as an armed guard on a merchant vessel. He is the son of Mr.and Mrs. S.O. Casto, of Ripley, Rt 2, and his wife, the former Nellie Barr, and their four children live at Parkersburg. (Friday, Mar 9, 1945)

Pfc. Herbert D. Rhodes, son of Mrs. W.G. Rhodes, of Cottageville WV. (Friday, Mar 9, 1945).

S/Sgt. Homer A. McCollum, son of Mr.and Mrs. Wade McCollum, of Rockcastle, has been commended for his “straight shooting and cool courage” in his two years of blasting German planes out of the skies over Europe and Africa. He is serving in an anti-aircraft battalion which has now been converted into a field artillery battalion and is pouring shells into the German lines.

Mrs. Losha Johnson has received word that her son, W 2/c Ray Johnson has just arrived safely somewhere in the Pacific. (Friday, Mar 9, 1945).

Pvt. Billy E. Shimp, son of Mr.and Mrs. Oscar Shimp, of Liverpool, is with the Army in the Marianas in the far Pacific at the present time. He has been in the Pacific area since April of last year. He is serving in an Ordnance division and took his basic training at Camp Fannin, Texas. (Friday, Mar 9, 1945).

T/Sgt. John A. Golden, Jr., grandson of Mr.and Mrs. J.W. Flowers, of Columbus, Ohio, but formerly of Leon, WV. It was on Friday, October 13 that T.Sgt. John A. Golden, Jr., 20 year old Liberator bomber engineer, flew his 25th and “roughest” mission to destroy an enemy oil refinery at Blechhammer, Germany. “We had plenty of trouble that day,” Sgt. Golden said, “One burst of flak knocked out number four engine and radio. The concussion from a second one outside my waist window knocked me flat as a pancake. I couldn’t figure it out. . . there was no hole in the fuselage by my position, but the tail was hit in many places. We stayed in formation for the bomb run and it was pretty successful. The target area was well covered and was blazing like fury. When we were half way back to the base the ball turret gunner lost consciousness while he was making his way to the camera hatch for more oxygen. By the time we revived him the other waist gunner was out. The ball gunner had tripped over his oxygen tube and pulled it out. I was working on him when the same thing almost happened to me. My oxygen supply had been cut off when I jerked the tubing loose, getting over to the waist gunner, but I discovered it in time.” A veteran of 52 combat missions, Sgt. Golden wears the Air Medal, with three Oak Leaf Clusters. He recently spent a 30 day furlough with his mother, Mrs. Verdie Golden and other relatives at Columbus, Ohio, reporting back to Calif. He will remain in the states for three months. (Friday, Mar 9, 1945).

Pfc. Brady A. Painter, son of Mr.and Mrs. Estel Painter, of Given, and a graduate of Ripley High School with the class of 1943, has been awarded the Army’s Bronze Star Medal for “heroic achievement” at the European front, according to an official Army announcement this week. “Pfc. Brady A. Painter for heroic achievement in connection with military operations against Germany on Nov 28, 1944. One platoon of the company to which Pfc. Painter was assigned had become separated from the rest of the company, and all communications with it has been severed. lt was necessary for the Platoon to withdraw in order to effect a reorganization of the Company. “Pfc. Painter unhesitatingly volunteered to carry a message to the platoon leader. In order to reach his objective it was necessary for him to cross over 300 yards of open terrain under intense artillery and machine gun fire from the enemy. After covering about one-third of the distance, Pfc. Painter was wounded, but undaunted he carried on, completing his voluntary mission. Despite the pain from his wound, he remained with his squad for two days, refusing medical aid, or relief form duty. The bravery and tenacity of purpose of this soldier were of great aid to his company in accomplishing its mission, and reflect great credit on himself and the military service.” (Friday, Mar 16, 1945).

While the American armies are advancing on the home soil of the enemy it is not being done without paying a heavy price, and this week news came to three families in this section that their sons had paid with their lives, and in one case it was the second son which had died on the field of battle. The dead are:
Pvt. Ernest Blair, of Sandyville.
Pfc. Maxey Jividen, of the Rockcastle section.
S/Sgt. Orland Wilkinson, of Sandyville.
Wounded:
Pvt. Harry Dunham, of Liverpool.
Prisoner of war:
Pfc. Benjamin Parsons, of Belgrove, a prisoner of war in Germany.

Mr.and Mrs. C.O. Blair, of Sandyville, were notified by the War Department that their son, Pvt. Ernest Blair, had been killed in action in Belgium on Dec 31. Nothing had been heard from him in some time, and the members of the family and his friends had been fearful that misfortune had overtaken him because they knew he had been in the thickest of the fighting for some time.

Another of the tragic messages came to the home of Mr. and Mrs. J.R. Wilkinson, of Sandyville, this week when they were told that their son, S/Sgt. Orland Wilkinson, reported last week as being missing in action, had been killed in Germany on Feb 16. Wilkinson and Blair were the sixty-second and sixty-third fatalities of the war for Jackson County. The Wilkinson family have given two sons to this war, the other being Elbert Wilkinson, who was killed in action in the European theatre of operations last fall. Only one other county family has thus far given such a heavy toll, that family of Mr.and Mrs. G.N. Boso, of Murraysville, whose two sons, Charles and Burhl Boso were both killed in action several months ago.

At about the same time the Wilkinson family was receiving their second tragic telegram, Mrs. Alice Parsons, of Belgrove, received a message that her son, Pfc. Benjamin Parsons, who had been missing in action for several months, was a prisoner of war in Germany.

Also about the same time, Mr.and Mrs. Frank Jividen of the Rockcastle section, received a telegram which informed them that their son, Pfc. Maxey Jividen, had been killed in action in Germany on Feb 24.

Pfc. Benjamin Parsons, son of Mr.and Mrs. O.M. Parsons, of Belgrove. He has been reported as missing since Jan 15 in Belgium. About twenty-four hours before they received the telegram telling them that he was a prisoner they received a card from him which was written in his own hand and told them that he had been captured and was being held in a German prison camp. The card came to them last Friday and E.J. Skeen, of Kentuck, took it to the home. The card and the official message the following day were joyful news to the family because they had been hopeful, but had feared the worst since they had learned two months ago that he was missing and had since heard nothing.

Records being kept by the Herald in connection with the casualties from this county reveal that several months ago Ernest Blair was wounded in action.

A telegram was received by Mr.and Mrs. Georg Dunham, of Liverpool, the first of this week in which the War Department told them that their son, Pvt. Harry Dunham, had been wounded in action in Germany on February 13.

Mr.and Mrs. Edgar Skeen, of Kentuck, have been informed that their son, Lt. Victor Skeen, has been wounded and is now in a hospital in Italy. They received a letter this week from the chaplain of the hospital who told them that their son could not write, but that his condition was satisfactory. (Friday, Mar 16, 1945).

Mr.and Mrs. Oscar Parsons, of Kentuck, have received a card from their son, Benjamin Harrison, saying he was a German prisoner. He was reported missing several months ago.

Pfc. Everett L. Parsons, son of Mr.and Mrs. Oscar Parsons, of Kentuck, is serving in the Army in France. He has been on foreign soil for several months. (Friday, Mar 16, 1945).

The two sons of Mr.and Mrs. Claude Young, of Given, donned their country’s uniform in this war, one has been given a medical discharge after long service, and the other has been overseas in the China-Burma theatre of operations for more than a year. They are Samuel, who served in the Navy and who has been discharged, and William, now in Burma. (Friday, Mar 16, 1945).

T/Sgt. Everett Robert Rhodes, of Gay, has been awarded the Bronze Star for heroic achievement in connection with military operations against the enemy from Dec 6, 1944 to Dec 20, 1944, in the vicinity of Ensdarf, Germany. Upon hearing that three bodies, killed by enemy fire, had not been recovered, Technician Fifth Grade Rhodes volunteered to search for them on the Sarr River bank. Conducting an exposing search under violent artillery and mortar fire continuously pounding the area, he finally succeeded in locating the dead men and personally carried their bodies across the river to the collecting point. Technician Fifth Grade Rhodes’ courageous and determined action on this occasion reflects great credit on him and on the military service. He has also been awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge for satisfactory performance on duty in ground combat against the enemy. This badge is worn on the breast above the service ribbons. His wife and two boys live at Gay, WV. (Friday, Mar 16, 1945).

Lt. Fred Kiser has a 30 day convalescent leave from a hospital in Virginia where he is being treated for a wound in the neck. He has been wounded three times, once in the leg, again in the back and this time has a broken neck. But he is well on the road to recovery, and is able to be at home with his wife and child. Lt. Kiser did his fighting in France, Belgium, Holland, and ended up in Aaken, Germany. Other than his hospitalization, he has been on the front all the time since “D” Day, June 6. He entered the Army as a private some twelve years ago by volunteering in peace time, and has worked his way up until he is now a First Lieutenant. Mrs. Kiser before her marriage was Miss Mazie Montgomery, daughter of Mr.and Mrs. Scott Montgomery. (Friday, Mar 16, 1945).

One of the many young men who are serving in the United States Navy in this war is Dewey Lee Frey, son of Mr.and Mrs. Dewey B. Frey, who are former residents of Ripley, but who are now living in Ohio. . (Friday, Mar 16, 1945).

William Davis Andrews has arrived at the Mason General Hospital at Long Island, New York, from overseas. He spent three months in hospitals in England after being wounded in Germany last Nov. Cpl. Andrews has been in the U.S. Army nearly three years, and overseas since June 1944. He is being sent to a convalescent hospital and when able will get a furlough. Cpl. Andrews is a resident of Parkersburg, but was formerly a Jackson County boy. Cpl Andrews is the son of Mr.and Mrs. O.B. Andrews, of Parkersburg, WV. (Friday, Mar 16, 1945).

Mr.and Mrs. J.A. Wright, of Murraysville, have received letters from their sons who are serving in the service. Jesse Wright who is serving in the Navy and is in the Philippines area, and Cpl. Kenneth Wright, who is a Flying Fortress bombardier in the European theatre of operations.

Norman Winter, son of A. Winter, of Gay, is serving in the Navy, and is now with the fleet in the Pacific. (Friday, Mar 16, 1945).

Pvt. Nick Jacobs, husband of Mrs. Ruth Cossin Jacobs, entered the Army in August 1944 and is serving with a tank division which is completing its training at Camp Meade, Maryland. His wife, the former Ruth Cossin, daughter of Mr.and Mrs. Will Cossin, of Cottageville, WV.

Pvt. James Robert Thornton, son of Mr.and Mrs. P A. Thornton, of Sandyville, is serving with the Army Medical Corps and has been overseas for more than a year. He entered the Army in June 1943.

Richard T. Suck, S 1/C, son of Mr.and Mrs. Theodore Suck, is serving in the Navy in the Pacific and has seen action at New Guiena, Leyte, and numerous other points in that battle area. His wife and children reside at Ravenswood, WV. (Friday, Mar 16, 1945).

The war continued its heavy toll of young men this week, and as they inched forward ever deeper into the Nazi citadel, more sorrow and heartaches were coming to the homes of people in this section, while in other cases worry was mounting because of sons, husbands, and fathers who had not been heard from in a considerable length of time and who were known to have been in the fighting zone. Last night the list for the week stood as follows:
Pfc. Hobart McCollum, killed in Germany.
Pfc. Corbett L. Faber, killed in Germany.
Lt. Clarence Dragoo, missing in action over Italy.
Pfc. William H. Baker, wounded in Germany.
Pfc. Brady A. Painter, wounded in Germany.

Mrs. Neva McCollum, of Rockcastle, received a telegram from the War Department Monday evening which informed her that her husband, Pfc. Hobart McCollum, had been killed in action in Germany on March 1. He was a son of Mr.and Mrs. Wade McCollum, and has two brothers in the service and he is also the father of three children. He was engaged in farming in the Rockcastle community where he owns a farm. He has been overseas for some time and has been with the division which has been routing the Germans along the Rhine River front.

Mr.and Mrs. Corbett L. Faber, of Fowler, Ohio, former residents of this county, and who have many relatives here, received word Tuesday that their son, Pfc. Faber, who had been wounded in action Feb 23, died of his injuries four days later. Young Faber was with Patton’s Third Army in the 80th Division fighting in Germany. He served in the medical corps. In one of his letters to his family he wrote that he captured 12 German soldiers. He said he was giving first aid to a wounded soldier when someone tapped him on the shoulder. He said that he turned around and saw four armed Germans. They said to him, “Comrade, comrade,” and told him that they wanted to surrender. Faber said he couldn’t turn them in just then for he had to finish his work with the wounded Americans. The Germans told him they knew of five more who wanted to surrender. So Faber sent them after their comrades and they returned. The young soldier said that the Nazis laid down their arms on the ground as well as themselves so that they could not be seen by their commanding officer. After Pfc. Faber was through with his patient, he, assisted by several of the Germans, carried the Americans back to the rear lines. He told his family that on another occasion he captured a Nazi officer and two other soldiers. Young Faber’s outfit was cited for its actions during Dec. He was wounded once before during the action at Bastogne and was awarded the Purple Heart. Cpl. Faber, had he lived until May 29, 1945, would have reached his 20th birthday. He was born in Flower and had attended Fowler High School. He entered the service Dec 20, 1943, and went overseas in Nov. He is survived by his parents, two brothers, Edward with the Navy in San Diego, Calif., and Richard, at home; three sisters, Mrs. June Frederick, Mrs. Olive Doswell, of Washington, D.C. and Thelma, at home.

Mrs. Stella Dragoo, of Sandyville, has been notified by the War Department that her son, Lt. Clarence E. Dragoo, serving in the Army Air Corps, has been missing in action over Italy since Feb 28.

Mrs. Hazel Baker, of Evans, was notified that her husband, Pvt. William Baker, was wounded in Germany on Feb 20. His parents are Mr.and Mrs. Abe Baker, of Evans, WV. His wife and four children are living at Evans.

Pfc. Brady A. Painter, son of Mr.and Mrs. Estel Painter, of Given, has been wounded in Germany, and is now a patient in an Army hospital, the parents have been notified. A story of an earlier exploit of Pfc. Painter in saving a company of men was released by the Army and published in the Herald last week. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Roy Andrick, son of Mr.and Mrs. C.E. Andrick, of Sandyville, and James Kibble, son of Mr.and Mrs. Thomas Kibble, also of Sandyville, both serving in the Navy with nearly 20 months of overseas service in overseas theatres of operations, are at home with their parents for thirty day leaves after which they report back to Calif. The two young men have been together during all their service, and have engaged in at least nine battles in the Pacific area. Andrick knows where his three brothers, Pfc. Ray Andrick, Cpl. Charles G. Andrick, and Pvt. Fred Andrick, are located, but censorship without approval prevents the publication of any of the locations except that Charles Andrick, who is at Woodrow Wilson Hospital near Staunton, Va. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Mrs. Gerald Ferguson received a letter from her brother, Ben Thomas, who is with the Marines on Iwo Jima, that he is alright, but that the going there has been hard. The letter was dated Mar 5 and told the sister to inform the parents of Carl Lockhart, who is also with the Marines there, that he came through alright, and that they were together. Another local man, Harry “Bill” Slaven, who has also been with the Marines in that same battle, also survived the ordeal, according to his father, F.L. Slaven, of the Herald. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Camden Carpenter, who is serving with the Navy, and who has been overseas in the Pacific theatre of operations for more than two years, will report back to Columbus, Ohio, for further assignment next week after spending a 30 day leave with his mother, Mrs. Esta Carpenter, of Ripley.

With the Fourth Armored Division: Corporal Philba C. Miller, 25, son of Mr.and Mrs. Charley D. Miller of Sandyville, WV, Rt 3, gunner on the medium tank of 8th Tank Battalion Commander, has been cited for meritorious service in combat and awarded the Bronze Star by order of Major General Hugh J. Gaffey, commanding the Fourth Armored Division. The citation reads, in part: “As gunner of the battalion commander’s tank, Corp. Miller served faithfully and loyally since this unit entered combat and on several occasions has been of vital assistance in dangerous positions. On August 14, 1944, near Lorient, in France, Cpl. Miller remained at his post under devastating shelling and helped transport two officers to safety. On Sept 22 at Fresnes-on-Soulnois and on Sept 30, at Rechicourt, he was with the battalion commander at forward command posts under continuous fire. On Nov 27, at Wolfskirschen and on Dec 4 at Voellerdingen, France, he was in the command tank with the assault wave and during the entire advance was exposed to enemy direct fire. At Chaumont, Belgium, on Dec 23, when the command tank was hit twice, Cpl. Miller stayed with his tank, despite heavy automatic fire until it was driven to safety.” Inducted Feb 5, 1942, Cpl. Miller has served overseas more than one year with the Fourth Armored Division. He participated in the crack tank division’s spectacular drive across France and was with the tankers when the Fourth Armored effected the historic relief of the besieged 101st Airborne Division at Bastogne, Belgium. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Pvt. Sheldon Davis, Jr., son of Mr.and Mrs. Sheldon Davis, of Leroy, was recently awarded the title of an expert with the heavy mortar weapons following his completion of a special course at Camp Blanding, Florida, and is now awaiting overseas orders. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Pfc. Hobert McCollom, son of Mr.and Mrs. Wade A. (Melissa Barnett) McCollom, of Rockcastle, and the father of three children, was killed in action in Germany on March 1, according to a telegram received Monday evening. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

T/4 Ralph N. Fisher, whose parents live at Kenna, WV, is a member of the 561st Engineer Boat Maintenance Company, stationed at Fort Lewis, Washington. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

15th AAF in Italy: Cpl. Charles J. Shirley, of Nelsonville, Ohio, a native of Cottageville, WV, and a son of Charles Shirley, truck driver, has been awarded the Distinguished Unit Badge and one bronze cluster as a member of a veteran B-24 Liberator bomber group which has twice been cited “for outstanding performance of duty in armed conflict with the enemy.” (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Lester C. Rowley, son of Mr.and Mrs. W.L. Rowley, and the husband of Elaine Rowley, of Evans, is serving with the fleet in the Pacific. He entered the service last May.

Davis-Monthan Field, Tucson, Arizona, March 17: Pfc. Lional L. Parsons, son of Mr.and Mrs. Charles O. Parsons, of Ripley, has been promoted to the rank of Corporal, at this heavy bombardment combat training base. Cpl. Parsons entered the service in April, 1943, and presently is assigned to duties as an aircraft engine mechanic. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Mr.and Mrs. J.D. “Boss” McKown, of Belleville, Ohio, have been notified by the War Department that their son, Wade McKown, has received the Purple Heart award for his services while on the Belgium front. Wade was seriously wounded while fighting in that war zone. He is now being hospitalized somewhere in England. He is in a Red Cross hospital. In writing to his parents, he said he spent his Christmas fighting like heck, but that they were beating the heck out of the Nazis, and that they would not stop, even if the Germans are tough. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Pvt. John J. Caynor, son of Mr.and Mrs John Caynor, of Ripley, who is living temporarily in Point Pleasant at the present time. He is serving in the Field Artillery and is statoned at Camp Hood, Texas. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Ensign Paul G. Meredith, who took part in the invasion of Leyte and Luzon in the Philippines, is the son of Mr.and Mrs. C.T. Meredith, of Vienna, WV, and the grandson of G.H. Sayre, of Ripley, WV. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Claude Southall, son of Mr.and Mrs. C.G. Southall, of Fairplain, is serving in the Navy and for some time has been stationed in the European theatre of operations.

Pvt. Hansford Milam is spending his furlough with his parents, Mr.and Mrs. D.C. Milam, of Middle Fork. He was wounded after crossing the Rhine River in Germany. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Pfc. Carroll Burdette, son of Mr.and Mrs. Guy Burdette, of Liverpool, was wounded recently while fighting with the Army at the front in Italy. He has been overseas in the Italian theatre of operations for more than a year. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Cpl. Howard Poling, who is with the Army Signal Corps in Germany, is the son of Mr.and Mrs. James Poling, of Ripley, WV. He has been overseas for some time and his work keeps him near the scene of activity at the front. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

Roy Johnson, son of Mrs. Losha Johnson, of Kenna, is serving in the Navy and trained at Camp Perry, Virginia. He recently spent a leave with his mother, but has returned to duty. (Friday, Mar 23, 1945).

As the armies of the United States were crossing the Rhine and entering the inner fortresses of Germany this week, back home messages were being received which were adding to the price being paid for victory. One such message came to Mrs. George W. Johnson, of Ripley, in which the parents were told that their eldest son, Pfc. Charles Johnson, had given his life for his country on March 11. The message indicated that the young man died of the effects of wounds at an Army hospital in France. He was the second grandson of Mrs. Mary McGraw, of Ripley, to be added to the list of war fatalities within the past few weeks, the other being William Boggess.

Mrs. W.W. Herdman, of Evans, received a message this week that their son, Pvt. Robert S. Herdman, had been wounded in Germany on March 4. Another son, Dencil Herdman, was killed several months ago in the same theatre of operations.

Mr.and Mrs. Edgar Skeen, of Kentuck, were officially notified by the War Department that their son, Lt. Victor L. Skeen had been wounded in Italy where he had been with the Army for some time. Prior to receiving the War Department message, they had received a letter in which they learned that he had been wounded, but was expected to recover. The same is true for Mr.and Mrs. Estel Painter, of Given, who had learned this week that their son, Pfc. Brady Painter, had been wounded and did not receive an official notice until this week. The Herald published both accounts last week on the basis of letters received from fellow soldiers of the men who told the parents in each case what happened.

Dan Tuttle, of Gay, received a message this week which told him that his son, S/Sgt. Delbert Tuttle, had been wounded during the battle for Leyte in the Philippines on Feb 6(?).

Mrs. Oda Mae Stewart, of Parchment, was doubtless the happiest person in Jackson County on Monday because on that day she learned that her son, Cpl. Edmond Stewart, who had been missing in action in Italy since last Nov., was a prisoner of war in Germany. She had never given up hope that he was still alive, and during all the time since he was reported missing has been making every effort to find him.

Mrs. Ethel Pickens, of Sandyville, has returned from Valley Forge Hospital, at Phoenixville, Pa., where she visited Homer J. Currey, who lost the sight of both eyes some time ago while fighting on the German front. He told her that an exploding mortar shell resulted in the loss of both his eyes.

Mrs. Anita Staats has been notified that her son, Cpl. James Staats, with the Marines, has been wounded in the battle of Iwo Jima in the Pacific. The young man is hte grandson of Mrs. Eliza Staats, of Ripley, WV. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

Already motherless, a five months old baby in Australia was an orphan today, his father, Pvt. Vestal C. Hoover, meeting death on February 14 on the Philippines island of Mindora. The death of the 25 year old private, who was a brother of Mrs. Raymond Benson, daughter-in-law of Mr.and Mrs. Clarence Benson, of Sidneyville, brings to an end one of the most tragic sagas of the war concerning men with relatives in this section. Pvt. Hoover entered the service on July 29, 1940, and after training at Camp Jackson, S.C., sailed to the South Pacific in Feb 1942, with a company of Army Engineers. In Australia, he met and married a pretty blonde girl, Phyllis Ives. The marriage was performed in June at Bayswater, Victoria, Australia. Hoover and his Australian wife spent many happy hours together during the man’s furlough from duty. The first tragedy struck the happy couple when the young wife died on Oct 3, 1944, when she died in childbirth. Their son, Philip Vestal, now five months old, survived. The soldier, heartbroken at the loss of his young wife, entrusted the care of his son to his grandparent, the parents of his bride of two years before. Then he returned to duty and went into action, escaping many dangers, and finally met death in a truck accident on the island. In a letter which he had written to relatives only two days before his death he had told them that he was trying to get arrangements through to send his motherless son back to his relatives in the United States where he could be cared for until the father’s return from the war. Whether those arrangements had been completed, they did not know. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

Lt. Carl Brotton, Jr., son of Mr.and Mrs. Carl Brotton, of Sandyville, flying as a pilot in Europe with a squadron of P-37 Thunderbolts, has completed seventy-nine dive bombing missions over enemy territory including strafing missions over France, Belgium, and Germany, the Army announced this week. Lt. Brotton wears the Air Medal and eleven Oak Leaf clusters, and belongs to an outfit which is called the “Hun Hunters.” He enlisted in the Army Air Corps early in the war and after long and technical training, went overseas in the European theatre of operations, and did considerable flying over enemy territory before D-Day, and since that time has been in the air many hour of support of ground troops as they steadily marched on Germany. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

Clarence Johnson, of Ripley, serving in the Army Air Corps Engineers on Guam, has been awarded the Bronze Star Medal, according to an official Army announcement. The nature of the service performed cannot be revealed at the present time. His wife, Mrs. Kathryn Johnson, is a member of the Ripley High School faculty. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

Jack Walker, son of Mr.and Mrs. W.E. Walker, of Ripley, is with General Hodges Army, in Germany and has been promoted from Captain to the rank of Major, according to an announcement this week. His appointment was effective Feb 27. He was wounded on Jan 6, and has received the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star, but recovered quickly and returned to duty. His wife, Helen Lee Walker, and their children live in Ripley, WV. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

Joseph H. Winter, Seaman First Class, is home for a 21 day leave after long service in the Pacific. He is the son of Mr.and Mrs. J.H. Winter, of Cottageville, and last week married Miss Virginia Stewart, daughter of Mr.and Mrs. Clyde Stewart, of Cottageville, WV.

Cpl. Edmond Stewart, one of the three sons of Mrs. Oda Mae Stewart, of Ripley, who has been missing in action in Italy since the night of November 28, 1944, is a prisoner of war being held by the Germans, according to a telegram received by the mother from the War Department on Monday. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

The 141st General Hospital, England: Wounded in the left foot by shrapnel while attacking a factory in the town of Weischweiler, Germany, Pfc. Charles V. Carmichael, 20, Box 277, Ravenswood, WV, is recovering at this United States Army General Hospital, back in the States. He has been awarded the Purple Heart. Pfc. Carmichael entered the Army in June 1943 and received his basic at Camp Cullan, Calif. His parents, Mr.and Mrs. David L. Carmichael, live at the Ravenswood address. A brother, Robert Carmichael, 24, is in the Navy. His ward surgeon, Capt. Johnson L. Turnage, Kosciusko, Miss, said, “Pfc. Carmichael is progressing satisfactorily.”

An Army Service Command Depot, England: Stepped up bombing attacks on Germany and improved plane performance air credit, in large measure to production records set during 1944 by the manufacturing and repair shop in England at which Sgt. Brady S. Anderson, of Fairplain, WV, is serving, according to figures just released by headquarters of the Air Service Command. Sgt. Anderson is the son of Mr.and Mrs. Okey Anderson, of Fairplain. A soldier since April 3, 1942, he has been overseas for 14 months. He attended school at Plum Orchard and was employed by Burton Shinn, Fairplain, WV. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

Pfc. Carl O. Corns, son of Mr. and Mrs. James Corns, of Sandyville, RFD. has been in the service more than three years and at the present time is stationed at Mather Field, Calif.

Mr.and Mrs. David Carmichael, of Ravenswood, were notified that their son Charles Carmichael, who was wounded while fighting on the western front in Europe several weeks ago, has landed at a United States port, and would be assigned to some Army hospital in this country for treatment.

An Air Service Command Depot, Somewhere in England: S/Sgt. Charles E. Dillon, son of Mr. and Mrs. C. H. Dillon, of Sandyville, and the husband of Mrs. Kathleen Dillon, of Ripley, was recently awarded the Good Conduct Medal for exemplary behavior, efficency, and fidelity at this large Air Service Command Depot in the ETO. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

Carl F. Stanley, son of Mr. and Mrs. S.S. Stanley, has recently been promoted in the Army to the rank of Sergeant. He is with the Army on the western front in Europe. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

Orion Casto, of Ripley, has received word that his step-brother, Everett Hatcher, who was held a prisoner of the Japanese in an internment camp near Manila for the past three years, has been released. The message stated that Mr. Hatcher was "in very poor health." Mr. Hatcher had been in the Philippine islands for the past 37 years, Mr. Casto said, and about thirty years ago was back in the United States and visited relatives here. He served in the regular Army for a number of years and then operated a sugar plantation near Manila. He is the son of the late Julius Sherman and Ida (Beverlin) Hatcher, and is a nephew of John Calvin Hatcher, of Belgrove, and Roscoe (Napoleon) Hatcher, of Kentuck, WV. Knowing that he was in the islands at the time they were overrun by the Japs in the early days of the war, relatives had worried about his safety but had never been able to learn anything about him until the United States troops returned to the islands and recaptured Manila a short time ago and released those imprisoned who were still living. Mr. Hatcher was among the group who had survived the ordeal for three years. (Friday, Mar, 30, 1945).

Philip Beymer, who entered the Army on July 7, 1941, and who has been in the India-Burma-China theatre of operations for three is on his was home, according to a message received by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. A.L. Beymer, of Lockhart, WV.(Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

U.S. Naval Air Station, Kaneohe, T.H.: Harlan W. Casto, Jr., aviation electrician's mate second class, USNR, of Evens, WV., is now serving at this station in the Combat Aircrew Training Unit, He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Harlan W Casto, of Evans, WV. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

Joseph Williams, Chief Petty Officer, recently returned after two years of service with the Seebees in the South Pacific, and was assigned to Davisville, Rhode Island. His wife is the former Helen Sayre, of Sandyville, whom he married last October 25. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

Lionel J. Sines, grandson of Mr. and Mrs. James Sines, of Cottageville, with whom he made his home, enlisted in the Navy two years ago and is now somewhere with the U.S. Fleet.

Memorial service for Pfc. Corbett Lee Faber, who died of being wounded in Luxembourg on Feb. 27 were held at Fowler, Ohio, on Saturday afternoon, Pfc. Faber, son of Mr. and Mrs. C. L. Faber, was seriously wounded on Feb 23 and died four days later. He was serving in the Army Medical Corps. (Friday, Mar 30, 1945).

William Boggess, son of Mrs. W.A. Knapp, of Union City, Pa, and until recently residents of Ripley, has been killed in action in the fighting in the Pacific, and Standley Lanham, of Ripley, has been wounded while fighting at the front in Germany. Boggess was serving in the Navy and was with units which were engaged in the heaviest of the battles in the far-west Pacific recently. Lanham was with the units which plunged across the German border early in the drive which is today seeing his comrades pushing ever closer to Berlin. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Final funeral rites were held at the Liverpool Methodist church on Sunday afternoon for Winfield Hornbeck, 45, and his divorced wife, Clara Hornbeck, 42, victims of a double tragedy which occured in Parkersburg on the previous Monday evening. Hornbeck, a former resident of the Liverpool community, and his wife were buried in the Liverpool cemetery, and among the close relatives attending the final rites were their two sons who are serving in the Army. Clayton Hornbeck, who came home from Camp Atterburg, Indiana, and Marion Hornbeck, whom the Army sent home by plane from Alaska in order that he might attend the funeral services. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Reports received by families in the county thus far during the week reveal that three young men have been wounded, one of them, four times during the battle of Iwo Jima, the island recently taken from the Japs near their home island. Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Crichfield, of Sandyville have been notified by the War Department that their son, S/Sgt. Nelson “Buddy” Crichfield, was seriously wounded in Germany on March 12. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Mr.and Mrs. Edgar Spellman have been notified that their son, Marine Private Walter Spellman, was wounded four times during the fighting for Iwo Jima, and later information on his case reveals that he is lucky to be alive. Spellman was one of the 13 men in a Marine company to survive the reception Japs gave them on this island. He hit the beach in the second wave of Marines, and fought eight and one-half days and on the ninth day his company was pinned down by Japs rifles and mortar fire which took a murderous toll of the young men in the company. When the company tried to advance they were mown down and finally only thirteen were left. Spellman had been shot once through neck, another bullet had cut a large gash across his shoulder and two other bullets had entered his right shoulder and ranged downward and came out near his spine. He joined the Marines May 1944 and trained on Parris Island and went overseas in January.

Mrs. Erroll Kidder, of Ravenswood, was notified last week that her husband, Pfc. Erroll Kidder, had been wounded in action in Germany. The wounded man is the father of four children and was inducted into the service last August.

Albert King, of Ripley, has been notified that his son, Ward King, who was wounded in the European war zone several months ago, ahs been brought back to the States, and Mrs. Oda Stewart, of Ripley, has received the first letter from her son, Cpl. Edmond Stewart, who was captured by the Germans last November 28, and from whom nothing was heard until the International Red Cross established the fact that he was a prisoner last week. The letter was written to his mother and bore the date December 17, and said that he was well.

Mr.and Mrs. Charles D. Miller, of Sandyville, were notified by the War Department Tuesday morning that their son, Cpl. Philba C. Miller, has been slightly wounded in Germany on March 15. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Pfc. Archie Kelly, son of Mrs. Mina Kelly, of Gay, has been awarded the Bronze Star Medal for heroic mine sweeping activities near heavily-mined Duren. He was also instrumental in clearing Gey, Germany. The citation reads in part, as follows: Pfc. Archie Kelly, Corps of Engineers Battalion, U.S. Army, for distinguishing himself by meritorious service from Dec 6 to Dec 26, 1944 in Germany. During this period, Pfc. Kelly served as a mine detector operator, often-times performing his duties under heavy enemy mortar and small arm fire. Through Pfc. Kelly’s steadfast applications to his work, the task of removing the enemy deeply laid mines was accomplished with speed and efficiency, which enabled our troops to advance. His outstanding performance of duty and engineering skill and complete knowledge of enemy mines, deserve the highest praise and reflects great credit upon himself. Entered military service from West Virginia. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

S/Sgt. Shirley L. McMurray (male), with the Army in the East Indies, and Sgt. Myrtle McMurray, with the Womens Army Corp in England, are the children of S.V. McMurray, of Ravenswood, Rt 2. They have each been in the service for a long time and have considerable time already in overseas service. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Harry Shinn, who has been serving overseas in the South Pacific for about two years, arrived home last week and is visiting with his parents, Mr.and Mrs. J.B. Shinn, of Fairplain, WV. He was seriously injured several months ago and when he recovered sufficiently to stand the trip, he was sent back to the States. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Leslie Smith, who served two years with a Naval Construction battalion in the South Pacific, is a patient in a naval hospital in Shoemaker, Calif. He was on his way home to spend a leave when illness overtook him, the cause of which has not yet been determined, according to information given his mother, Mrs. Amy Smith. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

ATC Air Base, Casablanca: Pfc. Lewis R. Archer, son of Mr.and Mrs. Martin H. Archer, Rt 4, Sandyville, WV, is assigned as a machinist to an Ordnance Section at Cazes Air Base, Casablanca, in the North African Division of the Air Transport Command. Overseas for 20 months, Pfc. Archer is stationed within a five minute drive to Casablanca. He is a graduate of Gilmore High School, Sandyville, WV. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Lt. Douglas Merrill Ammons was graduated at Foster Field, Texas, recently as a pilot in the Army Air Corps. He has been assigned to Randolph Field for training as a Flight Instructor after which he will return to Foster Field as an instructor of Cadets. He is the only son of Mrs. J.R. Maux, of Cleveland, Ohio, a nephew of E.T. Sayre and a grand nephew of G.H. Sayre, Mrs. J.O. Crum, Mrs. W. L. Beckwith and Mrs. W.T. Lloyd of Jackson Coutny. He is a graduate of the Morgantown High School and attended West Virginia University in 1941-42, where he was pledged to Pi Kappa Alpha. His mother is the former Ocie Sayre, of Cottageville. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Pvt. Starling Casto, who until the time he entered the service, was a well known grocer and business man in Ripley, is now stationed at Seattle, Washington, where he has been since being transferred to that place from Texas. His wife and three children live in Ripley, WV. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Pfc. Ottmer Paxton has written home that he and Raymond Good have been able to see each other as both are in the Marianas Islands and are stationed within one and on-half miles of one another. Both boys are from Kenna and are the sons of C.C. Paxton and Mr.and Mrs. Otho Good, formerly of Kenna. Ottmer has spent the past 28 months in the Air Corps, and Raymond has been in the Navy for several months. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

T/Sgt. Othal Fletcher has recently been promoted to the rank of Second Lieutenant in the Army. He is serving in the Infantry and is now with General Patch’s army in Germany. He entered the service in 1941, and trained at Camp Knox. Camp Gruber and other points before going overseas. His wife and daughters are with her parents, Mr.and Mrs. C.R. Kent, of Cottageville, WV. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

T/Sgt. Orville B. Walker, son of Mr.and Mrs. Ralph B. Walker, of Kentuck, has arrived overseas and is now in France with the Army Medical Corps. His wife, Tressie, and two children live at Kentuck, WV. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Mr.and Mrs. Delbert Lawson, of Sandyville, received a package from Mrs. Lawson’s brother, Cpl. Hollis Van Fossin, who is in Belgium and Germany at present, being overseas for some time. Cpl. Van Fossin is the son of G.N. Van Fossin and the husband of Mrs. Nelda Van Fossin, of Lockhart, WV. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Wilbur McGraw, son of Mrs. Mary McGraw, of Ripley, has been prominent in the rank of Corporal, the Army has announced. He is with the Army in the Pacific and went overseas about six months ago. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Pvt. Nick Jacobs has written his parents-in-law, Mr.and Mrs. W.E. Cossin, of Cottageville. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

With the Fifth Army, Italy: Pvt. Carroll H. Burdette, son of Mrs. Bertha M. Burdette, Rt 1, Liverpool, WV, recently was awarded the Bronze Star for heroic achievement in action. He is serving with the Fifth Army front in Italy with the 337th “Wolverine” Infantry Regiment, 85th “Custer” Division. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

Wayne Matheny, son of Mr.and Mrs. M.C. Matheny, of Gay, is serving in the Navy, and has several months of experience at sea duty. He was a prominent member of the Ripley FFA chapter before entering the service. (Friday, Apr. 6, 1945).

A young Ripley soldier who was looking through a German building for mines, booby-traps, or any other ingenuous device which the retreating Nazis are using to stop the advance of the American infantrymen found no such devices, but he did find a letter on the floor of the building which a Ripley mother had written to her son, who is also in Germany, but at the time the young man who found the letter wrote to his mother, he had not yet found his fellow-townsman. The unusual incident is told in a letter from Clair Beymer, son of Mr.and Mrs. Homer D. Beymer, of Ripley, who wrote his mother about it. He told her that he was in a German building looking around for whatever he might find, when he spied a letter on the floor over in the corner of the room and that he went over, picked it up and began to examine it. He says that one could only imagine his surprise when he found that it had been written by Mrs. Fred Carney, of Ripley, to her son, Harold Carney, who is also in Germany. Commenting on the find, young Beymer says that “Muss”, as Carney is familiarly known to his acquaintances, “must be around here somewhere and not far away, but I haven’t found him.” Since Carney, who has been doing a lot of soldiering around in the European and African theatres of operations lost the letter from his mother and it was found by another Ripley boy and many other soldiers are doing likewise, numerous young ladies have been wondering just how embarrassed they might be someday if some Ripley boy would find some letters that have been written to the “soldier friend” who is overseas in the many sections of the world. (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

With Fifth Army, Italy: First Lt. Kenneth C. Hutchinson, son of Mr.and Mrs. H.L. Hutchinson, of Duncan, WV, is the platoon commander of an anti-aircraft battalion which has driven off more than a thousand Nazi planes, shot down as many as 14 in a single week with a possible nine others foor a total of 75 with 46 additional planes listed as probably destroyed. His platoon has 700 combat days to its credit and participated in the landing in Algeria, Sicily and Italy and fought in Tunisia, and is now at the Po valley front in Northern Italy. (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

With the 83rd Infantry Division in Belgium: Pfc. Archie Kelly, of Gay, Rt 2, WV, has been awarded the Bronze Star Medal for outstanding skill and efficiency in removing an enemy minefield. He is the son of Mrs. Mina E. Kelly, of Gay, Rt 2.

Pvt. Archie Kelly, Company C, 308th Engineer Combat Battalion, United States Army for distinguishing himself by meritorious service in connection with military operations against an enemy of the United States from December 6, 1944 to December 26, 1944, in Germany. As mine detector operator, Pvt. Kelly performed his duties with outstanding efficiency and bravery. (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

The casualty report received in the county up to last night revealed that four more young men had been wounded, two of them in the European war zone, and the other two in the Pacific. Mrs. Charles Tolley, of Ripley, has received word that her husband, Pfc. Charles Tolley of the Marine Corps, has been wounded in the Pacific. He is the son of Mr.and Mrs. Walter Tolley, of Ripley. No details are known except it is a shrapnel wound.

Mrs. Lucille S. Fisher, of Kenna, has been notified that her husband, Pfc. Ernest D. Fisher, was seriously wounded on the island of Leyte in the Philippines on March 4.

Robert C. Snodgrass, grandson of Mr.and Mrs. S.I. Snodgrass, of Liverpool, with whom he made his home, has been wounded in Belgium. It is the family’s understanding that the wound is slight.

William E. Potts, son of Mr.and Mrs. Dewey Potts, who has served with the Fifth Division of Marines, was wounded and is now back at a hospital on Guam, and later is expected to be brought to a hospital in Hawaii. He went overseas in August 1944. He entered the service in Jan 1943. He graduated from the Ripley High School with the class of 1943.

Dr. C.W. Vineyard, of Ripley, received a telegram Monday from his sister, Mrs. J.A. DeGrace, of Pampa, Texas, that her son, Joe DeGrace, Jr., had been killed while fighting with the Marines on Iwo Jima in the Pacific. (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

Pvt. Eugene Harpold, who is serving in the Army, is spending a ten day furlough with his parents, Mr.and Mrs. H.R. Harpold, of Ravenswood, WV.

Mrs. Oda Mae Stewart received word from her other two sons recently. Sgt. Delbert D. Stewart was in France and Sgt. Ray Stewart was in Belgium, but both are now somewhere in Germany.

Billy E. Shimp, son of Mr.and Mrs. Oscar Shimp, of Liverpool, who is serving in the Army in the Marianans Islands in the Pacific, has been promoted to the rank of Technician Fifth Grade.

Radio Tokyo has reported the USS Battleship Pennsylvania sunk so many times that four Jackson County boys believe they have the answer for such reports. These four boys can tell the story best: The “Pennsy” is believed to have shot more main battery ammunition at enemy positions than any other ship. . . more than 11, 000, 000 pounds. The old girl shoots so fast and so much that at times it looks like she’s afire, so the Japs jump to the wrong conclusion,” says W.A. Chute, Seaman First Class, of Ripley. Other Jackson County men on board are Harold K. Conley, Seaman First Class, USNR, son of Mrs. Flossie Conley, of Ripley, Roy Robert Andrick, Seaman Second Class, son of Mrs. Nora Andrick, of Sandyville, and William A. Anderson, Seaman First Class, USNR, son of Mr.and Mrs. W.S. Anderson, of Ravenswood. Broad-beamed Pearl Harbor “ghost”, the Pennsylvania has churned 100,000 miles of Pacific waters, from the Bering Sea to Southern Australia. She has participated in 13 amphibious operations. During the invasion of Guam a shore party sent an urgent call for help in a designated area. When the echoes of the “Pennsy” salvo had died away, the party signaled, “Nice shooting, Pennsylvania. Mission completed.” (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

With the 95th Infantry Division: Cpl. Everett R. Rhodes, husband of Mrs. Lily Ruth Rhodes of Gay, WV, has been awarded the Bronze Star Medal for heroic achievement in connection with military operations against the enemy during the 95th (Victory) Division’s hard fighting at it’s bridgeheads across the Sarr River from Saarlautern. Cpl. Rhodes is a member of the Co. “L” 378th Infantry Regiment. Upon learning that the bodies of three comrades, killed by enemy fire, had not been recovered, Rhodes volunteered to search for them on the river bank. Conducting an exhausting search under the violent artillery and mortar fire continuously pounding the area, Rhodes finally succeeded in locating the dead men and personally carried them across the river to the collecting point. Previous to military service, Cpl. Rhodes was employed as a bus driver. He entered the Army on July 4, 1942. (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

Mrs. Neva McCollum, of Rockcastle, has received a letter from Chaplain Edmund R. Lynn with an Infantry group in Germany, where her husband was killed on March 1, and his letter is as follows: “When you receive this letter, you will already know about the loss of your loved one, Pfc. Hobert E. McCollum. May I add my deepest sympathy to those already given and to the heart-felt-loss that is being experienced by those who were associated with Hobert over here. Your husband was killed in action against the enemy on March 1, 1945, in the country of Germany. His body rests beneath a white cross in an American cemetery in Luxembourg, where many other American boys have been buried. His burial service was conducted by a Protestant Chaplain with all reverence and faith due a Christian soul who had given his life that others might live. Words, written or spoken, are poor messangers of comfort for a loss such as yours, but in behalf of Hobert’s officers and the men who trained and fought beside him, we send our deepest sympathy and want you to know that his loss is felt keenly here, too. May the Savior Jesus Christ draw nigh unto you and give you the comfort that only he can give. If I can be of further service, don’t hesitate to write me. Very Sincerely Yours, Edmund R. Lynn, Chaplain (Captain), USA” (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

Captain Enoch D. Staats, of Ripley, has arrived at the Army Ground and Service Forces Redistribution Station in Ashville, N.C., where he will spend approximately ten days while awaiting reassignment to duty. Staats has returned from 26 months in the Alaskan Department. His branch of service is the Medical Corps. His wife, Mrs. Helen Staats, will stay with him while he is in Ashville. (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

Pfc. Clairmont Hill, son of Mrs. Iona Hill, of Leroy, WV, Rt 1, has recently been awarded the Good Conduct Medal. He entered the service in July 1942 and he has completed 16 months of overseas duty. (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

Pfc. Arnold D. Good, son of Mr.and Mrs. Elpha Good, of Kentuck, is serving with the armed forces in Germany. (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

S/Sgt. Walter C. Harpold, son of Mr.and Mrs. Clark Harpold, of Gay, is currently assigned to the AAF Redistribution Station No. 4 at Santa Ana Army Air Base, Calif. Sgt. Harpold, who has completed 34 combat missions as a gunner on a B-17 Flying Fortress, entered the service in July 1943 and went overseas in July 1944. He has been awarded the Air Medal with four Oak Leaf Clusters and two battle stars for participation in major operations of the Eighth Air Force over Germany. (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

Bronze Star Medals were awarded to T/5 Orville B. Spencer, 104th Infantry Division, son of Mrs. B.A. Spencer, of Kenna, and Howard Terrill Shinn, son of Mr.and Mrs. Paul Shinn, of Evans, European front. (Friday, Apr. 13, 1945).

With the hour of victory approaching for Europe, the number of casualties for the week was smaller in Jackson County, and that was true for the country as a whole, but casualty reports are far behind as usual, and numerous ones may yet be unreported.

Mrs. Foster Mays, of Kenna, has received word that her nephew, Pfc. Noel H. Fields, was killed in action with the Marines in the Pacific on March 27. He was the father of one child which, with its mother, live in Gandeeville, Roane County. Pfc. Fields was a son of Mr.and Mrs. Albert Fields.

Harold F. McGrew, 23 year old son of Mr.and Mrs. D.M. McGrew, suffered a leg wound in Germany on March 30. He had been overseas since Feb 12. His wife is the former Julia Kathleen Blake, daughter of Everett Blake, of Sandyville. They have two daughters. Mrs. McGrew’s brother, Kenneth Blake, was killed in action some time ago, and McGrew’s brother, Charles, also met death while facing the enemy. Miss Marjorie McGrew of Ripley, a sister, received word from the wounded man this week that he is now in a hospital in France and is getting along satisfactorily.

Pfc. Carl Fox, 19 year old son of Mr.and Mrs. Theodore Fox, formerly of Cottageville, now of Akron, Ohio, has been wounded at Iwo Jima, according to a telegram received by the parents which said he was wounded on Feb 28. He is serving with the Fifth Marine Division.

Mr.and Mrs. I.N.Harpold, of Gay, were notified by the War Department on Tuesday that their son, Sgt. Fred W. Harpold had been wounded in Germany on April 2. (Friday, Apr. 20, 1945).

First Lieutenent Glen D. Smith, with the Army Air Corps in England, and a son of Mr.and Mrs. Forest Smith, of Sandyville, has been cited by the commanding officer of the Seventh Army at the European front for the assistance he has given to the Fighter Control Squadron to which he is attached, which enables them to preform a service which was vital to our Army’s success. The citation given Lt. Smith reads in part: “The information you supplied was timely and of great value and assisted materially in permitting this headquarters to formulate its operational plans.” Before entering the service, Lt. Smith was a Jackson County school teacher and his wife, Mrs. Edith Bolte Smith, is from Spencer. (Roane County) (Friday, Apr. 20, 1945).

S/Sgt. George L. Shinn, son of Mr.and Mrs. Clarence Shinn, of Mt Alto, WV, has been awarded the Oak Leaf Cluster to the Distinguished Flying Cross for meritorious achievement as a radio operator flying “The Hump”, famed air supply route between India and China. Presentation of the award, representive of a second award of the DFC, was made by Col. J.A. Thomas, commanding officer of the 3rd Ferrying Group, Ferrying Division, Air Transport Command, Romulus, Michigan. Sgt. Shinn’s wife, the former Bessie Mae Paxton, resides at Long Bottom, Ohio. He entered the Army in Sept 1942, and has been with the Ferrying Division during his entire career. He was stationed in the India-Burma-China theatre for twenty months. (Friday, Apr. 20, 1945).

W.L. Evans, of Ripley, learned this week that two of his nephews, M/Sgt. Carroll Evans, and T/3 Paul Evans, had met in France after being separated for more than two year. They are the sons of Mr.and Mrs. D.W. Evans, of Parkersburg, WV. They wrote their parents about the happy meeting. Another brother, Sgt. Darrell Evans, is with the Army in the Pacific. (Friday, Apr. 20, 1945).

A U.S. Strategic Air Force Station in England: Sgt. Harry V. Westfall, son of Mr.and Mrs. K.V. Westfall, of Kenna, recently arrived in this war theatre of operations and received a brief orientation course at this station designed to help him adjust himself to life in a combat zone. Sgt. Westfall will soon transfer to his permanent station from which America’s fighting planes cover our advance into Germany. (Friday, Apr. 20, 1945).

John L. Herdman, S1/C, son of Mrs. Ethel Herdman, of Chester, has been in the service for three years and is one of the two sharp-shooters on the SS John Walker. This crew has been awarded a citation from the Chief of Navy Personel for shooting down 4 German planes on the Russian front. One of the ship’s officers was killed on the trip, and the ship was later torpedoed in the Mediterranean, and Herdman then made another trip which took him around the world. He has one brother serving with the Army Engineers in the Philippines. (Friday, Apr. 20, 1945).

Norman Winter, son of A. Winter, of Gay, WV, is serving with the Navy as a member of a construction battalion in the Pacific war zone. He has been overseas for more than a year. (Friday, Apr. 20, 1945).

Robert H. Skeen, son of Beecher Skeen, began his fifth year in the armed forces on April 5, and is one of the oldest men in point of service from Jackson County. He entered the Army in April 1941, and has been overseas in the Panama theatre of operations since Dec 1941. During a furlough home he was married and is now the father of a small son. (Friday, Apr. 20, 1945).

The War Department notified Mr.and Mrs. Asa Henry, of Ravenswood, last Friday that their youngest son, Glenn S. Henry, Fireman First Class, in the Navy, had been killed in action. The telegram gave no details as to how, or when the young man was killed, but the family knew that he was serving in the Pacific on a destroyer. The message informed them that his body had been buried at sea. Henry is survived by his wife and one child who was with her parents in Weston, WV, and in addition to the aged parents, has a brother, who is also in service.

Mr.and Mrs. S.E. Pepper, of Medina, have been informed that their son, Glenn Pepper, who is with the Navy in the Pacific, has been wounded. The nature of the wounds are not known exactly, but in a letter to his parents, which was written after he was wounded, the young man told them that as a result of his injury he would have to “part his hair on the other side” which was taken to mean that it was a wound in the head. His wife is the former Anna Lambert. (Friday, Apr. 27, 1945).

Ernie Pyle, noted war correspondent, whose weekly story from the battle fronts has appeared in the Herald for a long time, has been killed in the Pacific, the victim of a Jap machine gun bullet. The few stories received from Pyle before his death will be published after which another feature will replace the weekly story he had written for this newspaper. Many readers of the Herald will learn with regret that the writer of these very interesting accounts is no longer among the living. (Friday, Apr. 27, 1945).

Rex William Andrews, son of the late Mr.and Mrs. W.C. Andrews, who lived many years in the Sandyville community, is missing in action with the Navy in the Pacific, according to a message received by his wife, Vera Andrews, of Parkersburg, last Saturday. He had been in the Navy for sixteen months and in the South Pacific since January. He is a nephew of C.D. Cooper, and Mrs. Sarah Farley, of Sandyville, and he has numerous nephews and one niece in the service. Wade Snyder, of Sandyville, who was killed in Europe last years, was a close relative. (Friday, Apr. 27, 1945).

Home from twenty-three months service with the Navy in South America, Edwin Gay Wolfe, Jr., AMMP, was the honored guest at a family dinner Sunday at the home of his parents, Mr.and Mrs. E.G. Wolfe, of Frozen Camp, the occasion being Edwin’s 25th birthday anniversary. (Friday, Apr. 27, 1945).

A quiet, unassuming young man from the Mill Creek community of Jackson County, Delmer Parrish, is being hailed by the Army as one of its great heros of the Pacific War, and the story of his exploits is being retold over the radio by top-flight announcers and newscasters, and his name has appeared in almost every important newspaper in the United States during the past three or four days. The story released by the Army censors is that young Parrish was on guard in a fox hole at an outpost one night, with open ears in an effort to find out whether the Japs, who were known to be nearby, would attempt an infiltration of American lines under cover of darkness. At some time during the stillness of the night, he heard noises, and listening longer decided that they must be Japs and after getting a fair idea of the location from which the noise came, he began firing, and continued until his gun was so hot that he could hold it in his hands no longer. To his surprise he could hear no more noise and through the remainder of the night he had no trouble keeping awake because he feared that the Japs, and he was convinced it was Japs that he had heard, might be getting all set to rush upon him, and he kept his finger on the trigger of his gun, and even slight noises made by insects and creeping things did not fail to attract his attention during the remainder of the night. Finally dawn arrived over the blue horizon of the Pacific, the fog lifted, and still no Japs had charged him, and he crawled out of his fox hole to survey the situation, and the Army communique says 25 dead Japs were lying in sort of a semi-circle around the fox hole in which young Parrish had spent the night. He is the son of Mr.and Mrs. Cad H. Parrish, of Liverpool, RFD, and has been in the service for some time and has participated in several tough engagements. Out in the Pacific the comrades of Parrish are saying that the Japs try to find out what fox hole Parrish is in at night, because it doesn’t matter how dark it may be, the Japs learned through bitter experience that it isn’t safe for him to start using his gun, a fact which at least 25 fellow Japs would warn them, if they could. (Friday, Apr. 27, 1945).

Peninsula Base Section, Italy: T/5 James A. Hinzman, of Sandyville, Rt 4, WV, has recently been promoted from Pfc. He is a Surgical Technician in the 105th Station Hospital, on e of the many units of this Base, important service and supply organization for the Fifth Army and the ground forces of the U.S. Air Corps and the Navy in the Mediterranean theatre of operation. He is the son of Mr.and Mrs. Lee Hinzman, and has been in the Army since October 17, 1942 and overseas since April 29, 1943. Before entering the military service he was a farmer in the Sandyville community. He is a graduate from Gilmore High School with the class of 1940. Hinzman has been awarded the Mediterranean Theatre Ribbon with one battle star. (Friday, Apr. 27, 1945).

With the 24th Infantry Division in the Philippines: Pvt. Sherman A. Sharp, son of Mrs. Frances Sharp, of Ripley, WV, has joined the veteran 21st Infantry Regiment of this famed “Victory” Division. He has been assigned as an anti-aircraft gunner. (Friday, Apr. 27, 1945).

Just a few days before he was killed in action, Pfc. Noel H. Fields, a nephew of Mrs. Foster Mays, of Kenna, wrote his wife, Mary, and their small daughter, Carolyn, about crevices and caves and the Japs, in a letter in which he told them something of the nature of the fine work done at Iwo Jima in our landing there, and the letter is treasured by the widow since it was the last word she had from him before the War Department notified her that he had been killed in action. (The letter was dated February 24, 1945.) (Friday, Apr. 27, 1945).

Russell W. Ferguson, 35, husband of Faye Ferguson, Rockcastle, WV, Rt 1, is receiving his initial Naval indoctrination at Great Lakes, Illinois. (Friday, Apr. 27, 1945).

Panama City, Florida: Sgt. Lamont E. Nichols has received his aerial gunner’s wings from the Army Air Force Flexible Gunnery School at Tyndall Field, the largest school of its kind in the Army Air Force Training Command. He is the son of Mr.and Mrs. C.L. Nichols, who reside in Mobile, Alabama, and were formerly of Ravenswood, WV. (Friday, Apr. 27, 1945).

Glenn Pepper, son of Mr.and Mrs. S.E. Pepper, of Medina, who is serving in the Navy in the Pacific, has been wounded, according to information received by the parents. His wife is the former Anna Lambert. (Friday, Apr. 27, 1945).

Information gathered by the International Red Cross was forwarded to Mr.and Mrs. Orville Stover, of Cottageville, this week and informed them that their son, T/Sgt. Carl W. Stover, was killed in action in the European theatre of operations on June 26, 1944. Last summer, the parents were informed by the War Departmant that their son was missing in action and nothing more was heard of him until the message was received this week which told them that he had been killed on the day he was reported missing.

The War Department has notified the relatives of Stanley Casto, including his aunt, Mrs. Allen A. Skidmore, of Ripley, that he was killed in action in Germany on April 15. He sailed for the European theatre of operations only last March 7 and his death occurred only a few days more than a month later. Casto was a son of Mr.and Mrs. W.G. Casto, of Alice, Ohio, and the family formerly lived at Fairplain. He has a wife and one small child. He was 23 years of age and was the last of four brothers to enter the service. His brother, Raymond Casto, is in Hawaii, John Casto, training in Alabama, and the third, Leon Casto is now in Oklahoma after long service in the Pacific.

Another message received from the War Department by Jackson County people this week was by Mr.and Mrs. P.B. Hall, of Crow Summit, which informed them that their son, Pfc. Bert F. Hall, had been seriously wounded in Germany on April 10. He entered the service on June 8, 1944 and has been overseas since December 9. Both Casto and Hall had been with the forces who are penetrating deeply into Germany in recent weeks, and while the message did not reveal the location of their units, general new dispatches have indicated for some weeks that they were far inside the German reich.

A third message which was received during the week was by Mr.and Mrs. Fred Lewis, of Ravenswood, informing them that their son , Pfc. Ted Lewis, had been slightly wounded in Germany.

A telegram was received Monday by Wade W. King, of Evans and Parkersburg, informing him that his son , T/5 Charles Donald King had been seriously wounded on Cebu Island on March 30. The young man had called his folks from a Richmond, Virginia hospital on Saturday night informing them that he had been brought back there for treatment and his father and his aunt, Mrs. A.C. Hibbard, of Evans, made plans to go to Richmond this week to visit him. He had been overseas in the Pacific theatre of operations since the beginning of the war. The extent of his injuries will not be known until his father and his aunt return from Richmond later in the week. (Friday, May 4, 1945).

M/Sgt. Richard Beymer, of Hendricks Field, Florida, is spending an 18 day leave with his parents, Mr.and Mrs. J.G. Beymer, of Sandyville, WV. Miss Freda Beymer is also home on a 12 day leave from her duties in the Signal Corps at Arlington, D.C. (Friday, May 4, 1945).

Pfc. Edward Hartley, who has been ill with pneumonia in a hospital in France for the past month, is now convalescing satisfactorily. Pfc. Hartley is an ambulance driver in the Army Medical Corps, and has been overseas for the past eleven months.

Pfc. Dorn Grady has completed 38 months service with the 14th anti-aircraft Command in the Southwest Pacific, according to an Army announcement this week. He entered the service in 1941 and left the States on Jan 27, 1942. He is the son of George Grady, of Elmwood, and his wife, Mrs. Georgia Grady, lives at Evans.

The Army, in a public announcement this week, said that T/5 Vincent Eakin, son of Mr.and Mrs. W. T. Eakin, of Gay, has rounded out two hundred consecutive days of combat service in a tank battalion on the western front in Europe, having seen action in Sicily, Italy, France and the low countries. He has participated in three amphibious operations. (Friday, May 4, 1945).

An Eighth Air Force Liberator Station, England: Cpl. Robert P. Rogers, of Ripley, WV, recently joined Colonel Albert J. Shower’s 467th Bomb Group to fly and fight as an armor gunner on a B-24 Liberator bomber of this group. Cpl. Rogers was a student at Ripley High School and West Virginia University before entering the service April 12, 1944. Cpl. Roger’s wife, Mrs. M. Rogers and the parents of Cpl. Rogers all live in Ripley.

Eugene Conrad, son of Mrs. E.E. Conrad, of Ripley, has been awarded the Presidential citation for his work on an aircraft carrier on anti-submarine duty in the Atlantic. He was awarded the citation on April 5. (Friday, May 4, 1945).

T/Sgt. Carl W. Stover, of Cottageville, was killed in the European theatre of operations last June 24, according to information furnished the parents, Mr.and Mrs. Orville Stover, of Cottageville, last week by the International Red Cross. T/Sgt. Stover was reported as missing on June 24 last year and the parents received the information from the War Department a few weeks later. Nothing more was ever heard of him, and after weeks and months went by, the parents asked the Red Cross to make a check and see if some information could be found. The message which they have now received, which confirmed the fears they have had for some time, is the result of that investigation. Young Stover is the sixty-sixth young man from Jackson County to give his life in this war, according to a record which has been kept by the Herald. There are numerous other Jackson County men still listed as “missing in action” some of whom it is still hoped are prisoners, but still that information is lacking. Numerous of those who were first listed as missing were later found to be prisoners. (Friday, May 11, 1945).

A Ripley man, Wade Shatto, appears to have been one of the many unlucky men of the war since he fought through almost to the hour when the Germans surrendered in Italy before he was numbered among the casualties. The information that Pfc. Shatto had been seriously wounded was received from the War Department by his sister, Mrs. Holly Whiting in Ripley last Friday, and further news was received that the injuries were in both arms. His parents, the late Mr.and Mrs. R.R. Shatto, are both dead, the mother dying only a few months ago when in some manner she fell into the flood waters in Mill Creek. (Friday, May 11, 1945).

The parents of Pfc. Jackie L. Barnett, 23, have been notified by the War Department that he was killed in action while serving with the Seventh Army in Germany on April 1. The telegram was received by the parents, Mr.and Mrs. Oscar Barnett, of Midvale, Ohio, formerly of Cottageville. Pfc. Barnett had previously been awarded the Purple Heart for having been wounded in the hand while serving with the Twelfth Division, the famed “Hell Cats”, last January 16. He had also been awarded the Bronze Star by the Army for bravery and “meritorious service beyond the call of duty.” In addition to the parents, he is survived by two sisters, Mrs. J.R. Ryan of Charleston, and Miss Juanita Barnett of Canton, one half-brother, Hollie Stone, and a half-sister, Mrs. B.L. Eaglen, of Cleveland. (Friday, May 11, 1945).

Two Jackson County soldiers, S/Sgt. Robert B. Mithcell and S/Sgt. Robert W. Full were released from German prison camps last week by the advancing Allied armies. Mitchell is a son of Mr.and Mrs. Walter Mitchell of Ravenswood, and Full is a son of Mrs. Clara Full, of Leroy. Both young men had been held as prisoners by the Germans for more than a year. (Friday, May 11, 1945).

Sgt. Don Myers, son of Deputy Sheriff and Mrs. C.F. Myers, is with the American armies in Germany and is serving in the Field Artillery.

Cpl. Orton Parsons and S/Sgt. Arthur L. Parsons are sons of Mr.and Mrs. Ida Parsons of Duncan. Orton was wounded during the invasion of France and has since been sent back to the States and Arthur is with General Mark Clark’s army in Italy. (Pictures) (Friday, May 11, 1945).

The four children of Mr.and Mrs. H.J. Sayre, of Leon, RFD, are all serving in the present war. Ferrell Sayre is a Navy nurse in Massachusetts, King Sayre has been discharged from the Marines after 22 months of service, Jasper Sayre is with the Army Engineers at the European front, and Troy Sayre is training at Camp Robinson, Arkansas. (Photo of all four) (Friday, May 11, 1945).

Serving in the Navy: Olen Darrell Emerick, son of Mr.and Mrs. C.P. Emerick, of Ravenswood, Rt 2, William Robert Rhodes, son of Mr.and Mrs. Elmer Rhodes, of Ripley, and Eather Wilson Southall, son of Mr.and Mrs. Floyd W. Southall, of Fairplain. (Photos) (Friday, May 11, 1945).

S/Sgt. Walter Clark Harpold, son of Mr.and Mrs. E.C. Harpold, of Gay, and a veteran of about nine months of overseas duty as a B-17 crew member, is now stationed at the AAF Instructors School for instrument pilots at Lubbock Army Airfield, Texas. He has been awarded the Air Medal with four Oak Leaf clusters, the Distinguished Unit Badge and two battle stars to the ETO ribbon. (Friday, May 11, 1945).

Another name was added to the Jackson County list of Honored Dead of the War this week when the War Department notified Mrs. Garnet Atkinson that her husband, Pvt. Buddy Atkinson, had been killed in Germany while serving with the 319th Infantry on April 10. His father, George Atkinson, lives at Romance, and other relatives include a brother, Alfred Atkinson, and a sister, Mrs. Albert Thomas, of Kenna, and several half-brother and half-sisters, including Mrs. Clair Lanham, of Romance, Mrs. Devona Southall, Arnold Atkinson, Clarence Atkinson, and others, of Romance.

Pvt. Delmer Parrish, son of Mr.and Mrs. Cad Parrish, of Liverpool, has been wounded in the fighting on Okinawa, according to a message received by the parents which stated that the young man, who entered service in October 1942, received his injury on April 7.

Mrs. Muriel Slaven, of Cleveland, Ohio, has received word from the War Department that her husband, Pfc. Charles Okey Slaven, was slightly wounded in Germany on April 10, while serving with the 607th Tank Destroyer Battalion of the Third Army. He is the son of Mr.and Mrs George Slaven, of Sherman, Rt 2. He was inducted into the Army at Kent, Ohio, on January 4, 1943. (Friday, May 11, 1945).

Quentin Sayre, son of Mr.and Mrs. T.E. Sayre, has been promoted to the rank of Captain. He is serving in the Pacific theatre of operations. Two brothers, Ralph and Don Sayre, are also in service.

Pfc. Charles Shinn, of Ripley, is serving with the Airborne Engineer Aviation Battalion in Europe. A son of Mr.and Mrs. C.O. Shinn, of Ripley, his wife, the former Josephine Fleming, of Ravenswood, is making her home with her parents.

S/Sgt. Enoch C. Morgan, of Cottageville, was recently awarded the Bronze Star Medal while serving with Company A, 714th Tank Bn, 12th Armored Division of the Seventh Army.

S/2C Delbert A. Casto, son of Mr.and Mrs Wade L. Casto, of Rockcastle, is serving in the Navy. His wife, the former Dorcas Dean, and daughter, Patsy Sue, are living in Dunbar at this time.

Pvt. Roy Parsons and Pfc. Edwin Parsons are sons of Mr.and Mrs. Boyd Parsons, of Evans. Roy is serving in the Infantry and Edwin is with the Quartermaster Corps, both are stationed overseas. Edwin’s wife is the former Geraldine Casto, living at Ripley. (Photos)

Lawrence O. Hunt, formerly a Jackson County school teacher for eight years and postmaster at Cottageville for eleven years, is serving in the Navy at Great Lakes, Ill. (Photo)

Cousins in armed forces: Thomas Smith, son of Mr.and Mrs. D.E. Smith, of Ripley, is serving in the Navy in the Southwest Pacific. His wife and two children live in Ripley. Pfc. Carl Fox, son of Mr.and Mrs. Theodore Fox, of Akron, Ohio, has been with the Marines on Iwo Jima. (Photo) (Friday, May 18, 1945).

A military funeral will be held at the Liverpool church on Thursday for S/Sgt. Roy F. Kuhl, who died in Woodrow Wilson Army Hospital, near Staunton, Va, on Sunday afternoon, to which he had been brought from overseas after being wounded in action at the German front. Revs. J.S. Sarver and Rossing Smith will have charge. The body arrived here at five o’clock Tuesday evening, and was accompanied by Mrs. Kuhl, Dorothy Hall, Imogene Williams, Mr.and Mrs. Joe Kuhl and Creed Carmichael, who had been in Staunton when the young man died. S/Sgt. Kuhl, the seventieth Jackson Countian to make the supreme sacrifice in this war, went overseas more than 14 months ago and fought in Africa, Italy, France, and in the Saar basin and along the Rhine in Germany. His leg was shattered by an exploding mortar shell on Feb 3. He was 32 years old. Surviving are his widow, Mrs. Hallie Kuhl, of Ripley, a brother, Jobe Kuhl, who was seriously wounded in battle in Europe, a sister, Mrs. Eula Crew, of Parkersburg, two half-brothers, Creed Carmichael, of Ripley and William Kuhl of Columbus, and a half-sister, Mrs. Belle Cooper, of Auburn, Nebraska. (Friday, May 25, 1945).

Nine of the thirteen grandsons of Mr.and Mrs George Houchen, of Ripley, are serving in the armed forces during the present war, which may or may not be a record for one grandmother. The young men are Ray and Ernest Houchen, sons of Mr.and Mrs. N.C. Houchen, of Ripley; George and Guilford Houchen, sons of Mr.and Mrs. V.M. Houchen, of Ripley; Paul and Kenneth Houchen, sons of Mr.and Mrs. H.O. Houchen, of Parkersburg; Clifford Conner, son of Mr.and Mrs. H.W. Conner, of Parkersburg; Paul and Dale Carder, sons of Mr.and Mrs. Burton Carder, of Rockland, Ohio, and J.H. Clark and Alva Brown. (Friday, May 25, 1945).

S/Sgt. Nelson Critchfield, Jr., who has been at the veteran hospital at Martinsburg since being evacuated from Europe where he was wounded in battle several weeks ago, is at home to spend a thirty day furlough with his parents, Mr.and Mrs. Nelson Crithcfield, of Sandyville. A brother, Frank Critchfield, who is serving in the Navy, has returned to duty after spending a leave at home. (Friday, May 25, 1945).

Lt. (jg) Morley Parsons, son of Mr.and Mrs. O.O. Parsons, of Fairplain, and before he entered service a member of the Ripley High School faculty, is the executive officer of an LCI boat which is now in the Pacific waters.

Pfc. Robert G. Farley, son of Hobart W. Farley, of Rockport, Rt 1, has been awarded the Silver Star by the commanding general of the 6th Infantry Division for gallantry in action against the Japanese in the vicinity of San Jose, Luzon, P.I., on February 7. Farley volunteered as a member of a six-man patrol to find the exact position of dug-in enemy tanks.. When about 200 yeards from the emplacement, the patrol was discovered and fired upon by two 47mm guns, two machine guns and a number of snipers. Farley and one other man continued their assault and advanced to within 100 yards of a tank to fire a rocket launcher three times and knock out the tank. (Friday, May 25, 1945).

Among the many Jackson County boys who are seeing the German defeat this week is Cpl. James M. Lane, son fo Mr.and Mrs. J.M. Lane, of Ravenswood. He has been in the service three years and overseas about two and one-half years. (Photo) (Friday, May 25, 1945).

Pfc. Earl Lupardus, son of Ezra Lupardus, of Belgrove. His wife and three children are living at Gay during his absence. He is serving with the Army Medical Corps in Europe. (Photo) (Friday, May 25, 1945). Cpl. Frank Rhodes, son of Mr.and Mrs. Luther Rhodes, of Ripley, has been overseas for several months in the European theatre of operations. (Photo) (Friday, May 25, 1945).

Lansing Wayne Hinzman, son of Mr.and Mrs. A.L. Hinzman, of Gay, is serving in the Army at Ft. Knox, Ky. He has completed basic training and is now attending clerical school. Before entering the service last fall he was a student at Ripley High School and would have been a member of this year’s graduating class. (Photo) (Friday, May 25, 1945).

Cpl. William F. Harpold, son of Mr.and Mrs. F.F. Harpold, of Ripley, has been awarded the Meritorious Service Plaque for outstanding service with the Fifteenth Air Force in Italy. (Photo) (Friday, May 25, 1945).

Clarence Barnett and Clyde Barnett are the sons of Mr.and Mrs. Okey Barnett, of Rockcastle. Clarence entered the Navy on August 20, 1943, and has spent most of his time in the South Pacific. At one time his ship was torpedoed and he was in the water five hours before he was rescued. Clyde entered the Army in 1944 and is now training in a Texas camp. (Photos) (Friday, May 25, 1945).

The promotion of Robert P. Rogers from Corporal to Sergeant was recently announced by Col. Albert J. Shower, commanding officer of the 467th Bombardment Group, a part of the Second Air Division, “somewhere in England”. Sgt. Rogers, an aerial gunner on one of this group’s Liberator bombers, is the husband of Mrs. Minnie W. Rogers and the son of Mr.and Mrs. D.J. Rogers, of Ripley. (Friday, June 1, 1945).

Melvin Horne, son of Walter Horne, of Ripley, and a teacher in the schools of the county before entering the service, has been overseas for many months with the Army in Italy. (Photo) (Friday, June 1, 1945).

Robert Ong, son of Mrs. Edith Ong, of Ripley, is serving with the Army Air Corps and at the present time is stationed in the Philippine Islands. He entered servie in July 1943. (Photo) (Friday, June 1, 1945).

G.R. Harrison, chief watertender, son of Mr.and Mrs. Thomas N. Harrison, of Kenna, was aboard the aircraft carrier Essex when her planes battered Okinawa prior to the Marine and Army landings. (Friday, June 1, 1945).

Pfc. William Pennington’s condition is serious at an Army hospital in the Philippine Islands, according to a message received by his wife, Mrs. Bernice Pennington, last Saturday. He is a son of Mr.and Mrs. W.H. Pennington, formerly of Given, but now of Red House. (Friday, June 8, 1945).

Pfc. Robert Earl Dent, missing in action since last December 13, is reported to have been liberated from the Germans. His family didn’t know he was a prisoner as they had had no word from him since he was reported by the War Department as missing last December. He is the son of N.M. Dent, of Rockport. (Friday, June 8, 1945).

Alfred O. Stutler, son of Mr.and Mrs. Wade Stutler, of Kenna, recently spent a leave with his parents and his wife, Mrs. Reba Stutler. Two ships on which he served in the Pacific were blown up, but he came through each of the engagements without being injured. (Photo) (Friday, June 8, 1945).

Elmer Crow, son of Mr.and Mrs. W.D. Crow, of Silverton, has been serving in the Army since September 1944, and was at Camp Meade, Maryland before embarking for the battle zones. (Photo) (Friday, June 1, 1945).

Pvt. Ardell Braden, son of Mr.and Mrs. George Braden, of Sandyville, has been serving overseas in the European theatre since last year and was with the Army when it crashed through the Siegfried line into Germany. His wife, Mattie M. Braden, lives at Sandyville. (Photo) (Friday, June 8, 1945).