Yesterday I Found My Grandfather's Police Badges and My Father's WWII US Navy Medals

[Eastender]

I wasn't in the field metal detecting, but yesterday while cleaning out my old shed I rediscovered my Grandfather's Police Badges and Father's WWII US Navy Medals. A huge sigh of relief. I had lost track of them over 15 years ago and feared they were stolen around that time when someone had rifled through my belongings. They were in a small rectangular box that bank checks used to come in and had fallen back behind some wall boards. Mouse nests and droppings so I'm glad the ribbons weren't eaten off.

Real family treasure. I'm glad that I can now pass them on to my children. In life you realize that you are only a caretaker for some objects. It is your job to pass the torch of family history.

I have included a picture of my mother with her father circa 1935. The photo was one of my mom's prized possessions and she gave it to me shortly before she recently passed away. The story of the photo she told me is that she got out of school and put on her finest dress to attend a murder trial with her father. She said she sat in the front row in the courthouse! Not an incident my grandfather was involved in, but a case involving a tenant in their house they had rented out. I prize having the very badge from his cap. When I was young I used to travel often to the nearby town where here served which in its heyday was a bustling but small town of around 30,000. During the 1970s I shopped in stores where old timers remembered my grandfather walking the beat protecting their stores. He was well-like and people treated me accordingly.

Prior to and during WWII he was also in the Civil Defense and guarded a local factory founded in 1880, Clark Bros. The company produced large engines for drilling and compressors for the oil industry in western NY State. Despite manpower leaving for the war, the company contributed to the WWI effort. Production continued during the Great Depression, keeping hundreds of workers employed. In the lead up to World War II, the company produced 75% of all direct driven angle engine compressors in the country. The company produced engines for the Higgins Boat, a landing craft used extensively by the Allied forces in amphibious landings in World War II. They helped keep the US domestic oil fields running during the war. Clark Bros. received the Army-Navy “E” pennant. The award criteria included quality and quantity of production; avoidance of work stoppages; meeting fair labor standards and other requirements. Clark Bros. is awarded its third star award for the Army-Navy “E” flag. Only 5% of companies producing materials for the war effort received the award, with fewer earning multiple stars. The company also develops a portable oxygen-making machine that can be airlifted to forward bases, generating breathable air for the high-altitude bomber crews attacking Japan.

He was given the two silver "Ships For Victory" pins plus a V for victory ring that I wore through my teen years. During his later years, my grandfather acted in westerns. I believe the photo is from the 1950s. He grew up on a horse farm and was an excellent rider. He mastered the six shot revolver and lever action rifle, also performed tricks with the bullwhip. I believe he is one of my guardian ancestors.

My father left High School during his senior year as soon as he turned 18 in early December and joined the US Navy. He was deployed to Okinawa with the 3rd Fleet and served with the 96th Naval Construction Battalion. He was a part of the buildup of materials for the final push into the Japanese homeland. After the Nuclear bombs dropped, he was on the US Missouri for the Japanese surrender. The US decommissioned huge numbers of personnel at the conclusion of the war. But my father, being so young, was deployed to mainland China to build an airbase for China's Civil War. They also repatriated Japanese POWs. The awards include the Pacific Theater Medal, American Theater Medal, Victory Medal, and Occupying Forces Medal. Also, Honorable Service and Discharge pins.

 

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[DizzyDigger]

Quite a family history...amazing stuff.

 

[E-Trac-Ohio]

Very cool family history !

 

[oldmxrat]

Very cool, you should be very proud!

 

[Eastender]

Since I was the youngest of five children and my father left the family when I was 13 years old, I was never able to discuss the war with him. I can only remember two things: he said the Kamikaze were very dangerous and struck their ships several times, and they were hit by massive typhoon Louise that destroyed ships and materials. In his closet I remember a special jacket written in Chinese that identified him as a US Serviceman. He had photo albums bound in leather as his childhood friend became a Navy photographer. I saw photos of Japanese prisoners and the USS Missouri.

When COVID hit, I wrote to the US National Archives in St. Louis to retrieve my father's US Navy records. (Unfortunately, he perished in a house fire during Thanksgiving Holiday 1987. Lost everything including his war time photo albums). A 100 bucks and a year later, I got his complete file. It was comprehensive and touching. I have his complete hand prints. I have the papers signed by his parents allowing him to enlist as a minor. There was an attachment to his pay schedule showing an automatic deduction for his sick father (a retired lineman, and my father was an only child). His Military life insurance policy. The reimbursement for personal items lost in the typhoon. His training first at the Naval Training Facility of the Great Lakes, then Seabee training in Davisville, RI. I then researched his local newspaper and found his enlistment and deployment notices. I recommend to everyone here related to a serviceman to contact the archives to find their loved ones records.

Life came full circle when I got in touch with him and introduced my beautiful fiancee just before he passed. She is an American who had recently returned from over a year of study in Japan. We met in college. She has a working knowledge of the Japanese language. I was so happy to see them together. My father made for her his favorite potato salad. The world changes so fast that my father's politics were not my own. I have many Japanese friends; my father was forced to try and kill them and to not be killed by them. Unfortunately he never got to see my children. My son made a solo trip to Japan when he was 20. He loves Japanese culture. I have my father's senior HS photo. Ironically, my son looks like him.

 

[Sandinmypants]

Thanks for sharing this and you should be very proud of all your father did

 

[Eastender]

Not all paper treasure is currency. The address and website if you would like to start your own personal journey.

 

[Chilli]

I wasn't in the field metal detecting, but yesterday while cleaning out my old shed I rediscovered my Grandfather's Police Badges and Father's WWII US Navy Medals. A huge sigh of relief. I had lost track of them over 15 years ago and feared they were stolen around that time when someone had rifled through my belongings. They were in a small rectangular box that bank checks used to come in and had fallen back behind some wall boards. Mouse nests and droppings so I'm glad the ribbons weren't eaten off.

Real family treasure. I'm glad that I can now pass them on to my children. In life you realize that you are only a caretaker for some objects. It is your job to pass the torch of family history.

I have included a picture of my mother with her father circa 1935. The photo was one of my mom's prized possessions and she gave it to me shortly before she recently passed away. The story of the photo she told me is that she got out of school and put on her finest dress to attend a murder trial with her father. She said she sat in the front row in the courthouse! Not an incident my grandfather was involved in, but a case involving a tenant in their house they had rented out. I prize having the very badge from his cap. When I was young I used to travel often to the nearby town where here served which in its heyday was a bustling but small town of around 30,000. During the 1970s I shopped in stores where old timers remembered my grandfather walking the beat protecting their stores. He was well-like and people treated me accordingly.

Prior to and during WWII he was also in the Civil Defense and guarded a local factory founded in 1880, Clark Bros. The company produced large engines for drilling and compressors for the oil industry in western NY State. Despite manpower leaving for the war, the company contributed to the WWI effort. Production continued during the Great Depression, keeping hundreds of workers employed. In the lead up to World War II, the company produced 75% of all direct driven angle engine compressors in the country. The company produced engines for the Higgins Boat, a landing craft used extensively by the Allied forces in amphibious landings in World War II. They helped keep the US domestic oil fields running during the war. Clark Bros. received the Army-Navy “E” pennant. The award criteria included quality and quantity of production; avoidance of work stoppages; meeting fair labor standards and other requirements. Clark Bros. is awarded its third star award for the Army-Navy “E” flag. Only 5% of companies producing materials for the war effort received the award, with fewer earning multiple stars. The company also develops a portable oxygen-making machine that can be airlifted to forward bases, generating breathable air for the high-altitude bomber crews attacking Japan.

He was given the two silver "Ships For Victory" pins plus a V for victory ring that I wore through my teen years. During his later years, my grandfather acted in westerns. I believe the photo is from the 1950s. He grew up on a horse farm and was an excellent rider. He mastered the six shot revolver and lever action rifle, also performed tricks with the bullwhip. I believe he is one of my guardian ancestors.

My father left High School during his senior year as soon as he turned 18 in early December and joined the US Navy. He was deployed to Okinawa with the 3rd Fleet and served with the 96th Naval Construction Battalion. He was a part of the buildup of materials for the final push into the Japanese homeland. After the Nuclear bombs dropped, he was on the US Missouri for the Japanese surrender. The US decommissioned huge numbers of personnel at the conclusion of the war. But my father, being so young, was deployed to mainland China to build an airbase for China's Civil War. They also repatriated Japanese POWs. The awards include the Pacific Theater Medal, American Theater Medal, Victory Medal, and Occupying Forces Medal. Also, Honorable Service and Discharge pins.

Bet that felt great finding them! Id misplaced some of my late fathers Navy things when we moved, I was devastated thinking we'd lost them. When I found them it was like winning the lottery.
Love the badges!

 

[ArfieBoy]

So cool that you found those medals and gathered all the information on both your father's and your grandfather's pasts.

 

[Eastender]

Bet that felt great finding them! Id misplaced some of my late fathers Navy things when we moved, I was devastated thinking we'd lost them. When I found them it was like winning the lottery.
Love the badges!

So often over the past years the loss would pop up in my mind and make me sad. It's probably not healthy to get so attached to objects. But they are the only ones I had from them. Glad you found yours.