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The G.I. Bill of Rights: A New Chapter for Those Who Came Home from WWII

The University of Cincinnati 1946 yearbook. Text bottom right reads, “The war with its hard fought battles and lonely hours is over. Those who left McMicken’s halls to help fight those battles and to share those lonely hours have come back—not only to take up where they left off, but to carry out the dreams and plans they made while they were gone.” “McMicken” refers to McMicken Hall on the University of Cincinnati, Ohio, campus and was a nickname for students used in the 1940s.

The Dedication in the 1946 yearbook was as follows: “As McMicken’s sons come back from the far-flung battle-fronts … North Africa … Anzio Beachhead … Normandy … the Bulge … Bataan … Coral Sea … Guadalcanal … New Guinea … Iwo Jima … Guam … they remember their classmates who will never again return to classes, to parties, and to the way of life they knew and loved. We will not and must not forget them and what they have done for us.”

Members of the University of Cincinnati Veterans Association in 1946. Row 1 — Kemeny, J.; Rodgers, J.; Niedenthal, R.; Kelly, R.; Ritter, B.; Armandroff, T. Row 2 — Hannon, J.; Faunteleroy, T.; Cleary, R.; Gordon, R.; Hill, R.; two unidentified members. Row 3 — Vance, E.; Williams, H.; Murphy, J.; Williams, T.; Bentley, E.; Feltrup, A. Robert Kelly was president of the organization. The purpose of the Veterans Association was to promote fellowship among veterans as they entered college life.

Before WWII ended the United States (US) Congress passed the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 which provided a range of benefits for returning veterans. The legislation is more commonly known still today as the G.I. Bill of Rights.

The educational benefits in the G.I. Bill included tuition and living expenses for veterans returning to school. The University of Cincinnati was one of many universities, colleges, trade schools, and training programs that welcomed WWII veterans wanting to continue their post-war education. G.I. Bill enrollments at the University of Cincinnati began in the fall of 1945. At its peak there were 8,000 veterans enrolled there. In 1949 two-thirds of the university graduates were WWII veterans.

The G.I. Bill was a defining document in 20th century US history. The positive effects on the US economy that started with the passing of the G.I. Bill are still evident today.

The genesis of this story began when I found the 1946 University of Cincinnati yearbook in a used bookstore in San Antonio, Texas. The tone and sentiment in the yearbook reflects the 1940s US society and the educational institutions that welcomed WWII veterans back from a long war and sought to help them readapt to civilian life.

Thank you to University of Cincinnati Archivist Kevin Grace for his help in researching this story.

Photographs in the story are courtesy of the University of Cincinnati Archives.

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org

Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery (Part 2): And the Prisoners Of War Who Never Went Home

Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery, San Antonio, Texas. WWII Prisoner of War burials Section ZA. *Photograph S.R. O’Konski Collection.*

They may be far from their homeland but have not been forgotten.

After WWII when Prisoner of War (POW) camps closed in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma, the POWs who died in captivity were reinterred at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio, Texas. One hundred thirty-two Germans, five Italians, three Japanese, and one Austrian are buried there. If the families of the deceased POWs survived the war and could be located, they would have been given the opportunity to repatriate the remains back to their home country.

Story One. Johnny Barrientez, Lead Cemetery Representative at the Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery, has worked there for 38 years. About 25 years ago (early 1990s) he noticed a gentleman in the POW section and walked over to see if he could be of assistance. The gentleman, a German, had travelled from Germany to Texas to visit his brother’s grave. He knew his brother had been a POW and buried in the United States (US), but it had taken him some time to locate his resting place. The German talked about his brother and showed Johnny pictures of himself and his brother in their German uniforms. Another cemetery employee, an American WWII veteran, also walked over, and the two men exchanged thoughts about the war and fighting for their countries. In the end, after seeing the cemetery and the care given to all the graves there, the German man decided he would leave his brother buried in the US.

Story Two. Corporal Hugo Krauss was born in Germany in 1920. Hugo, his mother, and sister joined his father, Heinrich, in New York City, New York, in 1929. Heinrich had immigrated to the US in 1928. In 1939 Hugo travelled back to Germany to visit relatives and was there when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. Trapped in Germany, at some point Hugo became a member of the German Army (Wehrmacht). He was captured during the North African Campaign and was sent to a POW camp (Camp Hearne) in Texas. With his fluency in English and German he became an interpreter. As the story is told, some of his fellow German prisoners thought he had become too friendly with the Americans. On the evening of December 17, 1943, he was severely beaten by Nazi POWs and died on December 23, 1943.

While visiting Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery I found three pennies and a dime on the tombstone of Hugo Krauss. According to some military traditions leaving coins can be a symbol of remembrance of the person. A penny signifies that a grave had been visited. A dime signifies that the visitor had served with the deceased in some capacity. *Photograph S.R. O’Konski Collection.*

An Italian grave. *Photograph S.R. O’Konski Collection.*

A Japanese grave. *Photograph S.R. O’Konski Collection.*

**Two of the German tombstones depict the person had been awarded the Iron Cross. The legend at the bottom of the tombstone translates to: “He died far (from) Home for Leader,** People, and Fatherland.” *Photograph S.R. O’Konski Collection.*

Story One as told to me by Johnny Barrientez. I want to thank him for his help in the research for this story.

Thank you to G. L. Lamborn for assistance in the German translation on the tombstone.

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org

In Memory Of … Sara Elizabeth Clarke Anderson

Betty2 — **Sara Elizabeth Clarke Anderson**

Sara Elizabeth Clarke Anderson, known to family and friends as Betty, was 22 years old when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941.

Betty was working as a photographer’s model for a modeling agency in Chicago, Illinois, and was featured in advertisements for companies such as Sears, Roebuck, and Company and Folgers Coffee. She posed for the cover of several detective magazines of the day and for one cover she told of being photographed in the Chicago River pretending she was about to drown. She was also involved in radio and television broadcast media in Chicago. Betty worked at radio station WAAF which broadcast from the top floor of the Palmer House. On Mondays at 2 pm she had her own radio show and sang songs. Her beauty and talent opened the door for her early television work at Zenith Experimental Studios. She appeared in various television productions.

During WWII new product development was limited, and rationing affected product availability. When the use of advertising and broadcast media temporarily changed its focus during wartime, Betty moved to Arkansas and was employed at the Arkansas Ordnance Plant (AOP) as an Inspector. Her starting salary was 56 cents an hour.

The AOP was located in Jacksonville, Arkansas. In 1942 the contract to build and operate the plant was awarded to Ford, Bacon, and Davis of New York. The plant was one of the first of its kind in the United States (US). It assembled military munitions fuses, boosters, detonators, and primers. The first assembly line was completed in March of 1942 and approximately 75% of the employees were women.

Betty worked in the Percussion Element Division and made relay and delay fuses for bombs. Components of the fuses included the potentially unstable elements of lead azide and mercury fulminate. She told of assembly line workers taking extra precautions as fuses were moved within the AOP as it was thought even human body heat may cause a fuse to explode.

The AOP shut down production in August of 1945 a few weeks after the atomic bombs were dropped on Japan. WWII was over.

After WWII, those on the Homefront and veterans returning home from the war started a new chapter in their life. Betty married “the love of her life” E. M. (Tex) Anderson and raised six children. She had a lifelong interest in broadcast media. Betty became a television personality for San Antonio, Texas, public television station KLRN and was elected to the Alamo Public Telecommunications Council.

Betty passed away on January 16, 2016, at the age of 96. Her love for her family and her contribution to her country, her community, and her work in broadcasting will be remembered.

Betty’s son, Jeffrey, found this AOP employee award card among her belongings after her death.

**A Message from US President Franklin D. Roosevelt on back of Meritorious Work Award Card**

In November 2010 I did an oral history interview with Betty for the National Museum of the Pacific War in Fredericksburg, Texas. She was representative of the citizens on the Homefront during WWII who wanted to “do their bit” and were themselves sometimes placed in potentially dangerous jobs.

I knew Betty for over 20 years. She was a “classy lady.” I will miss her friendship.

Photographs for this story are used with the permission of the Anderson family.

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org

WWII United States Navy “Sweetwater” Aircraft Carriers

US Navy Pier, Chicago, Illinois, during WWII. USS Wolverine (on left) alongside USS Sable. — **US Navy Pier, Chicago, Illinois, during WWII. USS Wolverine (on left) alongside the USS Sable.**

With possible threats posed by German and Japanese submarines along the United States (US) Atlantic and Pacific coastlines, US Navy Commander Richard L. Whitehead had the idea to train Navy pilots in takeoffs and landings on aircraft carriers in the North American Great Lakes. Ingenuity was necessary to make this happen since there were no US Navy aircraft carriers in the Great Lakes.

Two paddlewheel passenger steamers already operating on the Great Lakes were converted to “sweetwater” aircraft carriers. “Sweetwater” was a Navy slang word of the time used to describe freshwater versus saltwater ships.

One of the two ships converted to an aircraft carrier was the Steam Ship (SS) Seeandbee which was commissioned the United States Ship (USS) Wolverine on August 12, 1942. The other ship, originally the SS Greater Buffalo, was renamed and commissioned the USS Sable on May 8, 1943. Basically, their superstructures were removed, and a flight deck was added.

The-Lakers94 — **SS Greater Buffalo before conversion to USS Sable**

SS Greater Buffalo conversion — **SS Greater Buffalo during conversion**

USS Sable on Lake Michigan with Grumman Wildcat fighter plane taking off. — **USS Sable in Lake Michigan with Grumman Wildcat taking off**

The homeport for these two “makeshift” aircraft carriers was the Chicago, Illinois, US Navy Pier located on Lake Michigan. Pilots attempting to qualify for aircraft carrier duty flew from US Naval Air Station Glenview, Illinois, to train on these ships.

Over 17,000 pilots were trained in takeoffs and landings. One US Navy aviator who trained on the USS Sable was a future President of the United States, George H. W. Bush.

After WWII, some planes that were lost during training were brought up from the bottom of Lake Michigan. Recovered fighter planes have included a F4U-1 Corsair and a FM-2 Wildcat.

The North American Great Lakes supported the war effort in various roles. See an earlier post, “Great Lakes Shipbuilding in WWII: And the Tale of FP-344,” on this website. The story link is https://www.ww2history.org/homefront/great-lakes-shipbuilding-in-wwii-and-the-tale-of-fp-344/ .

Thank you to WWII historian George Cressman for his assistance in writing this post.

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org

Great Lakes Shipbuilding in WWII: And the Tale of FP-344

FP-344 In Kewaunee Harbor — FP-344 in Kewaunee, Wisconsin, harbor circa 1944. *Photograph Naval History and Heritage Command.*

The North American Great Lakes were an area of strategic importance in the United States (US) during WWII. Iron ore needed to be transported to steel making plants along the Great Lakes. Shipyards on the shores of the Great Lakes built military vessels. Types of ships built were cargo ships, tugboats, submarines, and other vessels.

After ships were launched in the Great Lakes, they made their way down to Chicago (Illinois), transited the Chicago Drainage Canal, traveled through other waterways connecting with the Mississippi River, and sailed south to the Gulf of Mexico where they were placed in service.

The US Coast Guard was assigned duty on the Great Lakes to guard against sabotage and to keep shipping lanes open. Duties included manning lookout stations which monitored shipping lanes, patrolling harbors, and guarding bridges, docks, and ships. The most powerful “designated” icebreaker of the time, the United States Ship (USS) Mackinaw, kept ice out of shipping channels in winter months.

Kewaunee (Wisconsin) Shipbuilding and Engineering on the shore of Lake Michigan was one of the shipbuilding locations during WWII. The company, founded in 1941, received a government contract to build military ships. Eighty vessels, cargo ships and tugboats, were built between 1941 and 1946. The shipyard employed 400 workers. One of the workers was my father, Stanley “Jocko” O’Konski.

It is at Kewaunee Shipbuilding and Engineering that the tale of Freight and Passenger (FP)-344 begins. FP-344 was a cargo ship, built originally for the US Army, launched in April 1944, and survived WWII. By 1967, then a US Navy ship, it was refitted for intelligence gathering and sent to the Pacific.

The US Navy had changed the name of FP-344 to the USS Pueblo. The ship was captured by North Korea January 23, 1968, and the action is known in history as the Pueblo incident. During the capture of the ship, a sailor, Duane Hodges, was killed. The remaining 82 crew members were held in North Korea until December 23, 1968, when they were released after US and North Korean negotiations.

The USS Pueblo is still in North Korea. The US Navy has never decommissioned the ship.

Kewaunee Shipbuilding and Engineering continues today as Kewaunee Fabrications.

An area of interest, although not addressed in this post, is the history of the US Lighthouse Service. Founded in 1910, it was merged with the US Coast Guard in 1939 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as WWII became imminent.

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org

Compassion and Remembrance

Holly with Pattie and neighborhood boy Bucky — “Holly” with Pattie and neighborhood boy, Bucky. *Photograph courtesy of P. Sumner.*

Holloway “Holly” Sumner’s granddaughter, Pattie, has a warm memory of him welcoming her to his home with outstretched arms, wearing a red Hawaiian shirt, holding a Lucky Strike cigarette between his fingers, and singing to her, “The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi.” He was very special to her. She did not know as a little girl how special he was to other people also.

Holly Sumner was a longtime resident of Chula Vista, California. At one time he was Deputy City Marshall, Assistant Fire Chief, and owned the first Ford and Caterpillar dealerships.

In the 1940s Holly owned an insurance business and had clients who were Japanese Americans. When he learned they were going to be relocated to internment camps, Holly went to them with an offer.* If they would sell him their property for $1, he would sell it back to them for $1 when they came back after the war.

WWII ended, and Holly kept his word. Holloway Sumner died in 1971.

Holly had a son, Walter Holloway Sumner. Walter was a WWII B-17 pilot with the 306^th Bomb Group based in Thurleigh, England. He was Pattie’s father.

When Walter died in 1975, Pattie and her family held a memorial service for him. At a point during the service, Pattie turned around and noticed about eight Japanese Americans among the mourners. She came to find out that they were family members of those Japanese Americans her grandfather had helped during WWII. They attended his son’s memorial service out of a still held respect for the Sumner family. Holly’s compassion in a time of war was long remembered.

Story as told to me by Pattie Sumner. Story and family photograph posted with her permission.

My uncle, Adrian O’Konski, was the navigator on the Walter Sumner crew.

The Holloway Sumner home is designated a historic site by the City of Chula Vista, California.

* President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order (EO) 9066 on February 19, 1942, after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The EO, “Authorizing the Secretary of War to Prescribe Military Areas,” was the basis for the development of civilian internment camps in the US during WWII. Japanese Americans and some civilians of German and Italian descent were relocated to these camps.

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org