WORLD WAR II DRAFTEES

Submitted by Janet Risinger Currie


County Draftees Get Assignments

     Assignment of a number of recent Marshall county draftees to various Army camps was announced today by the public relations office at Fort Thomas, Kentucky from where the men left on May 25 for their new posts.
     Sent to Camp Claiborne, Louisiana, in the 39th Engineers regiment, were:
     Jeffery Campana, Benwood: Richard K. Carleton, McMechen; Floyd Conners, Benwood: John Kielbasa, Charles Kirkpatrick, Clarence R. Mercer and Charles Metz, all of Moundsville: John Mrzlak, Albert Neduchal and John Palen, all of Benwood: and John Gregory, Leo F. Reilly, Wallace Rush and Andrew Saley, all of Moundsville:
     Assigned to the 31st Divisions, Camp Bowie, Texas:
     Thomas E. Goddard, John E. Himelrick, Willis A. Morris, Archie A. Porter, Dale Simms, all of Cameron; Clarence E. Hall, George T. Higgins, James H. Littleton, Willard B. Lowery, William R. Magers, Mike Parnicza, Pauls S. Perry, Basil E. Price, Eugene F. Richmond, George R. Risinger, Stanley Smigle, Charles Tucker, John H. Wise and Roylance B. Wood, all of Moundsville; Michael Mirich, Benwood; Glaspy J. Rine, Woodlands.

(Date & newspaper unknown.)


Cheers, Tears Mingle As County’s Largest Draft Group Gets Big Sendofs

     Cheers and tears were mixed as the people turned out to extend their boys the greatest sendoff ever given here to the boys going to camp in this or any other war. Which was fitting for it was the largest group ever to leave at one time, according to memory of people.
     Perhaps 2,000 people jammed the B & O station grounds and tracks and the whole street and climbed upon every wagon.

None Were Missing

     Both draft boards found 100% of their men accounted for as the parade formed in front of draft headquarters uptown this morning shortly before ten o’clock. Included in the parade were veterans of the last war, color guards, families of some of the draftees, and the three county high school bands. Marshal T. S. Wilson said everything went smoothly except that the crowd at the station was so large that it took time to pass the men thru it into the waiting five-car train. The train left at 10:30 for Huntington.
     182 men left from here. 14 others had been transferred to be inducted from other places. One of the 182 was transferred in to here from another place. Each board has had a larger group go away (No. 1 once sent 120 men to Wheeling for examination, and No. 2 last month sent 120 men to Clarksburg in April), but this is the biggest total actually going to the induction center.

Leaders Chosen

     Leaders to conduct the squadrons to Huntington were appointed this morning, as follows: No. 1 - Wm J. B. Miller; assistants R. K. Carleton, George Risinger, Ray Pettit and Howard C. Hare; No. 2 - Paul D. Hanly of Benwood; assistants Clarence R. Castilow of McMechen and Arlie J. Carmichael of Cameron.
     The boards do not yet have notice of dates for future calls for men, it was said today.

(Newspaper, Moundsville, West Virginia. Date from Grandmother’s handwriting says “boys who left went with Robert - May 14, 1942.” - Janet Risinger Currie)


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