Click on that photo. Enlarge it. Read it carefully. That photo tells me where my Grandfather is burried in France. It's one of the many neat-o pieces of family history I was able to pick up while I was at my Dad's house this week. My Dad and Step-Mom, Ann, have decided to move from Rib Lake, WI to Rice Lake, WI. Because of this, Dad is downsizing. This means that I get to remove lots of things from the farm that I had long been avoiding moving, but it also means that I get to learn a little bit about who I am. I always knew that my Grandfather died in a war. I knew that he was a pilot and that he earned several medals. After I began sorting through the piles of things that I wanted to save for myself and the things that I want to ship to my brother, I really then began to learn the details about who my Grandfather was and where he spent his last years. The photos that follow are entries from his flight journal and a letter that was sent to my Grandmother after my Grandfather's death.
If you click on the journal and enlarge it, you can read exactly what Grandpa was doing on that particular day. This journal is one of the items that I have decided to mail to my brother. I scanned a few select pages into my computer and will mail the rest. It should be a treasured piece for him, he loves history--especially this period of time and the journal is in very good condition.
Here is another page from this flight journal. You will notice that the dates skip around. There were weeks where he did not write anything and then there were others where he went on and on like this particular week.
Here is the final page that I scanned in.
Here is the first page of the letter I scanned in. You'll have to click on it to enlarge it.
This is the second page of that same letter.
Some of the photos are cut off as posted in this blog, but if you click on them you'll see the full page and can read as you like.
5 comments:
Gosh Rachie, that was a good read! Your Grandfather was some character,and a great man to be proud off.
I couldn't imagine how your Grandmother felt upon recieving that letter, and not being able to have the remains of her husband sent to her?
People were so much stronger emotionally in those days than we are now.
I salute 1st Lt. Bill Haller and all his comrades!
It is quite amusing to find something of the past especially family. It is really good that your father saved all these documents.
I just love history!
That is an amazing treasure. Amazing. Thanks for sharing that. What are you keeping for yourself?
Uncivil, Al, and Ms. Mamma--
I'm glad you all enjoyed these documents! I know I did. I really liked the journal and thought I was going to keep that one for myself, but when I started telling my brother about it, I could hear the excitement in his voice. I knew I'd have to include it in the box that is going to get shipped to him. I still have one more box in my car to sort through. Perhaps I'll have some other interesting things to post! For myself, I'm keeping a few flags, some photos, and the original telegrams that stated he was missing in action and later the telegram that stated he was deceased. What was sort of sad about the whole situation is that my mom was born while he was at war. He never got to meet his own daughter.
That was neat! Thanks for visiting my blog site. I enjoyed yours as well...
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