Can anyone possibly help?.....

[Little Star]

I posted this in the Connecticut Forum but think maybe I should cross post it here in genealogy. Just keep in mind it was written to people who live in CT. I had second thoughts and thought you guys might have some advice for me too. Thanks.

Here Goes:


I am trying to find out about my fathers WWII military service record.

My parents divorced when I was about 5 yrs old. I never had contact with him or his side of the family until I was in my 20's and found him dying in a military hospital in (New/West?)Haven. He was given a military funeral and I did attend.

I'm in my mid 60's now so that is a long time ago. I can't even remember the name of the cemetery. I was just a young air-head who should have asked more questions and the least I could have done was remember where he was buried. His second wife and their children were the ones who handled everything. I suppose the second wife must be dead by now and even though I've tried to make contact with my half siblings I've had no luck.

Sorry about the ramble.

I live in MA. Is there any place down there in CT, that I could contact, that might be able to help me find out about his military service when I have so little to go on.

I wrote to the the National Personnel Records Center who said that a fire had destroyed the records I would need. They said there were other ways to piece his service record together and sent me a bunch of forms to fill out. The forms ask for things like his home address when he entered the service, his SS#, when he was released, etc. I don't know more than his name, date and place of birth and a very few things like that.

My mother has Alzheimer's and is the last living of her siblings so that is also a dead end for any information.

I do have my parents wedding picture and he has on his uniform. Can a uniform provide any information?

Oh heck! I need help.

If anyone can give me any direction I would appreciate it very much.

[Dem2theMax]

1. Can you give us more to go on?

If you don't mind posting his exact info, full name, birth date, birth place, death date, death place - anyone on here with Ancestry.com can give you a head start. Including me. :)

The folks at the records center were telling you the truth. Do you have your father's discharge papers? Or his death certificate? His death certificate should have the cemetery info on it. Or try Findagrave.com
Someone may have posted his grave site on there. Since he had a military service, go here and do a search. http://gravelocator.cem.va.gov/j2ee/servlet/NGL_v1
Put in what info you DO have and see if anything shows up. This is the site for the listings of burials in military cemeteries.

As for specific data for Connecticut, I don't have any ancestors from there, so I have not done any research in that neck of the woods. I'm sure someone will wander into this forum who will have some hints for you in that area!

Post what you have and we'll see what we can find for you! :)

[Little Star]

5. Please see my update post #4. n/t

[CBHagman]

2. The uniform ought to be of use.

I'm no expert on the military but there are many people who are, and depending on the photograph and how much detail it shows, it could be a treasure.

I hate to mention the following but will do so anyway: There is always a chance you'll locate a friend/Army buddy who might be able to fill in a bit more on your father's history. Yes, I know we are losing the entire World War II generation but there's a chance someone's still around.

Anyway, good luck and I hope you find some answers.

[Little Star]

6. Please see my update post #4. n/t

[riverwalker]

3. you can get his SS#

and possibly his original application for it. The veterans administration has online records of burials, you can get the name of the cemetery, also they sometimes list the military unit of the veteran. If you need anything from Ancestry, PM me as I have a subscription.

[Little Star]

7. Please see my update post #4. n/t

[Little Star]

4. Update....

I belong to Ancestry myself and have searched there, Findagrave & The Nationional VA Gravesite Locator to no avail.

I would love to have any help, because I could have missed something or not looked in the right place.

Here is what I have on him:

Nicholas John Dillon
B: August 07, 1914 in Sheldon, O'Brien Co., IA
D: April 02, 1976 in West Haven, New Haven Co., CT
M: Betty Grace Weaver on October 5, 1942 in Rowan Co., NC
SS# 260-40-1974

I can follow his life on Ancestry from birth to death but can find nothing on his military service.
I think he was Army by the uniform (though, I am stupid when it comes to all things military)
I know he had on his uniform when he married my mother in 1942.
I was born in 1946 in New Haven, CT (my mother’s family had moved north while he was in the military & she lived with them while he was away) then he ended up living in New Haven for the rest of his life. I don’t know when he got out but I have memories of him being out & working as a mason when I was maybe a little more than a year old.

I have requested his Obit from the library in New Haven. I hope that will provide some other information and leads.

Ain’t genealogy fun????? lol

Thanks to all for taking the time to try and help me.

[dgibby]

8. If you haven't done so yet,

you might want to x-post this the the vets group here on DU, along with the photo of him in his uniform. It's possible that you can find out something about his military service from the type of medals, insignia, unit patches, collar devices(which would give his rank/rate).

You could also take the photo and info to one of your local Vet's groups, VFW, etc, and someone there could help you. Good luck!

[Little Star]

9. I have looked for a vets group and could not find it.......

can you guide me to it please? Thanks

[Little Star]

10. PS: when my husband gets home tonight, if I can find the ...

Vets group I will ask him to post the picture. I'm not smart enough to do that! lol

[Little Star]

13. Photo of him in his uniform

[dgibby]

14. From the picture,

it would appear that he was a Staff Sargent in the Army's 9th Infantry Division, but don't hold me to that. The top patch on his shoulder appears to be 9th Infantry, the next patch is his rate, Staff Sargent, the lowest 2 patches appear to be for leadership, but I'm not sure. I can't id his collar device because the photo is too blurred when I enlarged it, and without a color picture, it's almost impossible to id his ribbons(above the pocket). The ribbons are worn in lieu of the medals he's earned.

See if you can locate an Army vet in your area-maybe put an ad in your local newspaper if you don't know one personally, or ask people you know if they know any vets, and show them the photo.

Check your local/regional newspapers for calander of local events. Vets of Foreign Wars(VFW), other groups often list date/time/place of meetings and a contact.

I'll keep checking around and see if I can find anything.

[Little Star]

15. Thank You. I do know one more tid bit that probably means nothing ...

I know he was the bugler. I can remember him playing taps for me. Funny but I can still see him playing them and can still hear it in my head too.

[csziggy]

16. Footnote.com has very little WWII records online

Mostly Navy stuff, almost no Army. I looked, but no one that matches up with your Dad. Sorry

I got lucky - they have the submarine patrol logs, including the one for my Dad's sub for the engagement that got him his medal.

[Dem2theMax]

11. OK, I'm striking out everywhere I look.

Now I'M frustrated, and it's not even my own family! LOL?

I went all over Ancestry.com, NewspaperArchive.com, GenealogyBank, Godfrey Library, Google, (where I found you looking for
your Dad!,) and I come up with nothing.

So, go get his death certificate. That will list the burial info, and from there, if he did indeed have a military funeral, the cemetery should have some information on his military service. I know that the Veterans burial site is not perfect. I have a good friend who has a father buried in Arlington, and he does not show up when I do a search on him.

For the death certificate, you can either go the state or the county route.

State info is here: http://www.ct.gov/dph/cwp/view.asp?a=3132&q=390664

County info is here: http://www.cityofwesthaven.com/foundations/store/departments/departmentpage.asp?code=10

I'll keep looking around and will see if I can stumble on anything that will help you.

[Little Star]

12. Thank You . You are very sweet. And.......

getting his death certificate is a great idea. Ya know,I have ordered more than I can count for my older relations and never once did it cross my mind to order his. Guess I just never thought of using that resource for someone who was not back in the 1800's! Once again, thanks for the good idea. I'll do it.

[sybylla]

17. Self deleted - you already had this info.

[Little Star]

18. Deleted by Little Star