Steve’s Genealogy Blog

When attempting to find the birthdates for the children of Clark Gibson, I realized that the job would not be easy.  There were no civil registrations available for the children, and because Clark’s family apparently adhered to no religion, there were no infant baptisms available for the children.

For Ada May, I used a combination of her age in the 1861 Canadian Census Record and her stated date of birth listed in her adult baptism to determine that she was born on 04 Aug 1859 in Canada.

For Arnold, I used a combination of his age in the 1910 and 1920 US Census Records, his absence from the 1861 Canadian Census Records, and his stated date of birth on his Death Certificate to determine that he was born on 17 Aug 1862 in Vermont.

For Lewis Dwight Gibson, the route to finding the date of birth required a third approach.  I found the World War I Draft Registration Card for Lewis where he stated that his date of birth was 24 Jan 1874.  The 1910, 1920, and 1930 US Census Records provided Lewis’ age as 36, 45, and 55, respectively, indicating he was born between 1873-1875, so the date in the World War I Draft Registration is consistent with that in three census records.

The World War I Draft Registration for Lewis Dwight Gibson - Front

The World War I Draft Registration for Lewis Dwight Gibson - Back

SOURCE: Louis Dwight Gibson, World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. Micropublication M1509 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration), roll VT5. 

Click on the link for a PDF Copy of the World War I Draft Registration for Lewis Dwight Gibson.  The record shows that:

• Lewis Dwight Gibson lived at R.F.D. Fairfield, Franklin Co., Vermont
• On September 12, 1918, Lewis was 44 years old; his birthdate was 24 Jan 1874
• He was white
• He was not a native US citizen, he was not naturalized, but he was a US citizen because he was younger than the age of majority when his father became of citizen
• Lewis was a farmer and was employed by Ward Paradee of R.F.D. Fairfield, Franklin Co., Vermont
• Lewis’ nearest relative was Mrs. Carrie Gibson of R.F.D. Fairfield, Franklin Co., Vermont
• Lewis was tall, of medium build, with hazel eyes, brown hair, and no deformities

The Registrar filled out this form, and spelled Lewis’ first name as Louis.  Lewis correctly spelled his name when he signed the form.

Mrs. Carrie Gibson, and Ward Paradee, are listed on the form.  Carrie Gibson was Lewis’ wife.  Ward Paradee was Lewis’ employer.  Ward Paradee’s son, Ward Sturgess Paradee, would later marry Lewis and Carrie Gibson’s daughter, Grace Irene Gibson.

Of note is the fact that Lewis had derivative citizenship, since his father became a US citizen before Lewis attained the age of majority.  Since I don’t have any idea where the family lived between 1861 and 1900, this piece of information shows that Clark Gibson had become a US citizen no later than the early 1890s.

Take a look at the year of birth as written on this card.  At first glance, the year looks like 1884, but close inspection reveals that the year is actually 1874, as evidenced by the curved downstrokes on the ”8″ and the strong, straight downstroke on the “7″. 

Yesterday I wrote about the World War I Draft Registration Card I found for Allister Rawding.  The images I presented were downloaded from the internet and were fairly difficult to read.

While filing that record, I found I had electronic images from FHL US/CAN Film 1684748 that I had saved several years ago.  To my surprise, the record I had saved from the Family History Library microfilm was of much better quality than the image I obtained from an online database.  Compare the images below with those I published yesterday and see for yourself:

WWI Draft Registration for Allister Rawding - Front

WWI Draft Registration for Allister Rawding - Back

SOURCE: Allister Daniel Rawding, World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. Micropublication M1509 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration), Roll MA40, Microfilm No. 1684748, Family History Library [FHL], Salt Lake City, Utah.

Click on the link for a PDF Copy of the World War I Draft Registration Card for Allister Rawding.  I was surprised at how much clearer these images are than the same images I had downloaded from the internet.  I suspect the difference in quality of the electronic images was related to the quality of the microfilm from which the electronic images were prepared.

Many historical documents have been microfilmed multiple times, by different agencies.  Sometimes I’ve found that the Genealogical Society of Utah (the Family History Library) has, itself, filmed the same documents multiple times, with one filming of much better quality than another.

But even the Family History Library does not necessarily have the best microfilm copies of a set of records.  Several years ago, I looked up some newspaper obituaries on microfilm at the Family History Library, but found them almost unreadable.  I found a different filming of the same newspaper at a Local Public Library that was incredibly better.

The lesson here is, if the microfilm copy of a set of documents is of poor quality, there might be a better film housed at some other facility.

Copyright © 2006 Stephen J. Danko

Allister Rawding, the father-in-law of my Aunt Nat, registered for the World War I Draft on 05 Jun 1917.  In 1901, he was living with his parents and siblings in Nova Scotia, but in 1917 he was living in Norwood, Massachusetts, the United States of America.

WWI Draft Registration for Allister Rawding - Front

WWI Draft Registration for Allister Rawding - Back

SOURCE: Allister Daniel Rawding, World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. Micropublication M1509 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration), roll MA40.

Click on the link for a PDF Copy of the World War I Draft Registration for Allister Rawding.  The document states that:

Allister Daniel Rawding, age 24, registered for the World War I Draft in Norwood, Norfolk County, Massachusetts on 05 Jun 1917
Allister lived at 49 Prospect Ave, Norwood, Massachusetts with a wife and child
He was an alien, an English subject, born on 19 May 1893 in Millville, Kings County, Nova Scotia
He was married, Caucasian, and worked as a steamfitter for the Geo. H. Morrill Ink Mill in Norwood, Massachusetts
Allister was tall, of medium build, had light blue eyes, dark brown hair, and no disabilities
Based on this information and that in the 1901 Census, Allister emigrated to the United States, married, and had a child between 1901 and 1917.

As a final note, not all microfilm copies of a record are equal.  The images shown here are from the Ancestry.com database, but the microfilm copies at the Family History Library are of much better quality, even though the films are of the same records.

Copyright © 2006 Stephen J. Danko

My cousin, Jack Arnold Gibson was posthumously awarded the Silver Star and the Purple Heart.

The Silver Star

The Silver Star is awarded for gallantry in action against an enemy of the United States.  The Silver Star is the third highest military decoration that can be awarded to a member of the United States Armed Forces.

The Purple Heart

The Purple Heart is awarded to those who were wounded or killed in any action against an enemy of the United States.

Of all the people in my family who served in World War II, there was only one combat death - my cousin Jack Arnold Gibson.  Jack was the eldest son of my Aunt Sophie Danko and her husband Clark Gibson.  Jack was also the first grandchild of my grandparents, Michał Dańko and Marianna Dziurzyńska.

The following description of the circumstances of his death are excerpted from Captain Edmund G. Love’s book The 27th Infantry Division in World War II.

The Third Platoon had moved down through this draw an hour before without opposition of any kind.  They had found one cave which they grenaded and investigated, but there seemed to be no life in it so they had moved on by without incident.  The 2d Platoon, now coming upon this same cave was to run into trouble, however.  Pfc. Perry Hill, who as acting as lead scout, came across a Japanese soldier lying just outside the cave mouth.  The enemy was playing dead, a fact which Hill discovered by poking him, so the rifleman finished off the actor, “giving a little truth to his lie.”  When this happened, however, Hill heard movement inside the cave and decided that it was full of enemy.  His called Medina who, in turn, called Sgt. Jack Gibson of the engineers to come down with his flamethrower.  Gibson gave the cave opening one short burst and five enemy came running headlong from their hiding place.  All were killed.  Other Japanese inside the cave immediately opened fire and in the first burst Gibson was mortally wounded and Pfc. Elmer Bottke, Medina’s bazooka man, was killed.  Gibson, who had been badly hit, was in great pain and lying almost directly in front of the cave’s mouth.  Although Medina could by-pass this cave if he was careful, he felt that he should get the wounded man out of danger.  He asked for volunteers, and Pfc. Lathie Simmons and Pfc. Richard King moved forward to try and drag Gibson out of the way.  Both men got within a few feet of the engineer, however, and were then spotted and pinned down.  After several minutes, Gibson was finally prevailed upon to roll down from in front of the cave.  After one or two quick rolls he was far enough for Private First Class Guld to grab him by the feet and drag him out of danger.  Guld gave him aid, but he died later.

SOURCE:  Love, Edmund G., The 27th Infantry Division in World War II (Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1949), 512-513.

Jack was born in Albany, New York on 10 November 1923 and died in Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands on 08 July 1944.  Despite the reference to him as sergeant in Captain Love’s book, military records list him as a private.  He is buried in Section 8, Site 464, Gerald B. H. Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery, Schuylerville, New York.  He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and the Silver Star.

My father earned three service medals in World War II:  The American Campaign Medal, The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, and The World War II Victory Medal.  In 1985, upon the 40th Anniversary of World War II, the Russian Federation awarded a medal to US personnel who participated in the Murmansk Run.

The American Campaign Medal

Awarded for service outside the United States in the American theater for 30 days or within the continental United States for one year between 1941 and 1946.

The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal

Awarded for service in the European-African-Middle Eastern theater for 30 days or receipt of any combat decoration between 1941 and 1945.

The World War II Victory Medal

Awarded for service in the United States Armed Forces between 1941 and 1946.

The Murmansk Run Medal

Awarded by the government of the Russian Federation upon the 40th anniversary of World War II to all sailors, armed guards, and merchant marines from the United States who participated in convoys to Murmansk during World War II.

Cuff Trim of Seaman First Class

The Navy Seaman’s cuff had one stripe for Apprentice Seaman, two stripes for Seaman Second Class, and three stripes for Seaman First Class.  My father began his naval service as Apprentice Seaman, and was promoted to Seaman Second Class and then to Seaman First Class.

Armed Guard Mark

The Armed Guard Mark was worn midway between the left wrist and the elbow.

As part of the US Naval Armed Guard, my father served on the Liberty Ship the S. S. Daniel Drake on two convoys as part of the Murmansk Run, delivering war supplies to the Eastern Front.  The Murmansk Run was one of the most dangerous assignments for an American serviceman in World War II.

Convoy JW-54A sailed from Liverpool, England to Kola Inlet, Russia (near Murmansk) and on the return trip, Convoy RA-55A sailed from Kola Inlet, Russia to Loch Ewe, Scotland.  The ship’s manifest for the S. S. Daniel Drake that I posted previously was the list of the crew just prior to the departure of Convoy JW-54A, but not necessarily of the same crew as that in Convoy JW-54-A.

Frank Danko in the U.S. Naval Armed Guard

Convoy JW-54A

Convoy JW-54A departed Liverpool on November 15, 1943 and arrived at Kola Inlet on November 24, 1943.  Nineteen vessels made up this convoy:

• COPELAND (Br)
• DANIEL DRAKE (Am)
• EDMUND FANNING (Am)
• EMPIRE CARPENTER (Br)
• EMPIRE CELIA (Br)
• EMPIRE NIGEL (Br)
• FORT YUKON (Br)
• GILBERT STUART (Am)
• HENRY VILLARD (Am)
• JAMES GORDON BENNETT (Am)
• JAMES SMITH (Am)
• JUNECREST (Br)
• MIJDRECHT (Du)
• NORLYS (Pan)
• OCEAN VANITY (Br)
• OCEAN VERITY (Br)
• PARK HOLLAND (Am)
• THOMAS SIM LEE (Am)
• WILLIAM WINDOM (Am)

The convoy was escorted by the following ships:

• Nov. 15-Nov. 18: Destroyers Brissenden, Termagant and Polish Burza
• Nov. 15-Nov. 24: Destroyers Inconstant, Whitehall, corvette Heather and minesweeper Hussar
• Nov. 18-Nov. 25: Destroyers Impulsive, Onslaught, Onslow, Orwell, and Canadian Haida, Huron and Iroquois
• Nov. 18-Nov. 19: Obedient (returned early with defects)
• Nov. 24-Nov. 26: Minesweeper Seagull.
• Nov. 19-Nov. 24: Cruiser cover by Bermuda, Jamaica and Kent, distant cover by battleship Anson, cruiser USS Tuscaloosa, American destroyers Corry, Fitch, Forrest and Hobson.

The Murmansk Run

Convoy RA-55A

Convoy RA-55A departed Kola Inlet on December 22, 1943 and arrived at Loch Ewe on January 1, 1944.  Twenty-three vessels made up this convoy:

• ARTHUR L. PERRY (Am)
• DANIEL DRAKE (Am)
• EDMUND FANNING (Am)
• EMPIRE CARPENTER (Br)
• EMPIRE CELIA (Br)
• EMPIRE NIGEL (Br)
• FORT MCMURRAY (Br)
• FORT YUKON (Br)
• GILBERT STUART (Am)
• HENRY VILLARD (Am)
• JAMES SMITH (Am)
• JUNECREST (Br)
• MIJDRECHT (Du)
• OCEAN STRENGTH (Br)
• OCEAN VANITY (Br)
• OCEAN VERITY (Br)
• PARK HOLLAND (Am)
• RATHLIN (Br)
• SAN ADOLFO (Br)
• THOMAS KEARNS (Am)
• THOMAS SIM LEE (Am)
• WILLIAM L. MARCY (Am)
• WILLIAM WINDOM (Am)

The convoy was escorted, at least in part, by the Acanthus, Ashanti, Athabaskan, Beagle, Belfast, Borage, Dianella, Hound, Hydra, Matchless, Meteor, Milne, Musketeer, Norfolk, Opportune, Poppy, Saumarez, Savage, Scorpion, Seagull, Sheffield, Stord, Virago, Wallflower, and Westcott.

I’ve been taking the opportunity to search the Immigration Collection at Ancestry.com during the Free access to this database through the end of the month of November.  Yesterday, I found the Crew Manifest for the World War II Liberty Ship S. S. Daniel Drake on which my father served.  Today, I found the Crew Manifest for the World War II Liberty Ship S. S. Joaquin Miller, on which my uncle Frederick F. Niedzialkowski served.

Crew Manifest for the S.S. Joaquin Miller (Page 1)

Click on the link for a PDF copy of page 1 of the manifest.  My uncle’s record states that:

• The manifest is that of the S/S Joaquin Miller
• The ship departed Boston and arrived in New York
• Frederick F. Niedzialkowski is listed on line 21
• He had been to sea for 1 year at this point in time
• His position in the ship’s company was Seaman 1/c (Seaman, First Class)
• He was not to be discharged at the port of arrival (New York)
• He was able to read
• He was 19 years old, was of the male sex, was of the Polish race, and his nationality was US
• Fred’s height was 6′1″, and his weight was 176 (pounds)
• He had a scar on his right wrist

Other pages of the manifest show that the ship was operated by the Isthmian Steamship Co., 71 Broadway, New York, and that it arrived in New York on 31 August 1943.  Other pages show that the ship was expected to leave New York on 11 September 1943 and that it stopped in Newport News, Virginia on 14 September 1943, thence heading for foreign locations.

There is also an enigmatic notation on one page that the ship had previously left Bizerte (Tunisia?) on 20 July 1943.  In this notation about Bizerte, the port of departure Boston was crossed out and the port of Bizerte was written in.

I’ll have to check with my cousins to see if they have a copy of Fred’s military records to see if those records include any additional information on Fred’s destinations while in the Navy.

Today I saw that no fewer than four genealogy blogs, Chris Dunham’s The Genealogue, Joe Beine’s Genealogy Roots Blog, Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter, and Randy Seaver’s Genea-Musings mentioned the fact that Ancestry.com has now digitized and indexed all readily available U.S. Passengers Lists from 1820 to 1960.  Moreover, Ancestry’s entire Immigration Collection is FREE until the end of November.

I immediately took a look and I found much more than I expected, because the records in this collection are not just Immigrant Passenger Lists, but also include Crew Lists for World War II Naval Ships and Passenger Lists for Vacation Cruise Ships!

In particular, I found the record of my father’s World War II service on the S.S. Daniel Drake, where he served in the U.S. Naval Armed Guard on the Murmansk Run.

Crew Manifest for the S.S. Daniel Drake (Page 2)

Click on the link for a PDF copy of the entire manifest.  My father’s record states that:

• The manifest is that of the S/S Daniel Drake, United States Line
• The ship departed London on 20 September 1943 and arrived in New York on 01 October 1943
• Francis Danko is listed on line 14 as part of the Armed Guard
• His Serial Number was 801 66 21
• His rate (rank) was S1c (Seaman, First Class)
• His service was USNR (United States Naval Reserve)

The manifest also lists 42 crew members and 27 other members of the Armed Guard.  I’ll have to ask my father if he remembers any of these names.  He has several photographs of his shipmates, but doesn’t remember the names of most of them.  Perhaps now with this list, he can name the people in some of his World War II photographs.

I found some interesting details on this manifest, including the fact that five of the crew members on this United States Liberty Ship were not U.S. citizens.  Also of interest is that, of the members of the U.S. Armed Guard, only one was in the USN, the United States Navy; all the rest were in the USNR, the United States Naval Reserve.

For those who are not familiar with the Liberty Ships in World War II, I’ll have to write a piece on Liberty ships one day.  For now, just realize that the Liberty Ship crews consisted of a number of Merchant Marines (who were, in fact, not part of the U.S. Navy) and a group of Navy personnel called the Armed Guard who were trained to protect their ship and the Merchant Marines aboard it.

I never would have guessed that the Crew Manifests of World War II U.S. Liberty Ships would be in this collection!

Joe Beine, author of the Genealogy Roots Blog, posted an article yesterday about the World War II Army Enlistment Records database at NARA.  I visited the NARA website and conducted a search for records of my relatives.  I found quite a few records, including one for Edward W. Niedzialkosky and another for Bernard P. Niedzialkosky.  Both of these men were first cousins to my grandfather, Kostanty Niedzialkowski.

The record for Edward W. Niedzialkosky reads as follows:

Army Serial Number:  31073487
Name:  Niedzialkosky Edward W
Residence: State:  Massachusetts
Residence: County:  Worcester
Place of Enlistment:  Ft Devens Massachusetts
Date of Enlistment Day:  18
Date of Enlistment Month:  03
Date of Enlistment Year:  42
Grade: Alpha Designation:  Private
Grade:  Code:  Private
Branch: Alpha Designation:  Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA
Branch: Code:  Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA
Field Use as Desired:  #
Term of Enlistment:  Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law
Longevity:  ###
Source of Army Personnel:  Civil Life
Nativity:  Massachusetts
Year of Birth:  05
Race and Citizenship:  White, citizen
Education:  Grammar school
Civilian Occupation:  Traktor Driver* or Truck Driver, Heavy or Chauffeur or Truck Driver, Light
Marital Status:  Single, without dependents
Component of the Army:  Selectees (Enlisted Men)
Card Number:  #
Box Number:  0391
Film Reel Number:  3.112

The record for Bernard P. Niedzialkosky reads as follows:

Army Serial Number:  31511069
Name:  Niedzialkosky Bernard P
Residence: State:  Massachusetts
Residence: County:  Worcester
Place of Enlistment:  Ft Banks Boston Massachusetts
Date of Enlistment Day:  08
Date of Enlistment Month:  05
Date of Enlistment Year:  46
Grade: Alpha Designation:  Private
Grade:  Code:  Private
Branch: Alpha Designation:  No branch assignment
Branch: Code:  No branch assignment
Field Use as Desired:  #
Term of Enlistment:  Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law
Longevity:  ###
Source of Army Personnel:  Civil Life
Nativity:  Massachusetts
Year of Birth:  28
Race and Citizenship:  White, citizen
Education:  Grammar school
Civilian Occupation:  Gunsmith* (Armorer.) or Diesel Mechanic (Automobile mechanic, Diesel engine.) or Camera Repairman (Camera repairman, still camera.) or Instrument Repairman, Nonelectrical (Instrument maker.) or Utility Repairman (Mechanic, general.) or Equipment Maintenance Man, Motion Picture (Motion picture equipment repairman.) or Radio Repairman* (Radio electrician.) or Office machine Serviceman or Electric Motor Repairman or Refrigeration Mechanic* or Shop Maintenance Mechanic or Master Mechanic or Locksmith* or Calker
Marital Status:  Single, without dependents
Component of the Army:  Selectees (Enlisted Men)
Card Number:  #
Box Number:  0451
Film Reel Number:  3.173

For my own files, I copied the records, reduced the font size and the table cell size so each record would fit on one page, and converted the files to PDF.  Click on the links to see the PDF files for Edward W. Niedzialkosky and Bernard P. Niedzialkosky.

On his blog, Joe Beine explains the origin of this database.  These particular records are of great value since a 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center in Saint Louis destroyed about 80% of the records for US Army personnel discharged between November 1, 1912 and January 1, 1960.