Smith, John Henry Jr.

1918 - 1997  (78 years)

• Name	Smith, John Henry
  Suffix	Jr.
  Birth	15 Dec 1918	Clay County, Illinois   [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
  Gender	Male
  Occupation	Retired Oil Field Worker, Farmer  [1]
  Reference Number	SMIT.J021
  _FGRAVE	26565185
  Funeral	26 Jun 1997	Summers-Kistler Funeral Home, Clay City, Clay County, Illinois   [1, 2, 3]
  Military Service	World War II, Staff Sergeant, Company A, 1254th Engineer Combat Battalion, United States Army  [1, 7, 8]
  	Entered active service as a draftee on January 21, 1942 at Camp Grant, Illinois. Selected for the Corps of Engineers, completed basic training, and eventually qualified in the military occupational specialty of Construction Foreman (059). Departrted the Continental U.S. on October 22, 1944 bound for the European Theater of Operations. Assigned to and served with Company A, 1254th Engineer Combat Battalion in Rhineland and Central Europe Campaigns. Earned the Good Conduct Medal, Americacan Defense Service Medal, American Campaign Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 2 bronze battle stars and the WWII Victory Medal. Honorably discharged as a Staff Sergeant on December 29, 1945 at the Separation Center, Camp Grant, Illinois. This information has been posted on the National World War II Memorial's Registry of Remembrances website by Robert Medley Gatewood. It is entered here with his permission. Source: http://www.wwiimemorial.com/Registry/plaque.aspx?honoreeID=2055863
  		American Campaign Medal, United States Military
  		American Defense Service Medal, United States Armed Forces
  		European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, United States
  		Good Conduct Medal, United States Army
  		Military Service Ribbons, Smith, John Henry Jr. (1918-1997) Contributed by Carl Wayne Gray
  		Staff Sergeant (abbreviated as S/Sgt.), United States Army and United States Army Air Forces (Sep 1942-Aug 1948)
  		United States of America Flag, 48 Stars (1912-1959) In 1912, two stars were added to the United States flag, representing Arizona and New Mexico, bringing the total number of stars to 48. They were arranged in six rows of eight stars each. American fighting men would fight under this flag during four wars: World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the beginning of the Vietnam War. (In 1959,…
  		World War II Victory Medal, United States Military
  		World War II Honoree, Smith, John H. (19281997)
  		American Campaign Medal, United States
  		American Defense Service Medal, United States Armed Forces
  		Camp Grant, Illinois
  		European Theater of World War II
  		European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, United States
  		Good Conduct Medal, United States Armed Forces
  		United States Army
  		United States Army Enlisted Rank Insignia
  		World War II (1939-1945)
  		World War II Victory Medal, United States Military
  Death	23 Jun 1997	Clay City, Clay County, Illinois   [1, 2, 3, 9]
  Burial	26 Jun 1997	Clay City Cemetery, Clay City, Clay County, Illinois   [1, 2, 3]
  		Headstone, Smith, John H. and Beulah M.
  		Headstone, Smith, John H. Displayed with permission of Lady in Black
  Person ID	I15819	Carl Wayne Gray Research | Thomas - Loveland John Henry Thomas and Clara Belle Loveland Descendants
  Last Modified	6 May 2024

  
  

  Father	Smith, John Henry,   b. 1879, Illinois d. 14 Oct 1951 (Age 72 years)
  Mother	VanBlaricum, Effie Mae,   b. 1884, Illinois d. 13 Feb 1968 (Age 84 years)
  Marriage	Y  [4, 5, 6, 10]
  Family ID	F7284	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Thomas, Beulah Marie,   b. 18 May 1921, Clay County, Illinois d. 22 Aug 2015, Flora Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center, Flora, Clay County, Illinois (Age 94 years)
  Marriage	24 Aug 1947  [1, 3, 9]
  Age at Marriage	He was 28 years and 8 months - She was 26 years and 3 months.
  Family ID	F7286	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	31 Jan 2023

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 15 Dec 1918 - Clay County, Illinois Death - 23 Jun 1997 - Clay City, Clay County, Illinois Funeral - 26 Jun 1997 - Summers-Kistler Funeral Home, Clay City, Clay County, Illinois Burial - 26 Jun 1997 - Clay City Cemetery, Clay City, Clay County, Illinois  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Notes

  He was a World War II Army veteran and a member of the Clay City Masonic Lodge. He was retired from the oil field and farming.

  
  

• Sources

  [S3967] http://www.findagrave.com, Obituary, Smith, John H., 78, (http://findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=26565185), none. (Reliability: 2). [S3968] Funeral Card, Smith, John H., none. (Reliability: 2). [S3969] http://www.findagrave.com, Headstone, Smith, John H. and Beulah M., (http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=26565185), none. (Reliability: 2). [S3965] Ancestry.com, 1940 United States Federal Census, Clay City, Illinois, (District 13-4) (Township), image 9, page 5a, (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive/2442/M-T0627-00769-00087?backurl=https%3a%2f%2fsearch.ancestry.com%2fsearch%2fdb.as) (Reliability: 3). [S3387] Ancestry.com, 1930 United States Federal Census, Clay City, Clay County, Illinois, (District 0004) (Township), image 02, page 1b, (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive/6224/4584337_00620?backurl=https%3a%2f%2fsearch.ancestry.com%2fsearch%2fdb.aspx%3fd), none. (Reliability: 2). [S231] Ancestry.com, 1920 United States Federal Census, Clay City, Clay County, Illinois, Enumeration District 3, Page 1B, (http://search.ancestry.com/content/viewer.aspx?dbid=6061&iid=4300174_00609&noredir=true&sid=&gskw=) (Reliability: 2). [S3919] World War II Honoree, John H. Smith, (https://wwiiregistry.abmc.gov/honoree-plaque/?honoree_id=2055863) (Reliability: 2). [S3970] http://www.findagrave.com, Headstone, Smith, John H., (http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=26565185), none. (Reliability: 2). [S1747] Frank & Bright Funeral Home, Obituary, Smith, Beulah, 94, (http://www.frankandbright.com/obituaries/obit/386/), none. (Reliability: 2). [S3964] http://www.findagrave.com, Headstone, Smith, Effie M. and John H., (http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=Smith&GSiman=1&GSsr=41&GScid=105163&GRid=24075239&), none. (Reliability: 2).