Seventy-Five Years Ago

Thursday, May 3, 1945

P. F. C. George W. Ray

Private First Class George W. Ray, of Clover Lick, was killed in action October 18, 1944, aged 19 years, 9 months and 29 days.

He was the son of George and Levia Kennedy Ray. He is survived by two brothers, and three sisters. Woodrow, Mrs. Donald Friel, Mrs. Vernon Ware, Lewis and Grace. Also his grandmother, Mrs. Susan Kennedy.

PFC Harold L. Reed

Mrs. Bernice L. Reed, of Marlinton, received word from the War Department on Tuesday, April 24th, that her husband, Private First Class Harold L. Reed had been killed in action in Germany on April 3, 1945, while serving in the Infantry.

Besides his wife, who was the former Miss Bernice Faulknier, and their small daughter, he is survived by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Reed, of Meadow Bluff.

Our Army and Navy Boys

Mrs. Estie Brown, of Marlinton, received a letter from her husband, Private Grady Brown, who is a Prisoner of War in Germany. Private Brown had been reported as missing in action since December.

Mrs. Orville Sheets, of Greenbank, was notified by the War Department that her husband, T5 Orville W. Sheets was seriously wound-ed in action on March 30 while serving with the 1st Army in Germany. He is the son of Mrs. Nettie Sheets, of Arbovale.

Private Charles J. Forren has returned to his home near Seebert with an honorable discharge from the Army. He was wounded in Sicily on August 2, 1943. He has been awarded the Purple Heart, also the combat Infantry Badge.

Mr. and Mrs. J. L. Moses were notified Monday that their son, Percy, of the Army Air Corps, was back in the States after nearly two years’ hard service in Italy.

Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence McLaughlin, of Dunmore, have received the Purple Heart from their son, Pvt. Cliff A. McLaughlin, who was wounded in combat duty, December 27, 1944, while serving with the Field Artillery Division in General George E. Patton’s 3rd Army in Germany…

LETTER

Mrs. W. C. Hiner, of Mt. Grove, sends in the following letter from her son, Pvt. Hunter Harold Hiner, who is serving with the armed forces somewhere in Germany:

Hello Everybody:

I just finished writing you a V-mail letter, but I wasn’t satisfied with it, so I am writing again. It is hard as heck to think of anything interesting to write about. That is, anything that the censor will pass.

I’ll tell you a little more about the country. France has some of the prettiest farmland that I ever saw. The sod looks about like a golf course, when you look at it from a distance. When they get their land plowed and harrowed, you can’t see a clod of dirt in it. That’s how nice it works up.

I saw a farmer plowing up a piece of clover the other day that we would have bragged about back in the States. You hardly ever see a fence where they are farming. They just put their crops out in patches. Where they have fences there are trees all the way around and it really looks nice. I believe their farms are a little ahead of ours. But I know that their towns are way behind ours. You can hardly tell the business part of the town from the homes. The stores and houses all look about the same to me. They have narrow cobblestone roads through the towns. In some places you could step out of a house and almost into the street. You hardly ever see a civilian riding around in a car. They nearly all have bicycles. I saw a woman, who I bet was sixty-five years of age, riding a bike.

While I think of it, I want you to send me some air mail stamps, if you don’t mind. If you can get the films, I want you to take pictures of all of you and send them to me.

Well, I guess I had better close for this time.

Hunter

FIELD NOTES

Finally, we have proof that wild cats – bay lynx – do jump on deer, to ride them down to their death. Earl Wanless keeps the fire tower on Paddy’s Knob on the Allegheny, where the counties of Bath and Highland corner on the Pocahontas County line. On a recent day, he was sitting in high lookout, watching out for the smoke of forest fire. He heard the terrified bleating of a deer, and then he saw a deer running across the open ground in which the tower stands. On the back of this deer was a big wild cat, clawing and biting to bring it down. Before the watchman could come down the steps, ninety feet to the ground, to help the deer out, the deer had gone on into the forest, bleating at every jump.

– – –

J. H. Ellis, down Greenbrier way, has a smart shepherd dog which finds delight in catching and killing buzzards. The way the dog works it is to go to a high place on the farm, and when he sees buzzards sailing around, he will stretch out like he was dead. Before long, a buzzard will come sailing along, to light down close to the supposed dead dog. Then old Shep springs to life, to catch and kill the vulture. He is known to have caught as many as five or six.

DEATHS

Benjamin Franklin Rock was born at Millpoint, March 21, 1880, and departed this life at Dunmore on April 24, 1945, aged 65 years, one month and four days. His death was due to a heart attack, while visiting at the home of his relatives, Mr. and Mrs. Harry Taylor. His body was laid to rest in the McLaughlin family cemetery on Brown’s Mountain.

– – –

Dr. L. C. McCutcheon, aged sixty-one years, beloved physician, died unexpectedly at his home at Greenbank on Thursday, April 26, 1945. He had been in failing health for many months… His body was laid in the family plot in Arbovale cemetery.

Surviving are his widow and nine children, including four in the armed services, Lt. Jeanne McCutcheon, Army Nurses Corps in Italy; Lt. Leonard McCutcheon, Seaman Robert McCutcheon and and Seaman Clark McCutcheon. Another son, John McCutcheon, is a student at West Virginia University….