Friday Find of the Week: Dad's Military Uniform from Vietnam

     Just when I thought I had everything that belonged to my dad accounted for, my Uncle Marty threw me a curve ball. They were cleaning out their storage shed when they came across a military uniform. At first, they thought it belonged to my Uncle Mike, who also served in Vietnam, but the rankings on the sleeve were higher than what Uncle Mike had been. So, they concluded it had to belong to my dad. The fact that my dad might have some of his stuff stored at Uncle Marty's is not that much of a surprise at all. Let me explain.

    You see, Uncle Marty and his family currently live on the property that used to belong to my grandparents. The barn that used to be on the property is no longer there, but some of the sheds are. When dad went off to Vietnam, he stored some of his stuff on that property since he didn't have a place of his own. And when he came back, he stayed with family for a bit before bouncing around from place to place until he settled in a little house in Eureka. He only rented the house; he did not own it. So he kept his main address listed as his parents' in High Ridge. And he also continued to keep some of his stuff there as well. Just ask my family about the car that sat there for about 20 years. Haha! As you can see, it's not unlikely that Uncle Marty would come across some items that would still be stored at his house. 

    My cousin, Jess, gave me the heads-up that he was bringing in over. For which I'm glad. I was able to keep my composure when he walked in with it. I took it home with me to show my husband. When I pulled it out, he about cried cause he knew exactly what it was without me having to say anything. After I showed him, I looked it over thoroughly and cautiously checked each pocket. If you saw my short on YouTube where I'm going through my dad's other Vietnam stuff, you would know why. Click to watch the YouTube Short. 

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    The uniform itself is in good condition after being stored in a shed for--how many years now?--more than 50 years? Goodness! It has a few stains, a few tears, and could use a good ironing, but it doesn't smell nor is it moldy. I think I should consult with a textile expert on how to clean and care for it. That's out of my wheelhouse. 

    Something I took notice of though. The patch on the arm is his rank. The rank on the uniform is Sergeant. Which made me think back to the story he told me about his friend Lonnie Merchant. Lonnie was the Staff Sergeant is a step above Sergeant and is in charge of certain duties pertaining to the lower-ranked soldiers. 

                                  E5-Sergeant             E6-Staff Sergeant                             

    Dad and Lonnie were good friends. They spent a lot of time together in Vietnam. Well, on the night of September 9, 1969, Lonnie asked dad to switch his rotation and go out and he would stay behind. Dad obliged. They were doing Mine Sweeps; clearing the roads of land mines so trucks and equipment could get through. When dad came back, he learned that their bunker was hit and a sergeant was killed. His heart sank. And when they read off the name, he about collapsed. Just like that, his best friend was gone. 

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Lonnie Merchant Find a Grave Memorial

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    This affected dad throughout his whole life. If he wouldn't have switched, he would have been there too and could have possibly been killed. I wonder if Dad had a bit of survivor's guilt. He talked about it with me on multiple occasions. See the video below.

    The reason that patch on his uniform got my attention was as a result of Lonnie's death, dad was promoted right on the spot. He was the next best qualified to take Lonnie's position. He was always his second in command, dad would say. So, since the uniform had the Sergeant insignia patch instead of the Staff Sergeant insignia, this uniform was from before Lonnie was killed. It's amazing the things you think about. I know if Dad would have been here to see it, he would have thought the same thing. It could have been why he kept it over at his parents' house. It was probably too much to bear to look at it. Dad wouldn't talk about Vietnam for decades after he came home, so it wouldn't be a stretch of the mind to think that. 

    But I'm glad I have it now. And once I get everything cleaned up, I will store it all together. I would love to display it, but I have no clue how I would display it or where I would put it. But I have it and it's safe. Yeah, it's true, my family never throws anything away.  And there are days I am glad about that. 

Interview on WFLA Channel 8 News

     Hey, um yeah, so I've been kind of behind on writing on my blog. The last post was published in October. My bad. Well, just because I've been quiet, doesn't mean I've been idle. I've been waiting until everything was final before I shared the big news. And believe me, this is big. Big, Huge! As you can tell from the title of this blog post, I was interviewed on WFLA Channel 8 News in Tampa, Florida. The interview took place in November, but I wanted to wait until it went live before I shared it with you all. Well, it was posted last night, so it's time!

    Let me tell you how this came to be. Actually, it all started back in September when I was in Colorado for my nephew's wedding. Beautiful wedding by the way. I was checking my email when I noticed a message from blogger. Someone had filled out the contact form on my blog. See image below.

    It had been sent at the beginning of September, but I was just now seeing it at the end of September! Oops! Darn email! While I immediately wanted to get excited, I was skeptical. You know, you get those emails from people who claim to want to talk to you about your content, but they are actually looking to scam you. Yeah, I've gotten a few of those in the past few years. So I decided to do my research first and check this Walt Buteau out. 
    Well, turns out this Mr. Buteau is legit. He is a senior investigative reporter for WFLA Channel 8 News in Tampa, Florida. Holy Cow! This is for real! A real reporter wants to talk to ME about MY video. The video about the 1973 fire at the Personnel Records Center. So I emailed him back as quick as I could, apologizing for the delay in my response, and told him I would be very interested in talking with him. But it would have to be after I got back from Colorado. We exchanged a few emails about some details but agreed to do a zoom interview sometime after I got back. 

    Fast forward a few months to November. We finally were able to set up a time to do a zoom interview. Let me tell you, I was very nervous. I didn't know what to expect. I've never been interviewed like this before. I suddenly felt very inadequate. And I had one more obstacle to overcome: my computer did not have a webcam. So we set up hubby's new camera to see if it would work. And it did! Then it didn't... It kept freezing up on me at the very beginning of the zoom call. Ugh... I finally got it to work, but not before I got all flustered. Anyway, after a few minutes of discussion, we began the interview. It only last a few minutes, but I was still so excited to share the story behind my video. See some of the photos I took of my setup below.

    Originally the video was supposed to air right around Thanksgiving but got pushed off until now. That's why you see my fall decorations in the background. I also got to share pictures of my Dad and Father-in-law. 

    I hope this interview brings awareness to other veterans and will guide them to the help they need. Mr. Buteau's father was also a veteran so he is very passionate about helping other veterans. Watch some of his other videos on their website. 

But without further ado, here is the interview with Mr. Walt Buteau from WFLA Channel 8 News in Tampa, Florida.

via YouTube

If you wish to read the story yourself and check out the links mentioned in the video, click the link on their Twitter Post. Or Click here to read the story on their News Page.

Disastrous 1973 fire continues to burn Tampa Bay veterans trying to claim benefits | @WFLAWalt reports https://t.co/h363PuBPTg pic.twitter.com/Ph821jOkFb

— WFLA NEWS (@WFLA) December 30, 2022

Click the video below to re-watch my video on the 1973 fire at the Personel Records Center.

    The effects of the 1973 fire are still felt to this day by many veterans. Unless you kept your own paperwork, like my dad, then you are going to have a difficult time trying to get benefits. Even though my dad had his paperwork, they still denied him some benefits. This was something I only recently found out. I was going through my dad's VA file when I came across two denial letters from the VA for benefits relating to PTSD. I just started crying. We knew my dad had PTSD, but he would never admit it to us. But to know he tried to apply for benefits and was denied, TWICE, just broke my heart. He finally recognized he needed help, but they would not give it. So even if you have all your paperwork, there is no guarantee you will get help.

I'm going to write another blog post soon sharing information about what to do if you lost your DD214 in the 1973 fire. So check back soon. Let me close this post by saying Thank you to Mr. Buteau for the opportunity to share my story. And thank you to all the Veterans who have served our country. You deserve to be treated better. 

Side note: I wish my dad could have seen this. I think he would have been very proud. Miss you dad. The second anniversary of your passing is fast approaching. Love you dad and thank you for your service. 

Family History Trip: Day 1

     Ok wow! So life has been crazy, hence why I haven't updated in a few months. Back in July, my hubby and I took a Family History Trip for a vacation to celebrate our 20th Wedding Anniversary. We've wanted to take a trip back to western Missouri to do more family history research for years. Specifically, the towns of Independence, Liberty, and Plattsburg. Things finally lined up for us to travel, so we went! Since we've been back I've been trying to go through all the photographs, videos, and research we came back with. The trip was a whirlwind for sure, and I can't wait to share it all with you.

Day 1 - Traveling & Arriving in Independence

The drive to Independence was only going to take about 3 1/2 hours so we planned a few stops along the way. We left around 10:00 am on Saturday to start our journey, but first, coffee. We have a local favorite coffee shop that Mark and I frequent every Sunday morning for some "us" time, so it only made sense to stop and get some coffee. If you are ever in Washington, Missouri, I recommend you stop by The Washington Coffee Shop on the corner of 5th and Jefferson. 

The drive from Washington to Warrenton to get on Hwy 44 is beautiful. Full of rolling hills, a few wineries, and some small farm towns. We made some notes of places we would like to visit at some point including the Daniel Boone Burial Site & Monument near Marthasville. Once on Hwy 44, our next destination was only an hour away, putting us right on time for lunch. And we had big plans for lunch. We stopped in Columbia around 12:30 pm. I planned the trip this way because there was a place we had to stop and eat. Some place we hadn't eaten in years: Zaxbys. Oh My Gosh! LOVE this place. They are a cross between Raising Canes and Chick-fil-A, but way better. We used to get food from here when we lived in Tennessee. So anytime we have the opportunity to stop in an area that has one, we eat there.

From there our next stop was about 1 1/2 hours. If we would have had more time, we would have visited many places around the town we were traveling to which is the town of Lexington. The city is full of Confederate history from the Civil War. One interesting site is the Lafayette County Courthouse where there is a Cannon Ball still lodged in the pillar from the Civil War. Fascinating! But we were in town for a different reason. We were there to visit the grave of a Murderer.

Dr. Bennett Clark Hyde
Let me tell you a little story. In 1909, the Swope family started experiencing some horrible circumstances. First, a friend of the family, James Moss Hunton died unexpectedly. Then Col. Thomas Hunton Swope suddenly died. And it wasn't long after that William Chrisman Swope also died. Plus the family all started coming down sick with typhoid and other mysterious illnesses. What was going on? Turns out the doctor who was supposed to be taking care of them was doing the opposite. He was actually causing the illnesses and was responsible for the three deaths in the family! This Doctor was Bennett Clark Hyde, the Nephew-in-law of Col. Thomas Hunton Swope. More will be told later about this and the trial of the century in the next blog. To learn more, watch the first episode of Grave Hunting with Auntie Jen.

Dr. Bennett Clark Hyde is buried in Machpelah Cemetery in Lexington. He is buried in the Hyde family plot with his parents. His dad was with him through all the trials and supported his son until the end. Dr. Hyde was first convicted of First Degree Murder and Attempted Murder in 1910, but the Supreme Court overturned the verdict citing some issues with the evidence. So they attempted to try Dr. Hyde two more times, unsuccessfully. In the end, Dr. Hyde was acquitted of the murder charges. He was a free man. 

Dr. Hyde died on August 7, 1934, in Lexington. He was stopped in a local newspaper office to find out the results of an election when he dropped dead right there. At the time of his death, he was not married anymore and his medical practice was all but gone. His ex-wife is not buried with him either. This is a fascinating story with a lot of twists and turns. If you want to learn more about it, I suggest you pick up the book Deaths on Pleasant Street: The Ghastly Enigma of Col. Swope and Dr. Hyde by Giles Folwer. 

You may be asking why we took the time to visit Dr. Hyde's grave. Well, believe it or not, my husband Mark is related to the Swope family through his mom. Dr. Hyde is Mark's 2nd Cousin, 3 times removed. Since we are looking up the Swope family on this trip, it only made sense to visit his grave too. We didn't leave flowers for him, but we took some photos. Mark asked if it would be in bad taste to urinate on his grave. I said, "Yes! Very bad taste. You may not like him, but don't do that!" And that led us to create a funny video.

Hey if you can't have fun then life is boring. And Mark and I love to joke around and have fun. He has been making me laugh for 20 years. That was something I always wanted in a spouse. Someone who I can have a good time with and who can make me laugh. More of these funny videos are to come. 

So after we visited Machpelah Cemetery, it was time to head on to the Airbnb we were staying at for the next couple of nights. We chose to stay at some Airbnb's to treat ourselves. We were able to find some really nice options right in the areas we were hoping to do research. They were more affordable and more comfortable than hotels.

The first place we stayed at was Mallinson Winery in Sugar Creek, which is just a few miles north of Independence. The winery was just a little place off the beaten path and the place we were staying was on the property. It was beautiful. You could look out the window and see the vines where the grapes were. My full review of the winery is below if you wish to watch it. I definitely recommend this place to stay if you are in Independence. 

The Courthouse Exchange

Wow, talk about a busy first day! But we weren't done yet! It was time to celebrate the beginning of our trip with a nice dinner at The Courthouse Exchange in the little square in Independence. Something else we decided to do on this trip was to try new places to eat local to the area. No restaurant chains if we can help it. That's how we came upon The Courthouse Exchange. The business has been around since 1899 serving fine burgers and now down-home cooking in a casual environment.

The main eating area is actually downstairs below street level. Quite the experience. The place is very cozy. I love all the exposed brick and old-time decor they have hanging on the wall. They also have an outside patio on street level where they have live music some nights. At first, we were thinking of eating outside, but it was pretty warm and it was going to be a while before the band was ready to play, so we opted for eating downstairs in the main dining area. The food was decent. Not the best I'd ever had, but still good. We were just excited to get this anniversary trip started. 

After dinner, we walked around the square getting a feel for the area. The courthouse building in the center housed the Jackson County Historical Society so that was convenient. Plus a few other places we wanted to stop were right across the street. But we were getting pretty tired after the traveling so we headed back to the Airbnb to rest up. We had a long week planned so we needed as much rest as we could get, especially since I was still recovering from some health issues. 

That's it for Day 1! We still have 7 more days to go. You can watch my vlog about the first day of our trip below. Come back soon for Day 2!

Got an original record from an Ancestry Database Index

     Isn't it excited when you get a new shaky leaf on your tree on Ancestry? It means you have a new hint. A possible new source of proof. A possible new answer. That's how I felt when I got a hint for my 5th Great-grandfather, John Hance. I had just made a recent connection with him and was looking for more sources to prove the connection. This may be what I need!

    So I checked the hint. It was for a marriage record for John Hance and Rachel Daulphin. Yes! That's the first name of the wife I had listed for John based on his probate record. But then the let-down came. This was only an index. And it only had a couple pieces of information. I had no way of proving this was my John Hance (besides the names) and this was the correct date. 

What are Index Databases?
    Index databases only contain information that the compiler thought was impertinent at that time, not the whole record. So they pick and choose certain pieces of information from the original record and compile it into a searchable database that is easier to keep organized and easier to search. But sometimes there is information on the original records that could be extremely helpful and necessary to make connections and prove your research. So when you come across these index databases, it's best to search out the records from where they originally got this information.

How To Access The Sources
    That's what I did. The record collection/database was called, "U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900". When you click on the hint from Ancestry, it brings up the indexed entry. At the top of the page, it has a clickable link to take you to the record collection. If you scroll down past the search boxes, you will find information about this particular database. I've discussed this in a YouTube video for my Auntie Jen's Two Cents segment. Check it out below.

    Every record set page has information below the search boxes explaining how they got this information and more details about this database. This information is important to your research. It will help you determine if more research needs to be conducted, how reliable this information can be, and if this database is a primary source or a secondary source. 

U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900

Ancestry.com

Scroll to the bottom to learn more about the database

    This information led me to reach out to the Yates Publishing Company. They were the ones who originally compiled this database, so they would be the owners of the original sources. I was blessed that there was information on how to contact the Yates Publishing Company listed below in the "About" section.

"This database contains marriage record information for approximately 1,400,000 individuals from across all 50 United States and 32 different countries around the world between 1560 and 1900. These records, which include information on over 500 years of marriages, were extracted from family group sheets, electronic databases, biographies, wills, and other sources. Compiled over thirty-four years by professional genealogist Bill Yates, these marriage records are unique because they were taken from a wide array of sources and stand to provide a great deal of information about entire families.

"Source materials for these marriage records include family group sheets, pedigree charts, family history articles, queries, letters, Bible records, wills, and manuscript genealogies. Researching with this unique database, you may be able to learn the full names of the bride and groom, their birth dates and places, the year and/or month they were married, and the marriage location. One of the most useful features of this collection is that once you find an ancestor in this database, you have the opportunity to quickly and easily obtain a great deal more information about that individual by contacting Yates Publishing (see next paragraph).

The marriage records in this database were provided by Yates Publishing. Yates Publishing has been publishing genealogical books, periodicals, and quarterlies since 1972. In 1981, the founder, Bill Yates, began a service to provide and collect the family history information in family group sheets. Called the Family Group Sheet Exchange, this service has collected over 200,000 pages of family group sheets on paper and several hundred thousand more on disk. For more information or to order an original Family Group Sheet on the Family Group Sheet Exchange, please visit Yates Publishing." ~ About U.S. and International Marriage Records 1560-1900, Ancestry.com

    I was able to access the Yates Publishing website through a link provided in the "About" section. Thanks to their efforts, I was able to order a copy of the family group sheet for the Hance family. I wanted to check the sources to see how they came up with the marriage date and to see what other information I could learn. The sheet was emailed soon after and I was able to view it.

Family Group Sheet
John Hance
Yates Publishing

    As you can see there is a lot of information to unpack from this group sheet. Unfortunately, all Yates Publishing had was this group sheet that was submitted by a descendant of Greenbury Hance, one of John Hance's children. He is the one that compiled this group sheet. Some of the information matches what I know to be correct, so I know this is the right John Hance and family. Looking at the bottom of the group sheet, there is a list of sources that were used to compile this information. That's what I was looking for.
    This information was compiled from many sources. Sources I have already checked like census records, but some I did not know existed. Such as a family bible. Fascinating! There is also another descendent listed as a source. So the next step will be to track down these lines and see if any of them have these sources still. 

    Just from a glance at this sheet, I'm inclined to believe the information that is listed here because the sources seem to be pretty specific. But that doesn't mean there aren't errors. But I feel confident in the validity at the moment. 

    The next time you come across an Ancestry Database Index, be sure to scroll down to the bottom of that record set to learn more about where the index came from and if you can possibly get your hands on the original records the index from which the index was compiled. That is the best way to get to the bottom of what you are researching. 

Back to work...

This is why I did this - Fort Leonard Wood Yearbooks

    Guys, listen. I recently received an email that just blew me away and made all the work I've been doing on this project worth it. I'm crying right now. I did not expect this to happen as soon as did. Heck, I wasn't sure if it would happen at all.

A gentleman by the name of Ed Janota sent me this wonderful email:

"Hello Auntie Jen,

"This is amazing that you have a copy of the year book from my 1960 basic training, I was on 4 Battalion, 3rd Reg, Co B. 

"I am listed as E. Janota, Jr. I was 17 yrs old and fresh out of high school then headed to MP school at Ft Gordon. Eventually wound up in Vietnam in 1966.

"I lost my year book around 1978 after moving to Texas. I have also lost almost all of my old service buddies. I would dearly love to have pdf pics of anything you have from my year book. I am going to your donation site and do what I can.

You are a Godsend, Bless You. "

    This is why I did this. From the first moment that I saw the yearbooks in the antique store, I decided to purchase those books & put them online. For Free! I knew there had to be graduates that had lost their yearbooks or never received them. And there had to be families of these servicemen who had never seen these yearbooks. My dad never discussed his service in Vietnam unless prompted, and even then sometimes he wouldn't talk about it. 

    So receiving this email has just reassured me that I am doing the right thing. It has lit a fire under me to try to track down more yearbooks. I already got two more recently. One I found online and the other was donated by Lynn Wagner from the Franklin County Historical Society. We are going to grow this collection as large as we can. And keep this collection for free. 

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FtLeonardWoodYearbooks.com

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    I need your help, guys. Talk to friends and family. Look at yard sales. Search antique stores. Help me track down as many yearbooks as we can. If you are ever curious if I have a particular yearbook or not, just check my website. Keep it bookmarked. Now is the time to be looking for these. Servicemen from this time period are passing away and their belongings are being donated. Let's save these yearbooks. Together. I don't even need to have the book in hand. If you can photograph or scan the yearbooks, that will be just as good. 

    If you are unable to find yearbooks but want to help, you can send me donations that go directly toward purchasing yearbooks. Here is the link specifically for this: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/AuntieJens?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US

Together we can connect servicemen and their families to these yearbooks.