What would Private Goodman think?

Private Goodman died in a segregated army fighting for a segregated country. I wonder what he would think about our country electing Barack Obama as president.

In any case, today,
tell a veteran
"Thank You."

IN MEMORIAM

In honor of all the men and women who paid the ultimate price for our country. May their sacrifices never be forgotten.

Or Lost Private Lane?

a new clue from another soldier

Some papers from the National Personnel Records Center arrived yesterday. The records were not Private Goodman's, but those of my great-uncle, Henry Howard Cheshire. Private Goodman and my Grandma's brother had several things in common. Both enlisted from Robeson County. Both left behind two children when they joined up. And both died in September 1944 as US Army privates in the ETO.

My mother can vividly recall my grandmother weeping at the kitchen sink, the War Department telegram with news of Howard's death in her hands. When I was growing up- a boy enamored with planes and ships and parachutes- I'd often ask about Grandma's brother who died fighting the Nazis. The answers were always basic facts: he was killed in Germany driving an Army truck. While trying to piece together Private Goodman's story, I decided to see what I could learn about my great-uncle too.

The two records that came in the mail Saturday contain some new information, and some curious tidbits. They also give insight into the heartbreak the families of the fallen would have felt.

The first record is a "Battle Casualty Report." He died on September 20th, 1944. His "place of casualty" is somewhere called "Germany2." His service was listed as "Infantry," later corrected to "Expert Infantry." No mention of a specific unit or company, even a division. The type of casualty is "Died Of Wounds." It then lists his beneficiaries and who to contact. My great-uncle's wife and family weren't notified of his death until October 23rd, a full month later.

The second record is titled "Report of Death." It has basically the same information, but detailed in a different way. It lists his cause of death as "Wounds rec'd in action." His place of death is "European Area."

The new clue I mentioned in the title? It's actually from the cover letter. It says, "Additional information may be available in the casualty file maintained by the Department of the Army. We suggest you contact the following office for possible assistance: US Army Human Resources Command."

So while I'm waiting on the NPRC to tell me what they have (or do not have) on Private Goodman, two new requests are being mailed off to Virgina. Stay tuned..

not giving up yet

While I'm still waiting to get some kind of feedback from the government, I'd like to make some things a little clearer.

I'm not trying to make Private Goodman a hero.

I'm not trying to make him the only African-American soldier or sailor worthy of respect.

I'm simply trying to share what I learn about one young man who died thousands of miles away from home, fighting for a country that often didn't give him what it promised him.

I don't know what else to say except I'm not giving up yet.

another soldier from a different time

Nothing new to report about Private Goodman. Somewhere in
Saint Louis someone is searching through a database- maybe even some charred folders- looking to see if the information I've requested was lost.

I did spot this interesting article about a blog focusing on the experience of another soldier. Wonder what that infantryman would think of his simple letters home, just ink and paper, now eagerly awaited by strangers all around the world nearly a century later, via electricity.

I wonder how Private Goodman would feel, too.

New Year hopes..

Nothing new to report, unless you count the New Year. The forms the government asked me to fill out are back in its hands, but with the holidays, I don't expect much to happen for a while. Here's hoping some leads will start panning out.

In the meantime, I'll be reading something my friend Chris gave me a for Christmas, a new copy of "The Good War" by Studs Terkel. I'd heard of Studs before, as a broadcaster and actor, but never knew he was a Pulitzer Prize-winning author. I'm looking forward to reading it, and maybe getting a better understanding of what Private Goodman experienced and endured.