John William Meilahn, World War II CasualtyPorter County Data on World War II Casualties . . . .

John William Meilahn
Second Lieutenant, US Army Air Corps
Date of Birth: May 12, 1917
Date of Death: March 25, 1945
Cause of Death: Killed During Air Mission (South Pacific)
Date of Enlistment: October 1942
Hometown: Valparaiso

Newspaper Notices:

Two Killed, Two Missing In War Action
Soldiers Employed by McGill Mfg. Co. Reported Dead.


Casualty lists from war fronts today recorded the deaths of two men, former employes of the McGill Manufacturing company. Two others, a Valparaiso man, and a former Valparaiso university student and husband of a Valparaiso girl, was reported missing in action.

Pvt. Ollie Schmith, Jr., 24, formerly residing at 702 Beach street, Valparaiso, employed at the McGill plant before entering army service last August, was reported killed in action in Germany on April 9, according to word received by his aunt, Mrs. Robert Chester, 603 Oak street.

Schmith formerly served in the Seabees, but was called to service by his selected service board at Jacksonville, Fla., last August. He went overseas in January.

His wife, the former Irene Pfserick, of Valparaiso, is now living in Jacksonville. The couple have three small sons.

Besides the wife and children, Schmith is survived by his father, Ollie Schmith, Sr., and his maternal grandmother, Mrs. Ellis Hicks, of Valparaiso, and two half brothers, Lt. Richard Doud, in India, and Raymond Doud, U. S. Army, in Australia.

Word was received Tuesday by Otto Storz, of the McGill company, announcing the death of Lt. John (Jack) Meilahn, 26, during an air mission in the south Pacific recently. He was well known in Valparaiso, having been a student at Valparaiso university and an employe of the McGill plant. His home was in Chicago where he resided with his father, Henry J. Meilahn, at 1144 N. Rockwood street. He enlisted in the Army Air Corps in October, 1942.

Joseph H. Durand, bailiff of the Porter superior court, received word Tuesday that his son-in-law, Ensign Don Finerman, 25, of the U. S. Navy, is missing in action in the south Pacific. Ensign Finerman was a member of a crew of a destroyer reported to have been lost during an engagement around Iwo Jima. He was the husband of the former Mary Durand, of Valparaiso. He attended Valparaiso university and was a star football player on the university team under Coach Jake Christiansen. Mrs. Finerman is at present at San Francisco, Calif., where she went recently to await her husband's return. Finerman's home is at Calumet City, Ill.

Mrs. Richard Wheeler, 552 S. Locust street, received word Monday night that her son, Pvt. Theodore Weichert, is missing in action somewhere in Germany.

Weichert entered the service in May, 1944, and went overseas last December.

He was a student at Valparaiso high school and before entering the service was employed in Detroit, Mich.
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Source: The Vidette-Messenger, Valparaiso, Porter County, Indiana; May 2, 1945; Volume 18, Page 1, Column 3


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Information abstracted and transcribed by Steven R. Shook

 

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