Category: World War II

Japanese Tourists on American WWII Destroyer

12/28/2012

Last August, my husband and I took a trip to Boston. I had never been there and had always wanted to see all of the historical Revolutionary War era places. We had just finished walking through the USS Constitution when we decided to board the USS Cassin Young, a WWII destroyer that was located in a neighboring dry dock. The volunteer guides on board, some of whom were retired sailors who had served on the destroyer during WWII, handed us a pamphlet about the ship's history. The ship served in the Battle of Leyte and the Battle of Okinawa, of course both times fighting against Japan's Imperial forces and battling for control of key islands on the Pacific Front.

These tourists were probably our age; they had kids about the same ages as ours. (The kids were having SO much fun looking at all the weaponry and equipment on board, by the way.) The adults were speaking fluent Japanese, so if they were not natives to Japan, their parents certainly were. It was a beautiful day and they were very much enjoying themselves.

Japanese tourists on board the USS Cassin Young

I think that this photo shows just how our perception of history changes over time. How would these tourists' grandparents have felt about being on an American destroyer that took the lives of some of their fellow countrymen and contributed to the defeat of the Japan that they grew up in? Probably very different emotions than what these people were feeling that day. Just something to think about, for sure.

©2012, copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder

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Foto Friday: Grandpa in the South Pacific

12/7/2012

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Today is Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. On December 7, 1941, Japanese forces attacked Hawaii's Pearl Harbor, essentially bringing the United States into World War II. My grandfather, William Bellan, fought on the Pacific Front in the War. He is pictured here along with other Cleveland, Ohio infantrymen from the 37th Division. It was published in the Cleveland Plain Dealer on April 10, 1944, with the caption:

"Nineteen Clevelanders on Bougainville. Seasoned veterans of jungle fighting after nearly two years overseas, these 37th division infantrymen have fought for control of the Northern Solomons from New Georgia to Bougainville."

WWII 37th Division Infantrymen April 10, 1944 Cleveland Plain Dealer

I know that the Solomon Islands are somewhere in the vast Pacific, but I had to look up details about this military campaign because I don't remember learning about it. Bougainville Island is located in the South Pacific, not far from Papua New Guinea. Turns out that the Bougainville Campaign lasted almost two years, not ending until the Japanese surrendered in August 1945. The Japanese took it over in 1942, built several airfields and naval anchorages, and strategically it became very important in their quest to take the other Solomon Islands, as well as in disrupting crucial communication lines between the United States, Australia, and New Zealand.

For people of my generation, who are used to traveling pretty much anywhere we want with relative ease, it is difficult to imagine the thoughts of the servicemen and women who literally went halfway around the world to fight for our country. In a time before commercial air travel and interstate highways, average people of this generation rarely even traveled out of state, let alone to a different country or continent. The idea must have been, pardon the pun, foreign to them. But, they all had very specific jobs to accomplish, and I'm sure that the Armed Forces leadership didn't let them dwell too much on just how far away from home they really were.

And I wonder how my grandfather's parents, who were immigrants from Croatia, felt about the possibility of one of their children becoming seriously injured or dying in a part of the world they had never heard of and one that was completely inaccessible to them. Probably not what they had in mind when they decided to come to America to live and raise a family. (My grandfather's mom passed away in April 1946; I'm not exactly sure when my grandfather returned from his service, but I do hope it was in time to see his mom before she died.)

Today's lesson: You may find yourself WANTING to learn about moments in U.S. history if you know that one of your ancestors played an active part in shaping it.

©2012, copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder

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Military Monday: Grandma's SPARS Photo Album

11/26/2012

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Cover of SPARS Photo Album

We visited my parents' house this past holiday weekend and I found more neat stuff belonging to my mom's parents. I mentioned in a previous post that my Grandma, Dina Licciardi, served in U.S. Coast Guard Women's Reserve (also known as the SPARS) during WWII. I found her SPARS photo album in a box in her old bedroom closet. Unlike a lot of her family photo albums, just about every photo in the album was labeled - dates, names, places - everything. Obviously, Grandma knew that this was a special time in her life that she would want to remember always. These women (and men) were her 'family' for a couple of years; she lived, played, ate, and trained with people from all over the country - people she would have never met otherwise. I'm sure it was much like the college experience is today. My grandmother never had the opportunity to attend a university, but these ladies, some of whom she kept in touch with for the rest of her life, were her sorority sisters.

A page from Grandma's SPARS photo album

Because she saved so many photos, I've created an entire separate photo page on my website devoted to her time in the Coast Guard. (I encourage you to check it out!) After glancing through the album, I soon realized that this is not only an important piece of personal, family history, but that it is also a small snapshot of the nation's WWII war effort. She has photos of the training facilities, barracks, cadets doing calisthenics, her platoon and company marching, the SPARS band performing, not to mention photos of local hotels and other buildings, some of which are probably no longer around. She trained at the U.S. Coast Guard Training Facility in Palm Beach, Florida, and explored lakes and beaches in the area, with a few trips to Miami and Tampa as well. She entitled this photo "First day out! 4 Happy "Boots." The patch on the left is from her uniform - Yeoman, Third Class.

Dina on far right. August 1943

Yeoman, Third Class

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Adele

9/19/2012

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Adele Licciardi, 1944

No, not THAT Adele; not the sassy, soulful British-born singer-songwriter. This post is about the person with whom I associate the name, my Great-Grandmother, Adele.

She was born Adele Parrazzini in 1895 in the northern Italian city of Milan. We don't know much about her childhood or upbringing. My uncle has told me that she met my great-grandfather, Luigi Licciardi, when he was on business in Milan; he was originially from Palermo, Sicily, and back then there was not a whole lot of intermingling between the north and the south. They were married in 1913 and my grandmother, Dina, and her sister, Yola, were born in 1914 and 1915, respectively. Luigi (Louis) became a captain in the Italian army during WWI.

I don't think anyone in the family knows why they decided to immigrate to the United States. Like many other European nations, there was a post-war recession and civil unrest in Italy, so perhaps they had good reason to leave. Or perhaps they had heard about what America had to offer from friends and their adventurous spirit won out. Louis arrived at Ellis Island in October 1920. As was the common practice among immigrants at the time, he made the journey ahead of the rest of the family in order to secure a job, make connections, and find a place in which to live. Well, apparently Adele got tired of waiting for her husband to send word to come over, because she sold some of her jewelry and bought passage tickets for her and her two young daughters. Below is her ship manifest. The fact that she declared her MAIDEN name may have had something to do with the fact that she wasn't too happy with her husband at the time. My uncle told me that the first thing Louis said to her when he met them in NYC was, "Where's your hat?" Ah, the romance :) They arrived in New York City on May 12, 1921.

Ship Manifest for Adele, Dina, and Yola Licciardi.

Once they were settled in Cleveland, both of my great-grandparents became very involved in the Italian-American community. Great-grandpa was a member of Italian societies and served on influential committees that were active in hosting events when Italian consuls visited Cleveland. (My mom was looking at my grandmother's wedding photos a few months ago and said something to the effect of "Who knows? One of these guys (in the photos) could be Chef Boyardee!," because Louis loved hobnobbing with the top notch Italian-Americans of the city.) Adele was just as active as her husband. Here is a 1934 Cleveland Plain Dealer photo of her with a group of Italian students who she helped greet with some of her local Italian neighbors and friends:

Source: The Cleveland Plain Dealer

One of the interesting things I learned about Adele during my research is that she ran into some snags when she applied for citizenship. Louis was granted full citizenship in 1927, but Adele didn't begin her petition for citizenship until 1942. (I found this to be the case with my Polish immigrant great-grandparents as well; the husband applied for and was granted citizenship long before the wife. I don't know why, but it may have had something to do with being able to work.) Shortly after she filed her petition, Adele received this letter:

Adele, the ENEMY ALIEN! It's hard to imagine my short, little old great-grandmother as a threat to anybody. But it was World War II; Italy was an enemy. According to the Nationality Act of 1940,

"An alien who is a native, citizen, subject, or denizen of any country, state, or sovereignty with which the United States is at war MAY be naturalized as a citizen of the United States IF such alien's declaration of intention was made not less than two years prior to the beginning of the state of war..."

Adele did NOT make her declaration of intention two years before the U.S. went to war with Italy, so that explains this letter. Of course, her classification did not last forever, and she became a full cititzen of the U.S. on June 15, 1945.

What do I remember about my great-grandmother? She had an apartment in the only high-rise apartment building in our suburb. She had lived there by herself since great-grandpa died in 1974. My mom and grandma would sometimes take me and my brother to visit her on Sundays after morning mass. We loved going out onto her balcony and looking down at the street. She always had a tin of these butter cookies for us to eat. We always thought they were so fancy!

She would give us milk to drink in little colored depression-era glasses. She hated to cook so her freezer had microwave dinners in it. She spoke English very well, but there was the hint of an Italian accent to some of her words. Oh, and I'll never forget that she had these borderline scary-looking glass clown figurines placed around the apartment for decoration. I'm sure that they were antiques and probably worth some money, but that doesn't matter when you are eight years old and you feel like they are following your every move.

Adele lived until 1990, when she was 95 years old, and she lived by herself that whole time. She liked being independant; even during her last days, she didn't want to be in the hospital. She just talked about going back to her apartment. I feel like I was fortunate to be able to get to know her a little. I look at this photo of myself and am amazed to think "This is ME, with someone who was born in the 19th century!" Maybe this is one of the reasons I am so fascinated by learning my family's history; I have real memories of a person in our family who made the decision to start a life in America, and who is, subsequently, one of the people with whom I can credit for making ME an American.

My brother and I with our Great-Grandma Adele on my First Communion Day, 1987.

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Japanese Tourists on American WWII Destroyer

Foto Friday: Grandpa in the South Pacific

Military Monday: Grandma's SPARS Photo Album

Adele

Emily Kowalski Schroeder

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