In Honor of Those Who Served

Veteran's Memorial Park - Raymond, Illinois

I would like to take time to thank all the veterans for their service to our country. Back in 1996, Pete Henderson provided this list of veterans of America's armed services who, at some point, called Raymond home. The list was printed in the book commemorating Raymond's 125th Anniversary. This week, I'm posting the information from pages 76-79 of the book, beginning with World War I. As clearly noted in the book, a concerted effort was made to list all the veteran's names. I apologize if you or any of your family members were omitted from the listing (if so, please bring the error to my attention).

(The appearance of the text varies, depending on the browser. Please excuse formatting issues.)

VETERANS OF WORLD WAR I ERA

Those who gave their lives:

Earl E. Miller. Sgt. 23rd Infantry Machine Gun Company, killed on the St. Mihiel front

September 13, 1918

Otto J. Egelhoff, Pvt. Co. F !27th Infantry, killed inthe Battle of the Argonne Forest October 7, 1918

Frank H. Beiermann, Pvt. I 45th Aero Squadron, died at Kelly Field, San Antonio, Texas October 31, 1918

Those who served:

Paul C. Allen, Harrison Harper, Herbert R. Moore, Robert M. Allen, Homer Harris, Howard H. Moore, Willard T. Allen, Harold J. Henderson, Paul Moore, Harold H. Herman, Phillip Moore, John L. Bannister, Herbert A. Herman, Earl Bechtel, Roy T. Hickman, Clarence 0. Neatherly, Frank Beiennann, Edwin R. Hiller, Harry W. Belknap, Herbert H. Hiller, Claude R. Pence, Otto E. Belknap, Walter A. Hiller, Clyde W. Pence,Louis M. Benning, Edgar Howard, Donald L. Potts, Arthur R. Billiter, Jr., harry L. Potts, Henry E. Bitterburg, Oscar Jolmson, James E. Bowsher, Ross Jones, Emery Reish, Jolm F. Breitenbach, William L. Rents, Jess Broaddus, Earl N. Kelmel,Clarence Rogers, Harold B. Kenton, Michael H. Carey,Jr., Harry T. Scherer, Alvin S. Carriker, John L. Langen, Benno Schum, Earl E. Chapman, Cline W. Lessman, Herschel N. Scott, George W. Chapman, Elmer Lessman, Walter J. Scott, John P. Chapman, Roland Litherland, Irba Seales, joseph  R. Chapman, Jr., Ruby J. Littleton, John Seelbach, Cecil J. Crabtree, Paul Luch, William E. Seelbach, Thomas J. Luking, kenneth L. Seymour, James R. Dawson, W. Burress, Seymour, Edgar Doyle, Donald D. Martin, James B. Siddens, Frank Doyle, Earl Martin, Aaron J. Sluder, Ollie Martin, John B. Stockstill, John W. Egelhoff, Roscoe Martin, Herbert Sullivan, Otto J. Egelhoff, Fred L. Mayes, Percy R. McGown, James Weber, Leo E. Meisner, Henry D. Weerts, Roy J. Fehr, Earl Miller, John Weerts, Horace Nelson Fraley, Frank Miller, Henry T. Wempen, Lowell Fitzjerrel, John D. Miller, Roy Wempen, Fred J. Mitts, Leland Werner, Arthur Gannon, Tom Mizera, Joseph E. Whelan, W. E. Graham, James A. Molohon, Jr., James H. Woods, Charles W. Gunn, Raymond Molohon, Lyman L. Gunn, Perley Mondhink, Lawrence C. Yunker, Frank Moore, Ollie R. Yunker

VETERANS OF WORLD WAR II ERA

Those who gave their lives:

Marvin  Frank Brown, S/Sgt. 384th AAF Bmb. Gp. killed in action over Europe, June 26, 1943

Robert E. Mayfield, S/Sgt. 364th AAF Brnb Sq. U.S. Army. died Feb. 22, 1944

John R. Mitts, Pfc. Army Co. A  120 Engr. C BN 45th Div. died July 10, 1943

Leslie J. Tucker, Sgt. Army AAF died Dec. II, 1944 Charles C. Varner, S/Sgt. Army 360th AAF Bomb Sq. died March 8, 1945.

Billy V. VanZant, Cpl. U.S. Army, killed in Germany April 10, 1945

Edward Martin, Pfc. U. S. Army killed on Luzon Island Feb. 19, 1945

Murray Bost, Lt. U.S. Army Air Corps, 9th Bomber Command killed in action over Tunis, Africa, April 19, 1943

Those who served:

Junior Hammon Adams, Robert Allen, William Allen, George Anderberg, Norman Andrews, Clarence Armes, Elbert Arter, William Arter, Charles Bandy, Elmer H. Bandy, Elmer Barto, John Barto, Lawrence Beeler, Conrad Behymer, Clarence Bergman, Joe Bergman, Frank Bertinetti, Eldon Bethard, Ray Boehler, Ervin Bolte, Maynard Bast, James Bowsher, Owen R. Boyajen, Raymond Bramel, Calvin Braye, Robert Broaddus, William Broaddus, Olyn Brockmeyer, George Brokaw, Charles Brooks, Robert Brooks, Elbert Brown,  J. J. Bryant, Lewis H. Burger, Charles Carriker, Elmer Carriker, Phil Carriker, Richard W. Carriker, William Carriker, Curtis Chapman (POW), Gerald Chapman,  Ward Clinard, Hugh Connolly, Morgan Corlew, William Criner, Merrill Davidson, William Davidson, Elmer Davis, Lee Dawson, Loren Denney, Walter Dexheimer, James Driskell, Elmer Eckhoff, William F. Edge, Wendell Egelhoff, Aloysius Eickhoff, Robert Eickhoff, Harold Engelman, Mitchel Engelman, Otis Engelman, Willard Engleman, Lester Feeny, Jr., Leo Fehr, James File, John L. Finley, Hiram Forbes, Merrill Foster, Clarence Frank, Harry Frank, Jr., Guy Friend, Russell Friend, Walter Friend, Harold Garard (POW), Raymond Gardner, Calvin Gilbert, Kenneth Goby, Paul Goodwin, Lynn Graham, Maynard Graham, Theodore Greenfield, Wrice Grotts, William Gunn, Donald Guthrie, Everett Guthrie, Charles Haarstick, John Haarstick, Hugh Halford, Jr., Bruce Hall, Tom Hall, William Hall, David Hanna, David Hanks, Kenneth Hanks, Jr.,  Leo Hannon, John Harper, Arthur Harris, Harold Held, Lawrence Held, Raymond Held, Robert Hendricks, Deane Henkel, Edward Henson, Henry A. Hiller, William Hiller, Ora Honnies (POW), John Hough, Raymond Hough, Lindsey "Deak" House, Russel House, Benny Huber, Merle Hudson, Carl E. Janssen, Herman Johnson, James Johnson, John R. Johnson, Lloyd Jones, Robert Jones, R. J. Kasten, Calvin Kessinger, Charles C. King, John L Krager, Edward Kramer, Murvin Krause, Howard Lange, Gerald Langen, Edward Lewey, Mervel Lewey, Kenneth Litherland, Ted Long, John Lyons, James Mackay, Thomas Maher, Robert Marsch, Bernard Marten, Charles Martin, Delbert Martin, Frank Martin, John P. Martin, Lee Martin, Ralph Martin, Roy Martin, Carl J. Mayer, Arthur Mayfield, Ray Maze, Ralph McLaughlin, Roy McLean, James Millburg, Gene Miller, George Miller, Karl L. Miller, Henry Mitts, Fred Mitts, Jr.,  Harry Mondhink, Perley Mondhink, Lawrence Niehaus, Leo Niehaus, Robert Ogden, Willard Padgett,Frank Palern10, Wilburt Pecht, William C. Pence, Carl Peger, Darald Peters, Verne Pinkston, Guy Pitchford, Robert Poggenpohl, Walter Poggenpohl, Robert Polston, Roscoe Polston, Wilbur L. Polston, Lynn Pope, Garrett Potts, James Potts, Carl Putzka, Henry Reish, John Reish, Leland A. Rhine, William Rhine, Jr., Alfred Riemann, Alvin Riemann, Gilbert Riemann, Fred Roach, Frank Roberts, Shirlen Rosenthal, Alfred Rossi, Carl Routt, Luke Schoen, Jr., Marvin Schroeder, Louis Sclunedeke, Paul Seagle, Paul Seals, Aloysius Seelbach, Russell C. Seward, J. B. Siddens, Robert Small, William Steele, Raymond S. Stewart, Robert Thacker, Joseph Todt, Raymond A. Todt, William Trim, Harley Trinkle, Raymond Truebe, Robert Uhrig Douglas J. Vickery, Harold Wagahoff, Robert Wagahoff, Ted Wagy, Ray Walch, Franz Wanger, Charles Warnsing, Ralph Warren, Albert Weerts, Henry Weerts, Albert J. Weitekamp, Maurice Weitekamp, Robert Weller, Leonard Welsh, Melvin Wempen, James Whalen, Jack Williams, Ross Williams, Joseph Wright

U. S. Army Nurse Corps
Eileen Vanzant Carriker, Dorothy Feeny, Loretta Foster, Margaret Todt

U. S. Marines Women's Reserve Corps
Pauline Gilbert

 

VETERANS OF THE KOREAN WAR ERA

Those who gave their lives:

Charles A. Weitekamp, Pfc USMC l USMC killed in action October 27, 1952

Those who served:

Kenneth Armour, Donald Barry, Arthur "Sonny" Barto, Frank Barto, Carl Beeler, Harold Benning, Paul Benning, Ralph Benning,  Glen Boehler, Ned Bockewitz, Jr., Dallas Braye, Kenneth Carriker, William Chapman, Laverne Dailey, Dale Davidson, Charles Davis, Lonnie Cloyd, Wayne Colvin, Bob Erwin, Charles Frazier,  Richard Graden, Donald Gueldenhaar, Robert Held, Charles Herrmann, John Herrmann, Gene Hitchings, Jim Hitchings, Maurice Hjort, Donald Hoffinan, Roy Huber, Jr. Paul Janssen, Donald Jones, Howard Jones, Robert Kaiser, Dean Kates, Orville Gerald Kates, Gene Klump, Jim Kraner, Bert Land, Byron Land, Wayne "Bub" Lanter, Robert Martin,Russell Massa, Robert McGlothlin, Steve Miller, Jon's Mitts, Joseph Mizera, Leroy Molen, Ronald Mosby, Harold William Niehaus, Robert Niehaus, Dale Ogden James Pope, Ronald Polston, William Potterf, William Reineke, Carl Richey, Leonard Schum, Loretta Schum, Gary Smith, Merle Smith, Don F. Snyder, Ray Stewart, Jr., William "Skip" Stewart, Kenneth Stickles, Preston Streight II, George Todt, James Bruce Todt, John W. Uhrig Leroy Walch, Lester Walch, Leon Wamsing, Robert, Watson, Robert Wedekind, Edward Weitekamp, Ray Weitekamp, Roy Weitekamp, James Wempen, Halden Wemsing,  Merrill Wemsing

VETERANS OF THE VIETNAM WAR

 Those who served:

Robert Bandy, Joseph Barto, Roger Barto, William Barto, Roger R. Baxter, Gordon Casey, Ross Clark, Mike Dagon, Kenny Duff, Don Fuller, Tom Glover, Rick Hailstone, Ronald Hefley, Robert Herman, Robert Hobson,  Robert Holder, John Honnies,  Terry House, David Huber, Fred Huber, Norman P. Jackson, Mike Langen, Larry Lewis, Carl Mayer, Jr., James R. McCallum, Loy McCart, David Mills, Kenneth Mondhink, Richard Polston, Terry Polston, Rollie Pope, Charles Rhine, Freddie Roach, Mike Slightom, Michael Stephenson, Francis "Butch" To t, Louis Tucker, William Tucker, Joseph Wagahoff, Jan\es Walch,  Thomas M. Walch, Thomas Walz, Melvin Wempen, Jr., Dennis R. Williams

VETERANS OF PANAMA  

Those who served:

Carl W. Richter, Joel Slightom

VETERANS OF THE PERSIAN GULF

Those who served:

Gary Black, Gary Black, Jr., Chris Irwin, John Polston, Preston Streight III

VETERANS OF BOSNIA 

Those who served:

Marine Cpl. Paul Hobson

RAYMOND VETERANS OF THE ARMED SERVICES

 Following is a list of veterans of the Armed Services of the United States of America, who lived in Raymond and/or live in Raymond at the present, who served their country in peacetime and/or during the above listed conflict eras but were not sent to the battlezones listed:

Gene Adams, Carl Armes, Steve Augustine

James Bailey, Joseph Bandy, Emily Battin, Lanny Beatty, David Benning, Russell Bergman, Sam Boehler, Charles Bogart,Kenneth Braye, Edward Broaddus, Garry Broaddus, Larry Broaddus, Phillip Brown, David Bryant, Dean Butler

Darrell Cannedy, John Carron, Harrel Clinard, Leon Cloyd, Jeff Convery, Alvin Crawford, Harold Crawford, Michael Crawford, Ronnie Crawford

Kevin Dagon, Patrick Dagon , Billy Eggiman, Dehnar Eggiman, James Engelman, Wayne Foster, David Fuchs, Calvin Glover, Terry Goby, Jim Gray, Harry Groves

Greg Hampton, Jon Hefley, Robert Hefley, Donald Held, Gary Held, William Held, Ronald "Pete" Henderson, Mike Henry, Jerry Herman, John Herman, Edwin J. Hoffman, Jr., George Hough, Charles House, Michael House, W. H. House, Jr., Paul Huber

Clinton Jackson, Bernard Jenkins, Eddie Jones, Allen Kaiser,  Jack Lanter, Jim Lanter, John Lambert, James Logan

Tony Marten, Robert Martin, Robert Matli, Hans Mizera, Greg Mullen, Aaron Myers, Alan Neisler, Charles Owens, Robert Owens, Lester Peper, Robert Pinkston, Max Podshadley, Gerald Polston, William Pope,   Charles Riemann, Harry Riemann,John Riemann, Danny Rossi

Clarence Sale, John Sale, Ben Savage, Hank Schiesser, Ramona Todt Schuessler, Jamie Slightom, Reuben Smitb,  Scott Smith, Brandon Snyder, Tom Snyder, Robert Smith, Alex Stewart, Dennis Stewart, John Stewart, Kenny Stickles, Tom Sweatman.

Jack Wagahoff, Donald Walch, Richard Walch, Richard Watson, Patrick Weitekamp, Donald Weller, Tim White, Larry Ziegler

The Wabash Railroad

A passenger train speeding through Raymond in the 1960's 

Like many small towns, Raymond was the product of the railroad expansion across the United States in the nineteenth century. Nimrod McElroy and Ishmael McGowan owned most of the land that Raymond was built on, and in 1870, they sold a strip of land to the Wabash Railroad officials who were expanding the railroad tracks from Decatur to St. Louis. The following spring, the post office opened and our town (originally called Lulu) was born.

The railroad runs through Raymond from the northeast to the southwest, and W.R.W. O'Bannon platted the town based on the direction of the railroad tracks rather than by using a compass. The depot was built in 1872. Two years later, D.J. Parrott built a large elevator near the railroad crossing, and the village of Raymond became well known for having one of the largest and most extensive elevators on the line of the St. Louis Division of the Wabash Railroad.

Mr. David Sorrell*, a former Raymond resident who moved to Texas, contributed to a column in "The Raymond News" entitled As I Remember. The following excerpt from one of his columns pertaining to the depot was printed in the Raymond Centennial Book that was published in 1971:

Howard Ling was the first station agent. Agent Ling, as I remember, had a full blue uniform which he wore, without the long swallowtail coat at all times except when it was passenger train time, and then he would don his fine brass buttoned coat and go out to meet the train, confer with the conductor, and generally be seen and admired by the gathered crowd. Being a railroad agent in those days was a very important thing.

The arrival of any of the five local passenger trains was always an interesting event of our small town day. An hour or so before the train was due, the town loafers and folks who were going to Litchfield, Harvel, Honey Bend, or Tayloville, would begin to come across the long platform to the depot. The travelers could be told from the loafers by the bags or valises they carried.

Inside the middle rooms was the ticket office on one end and on the other was the half round table and its circle of ever clattering telegraph instruments. Their clatter never seemed to cease. The telegraph instruments brought death messages, the returns of a presidential election, and the major league baseball scores. Sometimes the train would bring a pine box bearing the body of a man or woman who had gone out into the world and had been brought back to the old hometown for burial. The night passenger train brought up the daily St. Louis Chronicle and the Post Dispatch. The railroad and all its appurtenances was the town’s link with the outside world.

* In the Centennial Book, the name was spelled Sorrell with no "s." It occurs to me that his name might have been "Sorrells." I plan to try and find his original columns in the archived issues of The Raymond News this summer.

While reading through some Raymond history, I found some other interesting notes pertaining to the railroad:

• In the early 1900’s, a passenger train accident occurred about one mile north of Raymond, injuring many people. It was said that people were carried into town on stretchers and churches were used as first aid stations.
  
• In 1904, folks from Raymond boarded trains to attend the World’s Fair in St. Louis.
  
• In 1918, about 50 trains a day ran through town and there was an agent on duty 24 hours a day.

Some of my classmates and I were fortunate to take a train ride through Raymond once. For our first grade class trip, we traveled from Litchfield to Taylorville on the train. We had a picnic at the Taylorville park and then the school bus picked us up and brought us back home. It was a big deal.                                                          

The Raymond Cafe

Bandy's Cafe in the early 1930's. Pictured (from left) Anna Bandy, Pauline Bandy Hinkley, Elsie (Burley) Pitchford, and an unidentified person. 

I mentioned Bandy's Cafe a couple of weeks ago. My grandparents, Charles and Anna Bandy, opened the cafe in 1929 in a brick building on Main Street where the current Raymond-Harvel Fire Department and Ambulance building is located. The Bandy family lived in an apartment directly above the restaurant, and grandma was downstairs making pies every morning by 4:00 a.m.

Back then, the restaurant served three meals a day, six and a half days a week (they closed on Sunday after lunch). The cafe was always open after ballgames and other activities, and it was a popular gathering spot for the high school crowd, as well as adults. Hamburgers sold for 10 cents, plate lunches for 35 cents, and a complete dinner cost 45 cents. Customers could get a piece of homemade pie and a cup of coffee for 15 cents. There was a nickelodeon, and for 5 cents, customers could hear their favorite songs. There was a short wave radio, and for the Illinois State Police (who rode motorcycles), the restaurant was a warm place to gather and listen for police calls.

A crowd of young people went to the restaurant on Saturday nights to listen to the Philip Morris Hit Parade on the radio, and find out which of their favorite songs topped the list for that week. Many people were employed at the cafe during those years including (my aunt) Pauline Bandy Hinkley, Lela Hudson, Beulah (Fortin) Lowe, Loretta Lessman, Elsie Pitchford, Helen Luking, Merrill Foster, Geraldine Hendricks, and Georgia (Halford) Plappert.

In 1943, grandma sold the restaurant and it became known as the Raymond Cafe. Some of the people who owned it through the years included: Harry Garard, Eleanor Miller, Loretta Lessman, Claude Carlock, Leon Martin, members of the Vickery family, June Funderburk, and Vi Heisman.

Dad talked frequently about the restaurant days, and how a lot of hard work and "elbow grease" were required to make a living there, especially during the Depression. He often commented that although they didn't have money or any luxuries during those years, the family never had to worry about having food on the table.  

When I was in afternoon Kindergarten, occasionally mom would take over at the Variety Store while dad and I walked to the cafe to enjoy a hamburger and a "Bubble-Up" before I went to school. I always looked up to see the words, BANDY'S CAFE, that had been painted across the top of the building in the 30's. The large, white letters were still visible when the building was demolished sometime around the turn of the century.

Many thanks to Susan Lebeck for providing this week's photo.

Louise Chausse

This week I was looking through some items that we found when we were cleaning out Mom's house a few years ago. Mom had saved a letter that was written by Louise Chausse, and I enjoyed reading it and remembering Mrs. Chausse.

Around 1924 when she was Louise "Martin" and attending Raymond Community High, Mrs. Chausse boarded with my great-grandparents, Archibald and Jenny McCallum. She went on to Blackburn College and then taught at Ware's Grove before becoming a teacher in Raymond. She later married Veryl Chausse who taught fifth and sixth grade. It's interesting to note that when Veryl was only six months old, he became critically ill with diphtheria and was the first individual in the area to be given the new antitoxin for the disease. He responded and improved immediately.

After she got married, Mrs. Chausse resigned to become a homemaker, but was later asked to return and teach primary school in Harvel. Back then, kids from Raymond attended first and second grade in Harvel, and she was my second grade teacher in 1971. I have many fond memories of her, but one thing that stands out in particular is the hours that she spent reading Beverly Cleary's books to us. I always thought that I was the teacher's pet, however, I'm sure all of her students thought that because she had a way of making everyone feel special.

The Chausses' lived on a farm south of Raymond, and following second grade, Mrs. Chausse and I became pen pals. I would write long letters to her on fancy stationery and then wait anxiously for her to write back to me. She always did.

In 1979, Veryl and Louise left the farm and moved next door to Hough Funeral Home. Veryl died on November 4, 1990 and Mrs. Chausse continued to live there until her death on March 10, 2010. Mom used to tell me that she would always look out the kitchen window to see if Louise's porch light was on.

I'll post the letter below. Those of you who had the pleasure of knowing Mrs. Chausse will hear her voice and think of her smile when you read this.