52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – Week 21: Military: George Gorrell Served in WWII

I am working on this year-long prompt, hosted by Amy Johnson Crow. I will write each week in one of my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s Southern Family or at My Trails Into the Past. I’m looking forward to writing about my children’s ancestors in new and exciting ways.

George Joseph Gorrell, U.S. Army Air Corps

Before World War II started, my father-in-law, George Joseph Gorrell, was training at the Curtiss-Wright Technical Institute of Aeronautics in Glendale, Los Angeles County, California. He was learning how to work on airplanes.

His World War II Draft card had information about his physical features. He was six feet tall and weighed 160 pounds. As a young man, he had brown hair, brown eyes, and a dark complexion. He was 25 years old.

After the training, he worked at McClellan Air Force Base in North Highlands, California, just north of Sacramento. He received more training there on hydraulics. He worked on landing gear.

 He was inducted in the Army Air Force on 27 July 1943 in San Francisco as a private. He went to England where he serviced hydraulic landing gear with the 913th Air Engineering Squadron. After the collapse of Germany, he was stationed there until he was discharged as a staff sergeant. He had his camera and took many photos. He printed them out as contact sheets because he had no enlarger. Someday the negatives will be scanned.

He also received an award for creating an improved tool.

Thank you for your service, George!

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