Have your ever run across information from a database that seems to have its own jargon or code? That was my experience when researching Joseph Ogle, a second cousin twice removed on my RICKETTS line.
An Ancestry leaf hint led me to the following information:
Ogle Joseph Alva 024500 B-Ind 17 Apr 16 A-Ind AM Grad C&GS Sch 18 GS C1 44 BS in ME Purdue Univ 39 MS in ME Ga Inst of tech 55 2lt FA Res 10 Jun 39 to Lt Col AUS 30 July 53 RA 2lt FA 20 Feb 42 D/R 20 Feb 42 to Maj 2 July 53 PL 8271
U.S., Select Military Registers, 1862-1985, Joseph Alva Ogle, 2 July 1953; viewed online, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 4 December 2021).
Since I couldn’t interpret all of this, I started searching the source for a key to the abbreviations. Since this database is actually a book, I found the abbreviation key starting on page 8. Thus, I was able to decipher the following abbreviations used in Joseph Ogle’s entry.
- A – Army
- AM – Air Medal
- C&GS Sch – Command and General Staff School
- GS – Gold Star
- Cl – Class
- FA – Field Artillery
- AUS – Army of the United States
- D/R – Date of Rank
- RA – Regular Army
- PL – Promotion List
- Res – Reserve
Wanting to know more about Joseph’s military service, I started searching for other sources to provide more details. Ironically, the BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 gives Joseph’s initial enlistment date of 17 Apr 1917. This record also gives his birth date as 17 Apr 1916 and his death date as 26 February 2003. Since we would all agree that a one year old would not be enlisting in the U.S. Army, it is obvious that the BIRLS data has an error. Thus, a search began for newspaper articles that would help validate the life and career of Joseph Ogle.
The one thing I haven’t found is an obituary. However, I was able to find quite a few articles that mention Joseph Ogle helping to document his military career.
Joseph Alva Ogle was born on 17 Apr 1916 in Sheridan, Hamilton, Indiana, United States.1–5 He was the child of Alva Spencer Ogle and Laura Belle Ricketts.1–2,6 He lived in Adams Township, Hamilton, Indiana, United States in 1920.7 Joseph lived in Marion Township, Boone, Indiana, United States in 1930.8 In 1934, he graduated from Sheridan high school in Sheridan.9–10
He was a student pilot in a national defense program to train airmen in Mar 1939 in Lafayette, Tippecanoe, Indiana, United States.11–12 In Jun 1939, Joseph received a BS in mechanical engineering at Purdue University.13–14
He was employed by Cincinnati Milling Machine Company in Cincinnati, Hamilton, Ohio, United States.9 He lived in Cincinnati, Hamilton, Ohio, United States in 1940.15
In Aug 1940 Joseph was an assigned as an assistant to Major Clinton Berrien, professor of military science and tactics at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Hamilton, Ohio, United States.9,16–18 In Sep 1940 he was a reserve officer at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Hamilton, Ohio, United States.19 He lived in Belton, Bell, Texas, United States on 28 Oct 1942.20
Joseph served in the military as a second lieutenant in the Field Artillery in 1944.22 He was among the 15,000 troops scheduled to arrive in New York on the Queen Mary in Sep 1945.23
He was on list for promotion to Captain in the U.S. Army in Jul 1948.24 Joseph lived in Honolulu, Hawaii in Feb 1953.25 He was on promotion list to be promoted to Major in the U.S. Army on 22 Jul 1953.13
In 1955, he received a Masters in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia institute of Technology.13,26 Joseph Ogle’s master thesis was titled, “Effect of Blade Design in the Louver Type Dust Separator”.
Joseph retired from the U.S. Army as a Lt. Colonel on 30 Jun 1961.5 During his service, Joseph Ogle received an Air Medal and a Commendation Medal.
In Jan 1965 he was appointed director of long range government planning for Bendix Corporation in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, United States.27 In Nov 1966, he was promoted to director of aerospace systems marketing for Bendix in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, United States.28
Joseph lived in Alphine, Texas in 1976.29 In 2001, he lived in San Antonio, Bexar, Texas, United States.30 He died on 26 Feb 2003 at the age of 86.1,3–4
ENDNOTES:
1. Social Security Administration, “Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007,” database on-line, Ancestry, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60901/ : viewed online 4 December 2021), Joseph Alva Ogle.
2. Indiana, Birth Certificates, 1907-1940, Joseph A. Ogle, 17 April 1917; database with images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 4 December 2021). Original Source: Indiana Archives and Records Administration.
3. Social Security Administration, “U.S. Social Security Death Index,” database, Ancestry, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewewd online 4 December 2021), Joseph A. Ogle, 048-03-4891, before 1951.
4. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, “BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010,” database online, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 4 December 2021), Joseph A. Ogle.
5. , U.S. Army Register Volume 1 United States Army Active and Retired List 1964 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1 January 1964), page 709; digitized copy, Google Books, books.google.com viewed online 4 December 2021.
6. “Engagements and Weddings,” The Cincinnati Enquirer (Cincinnati, Ohio), 5 April 1942, page 61; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 4 December 2021).
7. 1920 U.S. Census, Hamilton County, Indiana, population schedule, Adams Township, Hamilton County, Indiana, ED 88, Sheet 3A Image 5 of 23, family 62, Spencer Ogle; digital image, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 4 December 2021); NARA microfilm publication T625
8. 1930 U.S. Census, Boone County, Indiana, population schedule, Marion Township, Boone County, Indiana, ED 16-6, Sheet 3B Image 6 of 29, family 73, Spencer Ogle; digital image, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 4 December 2021); NARA microfilm publication T626
9. “Ogle Is Picked for Duty on Xavier Staff,” The Noblesville Ledger (Noblesville, Indiana), 2 August 1940, page 6; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 5 December 2021).
10. “High School Graduates,” The Noblesville Ledger (Noblesville, Indiana), 17 March 1934, page 4; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 5 December 2021).
11. “3 at Purdue Solo First Under New Air Setup,” The Edinburg Daily Courier (Edinburg, Indiana), 7 March 1939, page 3; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 4 December 2021).
12. “Flying School at Purdue Is Making Marked Progress,” Journal and Courier (Lafayette, Indiana), 4 March 1939, page 1; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 5 December 2021).
13. U.S., Select Military Registers, 1862-1985, Joseph Alva Ogle, 2 July 1953; viewed online, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 4 December 2021). Original Source: United States Military Reigsters, 1909-1985, Salem Oregon, Oregon State Library.
14. “Many Degrees Conferred at Purdue 65th Commencement,” Journal and Courier (Lafayette, Indiana), 12 June 1939, page 4; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 4 December 2021).
15. 1940 U.S. Census, Hamilton County, Ohio, population schedule, Cincinnati, Hamiilton County, Ohio, ED 91-147, Sheet 82B Image 28 of 30, line 46, Joseph A Ogle; digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 4 December 2021); NARA microfilm publication T627
16. “On Active Duty,” The Cincinnati Enquirer (Cincinnati, Ohio), 12 August 1940, page 11; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 4 December 201).
17. “Military Assignment,” The Tipton Daily Tribune (Tipton, IN), 3 August 1940, page 4; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 5 December 2021).
18. “Reserve Officer Named,” The Cincinnati Enquirer (Cincinnati, Ohio), 30 July 1940, page 20 (main edition); digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 4 December 2021).
19. “Officer to Assume Post,” 16 Sep 1940, The Cincinnati Enquirer (Cincinnati, Ohio), page 13; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 4 December 2021).
20. “New Addresses,” The Noblesville Ledger (Noblesville, Indiana), 28 October 1942, page 2; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 4 December 2021).
22. U.S., Select Military Registers, 1862-1985, Joseph A. Ogle, 1944; database with images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 5 December 21).
23. “Nine Delaware County Vets Arriving HOme,” The Star Press (Muncie, Indiana), 10 September 1945, page 10; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 4 December 2021).
24. Army Registers, 1798-1969, Joseph Ogle, 1953 vol. 1; database with images, Fold3 (www.fold3.com : viewed online 5 December 2021).
25. “Army Social Notes,” The Honolulu Advertiser (Honolulu, Hawaii), 8 February 1953, page 41; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 5 December 2021).
26. Georgia Tech Library, Georgia tech Theses and Dissertatins (du/handle/1853/4760 : viewed online 4 December 2021), Joseph A. Ogle.
27. “Business Briefs,” The South Bend Tribune (South Bend, Indiana), 20 January 1965, page 40; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 5 December 2021).
28. “Personalities in Detroit and Michigan Business,” Detroit Free Press (Detroit, Michigan), 14 November 1966, page 42; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 5 December 2021).
29. “Laura B. Ogle,” The Noblesville Ledger (Noblesville, Indiana), 26 November 1976, page 8; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 4 December 2021).
30. “George E. Ogle,” The Noblesville Ledger (Noblesville, Indiana), 5 September 2001, page 2; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : viewed online 4 December 2021).
You’ve uncovered a great deal of detail! Good work.
Because of his service during WW2 he would have been eligible for the Victory medal, possibly the American Campaign medal for service in the States, the EAME Campaign medal based upon him returning from Europe on the Queen Mary and maybe the Occupation medal because he was in Europe after the surrender. It seems that he was on active duty for the Korean War so if he served there there may be at least two more medals.
THANKS! I will have to do more searching!
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