Colonel Nathan Herschel Mazer

Over the past many months we have been remembering the beginning of World War I. A big part of that is paying tribute to those who risked so much to protect those they never knew. In my own family I have very few examples of those who served during that war. One, my father's step-brother, died in battle off the coast of Constantinople.

Maybe it is because of having so few examples in my own family, but I often find myself looking for these great people in every cemetery I visit. Often, I am surprised by what I can find in unexpected places. Recently, on a visit from my grandson, we decided to visit the Hill Air Force Base Museum in Ogden, Utah (www.hill.af.mil/library/museum/). I must admit that I had never been there before even though it is less than a 10 minute drive from my home. It was there that I was made aware of a great man, Colonel Nathan Herschel Mazer, whose picture is shown here.

He was born on 11 March 1911 in Philadelphia to Harry and Fanny Mazer. His parents, both born in Russia, made their living by keeping a grocery store. The image below is the family in the 1920 United States Census.

On 5 March 1935, he married Frances Kalmanovitz in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She herself, was born in Russia. On 26 July 1941 he was inducted into the Army, and that service was then extended indefinitely by the attack on Pearl Harbor. he served in the 13th Bomb Group, flying 50 missions as a bombardier over the North Atlantic between February and August of 1942. At that point he was commissioned as an officer and ordered to the 8th Air Force's 384th Bomb Group in England.
During his time in England he flew many combat missions over Europe as the lead tail gunner. While he was authorized to be on many of these missions, there were some he was not. This lead his commander, Maj. General Dale O. Smith to comment, "He never got caught flying, he was the greatest stowaway in the history of the 8th Air Force". In August of 1944 he was promoted to Captain and in November of 1945 he was discharged. He was recalled into the Air Force in June of 1946 and served honorably until finally retiring as a Colonel in June of 1964. Col. Mazer was recognized for his service and received many medals, including the Bronze Star for Valor.

It is often said that behind any great man you will find a great woman,
and this is certainly the case with Col. Mazer. His lovely bride Frances was no doubt concerned for her husband, but instead of staying home and worrying, she herself did something I consider heroic, she joined the Women's Army Corp in 1943.
Col. Mazer served his country all over the world and earned the right to enjoy a nice quiet retirement. However, not one to sit and watch, he, with his wife at his side, spent his retirement serving the Air Force and the State of Utah. In addition to serving as a Director of many groups he was the driving force behind the Hill Air Force Base Museum. His efforts both during the war and after leave us all with an incredible example to service and commitment.

Col. Mazer died in 2006, just over 6 years after his wife. In honor of their service to the country, they both have been buried at Arlington National Cemetery, in Washington D.C.  (http://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/).  

Veterans Day - Remembering Those Who Served

On the 11th day of November every year much of the world pauses to remember those who served their countries in the military. In the United States we call it Veterans Day. In other parts of the world it is known by names such as Remembrance Day or Armistice Day. Some countries take this opportunity to remember those who died in World War 1, while in the United States it has been extended to all who have served in the military.

It seems only right to honor those who have given so much for so many. These men and woman have bravely left so much behind, including family and home, to fight to in far away lands to preserve freedom for all.
Whatever their service was, we honor them in different ways. For those who died serving the commonwealth,  the beautiful monument at left in London honors them.
While Arlington Cemetery, which is just across the Potomac River from Washington D.C. (picture at top of page) honors row after row of American veterans.
One of the greatest joys a family historian can have is to help remember those who served and to document their lives. We are blessed to have so many great resources to help us do this.
The headstone below is from Arlington Cemetery. It honors 1st Lt. Dennet S. Gurman who was killed in action along with nine others at Celebes Island on the 4th of July 1945.

By searching through the various databases we find that in addition to this marker, he is also remembered with a marker in the family burial plot at Mount Hebron Cemetery in Flushing, New York (Find a Grave). That marker gives his full name as Dennet Sidney Gurman. In addition, he is remembered by a memorial at the Manila American Cemetery, Fort William Mc Kinley, Manila, The Philippines. 
Other great resources include an index to the over 5,500 Jewish burials at Arlington National Cemetery, which is maintained by the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Washington.

That index, which is search able for free, gives great information for researchers. In addition to a photo, the information from the headstone has been transcribed (at right). We now know 1st Lt. Gurman's, who is shown as being from New York, was born on 31 Aug 1924.

With the information from the various sites above it becomes much easier to find the family of  1st Lt. Gurman. Thanks to Ancestry.com we are able to find him in both the 1930 and 1940 United States censuses. Those records (below) show him with his parents and siblings. I am sure that at the time of the 1940 census they had no idea that only 5 years later he would give his life for his country at the age of 21.

As we all take a moment next week to remember those who served, let us all also take a moment and try to find those they left behind, and to all veterans... Thank You.

The Jews of Arlington National Cemetery

Over the last week I have been attending the 2011 International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies Conference (IAJGS) in Washington D.C. It was a wonderful week of attending classes, reuniting with old friends and meeting new people. The Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Washington (JGSGW) did a wonderful job.

As it was held in our nation's capital, there were a lot of incredible sites to visit and history to be learned. The night before the conference began I was able to visit Arlington National Cemetery, final resting place of thousands who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country.
It is a beautiful, reverent place to visit. While walking the grounds I began to notice the many Jews who had given their lives and were remembered at Arlington. One example, was the headstone of Dennet S. Gurman (born 31 Aug 1924), of New York. He and the nine other men listed all lost their lives on 4 Jul 1945, at Celebes Island in the Southwest Pacific.

As I viewed this stone, I found myself wondering how many other Jewish soldiers were at rest at Arlington. A little searching led me to the home page of the conference sponsors, the JGSGW. There, at http://www.anc.jgsgw.org/ is located a wonderful database of 5219 Jews at Rest at Arlington National Cemetery. The database is searchable by name and very user friendly. Using the name of Dennet S. Gurman that I found on the stone, I was able to get the additional information located below.

This record also included a photo of the headstone, which looks much like the one I took. Most of the records do include the photo as well. A special thanks to the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Washington for the time they took to honor those who gave their lives for all of us.

May they never be forgotten.