ANDOVER NEWSLETTER, Vol.3,#5

Sponsored by the Democratic Town Committee.

Andover, Connecticut.

November Issue.

To the Service Men and Women of Andover, Greeting!

It’s Thanksgiving week in the old home town, and we will be thinking of you as we sit down to our holiday dinners.  We hope that there will be mail from home, a grand dinner, and/or plans for furlough or discharge to help you have a jolly day.  We have so much more to be thankful for this year than we have had for a long, long time.  Our foes have surrendered, and many of you are coming home.  In the midst of the festivities, most of us will stop to remember those four from Andover who did not live to see this first post-war Thanksgiving day, and we will pay tribute to them one again.

The weather is up to its traditional meanness for this time of year, and most of the days are the color of stale laundry starch.  Perhaps there’ll be a little snow to brighten up Thanksgiving Day and to give the youngsters a preview of the fun they’ll have when winter really sets in.  School will be over for the rest of the week by Tuesday afternoon, and the children will spend Wednesday working up an appetite for turkey.  Most of the men will have the day off on Thursday, and most of the women will be forced to rest up on Friday.

Yes, the manpower shortage has hit the Newsletter again, but there are a lot of people who are cheerful about helping me to gather up the news, and most of it is good, this time.

Last month, Editor VCT was way out in left field when she announced that Russ Murray had been discharged.  Skipper and the children are living over the store, but Russ is still an active member of the U.S. Navy.  Right now, he is enjoying a month’s leave and he is, really, down in Andover Center until early next month.

Seven telephone calls have been made, but I have still to find out the name of Andover’s youngest citizen.  She is a baby girl, fourth child and second daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Goss of Hartford Avenue.  She was born on November 12, 1945, and she and her mother will probably be home soon.  Here’s a welcome to the lassie and congratulations to her proud parents.  Her Daddy is still at Uncas-on-Thames, and we know he will miss being around for the grand home-coming of the ladies.  We are glad to report that he is making a steady recovery.

We are deprived of the honor of giving residence to another newcomer, Jonathan Fersun Pease, whose parents, Pat and Everett, used to live on the Boston Road.  Jonny is nearly a month old now and doing nicely, thank you.

“Bill” Bramhall LaRivierre now has a little son, Thomas Robert, who was born on October 20.  Bill didn’t make a prompt recovery, and she is still in the hospital.  We are in hopes that she’ll be home soon to enjoy her little Tommy, who is staying with Grandma just now.  He keeps Grandma busy with demands for more and heartier food, and he is gaining rapidly.

The Andover Stork is AWOL, for we have been expecting word of another new arrival for some time.  But, in spite of delays in getting out the Newsletter, we’ll have to keep that news till next month.

Bob Wilson, veteran of World War II, and former local boy, and Virginia Yates of Iowa were married in Canterbury, Connecticut last Sunday, November 18.  Here’s a long life and a merry one to the bride and groom!

Mrs. Ida Olson and Madison Dorsey were married during the past month, and we send them our hearty congratulations.

The October Issue of the newsletter failed to report the glad tidings that Captain and Mrs. Henry Hilliard are the parents of a baby girl, Charlotte Bernice, who was born at Columbus, Ga., on October 7, 1945.  Congratulations to the Captain and Mrs. Hilliard, and we hope that Charlotte will someday live in Andover.

Ed Whitcomb is home from Europe, after ten months of service there, and he is very busy getting acquainted with his little boy and girl.  He “travelled” through France, Germany, and Austria before he decided to come home, and he sounds as if the trip home had been the worst part of the war.  His boat ran into a big storm, and Ed spent six days expecting to die any minute, not caring much whether he did or not, and sometimes actually hoping that the disease was fatal.  Ed has his honorable discharge, and he is expecting to go back to work at the Aircraft soon.

Walter Parks (Aviation Cadet) and his wife, Mary, have come back to Andover since Walter got his discharge.  Walt hasn’t made definite plans for the future yet, but they’ll probably include going to the University of Connecticut.  More power to him!

Pfc. Donald Parks (and congratulations on the new rating, Don!) is stationed at Leyte, P.I.

GM 3/c George Tedford is at home for Thanksgiving, and he is hoping to be discharged from the Navy in January.  His brother, A/S Walter (Fuzzy) is still at Bainbridge, Md.

Buster Hutchinson has received his honorable discharge, after more than three and one half years in the service, and he and his wife will probably make their home in Andover.

T/S Eric Neilson has been discharged, and he is making his home on Bear Swamp Road.  Perhaps he’ll tell us some more about himself and his plans before the December Newsletter hits the mails.

Major Edward Gatchell arrived in New York on November 9, and he has returned to the old home town after years and years.  He spent most of the time abroad in France with the Intelligence Service. He is on terminal leave until March 13.  We have been belittling his rank for a long time, and we congratulate him now for having advanced to the rating of Major. He sounds heartily pleased to be home once more.

Major Nathan Gatchell is still in the U.S. Army, but he will begin work as of November 21, in charge of the Office of Veteran’s Affairs in Manchester.

Morse Pringle is catching up with chores around the home and taking it easy for a while.  He was discharged, with a rating of Petty Officer 2/c (specialist in athletics) about six weeks ago.

Lucien LeVesque is another Andover boy back home with those precious discharge papers, and he is another about whom we hope to learn more before the next Newsletter goes out.

Chief Ship Fitter Bud Bramhall came home from Okinawa on November 16, and he is glad to be out of uniform.  He, too, is tackling jobs around the home, and a little vacation is all he is planning on right now.

Morty Friedrich came home during the past month, after months and months of tough fighting and intensive sightseeing among the countries of Europe.

Charlie Kukucka is back home, and right now he is helping John Gasper build a house.  Paul Kraal is also back home on the Hebron Road.

Sonny Covell, who has been flitting back and forth between California and Connecticut, finally got the Navy to o.k. his plans to stay here indefinitely.

SC 2/c Alma Smith has that shiney little button that says she is home to stay.  She is visiting in New Hampshire now, and her plans for the future are not definite yet.

T/S Eddie Sheehan is expected to reach the west coast any day now, and he will soon be home to stay.

Capt. Joe Gasper hasn’t been receiving his mail is the Pacific lately, and we are hoping that he’ll breeze into Andover soon.  Florence Gasper Libby was in town for a visit during the past month, and she has now returned to the new home Libby has found for her in Butler, Pa.  Libby has just been transferred from Cincinnati to Butler.

Larry and Eleanor Sheehan have bought a piece of land between the Gatchell’s and the Shepherd’s on the north side of the Boston Road, and that will be the Sheehan homestead in days to come.

Bill and Martha Thompson have purchased the house on Andover Lake that formerly belonged to Mr. and Mrs. Hanson.

Bud Palmer (Raymond, Jr.) left Andover on November 16 to begin his training with the U.S. Army.  Here’s luck to you, Bud!  Let us hear from you.

Betty Shepherd graduated from Massachusetts General Hospital Training School on October 31, and she is on a well-earned vacation this month.

Stanley Gasper has been transferred from Tennessee to Florida.

Jimmy Gray is in the hospital at Bainbridge, Md., entertaining a high fever.  We hope he is out soon, even if it means that he will receive the Newsletter late.

GM 2/c Edward Merritt is taking it on the chin (and elsewhere) while doing shore patrol in Honolulu.  He hopes that he’ll see some of the Andover men on their way home.

The Firemen had their annual shindig (Ladies’ Night) at the Fire House one night this month, and the old place rocked with merriment.  Bill Thornton won the only prize that went to a local resident.

Ed Whitcomb brought his shooting arm back in good condition, for he tied up the score with Lewis W. Phelps at the trap shoot that the Sportsmen held at Mrs. Thompson’s field on November 18.  They shot seven more pigeons before Ed missed and Mr. Phelps walked off with the prize.  More of you sharpshooters had better hurry back to increase the competition, for that is the second such prize Mr. Phelps has taken this fall.  At the Gasper Cabin, at an earlier match, Mr. Phelps and Ralph Buell tied for first prize.  They kept on shooting till they ran out of pigeons.  Then the cut the cards and both drew a ten.  Then they flipped a coin, and Mr. Phelps called it right.

George LaChance is in a hospital in Manilla, and we hope he is all well and out again before this Newsletter reaches him.

           Ed Jurovaty is our only correspondent this month, and we quote:  “I’ve been moving around a great deal lately--seeing Japan for the first time on September 16th.  We have been carrying troops up there from the Philippines, and right now we are on our second trip up to Nipland.  Our first trip took us way up to the northern tip of Japan and half way down the other side.  Sure was cold up there….Tell Bud Brown not to feel bad about the …damp time he is having in Carolina.  If he really wants to know what a real damp time is, he should get caught in a typhoon half way between Okinawa and Tokyo…I sure would like some state side duty right now, even in Carolina…”  Thanks for the good letter, Ed, and we hope your plans for coming home materialize soon.

To all of you, happy holiday, and write to us!

Safe home!

Vera Cross Taylor, Editor.

Andover, Connecticut

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