Photo of the Day

This is a photo of my paternal uncle taken in 1965 at the Indian River Inlet in Delaware.  He was 10 or 11 years old.

James Odgers
(1954 - 2007)

Summary Court-Martial

My maternal great-uncle was killed in action during World War II on 22 July 1944.  He was buried in an individual grave, uncasketed and in a poncho, in Guam No. 2 Cemetery, Plot C, Row 2, Grave 10.

The job of the Effects Quartermaster was to receive and safeguard thousands of' packages of personal property until they could be returned to the owner or forwarded to the Army Effects Bureau for disposition.  When a soldier became a casualty (either deceased, hospitalized, captured, interned, or missing), his unit commander collected all personal property, inventoried it, removed government property, and forwarded all the personal items to Q-290, marked with the owner's identification and status.  If the owner was deceased, the property was documented and forwarded immediately to Army Effects Bureau for transmission to the next of kin.

The detail involved in receiving, storing, safeguarding, and shipping personal property was immense.  Each package was handled separately in order that the name, status, and other pertinent data would be correctly recorded.

This is a copy of the Summary Court-Martial that disposed  of the effects of my great-uncle.  This shows that my great-grandmother filed the application for his effects and they were awarded to my great-grandfather.

Photo of the Day

This is a photo of my paternal great-grandfather taken on Christmas Day 1964 in my paternal grandparents' living room in New Castle, Delaware.  He was 70 years old.

James Odgers
(1893 - 1965)

1 May 1945 Letter

My maternal great-uncle was killed in action during World War II on 22 July 1944.  He was buried in an individual grave, uncasketed and in a poncho, in Guam No. 2 Cemetery, Plot C, Row 2, Grave 10.

The job of the Effects Quartermaster was to receive and safeguard thousands of' packages of personal property until they could be returned to the owner or forwarded to the Army Effects Bureau for disposition.  When a soldier became a casualty (either deceased, hospitalized, captured, interned, or missing), his unit commander collected all personal property, inventoried it, removed government property, and forwarded all the personal items to Q-290, marked with the owner's identification and status.  If the owner was deceased, the property was documented and forwarded immediately to Army Effects Bureau for transmission to the next of kin.

The detail involved in receiving, storing, safeguarding, and shipping personal property was immense.  Each package was handled separately in order that the name, status, and other pertinent data would be correctly recorded.

This is a copy of a letter from the Quartermaster's office to my great-grandfather letting him know to be expecting a package of my great-uncle's personal effects.

Photo of the Day

This is a photo of my paternal great-grandmother taken on Christmas day in 1964 in my paternal grandparents' living room in New Castle, Delaware.

Caroline Morgan "Carrie" Wright Odgers
(1888 - 1965)

Inventory of Effects

My maternal great-uncle was killed in action during World War II on 22 July 1944.  He was buried in an individual grave, uncasketed and in a poncho, in Guam No. 2 Cemetery, Plot C, Row 2, Grave 10.

The job of the Effects Quartermaster was to receive and safeguard thousands of' packages of personal property until they could be returned to the owner or forwarded to the Army Effects Bureau for disposition.  When a soldier became a casualty (either deceased, hospitalized, captured, interned, or missing), his unit commander collected all personal property, inventoried it, removed government property, and forwarded all the personal items to Q-290, marked with the owner's identification and status.  If the owner was deceased, the property was documented and forwarded immediately to Army Effects Bureau for transmission to the next of kin.

The detail involved in receiving, storing, safeguarding, and shipping personal property was immense.  Each package was handled separately in order that the name, status, and other pertinent data would be correctly recorded.

This is a copy of an Inventory of Effects that details my great-uncle's personal property that shipped to my great-grandparents.  It included an Asiatic-Pacific military ribbon with insignia, rosary beads, a pay record with miscellaneous papers, and a snapshot (photo).  I wonder if there was anyone in the photo, and if so, who?

Photo of the Day

This is a photo of my paternal aunt taken in the 1960s outside of her home in New Castle, Delaware.  It looks like she may have been getting ready to go to a dance.

Diane Odgers
(1951 - 2002)