Alden Watts, Jr.

WATTS, JAIRL, RANDOLPH

Posted By: Jean Wenke, volunteer
Date: 3/6/2009 at 15:08:50

Mr. and Mrs. Alden Watts of Bonaparte received the official notification on Tuesday from the war department of the death of their son, Alden Watts, Jr., age 30, on Okinawa on June 15, 1944.

Mr. and Mrs. Watts had heard indirectly last week end by a letter of Elwin Muntz of Mindanao to his wife at Bonaparte that Alden had been fatally wounded by a Jap thrown hand grenade at night on June 14, and had died on the 15th.

The information came to Elwin Muntz by way of a chain latter written by eight cousins in the Pacific war theatre. Alden had written an installment of this letter on June 14 and it was mailed by his sergeant to Elwin Muntz following his death.

Names of the cousins participating in the chain letter are LaVerne and Donald Von Seggen, Elwin Muntz, Dinsmore Muntz, Merle Muntz, Melvin Muntz, Vernon Muntz and Alden Watts, Jr.

Alden is survived by his parents and three sisters, Mrs. Beatrice Jairl of Cincinnati, Iowa, Mrs. Faye Randolph and Miss Freida Watts of Bonaparte.

He was born Dec. 28, 1914 and was graduated from Bonaparte high school with the class of 1932. He was inducted into the army Oct. 26, 1942 and had served overseas for eleven months with a company of engineers.

From Dorothy Watson's scrapbook, Bonaparte, Iowa Library