Where are these Clinton County veterans buried?
By Rhonda Dedyne
Gordon Shipley has been a man on a mission for more than a decade.
The quest – create a database of all Clinton County veterans who have lost their lives in all wars of the United States that includes detailed information about each person: birth and death dates; service records; burial locations.
On Memorial Day 2014 as we pay homage once again to the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to their country, the Vietnam veteran’s mission is nearly complete. Shipley is reasonably confident that the names of all deceased veterans are engraved on granite tablets that are part of the Clinton County Veterans Memorial in downtown St. Johns – but he is still searching for burial site and other information on a trio of veterans.
Those servicemen include Joseph Esch who served and died in World War I; Gilbert Carrasco who lost his life in World War II; and Korea veteran, William Jewel.
“I’ve been able to gather quite a bit of information about all three through research on various web sites and newspaper articles and even in conversations with relatives, but I still do not have burial site information for them,” Shipley says.
What he does know about each is impressive.
Joseph Esch was born Aug. 28, 1878 in Westphalia. He moved to Canada where he served as a sergeant in the Canadian Army Troop. His death date is unknown. Shipley’s research from a newspaper article during World War I shows that a brother in Grand Rapids received notice of Joseph’s death. Shipley believes he may be buried in Canada.
Gilbert Carrasco was initially listed as missing in action on Christmas Day 1945; later updated to killed in action on that date. Shipley suspects he may have died during the Battle of the Bulge. His widow, Trinidad Gomez, is believed to be from St. Johns. Shipley’s research indicates that his wife flew to Maverick County, Texas. It was thought that Carrasco might be buried in Eagle Pass, Texas, but that has not been confirmed. He may be buried in Mexico.
William Jewel attended Lemming School in Olive Township, but little else is known about his life in Clinton County. He was killed in Korea on March 4, 1951, while serving with the U.S. Marine Corps. He received a Bronze Star and Purple Heart. Shipley has no record of when his body was returned to the United States or where he might be buried. It is believed that Jewel was born in the Bellvue area and may be buried there, but that has not been confirmed.
Shipley is optimistic that information on the burial locations of the three veterans will come to light – someday.
“Someone has the information, somewhere, and eventually I hope they let me know,” he says.
In the meantime, Shipley continues to search web sites like “Find A Grave” and data bases for National Cemeteries around the United States. Those have been helpful in securing burial information on Civil War veterans who lived in Clinton County.
“There are probably 100 Civil War veterans on the Clinton County list that I do not have burial information about,” he says. “There are good records on the deaths of Civil War veterans, but not always where they are buried – some may be in unmarked graves.”
If you have information on the burial locations of Esch, Carrasco and Jewel, or any of the veterans on the total Clinton County Veterans List that’s included in this week’s St. Johns Independent, contact Shipley at (989) 224-4792, or email the Indy at mail@sjindy.com.
Shipley’s list and current information on Clinton County veterans is available for on-site review only at Briggs Public Library in downtown St. Johns; not available for check-out.
Visit Find a Grave at http://www.findagrave.com/
See Gordon Shipley’s Clinton County Veteran Memorial Roll Call
