~I’ll need Cathy, Ruth, and Tom to help fill in the blanks. I will add to this story as I find some of my notes and old letters from Elva.~
I was only five when my Daddy died in 1973. Unfortunately, all I know of him are in facts and records. One of the memories I do have of him is of us washing dishes together. He would let me stand on a step stool next to him at the sink. I remember giggling with him, over what, I do not know. One other memory I have is from the paper that covers straws in restaurants. When we would take the paper covers off, he would put a drop of liquid on them and they would unravel like a worm. Another is of us driving to Disney World. He would point to what I now know as the global shaped water tower and tell me that (the glowing lights atop) were Minnie and Mickey. All other memories of him are from pictures.
Art, as everyone called him, was born 22 Nov 1924 in Indiana, Pennsylvania to Glenn Logan and Hilda Kunkle. He had brown hair and brown eyes and was 5′ 10″ and 150 lbs.
By the age of six they were in Pontiac, Michigan. I am not sure what brought his family, including his grandparents, to Michigan, but he lived and went to high school there.
He attended Pontiac High School, but only completed the 10th grade at age 17.
Continuing to struggle in school he joined the Army the next year, at age 18 years of age.
At Fort Custer, Michigan, he became Service # W-2149446. He started out as a Radio Operator using International Morse Code; he became Military Qualified in MKM with the M1 Rifle. During this time he also was employed with the General Motors Company for two months operating their drill press.
In 1943 he was in Oakland County and joined their theater group. Among other decorations, he received the American Theater Ribbon, the European-American-Middle Eastern Theater Ribbon, and the Asiatic-Pacific Theater Ribbon. After that he fought in WWII in Central Europe between 1944 and 1945.
By the end of 1945 he was married to Virginia Barker, she was 19. On the 3rd of June, 1946 he filled out a Veteran’s Application for a Course of Education or Training in Lynwood County, Los Angeles, California. Eight months later, their son, Arthur Lee Logan, Jr. was born in Los Angeles. He spent five years as a short story writer for the Newspaper Institute of America.
Five months later, they were back in Michigan and Art was a Personnel Management Technician; Military Qual: Rifle M1 Sharp Shooter.
A year later, he was in South Carolina as a Personnel Technician as Sergeant; assignment of men, administering tests and administration.
On 4 Nov 1949 he was transferred from South Carolina to Atlanta, Georgia. where their daughter, Cathy Rainell Logan, was born on July 27, 1950.
I know he fought in the Korean War and was sent to Japan on 17 Apr 1952 and returned on 3 May 1953.
I do not know much between then and when Art divorced Virginia and married Marie Carmean.
Art and Marie had a son, Thomas Lee Logan, born 10 Oct. 1954 in Pontiac, Michigan.
After a year, on October 1, 1955, he submitted papers at Camp Atterbury, Indiana, “WW II Vet Desires Release”. His papers list him as Blood Group A and a Korean War Vet.
Five years later, they ended up in Florida and on Feb 5, 1960, Art, Jr., also known as “Stevie”, passed away in Jacksonville Beach, Florida.
Less than a year later, Art and Marie had a daughter, Ruth Lynn Logan, born on 17 Jan 1961. Nine months later, Art and Marie divorced.
According to my Mom, she met Dad in 1962 at a little theater, The Little Theatre of Jacksonville in San Marco, Jacksonville, FL. Daddy did some acting there, but on this particular evening he was in the audience. He and mom chatted and became friends. She was smitten. But, he was 19 yrs older than her and she was still in high school. They went their separate ways.
A few years later they started conversing via post mail.
By July of 1967, Art was in Kettle Falls, Washington, where his parents lived, and married Gayle Wescott (she was D’Agosta at the time) after she left Jacksonville, FL to follow him there.
A year later, their daughter, Marguerite “Marlee” Lenore Logan was born on 25 Aug 1968 back in Jacksonville, FL. Gayle had a son, Steven, from her previous marriage.
Three months later, his mother, Hilda Kunkle Logan, died in Kettle Falls.
A year and four months after their daughter was born, in December of 1969, Art and Gayle divorced. Art moved to an apartment on Blanding Boulevard in Jacksonville where he died of a heart attack on 11 Sep 1973, he was found by his brother Glenn. He was cremated four days later and buried without a headstone, in the same grave as his son, Art Jr. at Greenlawn Cemetery on Beach Boulevard in Jacksonville, FL.
I discovered Daddy’s funeral paperwork in 1992 and realized that he did not have a headstone because the family could not afford to pay off his plot debt. So, his cremated remains were buried in the same plot and at the feet of Art Jr. Art Jr. was always known as Stevie or Steve.
I decided to honor this war veteran, my Daddy, by trying to get him a stone. On August 5, 1992 I wrote to the Department of Memorial Affairs at the Veterans Administration in Washington, D.C. to plead my case. Soon after I received a government form, “Application for Standard Government Headstone or Marker” and filled it out. Although the basic headstone was free, I opted to upgrade to granite and paid $240. It turned out beautifully. I was not able add Art Jr.’s name unfortunately.
Sometime around 1992 I also wrote requesting Daddy’s service record. The copy quality is not good, but I was able to learn quite a lot. During his time in the Army, Dad received many medals and decorations. No one knows what happened to all of these, but I was able to get duplication medals made and sent to me. I received a letter from The National Archives in November of 2015 letting me know the medals I would be receiving. They had also found some of his military paperwork that had survived a fire at their center on July 12, 1973.
Arthur Logan VA Records from fire
The medals the Department of the Army sent me are:
- Good Conduct Medal, 2nd award
- American Campaign Medal
- Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
- European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 1 bronze service star
- Army of Occupation Medal with Japan clasp
- National Defense Service Medal
- Korean Service Medal with 2 bronze service stars
- United Nations Service Medal
- Sharpshooter Badge with rifle bar
- Marksman Badge with rifle bar
I would be lying if I said I never thought about what my life would have been like if Daddy had lived. But, then again, I probably would not have my “heart”, Daniel, and being without him is unthinkable.
~If anyone sees anything in error with my dates or facts or can help fill in the blanks, please email me.~
Read more about the Descendants of John Logan, Sr. at
Loganalogy- The Family Historian 