Son of Harley Benjamin WELCH & Sylvania ESTEP. Served under General PATTON in WW II in Germany.
Clyde was born in the Oklahoma oil town of Drumright in 1925. He was 20 months old when his father died.
Then Vania moved her boys to Hulbert, Oklahoma where she owned a small cafe. It was at this time she met and married John Hubert Allen and had three more children. J.D. (aka "June"), Vera Lee, and Mary Christian (Christine).
This marriage ended in divorce but being the good Baptist she was, Vania never remarried.
Clyde attended school in Hulbert until the 8th grade, when in 1941 he attended the Electric Arc Welding School, National Youth Administration in nearby Muskogee, Oklahoma.
The largest town nearest Hulbert was Tahlequah. At about the age of 16, Clyde was visiting in Tahlequah when a little girl saw him walking down the street..... "That's my man, if I never get him." That girl was Nina Keys.
Nina didn't see Clyde for a couple of more years. He went to Desoto, Kansas to stay with his brother, Orval, his wife, Floy and their new son, Orval Jr. While there he worked for Brodrick and Gordon, making major repairs on heavy machinery and becoming what you'd call a 'tractor mechanic.' Meantime, World War II had broken out and Clyde's older brother Bill had gone missing in action some where in Burma. Orval, the oldest, had moved to Washington State at the time so Clyde decided he'd go out there to join the Army and go find his brother Bill. He worked awhile for Guy F. Atkinson in Hanford, Washingtion, then for the Army Engineers Supply Depot before joining the Army. His reasoning for going to Washington was that if he enlisted on the West Coast, they would send him to Oklahoma for basic training and he'd be close to home. It worked. He was stationed at Fort Sill.
An 18 year old private in the U.S. Army, he entered the service on February 18, 1944. He spent four and a half months in basic training. He would soon be sent to France and Germany, where he was gravely injured.
They met in Tahlequah, Oklahoma and married in Fort Smith, Arkansas, December 13th, 1944. He was soon shipped out to France and Germany to serve with the 37th and 26th tank battalions in Patton's 3rd Army during the second World War.
Clyde left for Europe from New York City, February 5, 1945 and arrived in France February 17. He was Assigned with the 37th Tank Battalion where he served eight months as a tank driver. He served fifteen months as an Army Scout with both the 37th (2736) and 26th (761) Tank Battalions. It was at this time he was promoted to private-first-class, a member of a nine man reconnaissance scout crew. During the Central Europe Campaign he used a jeep or half-track to make reconnaissance of roads, bridges and towns that lay in the path of advancing tank colums. He operated the radio to keep in contact with the battalion and sometimes used the jeep to carry messages back and forth. His basic weapon was the Garand rifle, although he was trained in the use of all small weaponery. He also carried hand grenades, land mines and demolition explosives.
After Clyde returned from WW II (He was in Gen. Patton's 3rd Army Tank Corp. in Germany.) he and Nina and their little girl, Elizabeth Clydean left Oklahoma for the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, where they had two more children, Donna Jean and David Levene. A little place called Big Oak Flat near Groveland, Ca. Nothing more than a logging camp back then, life was good there.
They lived in a cabin Clyde built himself and he had a steady job as a logger. Then one day he was riding in the cab of a pick up truck that was transporting the men to the job site when the driver missed the curve in the road and sent them over a 300 ft. cliff. The 2 men in the back were thrown clear, Clyde was thrown half out of the cab... hitting his head on every rock and tree 'till the pick up finally came to rest by the edge of a little stream at the foot of the embankment. The driver suffered a broken leg, cuts and bruises but was able to summon help.
Twice Clyde was given up for dead and twice some anonymous nurse refused to accept that. She worked on him and stayed right by his side until he was out of danger. Her name has passed from memory but so much is owed her.
Of course, recovery was slow and he was not able to work so the family moved down to Huntington Park where Vania was now living. No such thing as welfare back then, at least nothing Clyde would accept. Vania worked for a wonderful couple named Everett and Opal Murrey and as soon as he was able, they gave him a job as "Night Watchman" there.
Now, they had no need of a night watchman but created the job just to help this young couple with 3 small children needing help. When Clyde ask Everett how he could ever possibly repay him. Uncle Everett simply said "Someday someone else will need help, help him."
Clyde was born in the Oklahoma oil town of Drumright in 1925. He was 20 months old when his father died.
Then Vania moved her boys to Hulbert, Oklahoma where she owned a small cafe. It was at this time she met and married John Hubert Allen and had three more children. J.D. (aka "June"), Vera Lee, and Mary Christian (Christine).
This marriage ended in divorce but being the good Baptist she was, Vania never remarried.
Clyde attended school in Hulbert until the 8th grade, when in 1941 he attended the Electric Arc Welding School, National Youth Administration in nearby Muskogee, Oklahoma.
The largest town nearest Hulbert was Tahlequah. At about the age of 16, Clyde was visiting in Tahlequah when a little girl saw him walking down the street..... "That's my man, if I never get him." That girl was Nina Keys.
Nina didn't see Clyde for a couple of more years. He went to Desoto, Kansas to stay with his brother, Orval, his wife, Floy and their new son, Orval Jr. While there he worked for Brodrick and Gordon, making major repairs on heavy machinery and becoming what you'd call a 'tractor mechanic.' Meantime, World War II had broken out and Clyde's older brother Bill had gone missing in action some where in Burma. Orval, the oldest, had moved to Washington State at the time so Clyde decided he'd go out there to join the Army and go find his brother Bill. He worked awhile for Guy F. Atkinson in Hanford, Washingtion, then for the Army Engineers Supply Depot before joining the Army. His reasoning for going to Washington was that if he enlisted on the West Coast, they would send him to Oklahoma for basic training and he'd be close to home. It worked. He was stationed at Fort Sill.
An 18 year old private in the U.S. Army, he entered the service on February 18, 1944. He spent four and a half months in basic training. He would soon be sent to France and Germany, where he was gravely injured.
They met in Tahlequah, Oklahoma and married in Fort Smith, Arkansas, December 13th, 1944. He was soon shipped out to France and Germany to serve with the 37th and 26th tank battalions in Patton's 3rd Army during the second World War.
Clyde left for Europe from New York City, February 5, 1945 and arrived in France February 17. He was Assigned with the 37th Tank Battalion where he served eight months as a tank driver. He served fifteen months as an Army Scout with both the 37th (2736) and 26th (761) Tank Battalions. It was at this time he was promoted to private-first-class, a member of a nine man reconnaissance scout crew. During the Central Europe Campaign he used a jeep or half-track to make reconnaissance of roads, bridges and towns that lay in the path of advancing tank colums. He operated the radio to keep in contact with the battalion and sometimes used the jeep to carry messages back and forth. His basic weapon was the Garand rifle, although he was trained in the use of all small weaponery. He also carried hand grenades, land mines and demolition explosives.
After Clyde returned from WW II (He was in Gen. Patton's 3rd Army Tank Corp. in Germany.) he and Nina and their little girl, Elizabeth Clydean left Oklahoma for the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, where they had two more children, Donna Jean and David Levene. A little place called Big Oak Flat near Groveland, Ca. Nothing more than a logging camp back then, life was good there.
They lived in a cabin Clyde built himself and he had a steady job as a logger. Then one day he was riding in the cab of a pick up truck that was transporting the men to the job site when the driver missed the curve in the road and sent them over a 300 ft. cliff. The 2 men in the back were thrown clear, Clyde was thrown half out of the cab... hitting his head on every rock and tree 'till the pick up finally came to rest by the edge of a little stream at the foot of the embankment. The driver suffered a broken leg, cuts and bruises but was able to summon help.
Twice Clyde was given up for dead and twice some anonymous nurse refused to accept that. She worked on him and stayed right by his side until he was out of danger. Her name has passed from memory but so much is owed her.
Of course, recovery was slow and he was not able to work so the family moved down to Huntington Park where Vania was now living. No such thing as welfare back then, at least nothing Clyde would accept. Vania worked for a wonderful couple named Everett and Opal Murrey and as soon as he was able, they gave him a job as "Night Watchman" there.
Now, they had no need of a night watchman but created the job just to help this young couple with 3 small children needing help. When Clyde ask Everett how he could ever possibly repay him. Uncle Everett simply said "Someday someone else will need help, help him."
Son of Harley Benjamin WELCH & Sylvania ESTEP. Served under General PATTON in WW II in Germany.
Clyde was born in the Oklahoma oil town of Drumright in 1925. He was 20 months old when his father died.
Then Vania moved her boys to Hulbert, Oklahoma where she owned a small cafe. It was at this time she met and married John Hubert Allen and had three more children. J.D. (aka "June"), Vera Lee, and Mary Christian (Christine).
This marriage ended in divorce but being the good Baptist she was, Vania never remarried.
Clyde attended school in Hulbert until the 8th grade, when in 1941 he attended the Electric Arc Welding School, National Youth Administration in nearby Muskogee, Oklahoma.
The largest town nearest Hulbert was Tahlequah. At about the age of 16, Clyde was visiting in Tahlequah when a little girl saw him walking down the street..... "That's my man, if I never get him." That girl was Nina Keys.
Nina didn't see Clyde for a couple of more years. He went to Desoto, Kansas to stay with his brother, Orval, his wife, Floy and their new son, Orval Jr. While there he worked for Brodrick and Gordon, making major repairs on heavy machinery and becoming what you'd call a 'tractor mechanic.' Meantime, World War II had broken out and Clyde's older brother Bill had gone missing in action some where in Burma. Orval, the oldest, had moved to Washington State at the time so Clyde decided he'd go out there to join the Army and go find his brother Bill. He worked awhile for Guy F. Atkinson in Hanford, Washingtion, then for the Army Engineers Supply Depot before joining the Army. His reasoning for going to Washington was that if he enlisted on the West Coast, they would send him to Oklahoma for basic training and he'd be close to home. It worked. He was stationed at Fort Sill.
An 18 year old private in the U.S. Army, he entered the service on February 18, 1944. He spent four and a half months in basic training. He would soon be sent to France and Germany, where he was gravely injured.
They met in Tahlequah, Oklahoma and married in Fort Smith, Arkansas, December 13th, 1944. He was soon shipped out to France and Germany to serve with the 37th and 26th tank battalions in Patton's 3rd Army during the second World War.
Clyde left for Europe from New York City, February 5, 1945 and arrived in France February 17. He was Assigned with the 37th Tank Battalion where he served eight months as a tank driver. He served fifteen months as an Army Scout with both the 37th (2736) and 26th (761) Tank Battalions. It was at this time he was promoted to private-first-class, a member of a nine man reconnaissance scout crew. During the Central Europe Campaign he used a jeep or half-track to make reconnaissance of roads, bridges and towns that lay in the path of advancing tank colums. He operated the radio to keep in contact with the battalion and sometimes used the jeep to carry messages back and forth. His basic weapon was the Garand rifle, although he was trained in the use of all small weaponery. He also carried hand grenades, land mines and demolition explosives.
After Clyde returned from WW II (He was in Gen. Patton's 3rd Army Tank Corp. in Germany.) he and Nina and their little girl, Elizabeth Clydean left Oklahoma for the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, where they had two more children, Donna Jean and David Levene. A little place called Big Oak Flat near Groveland, Ca. Nothing more than a logging camp back then, life was good there.
They lived in a cabin Clyde built himself and he had a steady job as a logger. Then one day he was riding in the cab of a pick up truck that was transporting the men to the job site when the driver missed the curve in the road and sent them over a 300 ft. cliff. The 2 men in the back were thrown clear, Clyde was thrown half out of the cab... hitting his head on every rock and tree 'till the pick up finally came to rest by the edge of a little stream at the foot of the embankment. The driver suffered a broken leg, cuts and bruises but was able to summon help.
Twice Clyde was given up for dead and twice some anonymous nurse refused to accept that. She worked on him and stayed right by his side until he was out of danger. Her name has passed from memory but so much is owed her.
Of course, recovery was slow and he was not able to work so the family moved down to Huntington Park where Vania was now living. No such thing as welfare back then, at least nothing Clyde would accept. Vania worked for a wonderful couple named Everett and Opal Murrey and as soon as he was able, they gave him a job as "Night Watchman" there.
Now, they had no need of a night watchman but created the job just to help this young couple with 3 small children needing help. When Clyde ask Everett how he could ever possibly repay him. Uncle Everett simply said "Someday someone else will need help, help him."
Clyde was born in the Oklahoma oil town of Drumright in 1925. He was 20 months old when his father died.
Then Vania moved her boys to Hulbert, Oklahoma where she owned a small cafe. It was at this time she met and married John Hubert Allen and had three more children. J.D. (aka "June"), Vera Lee, and Mary Christian (Christine).
This marriage ended in divorce but being the good Baptist she was, Vania never remarried.
Clyde attended school in Hulbert until the 8th grade, when in 1941 he attended the Electric Arc Welding School, National Youth Administration in nearby Muskogee, Oklahoma.
The largest town nearest Hulbert was Tahlequah. At about the age of 16, Clyde was visiting in Tahlequah when a little girl saw him walking down the street..... "That's my man, if I never get him." That girl was Nina Keys.
Nina didn't see Clyde for a couple of more years. He went to Desoto, Kansas to stay with his brother, Orval, his wife, Floy and their new son, Orval Jr. While there he worked for Brodrick and Gordon, making major repairs on heavy machinery and becoming what you'd call a 'tractor mechanic.' Meantime, World War II had broken out and Clyde's older brother Bill had gone missing in action some where in Burma. Orval, the oldest, had moved to Washington State at the time so Clyde decided he'd go out there to join the Army and go find his brother Bill. He worked awhile for Guy F. Atkinson in Hanford, Washingtion, then for the Army Engineers Supply Depot before joining the Army. His reasoning for going to Washington was that if he enlisted on the West Coast, they would send him to Oklahoma for basic training and he'd be close to home. It worked. He was stationed at Fort Sill.
An 18 year old private in the U.S. Army, he entered the service on February 18, 1944. He spent four and a half months in basic training. He would soon be sent to France and Germany, where he was gravely injured.
They met in Tahlequah, Oklahoma and married in Fort Smith, Arkansas, December 13th, 1944. He was soon shipped out to France and Germany to serve with the 37th and 26th tank battalions in Patton's 3rd Army during the second World War.
Clyde left for Europe from New York City, February 5, 1945 and arrived in France February 17. He was Assigned with the 37th Tank Battalion where he served eight months as a tank driver. He served fifteen months as an Army Scout with both the 37th (2736) and 26th (761) Tank Battalions. It was at this time he was promoted to private-first-class, a member of a nine man reconnaissance scout crew. During the Central Europe Campaign he used a jeep or half-track to make reconnaissance of roads, bridges and towns that lay in the path of advancing tank colums. He operated the radio to keep in contact with the battalion and sometimes used the jeep to carry messages back and forth. His basic weapon was the Garand rifle, although he was trained in the use of all small weaponery. He also carried hand grenades, land mines and demolition explosives.
After Clyde returned from WW II (He was in Gen. Patton's 3rd Army Tank Corp. in Germany.) he and Nina and their little girl, Elizabeth Clydean left Oklahoma for the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, where they had two more children, Donna Jean and David Levene. A little place called Big Oak Flat near Groveland, Ca. Nothing more than a logging camp back then, life was good there.
They lived in a cabin Clyde built himself and he had a steady job as a logger. Then one day he was riding in the cab of a pick up truck that was transporting the men to the job site when the driver missed the curve in the road and sent them over a 300 ft. cliff. The 2 men in the back were thrown clear, Clyde was thrown half out of the cab... hitting his head on every rock and tree 'till the pick up finally came to rest by the edge of a little stream at the foot of the embankment. The driver suffered a broken leg, cuts and bruises but was able to summon help.
Twice Clyde was given up for dead and twice some anonymous nurse refused to accept that. She worked on him and stayed right by his side until he was out of danger. Her name has passed from memory but so much is owed her.
Of course, recovery was slow and he was not able to work so the family moved down to Huntington Park where Vania was now living. No such thing as welfare back then, at least nothing Clyde would accept. Vania worked for a wonderful couple named Everett and Opal Murrey and as soon as he was able, they gave him a job as "Night Watchman" there.
Now, they had no need of a night watchman but created the job just to help this young couple with 3 small children needing help. When Clyde ask Everett how he could ever possibly repay him. Uncle Everett simply said "Someday someone else will need help, help him."
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