I HAD MANY CONVERSATIONS WITH MY UNCLE ALBERT AND HE RELATED THE FOLLOWING WAR EXPERIENCES TO ME(RON)
Uncle Albert is the son of James Albert Kinser and Dona Callie Moore Kinser.
Albert was married twice but had no children. His early life and survival was a miracle: UNCLE ALBERT WAS BORN SEPTEMBER 28, 1915 IN CLEBURNE, JOHNSON CO., TX. THIS STORY OF HIS EARLY FIGHT FOR LIFE WAS GIVEN TO ME BY HIS SISTER, VIVIAN MARIE KINSER. MARIE WAS BORN IN 1908 THUS WAS 7 YEARS OLD WHEN THIS STORY WAS UNFOLDING.
SHORTLY AFTER ALBERT BIRTH HE BEGAN TO HAVE "STOMACH PROBLEMS". HE COULDN'T HOLD ANY FOOD IN HIS STOMACH. HE HAD STARTED OUT BEING BREAST FED BY HIS MOTHER. SHORTLY AFTER TAKING HIS MILK HE WOULD HAVE A VIOLENT VOMIT. OTHER FORMULAS WERE TRIED, BUT NOTHING HELPED. HE NEVER GAINED WEIGHT AS A NORMAL CHILD USUALLY DOES. IN FACT HE BEGAN TO LOSE WEIGHT. HE WAS TAKEN TO A CLINIC IN FT. WORTH. THE DOCTORS TOLD THE PARENTS THAT HE WAS NOT EMPTYING HIS STOMACH BECAUSE THE PYLORIC VALVE WASN'T FUNCTIONING PROPERLY. THEY TOLD THE PARENTS THAT IF NOT CORRECTED SOON HE WOULD DIE OF STARVATION. AT THIS POINT IN THE STORY I WANT TO POINT OUT THAT THE YEAR WAS 1915. THIS KIND OF OPERATION IN 1915 WAS ONLY ABOUT 10% SUCCESSFUL. THERE WERE NO ANTIBIOTICS AND THE OPERATION AT THAT TIME HAD NOT REALLY BEEN PERFECTED AND FEW SURGEONS IN TEXAS HAD EVER ATTEMPTED IT. SO DONNA AND PAPA WERE FACED WITH A DIFFICULT CHOICE.PAPA HAD BEGUN HIS PREACHING ABOUT THIS TIME. HE TOLD EVERY ONE IF ALBERT SURVIVED HE WOULD GO INTO FULL TIME MINISTRY. THE OTHER THING THEY WERE TOLD WAS THAT NO CHILDREN COULD VISIT IN ALBERT'S ROOM AND THAT IT WOULD TAKE PERHAPS 1 OR 2 MONTHS AFTER SURGERY BEFORE THEY WOULD EVEN CONSIDER LETTING HIM COME HOME. SO DONA AND PAPA SET ABOUT FINDING A PLACE FOR THE OTHER CHILDREN TO LIVE DURING THIS PERIOD. MARIE SAID SHE DOESN'T REMEMBER VERY WELL WHERE EACH OF THEM WENT, BUT FOR HERSELF. SHE SAID SHE THOUGHT ELGIE STAYED WITH GRAND PARENTS, SAMUEL PETER AND MARGRET ANNA. JUST DIDN'T REMEMBER WHERE FARRIS AND MARGARET STAYED. MARIE STAYED WITH DONA'S SISTER, SAMANTHA OR AUNT MANCE AS MOTHER KNEW HER AND HER HUSBAND, UNCLE BOB. AT THE TIME THEY HAD NO CHILDREN SO MARIE GOT ALL OF THEIR ATTENTION. SHE LOVED THAT SHE SAID AND THE ONLY TOUGH PART WAS THAT SHE HAD TO GO BACK HOME WHEN THEY FINALLY LET ALBERT RETURN . MARIE SAID SHE KEPT THINKING AUNT MANCE AND UNCLE BOB WERE GOING TO ADOPT HER. HOWEVER, SHORTLY AFTER SHE RETURNED HOME WITH HER FAMILY AUNT MANCE AND UNCLE BOB ADOPTED A SON THEY NAMED LEROY. SO ALBERT GREW UP FROM HIS SURGERY, I SAY IT IS A MIRACLE. HE WAS NEVER A VERY STRONG PERSON OR ATHLETIC IN ANY WAY. WHEN HE REGISTERED FOR THE DRAFT IN 1941 HE ONLY WEIGHED 121 LBS. AT THE END OF WW 2 AFTER 18 MONTHS AS A GERMAN POW HE WEIGHED 87 LBS. WHEN HE WORKED ON A FARM NEAR DANZIG, GERMANY HE HAD A FAIR AMOUNT OF FOOD. THE RUSSIANS WERE PUSHING WESTWARD AND HE AND SEVERAL THOUSAND OTHERS WERE FORCED MARCHED ACROSS GERMANY WITH ONLY RAW POTATOES TO EAT. THAT IS WHY HE ONLY WEIGHED 115 LBS. HE WAS FREED BY THE BRITISH IN WESTERN GERMANY CLOSE TO THE SMALL TOWN OF CELL. AFTER SEVERAL DAYS THEY LOADED HUNDREDS ABOARD A TROOP SHIP TO BRING THEM HOME AND THEY FORCED FED ALL OF THEM. THE FIRST THING I REMEMBER ABOUT ALBERT WHEN HE ARRIVED IN ABILENE IN JUNE, 1945 WAS HOW BLOATED AND PUFFY HE LOOKED. THEN HE TRIMMED UP AND AFTER SEVERAL MONTHS BEGAN TO HAVE BETTER MUSCLE
TONE AND LOOK NORMAL.
AFTER ALBERT'S SURVIVAL IN 1915 PAPA BEGAN A FULL TIME MINISTRY IN THE BAPTIST CHURCH. HE WENT FROM BEING A PASTOR TO THE EVANGELISTIC FIELD.
ALBERT joined the national guard in 1939. shortly after WW II began in 1941
He was sent to Camp Bowie in Brownwood, TEXAS where he
trained as a medical corpsman in the 36th Infantry Division. He was in the invasion of North Africa and at Salerno, Italy. He was captured by the
Germans at Salerno and remained a POW for 19 months. Uncle Albert told
me the following stories about his experiences.
While in North Africa there was a large commotion in the nearby village
that lasted all night. At sunup the natives could be seen out working in
the fields. They were able to find out that one of the women had a baby
during the night, but every thing was ok as she was pointed out working
with the other women in the field.
At the time of his capture he had been given the job of tagging the dead
on the battlefield. His company was marching along a road about 3 miles
from the beach when they came under heavy German artillery fire. Their
captain sent the order to scatter. Very soon US
troops began firing into
the same area and there was total confusion. Night came and Albert
teamed up with a buddy from Waco, Texas. They crawled into a shelled house
and spent the night. Early the next morning the shelling started again
from both sides and a water pipe broke in the basement. There were
chickens roosting and they began to make a lot of noise which drew the
attention of German troops. They were captured. and spent 10 days in box
cars while being shipped to Danzig, North Germany on the Polish border.
He and many others worked on farms. He worked for one family in
particular and was shown where a chicken laid her egg, Three daughters
treated the POWs well giving them bread and meat when they could..They
told the Americans that not everyone supported the war and did not
believe in what was happening. A German officer found out about their
help and ordered the women to be beaten. Uncle Albert brought back
pictures of the women.
Toward the end of the war the Soviet troops were heading west so the
Germans began to move the POWs west across Germany. They marched
900 miles IN about 4 months where they were retaken by the British at
Cell, Germany. Along the way many hardships were met. Their diet
consisted of potatoes, mainly eaten raw. Interestingly, they were paid in
worthless German money. They used the paper to start fires which made
the guards mad, but there was not much they could do about it. As they
marched on the road, US and British planes, thinking the POWs were
troops, fired on them as the men went to the fields. Many were killed and
wounded. The men began to march in formations making a POW and this
helped. At the end Albert had lost weight down to about 87 lbs. Before
he arrived home in mid-summer 1945 he said they were almost force fed
and he had gained a lot of weight and my first impression was that he
was bloated. He returned to work and became a shoe salesman for many
years in Abilene, TX. However, his health was broken and he never
regained it, becoming 100% disabled the last years of his life. Thank you,
Uncle Albert for your sacrifice.
After the war Uncle Albert began a career as top shoe salesman and manager of the shoe dept. at Grissoms department store in Abilene, TX. He retired around 1975 and went on total military disability. He had never totally recovered from his war experiences and died of PNEUMONIA AS A COMPLICATION OF LUNG CANCER in 1981.
Taylor Co., TEXAS war vets have established a memorial on the north side of the courthouse in Abilene, TEXAS. The center piece is a statue about 15 feet high DEPICTING a combat soldier. Surrounding the statue are bricks INSCRIBED with information about the person you wish to honor. In April 2002, Albert's sisters, Marie and Farris, had a brick placed in this memorial. It reads Albert F. Kinser, 36th Division, WWII, POW, 1915-1981
FOLLOWING OBIT FROM ABILENE REPORTER NEWS
AL Kinser
Albert Foster "Al" .Kinser, . 66, pf 2121 N. Sixth St., died at E 1 a.m. Thursday at the Veterans Admhiistration hospital in Temple Services will be at noon Saturday at El1iott-Hamil Funeral Home, 542, . Hickory St.
Dr. ,James Flamming of . First Baptist Church will officiate. Burial .wtll be at Elmwood 'Memorial Park.
Born September 29, 1915, in Cleburne, Texas he married Faye Waldrop in l950 in Abilene. She died in 1978.He was a shoe. salesman at Grissom's department stores until he retired in 1977. A veteran of World War II, he served in the: 36th Infantry Division and was a prisoner of war for' two years after he was captured by the Germans in Salerno, Italy. He was a member of First Baptist Church.
Survivors include four sisters, Mrs. Glenn Rutledge of
. 4718 Circle 19, Marie Humphrey of 1349 Hickory St. Mrs. Burl Wilkes of Arlington and Mrs. Dill Pace of Sweetwater.; a stepson,' Don Waldrop of Abilene; and. a stepdaughter, Barbara Waldrop of Montgomery, Ala.,
Pallbearers will be Billy Brashear, Horace Hanks, Sam Ritchey, Earl Wheeler, Mack Wilson and Jimmie Roe.
The family will be at 2121 N. Sixth, Apt: 109.
DEATH WAS THE RESULT OF PNEUMONIA COMPLICATED BY LUNG CANCER HERE IS A STORY FROM OUR AUNT FARRIS.
ELGIE AND MARIE WERE THE ONES WHO TOOK ALBERT DOWN TO THE VET HOSPITAL IN TEMPLE TX ON THE FIRST VISIT THIS WAS IN AUGUST OF 1981. THEY EXAMINED HIM AND SENT HIM BACK HOME.
HE CONTINUED HIS DECLINE SO ABOUT 2 WEEKS LATER AUNT FARRIS TOOK HIM BACK TO TEMPLE. FARRIS SAID IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL DAY SO SHE PARKED AND TOLD ALBERT SHE WOULD GO GET A WHEEL CHAIR AND A NURSE TO HELP HIM GET INTO THE HOSPITAL. HE SAID NO HE WANTED TO WALK IN. AND SO HE DID. AFTER THEY CHECKED HIM IN AND THE DOCTOR EXAMINED HIM, THE DOCTOR RETURNED TO FARRIS. HE SAID HE UNDERSTOOD ALBERT HAD WALKED INTO THE FRONT DOOR UNASSISTED AND TOLD FARRIS THAT WAS IMPOSSIBLE WITH THE SHAPE HE WAS IN. FARRIS SAID THAT WAS WHAT HE HAD DONE!. THE DOCTOR SAID IN THE CONDITION ALBERT WAS IN HE COULD HARDLY BELIEVE ALBERT COULD DO THAT. FARRIS SAID SHE TOLD HIM THAT ALBERT WAS PRETTY TOUGH AND HAD BEEN ON THE GERMAN DEATH MARCH IN WW2. SHE SAID THE DOCTOR NODDED HIS HEAD AND SAID HE COULD UNDERSTAND. THEY ADMITTED ALBERT TO HOSPITAL AND GAVE HIM PAIN KILLERS. THAT WAS ALL THEY COULD DO FOR HIM AS THE CANCER WAS SO ADVANCED. HE LIVED JUST A FEW MORE DAYS AND DIED. HE HAD MADE HIS LAST MARCH, GOD BLESS HIS SPIRIT.
AFTER LOOKING AT THE WAR, MY THOUGHTS KEEP RETURNING TO ALBERT.
I THOUGHT OF A STORY HIS SISTER, MARIE, USED TO TELL ON HIM THAT HAPPENED WHEN HE WAS JUST A SCHOOL BOY.
ALBERT WAS QUITE A MARBLE PLAYER AND KEPT ALL HIS LOOT IN A BAG TAWS AND GIMMIES TOGETHER. ONE DAY A BOY RODE A DONKEY TO SCHOOL. ALBERT FELL IN LOVE WITH IT AND ASKED WHAT HE WOULD SELL IT FOR. THE BOY TOLD AL HE WOULD TAKE HIS BAG OF MARBLES. SO THE DEAL WAS MADE. ALBERT TOOK THE DONKEY HOME, FED AND WATERED IT. STARTED HAVING FUN WITH IT AND FELL MORE AND MORE IN LOVE WITH HIS NEW PET. ONE MORNING THE SHERIFF SHOWED UP AND ASKED WHERE HE HAD OBTAINED THE DONKEY. ALBERT TOLD HIM THE STORY. WELL THE SHERIFF TOLD HIM THE BAD NEWS THAT THE BOY HAD STOLEN THE DONKEY AND ALBERT WOULD HAVE TO HAND IT OVER. ALBERT DID OF COURSE, BUT HE DETERMINED TO GET HIS MARBLES BACK. WENT TO THE BOY AND DEMANDED HIS MARBLES. THE BOY SAID HE HAD GAMBLED THEM AWAY AND NO LONGER HAD THEM! THIS WAS A SAD STORY AND I'M SURE BROKE ALBERT"S HEART. JUST ONE IN A LONG LIST.
ENLISTMENT RECORD:
Enlistment Date: 22 Jan 1941
Enlistment State: Texas
Enlistment City: Dallas
Branch Code: Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA
Grade Code: Private
Term of Enlistment: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law
Component: Selectees (Enlisted Men)
Source: Civil Life
Education: 4 years of high school
Civil Occupation: Sales clerks
Marital Status: Single, without dependents
Height: 68
Weight: 121
REPATRIATION INFO IN 1945:
the type of information you will find in this database for an individual includes:
* Name of prisoner or internee
* Race
* State of residence
* Report date
* Latest report date
* Grade or rank
* Service branch
* Arm or service
* Area served
* Detaining country
* Camp (the numbers listed at the end of the camp name are latitude and longitude coordinates)
* Status
* Report source
ame: Albert F Kinser
Race: White
Residence State: Texas
Report Date: 16 Sep 1943
Latest Report Date: 1 Jun 1945
Grade: Private
Grade Notes: Cadet, USMA or Chief Warrant Officer or Private or Apprentice, Seaman
Service Branch: Army
Arm or Service: Medical Department
Arm or Service Code: Medical Department Or Anc: Army Nurse Corps
Organization Type: Medical Corps (Includes regiments and battalions)
Parent Unit Type: Battalion/Training Battalion Combat/Special Troops
Area Served: North African Theatre: Italy
Detaining Country: Germany
Camp: 003
Status: Returned to Military Control, Liberated or Repatriated
Report Source: Individual has been reported through sources considered official.
Uncle Albert is the son of James Albert Kinser and Dona Callie Moore Kinser.
Albert was married twice but had no children. His early life and survival was a miracle: UNCLE ALBERT WAS BORN SEPTEMBER 28, 1915 IN CLEBURNE, JOHNSON CO., TX. THIS STORY OF HIS EARLY FIGHT FOR LIFE WAS GIVEN TO ME BY HIS SISTER, VIVIAN MARIE KINSER. MARIE WAS BORN IN 1908 THUS WAS 7 YEARS OLD WHEN THIS STORY WAS UNFOLDING.
SHORTLY AFTER ALBERT BIRTH HE BEGAN TO HAVE "STOMACH PROBLEMS". HE COULDN'T HOLD ANY FOOD IN HIS STOMACH. HE HAD STARTED OUT BEING BREAST FED BY HIS MOTHER. SHORTLY AFTER TAKING HIS MILK HE WOULD HAVE A VIOLENT VOMIT. OTHER FORMULAS WERE TRIED, BUT NOTHING HELPED. HE NEVER GAINED WEIGHT AS A NORMAL CHILD USUALLY DOES. IN FACT HE BEGAN TO LOSE WEIGHT. HE WAS TAKEN TO A CLINIC IN FT. WORTH. THE DOCTORS TOLD THE PARENTS THAT HE WAS NOT EMPTYING HIS STOMACH BECAUSE THE PYLORIC VALVE WASN'T FUNCTIONING PROPERLY. THEY TOLD THE PARENTS THAT IF NOT CORRECTED SOON HE WOULD DIE OF STARVATION. AT THIS POINT IN THE STORY I WANT TO POINT OUT THAT THE YEAR WAS 1915. THIS KIND OF OPERATION IN 1915 WAS ONLY ABOUT 10% SUCCESSFUL. THERE WERE NO ANTIBIOTICS AND THE OPERATION AT THAT TIME HAD NOT REALLY BEEN PERFECTED AND FEW SURGEONS IN TEXAS HAD EVER ATTEMPTED IT. SO DONNA AND PAPA WERE FACED WITH A DIFFICULT CHOICE.PAPA HAD BEGUN HIS PREACHING ABOUT THIS TIME. HE TOLD EVERY ONE IF ALBERT SURVIVED HE WOULD GO INTO FULL TIME MINISTRY. THE OTHER THING THEY WERE TOLD WAS THAT NO CHILDREN COULD VISIT IN ALBERT'S ROOM AND THAT IT WOULD TAKE PERHAPS 1 OR 2 MONTHS AFTER SURGERY BEFORE THEY WOULD EVEN CONSIDER LETTING HIM COME HOME. SO DONA AND PAPA SET ABOUT FINDING A PLACE FOR THE OTHER CHILDREN TO LIVE DURING THIS PERIOD. MARIE SAID SHE DOESN'T REMEMBER VERY WELL WHERE EACH OF THEM WENT, BUT FOR HERSELF. SHE SAID SHE THOUGHT ELGIE STAYED WITH GRAND PARENTS, SAMUEL PETER AND MARGRET ANNA. JUST DIDN'T REMEMBER WHERE FARRIS AND MARGARET STAYED. MARIE STAYED WITH DONA'S SISTER, SAMANTHA OR AUNT MANCE AS MOTHER KNEW HER AND HER HUSBAND, UNCLE BOB. AT THE TIME THEY HAD NO CHILDREN SO MARIE GOT ALL OF THEIR ATTENTION. SHE LOVED THAT SHE SAID AND THE ONLY TOUGH PART WAS THAT SHE HAD TO GO BACK HOME WHEN THEY FINALLY LET ALBERT RETURN . MARIE SAID SHE KEPT THINKING AUNT MANCE AND UNCLE BOB WERE GOING TO ADOPT HER. HOWEVER, SHORTLY AFTER SHE RETURNED HOME WITH HER FAMILY AUNT MANCE AND UNCLE BOB ADOPTED A SON THEY NAMED LEROY. SO ALBERT GREW UP FROM HIS SURGERY, I SAY IT IS A MIRACLE. HE WAS NEVER A VERY STRONG PERSON OR ATHLETIC IN ANY WAY. WHEN HE REGISTERED FOR THE DRAFT IN 1941 HE ONLY WEIGHED 121 LBS. AT THE END OF WW 2 AFTER 18 MONTHS AS A GERMAN POW HE WEIGHED 87 LBS. WHEN HE WORKED ON A FARM NEAR DANZIG, GERMANY HE HAD A FAIR AMOUNT OF FOOD. THE RUSSIANS WERE PUSHING WESTWARD AND HE AND SEVERAL THOUSAND OTHERS WERE FORCED MARCHED ACROSS GERMANY WITH ONLY RAW POTATOES TO EAT. THAT IS WHY HE ONLY WEIGHED 115 LBS. HE WAS FREED BY THE BRITISH IN WESTERN GERMANY CLOSE TO THE SMALL TOWN OF CELL. AFTER SEVERAL DAYS THEY LOADED HUNDREDS ABOARD A TROOP SHIP TO BRING THEM HOME AND THEY FORCED FED ALL OF THEM. THE FIRST THING I REMEMBER ABOUT ALBERT WHEN HE ARRIVED IN ABILENE IN JUNE, 1945 WAS HOW BLOATED AND PUFFY HE LOOKED. THEN HE TRIMMED UP AND AFTER SEVERAL MONTHS BEGAN TO HAVE BETTER MUSCLE
TONE AND LOOK NORMAL.
AFTER ALBERT'S SURVIVAL IN 1915 PAPA BEGAN A FULL TIME MINISTRY IN THE BAPTIST CHURCH. HE WENT FROM BEING A PASTOR TO THE EVANGELISTIC FIELD.
ALBERT joined the national guard in 1939. shortly after WW II began in 1941
He was sent to Camp Bowie in Brownwood, TEXAS where he
trained as a medical corpsman in the 36th Infantry Division. He was in the invasion of North Africa and at Salerno, Italy. He was captured by the
Germans at Salerno and remained a POW for 19 months. Uncle Albert told
me the following stories about his experiences.
While in North Africa there was a large commotion in the nearby village
that lasted all night. At sunup the natives could be seen out working in
the fields. They were able to find out that one of the women had a baby
during the night, but every thing was ok as she was pointed out working
with the other women in the field.
At the time of his capture he had been given the job of tagging the dead
on the battlefield. His company was marching along a road about 3 miles
from the beach when they came under heavy German artillery fire. Their
captain sent the order to scatter. Very soon US
troops began firing into
the same area and there was total confusion. Night came and Albert
teamed up with a buddy from Waco, Texas. They crawled into a shelled house
and spent the night. Early the next morning the shelling started again
from both sides and a water pipe broke in the basement. There were
chickens roosting and they began to make a lot of noise which drew the
attention of German troops. They were captured. and spent 10 days in box
cars while being shipped to Danzig, North Germany on the Polish border.
He and many others worked on farms. He worked for one family in
particular and was shown where a chicken laid her egg, Three daughters
treated the POWs well giving them bread and meat when they could..They
told the Americans that not everyone supported the war and did not
believe in what was happening. A German officer found out about their
help and ordered the women to be beaten. Uncle Albert brought back
pictures of the women.
Toward the end of the war the Soviet troops were heading west so the
Germans began to move the POWs west across Germany. They marched
900 miles IN about 4 months where they were retaken by the British at
Cell, Germany. Along the way many hardships were met. Their diet
consisted of potatoes, mainly eaten raw. Interestingly, they were paid in
worthless German money. They used the paper to start fires which made
the guards mad, but there was not much they could do about it. As they
marched on the road, US and British planes, thinking the POWs were
troops, fired on them as the men went to the fields. Many were killed and
wounded. The men began to march in formations making a POW and this
helped. At the end Albert had lost weight down to about 87 lbs. Before
he arrived home in mid-summer 1945 he said they were almost force fed
and he had gained a lot of weight and my first impression was that he
was bloated. He returned to work and became a shoe salesman for many
years in Abilene, TX. However, his health was broken and he never
regained it, becoming 100% disabled the last years of his life. Thank you,
Uncle Albert for your sacrifice.
After the war Uncle Albert began a career as top shoe salesman and manager of the shoe dept. at Grissoms department store in Abilene, TX. He retired around 1975 and went on total military disability. He had never totally recovered from his war experiences and died of PNEUMONIA AS A COMPLICATION OF LUNG CANCER in 1981.
Taylor Co., TEXAS war vets have established a memorial on the north side of the courthouse in Abilene, TEXAS. The center piece is a statue about 15 feet high DEPICTING a combat soldier. Surrounding the statue are bricks INSCRIBED with information about the person you wish to honor. In April 2002, Albert's sisters, Marie and Farris, had a brick placed in this memorial. It reads Albert F. Kinser, 36th Division, WWII, POW, 1915-1981
FOLLOWING OBIT FROM ABILENE REPORTER NEWS
AL Kinser
Albert Foster "Al" .Kinser, . 66, pf 2121 N. Sixth St., died at E 1 a.m. Thursday at the Veterans Admhiistration hospital in Temple Services will be at noon Saturday at El1iott-Hamil Funeral Home, 542, . Hickory St.
Dr. ,James Flamming of . First Baptist Church will officiate. Burial .wtll be at Elmwood 'Memorial Park.
Born September 29, 1915, in Cleburne, Texas he married Faye Waldrop in l950 in Abilene. She died in 1978.He was a shoe. salesman at Grissom's department stores until he retired in 1977. A veteran of World War II, he served in the: 36th Infantry Division and was a prisoner of war for' two years after he was captured by the Germans in Salerno, Italy. He was a member of First Baptist Church.
Survivors include four sisters, Mrs. Glenn Rutledge of
. 4718 Circle 19, Marie Humphrey of 1349 Hickory St. Mrs. Burl Wilkes of Arlington and Mrs. Dill Pace of Sweetwater.; a stepson,' Don Waldrop of Abilene; and. a stepdaughter, Barbara Waldrop of Montgomery, Ala.,
Pallbearers will be Billy Brashear, Horace Hanks, Sam Ritchey, Earl Wheeler, Mack Wilson and Jimmie Roe.
The family will be at 2121 N. Sixth, Apt: 109.
DEATH WAS THE RESULT OF PNEUMONIA COMPLICATED BY LUNG CANCER HERE IS A STORY FROM OUR AUNT FARRIS.
ELGIE AND MARIE WERE THE ONES WHO TOOK ALBERT DOWN TO THE VET HOSPITAL IN TEMPLE TX ON THE FIRST VISIT THIS WAS IN AUGUST OF 1981. THEY EXAMINED HIM AND SENT HIM BACK HOME.
HE CONTINUED HIS DECLINE SO ABOUT 2 WEEKS LATER AUNT FARRIS TOOK HIM BACK TO TEMPLE. FARRIS SAID IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL DAY SO SHE PARKED AND TOLD ALBERT SHE WOULD GO GET A WHEEL CHAIR AND A NURSE TO HELP HIM GET INTO THE HOSPITAL. HE SAID NO HE WANTED TO WALK IN. AND SO HE DID. AFTER THEY CHECKED HIM IN AND THE DOCTOR EXAMINED HIM, THE DOCTOR RETURNED TO FARRIS. HE SAID HE UNDERSTOOD ALBERT HAD WALKED INTO THE FRONT DOOR UNASSISTED AND TOLD FARRIS THAT WAS IMPOSSIBLE WITH THE SHAPE HE WAS IN. FARRIS SAID THAT WAS WHAT HE HAD DONE!. THE DOCTOR SAID IN THE CONDITION ALBERT WAS IN HE COULD HARDLY BELIEVE ALBERT COULD DO THAT. FARRIS SAID SHE TOLD HIM THAT ALBERT WAS PRETTY TOUGH AND HAD BEEN ON THE GERMAN DEATH MARCH IN WW2. SHE SAID THE DOCTOR NODDED HIS HEAD AND SAID HE COULD UNDERSTAND. THEY ADMITTED ALBERT TO HOSPITAL AND GAVE HIM PAIN KILLERS. THAT WAS ALL THEY COULD DO FOR HIM AS THE CANCER WAS SO ADVANCED. HE LIVED JUST A FEW MORE DAYS AND DIED. HE HAD MADE HIS LAST MARCH, GOD BLESS HIS SPIRIT.
AFTER LOOKING AT THE WAR, MY THOUGHTS KEEP RETURNING TO ALBERT.
I THOUGHT OF A STORY HIS SISTER, MARIE, USED TO TELL ON HIM THAT HAPPENED WHEN HE WAS JUST A SCHOOL BOY.
ALBERT WAS QUITE A MARBLE PLAYER AND KEPT ALL HIS LOOT IN A BAG TAWS AND GIMMIES TOGETHER. ONE DAY A BOY RODE A DONKEY TO SCHOOL. ALBERT FELL IN LOVE WITH IT AND ASKED WHAT HE WOULD SELL IT FOR. THE BOY TOLD AL HE WOULD TAKE HIS BAG OF MARBLES. SO THE DEAL WAS MADE. ALBERT TOOK THE DONKEY HOME, FED AND WATERED IT. STARTED HAVING FUN WITH IT AND FELL MORE AND MORE IN LOVE WITH HIS NEW PET. ONE MORNING THE SHERIFF SHOWED UP AND ASKED WHERE HE HAD OBTAINED THE DONKEY. ALBERT TOLD HIM THE STORY. WELL THE SHERIFF TOLD HIM THE BAD NEWS THAT THE BOY HAD STOLEN THE DONKEY AND ALBERT WOULD HAVE TO HAND IT OVER. ALBERT DID OF COURSE, BUT HE DETERMINED TO GET HIS MARBLES BACK. WENT TO THE BOY AND DEMANDED HIS MARBLES. THE BOY SAID HE HAD GAMBLED THEM AWAY AND NO LONGER HAD THEM! THIS WAS A SAD STORY AND I'M SURE BROKE ALBERT"S HEART. JUST ONE IN A LONG LIST.
ENLISTMENT RECORD:
Enlistment Date: 22 Jan 1941
Enlistment State: Texas
Enlistment City: Dallas
Branch Code: Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA
Grade Code: Private
Term of Enlistment: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law
Component: Selectees (Enlisted Men)
Source: Civil Life
Education: 4 years of high school
Civil Occupation: Sales clerks
Marital Status: Single, without dependents
Height: 68
Weight: 121
REPATRIATION INFO IN 1945:
the type of information you will find in this database for an individual includes:
* Name of prisoner or internee
* Race
* State of residence
* Report date
* Latest report date
* Grade or rank
* Service branch
* Arm or service
* Area served
* Detaining country
* Camp (the numbers listed at the end of the camp name are latitude and longitude coordinates)
* Status
* Report source
ame: Albert F Kinser
Race: White
Residence State: Texas
Report Date: 16 Sep 1943
Latest Report Date: 1 Jun 1945
Grade: Private
Grade Notes: Cadet, USMA or Chief Warrant Officer or Private or Apprentice, Seaman
Service Branch: Army
Arm or Service: Medical Department
Arm or Service Code: Medical Department Or Anc: Army Nurse Corps
Organization Type: Medical Corps (Includes regiments and battalions)
Parent Unit Type: Battalion/Training Battalion Combat/Special Troops
Area Served: North African Theatre: Italy
Detaining Country: Germany
Camp: 003
Status: Returned to Military Control, Liberated or Repatriated
Report Source: Individual has been reported through sources considered official.
I HAD MANY CONVERSATIONS WITH MY UNCLE ALBERT AND HE RELATED THE FOLLOWING WAR EXPERIENCES TO ME(RON)
Uncle Albert is the son of James Albert Kinser and Dona Callie Moore Kinser.
Albert was married twice but had no children. His early life and survival was a miracle: UNCLE ALBERT WAS BORN SEPTEMBER 28, 1915 IN CLEBURNE, JOHNSON CO., TX. THIS STORY OF HIS EARLY FIGHT FOR LIFE WAS GIVEN TO ME BY HIS SISTER, VIVIAN MARIE KINSER. MARIE WAS BORN IN 1908 THUS WAS 7 YEARS OLD WHEN THIS STORY WAS UNFOLDING.
SHORTLY AFTER ALBERT BIRTH HE BEGAN TO HAVE "STOMACH PROBLEMS". HE COULDN'T HOLD ANY FOOD IN HIS STOMACH. HE HAD STARTED OUT BEING BREAST FED BY HIS MOTHER. SHORTLY AFTER TAKING HIS MILK HE WOULD HAVE A VIOLENT VOMIT. OTHER FORMULAS WERE TRIED, BUT NOTHING HELPED. HE NEVER GAINED WEIGHT AS A NORMAL CHILD USUALLY DOES. IN FACT HE BEGAN TO LOSE WEIGHT. HE WAS TAKEN TO A CLINIC IN FT. WORTH. THE DOCTORS TOLD THE PARENTS THAT HE WAS NOT EMPTYING HIS STOMACH BECAUSE THE PYLORIC VALVE WASN'T FUNCTIONING PROPERLY. THEY TOLD THE PARENTS THAT IF NOT CORRECTED SOON HE WOULD DIE OF STARVATION. AT THIS POINT IN THE STORY I WANT TO POINT OUT THAT THE YEAR WAS 1915. THIS KIND OF OPERATION IN 1915 WAS ONLY ABOUT 10% SUCCESSFUL. THERE WERE NO ANTIBIOTICS AND THE OPERATION AT THAT TIME HAD NOT REALLY BEEN PERFECTED AND FEW SURGEONS IN TEXAS HAD EVER ATTEMPTED IT. SO DONNA AND PAPA WERE FACED WITH A DIFFICULT CHOICE.PAPA HAD BEGUN HIS PREACHING ABOUT THIS TIME. HE TOLD EVERY ONE IF ALBERT SURVIVED HE WOULD GO INTO FULL TIME MINISTRY. THE OTHER THING THEY WERE TOLD WAS THAT NO CHILDREN COULD VISIT IN ALBERT'S ROOM AND THAT IT WOULD TAKE PERHAPS 1 OR 2 MONTHS AFTER SURGERY BEFORE THEY WOULD EVEN CONSIDER LETTING HIM COME HOME. SO DONA AND PAPA SET ABOUT FINDING A PLACE FOR THE OTHER CHILDREN TO LIVE DURING THIS PERIOD. MARIE SAID SHE DOESN'T REMEMBER VERY WELL WHERE EACH OF THEM WENT, BUT FOR HERSELF. SHE SAID SHE THOUGHT ELGIE STAYED WITH GRAND PARENTS, SAMUEL PETER AND MARGRET ANNA. JUST DIDN'T REMEMBER WHERE FARRIS AND MARGARET STAYED. MARIE STAYED WITH DONA'S SISTER, SAMANTHA OR AUNT MANCE AS MOTHER KNEW HER AND HER HUSBAND, UNCLE BOB. AT THE TIME THEY HAD NO CHILDREN SO MARIE GOT ALL OF THEIR ATTENTION. SHE LOVED THAT SHE SAID AND THE ONLY TOUGH PART WAS THAT SHE HAD TO GO BACK HOME WHEN THEY FINALLY LET ALBERT RETURN . MARIE SAID SHE KEPT THINKING AUNT MANCE AND UNCLE BOB WERE GOING TO ADOPT HER. HOWEVER, SHORTLY AFTER SHE RETURNED HOME WITH HER FAMILY AUNT MANCE AND UNCLE BOB ADOPTED A SON THEY NAMED LEROY. SO ALBERT GREW UP FROM HIS SURGERY, I SAY IT IS A MIRACLE. HE WAS NEVER A VERY STRONG PERSON OR ATHLETIC IN ANY WAY. WHEN HE REGISTERED FOR THE DRAFT IN 1941 HE ONLY WEIGHED 121 LBS. AT THE END OF WW 2 AFTER 18 MONTHS AS A GERMAN POW HE WEIGHED 87 LBS. WHEN HE WORKED ON A FARM NEAR DANZIG, GERMANY HE HAD A FAIR AMOUNT OF FOOD. THE RUSSIANS WERE PUSHING WESTWARD AND HE AND SEVERAL THOUSAND OTHERS WERE FORCED MARCHED ACROSS GERMANY WITH ONLY RAW POTATOES TO EAT. THAT IS WHY HE ONLY WEIGHED 115 LBS. HE WAS FREED BY THE BRITISH IN WESTERN GERMANY CLOSE TO THE SMALL TOWN OF CELL. AFTER SEVERAL DAYS THEY LOADED HUNDREDS ABOARD A TROOP SHIP TO BRING THEM HOME AND THEY FORCED FED ALL OF THEM. THE FIRST THING I REMEMBER ABOUT ALBERT WHEN HE ARRIVED IN ABILENE IN JUNE, 1945 WAS HOW BLOATED AND PUFFY HE LOOKED. THEN HE TRIMMED UP AND AFTER SEVERAL MONTHS BEGAN TO HAVE BETTER MUSCLE
TONE AND LOOK NORMAL.
AFTER ALBERT'S SURVIVAL IN 1915 PAPA BEGAN A FULL TIME MINISTRY IN THE BAPTIST CHURCH. HE WENT FROM BEING A PASTOR TO THE EVANGELISTIC FIELD.
ALBERT joined the national guard in 1939. shortly after WW II began in 1941
He was sent to Camp Bowie in Brownwood, TEXAS where he
trained as a medical corpsman in the 36th Infantry Division. He was in the invasion of North Africa and at Salerno, Italy. He was captured by the
Germans at Salerno and remained a POW for 19 months. Uncle Albert told
me the following stories about his experiences.
While in North Africa there was a large commotion in the nearby village
that lasted all night. At sunup the natives could be seen out working in
the fields. They were able to find out that one of the women had a baby
during the night, but every thing was ok as she was pointed out working
with the other women in the field.
At the time of his capture he had been given the job of tagging the dead
on the battlefield. His company was marching along a road about 3 miles
from the beach when they came under heavy German artillery fire. Their
captain sent the order to scatter. Very soon US
troops began firing into
the same area and there was total confusion. Night came and Albert
teamed up with a buddy from Waco, Texas. They crawled into a shelled house
and spent the night. Early the next morning the shelling started again
from both sides and a water pipe broke in the basement. There were
chickens roosting and they began to make a lot of noise which drew the
attention of German troops. They were captured. and spent 10 days in box
cars while being shipped to Danzig, North Germany on the Polish border.
He and many others worked on farms. He worked for one family in
particular and was shown where a chicken laid her egg, Three daughters
treated the POWs well giving them bread and meat when they could..They
told the Americans that not everyone supported the war and did not
believe in what was happening. A German officer found out about their
help and ordered the women to be beaten. Uncle Albert brought back
pictures of the women.
Toward the end of the war the Soviet troops were heading west so the
Germans began to move the POWs west across Germany. They marched
900 miles IN about 4 months where they were retaken by the British at
Cell, Germany. Along the way many hardships were met. Their diet
consisted of potatoes, mainly eaten raw. Interestingly, they were paid in
worthless German money. They used the paper to start fires which made
the guards mad, but there was not much they could do about it. As they
marched on the road, US and British planes, thinking the POWs were
troops, fired on them as the men went to the fields. Many were killed and
wounded. The men began to march in formations making a POW and this
helped. At the end Albert had lost weight down to about 87 lbs. Before
he arrived home in mid-summer 1945 he said they were almost force fed
and he had gained a lot of weight and my first impression was that he
was bloated. He returned to work and became a shoe salesman for many
years in Abilene, TX. However, his health was broken and he never
regained it, becoming 100% disabled the last years of his life. Thank you,
Uncle Albert for your sacrifice.
After the war Uncle Albert began a career as top shoe salesman and manager of the shoe dept. at Grissoms department store in Abilene, TX. He retired around 1975 and went on total military disability. He had never totally recovered from his war experiences and died of PNEUMONIA AS A COMPLICATION OF LUNG CANCER in 1981.
Taylor Co., TEXAS war vets have established a memorial on the north side of the courthouse in Abilene, TEXAS. The center piece is a statue about 15 feet high DEPICTING a combat soldier. Surrounding the statue are bricks INSCRIBED with information about the person you wish to honor. In April 2002, Albert's sisters, Marie and Farris, had a brick placed in this memorial. It reads Albert F. Kinser, 36th Division, WWII, POW, 1915-1981
FOLLOWING OBIT FROM ABILENE REPORTER NEWS
AL Kinser
Albert Foster "Al" .Kinser, . 66, pf 2121 N. Sixth St., died at E 1 a.m. Thursday at the Veterans Admhiistration hospital in Temple Services will be at noon Saturday at El1iott-Hamil Funeral Home, 542, . Hickory St.
Dr. ,James Flamming of . First Baptist Church will officiate. Burial .wtll be at Elmwood 'Memorial Park.
Born September 29, 1915, in Cleburne, Texas he married Faye Waldrop in l950 in Abilene. She died in 1978.He was a shoe. salesman at Grissom's department stores until he retired in 1977. A veteran of World War II, he served in the: 36th Infantry Division and was a prisoner of war for' two years after he was captured by the Germans in Salerno, Italy. He was a member of First Baptist Church.
Survivors include four sisters, Mrs. Glenn Rutledge of
. 4718 Circle 19, Marie Humphrey of 1349 Hickory St. Mrs. Burl Wilkes of Arlington and Mrs. Dill Pace of Sweetwater.; a stepson,' Don Waldrop of Abilene; and. a stepdaughter, Barbara Waldrop of Montgomery, Ala.,
Pallbearers will be Billy Brashear, Horace Hanks, Sam Ritchey, Earl Wheeler, Mack Wilson and Jimmie Roe.
The family will be at 2121 N. Sixth, Apt: 109.
DEATH WAS THE RESULT OF PNEUMONIA COMPLICATED BY LUNG CANCER HERE IS A STORY FROM OUR AUNT FARRIS.
ELGIE AND MARIE WERE THE ONES WHO TOOK ALBERT DOWN TO THE VET HOSPITAL IN TEMPLE TX ON THE FIRST VISIT THIS WAS IN AUGUST OF 1981. THEY EXAMINED HIM AND SENT HIM BACK HOME.
HE CONTINUED HIS DECLINE SO ABOUT 2 WEEKS LATER AUNT FARRIS TOOK HIM BACK TO TEMPLE. FARRIS SAID IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL DAY SO SHE PARKED AND TOLD ALBERT SHE WOULD GO GET A WHEEL CHAIR AND A NURSE TO HELP HIM GET INTO THE HOSPITAL. HE SAID NO HE WANTED TO WALK IN. AND SO HE DID. AFTER THEY CHECKED HIM IN AND THE DOCTOR EXAMINED HIM, THE DOCTOR RETURNED TO FARRIS. HE SAID HE UNDERSTOOD ALBERT HAD WALKED INTO THE FRONT DOOR UNASSISTED AND TOLD FARRIS THAT WAS IMPOSSIBLE WITH THE SHAPE HE WAS IN. FARRIS SAID THAT WAS WHAT HE HAD DONE!. THE DOCTOR SAID IN THE CONDITION ALBERT WAS IN HE COULD HARDLY BELIEVE ALBERT COULD DO THAT. FARRIS SAID SHE TOLD HIM THAT ALBERT WAS PRETTY TOUGH AND HAD BEEN ON THE GERMAN DEATH MARCH IN WW2. SHE SAID THE DOCTOR NODDED HIS HEAD AND SAID HE COULD UNDERSTAND. THEY ADMITTED ALBERT TO HOSPITAL AND GAVE HIM PAIN KILLERS. THAT WAS ALL THEY COULD DO FOR HIM AS THE CANCER WAS SO ADVANCED. HE LIVED JUST A FEW MORE DAYS AND DIED. HE HAD MADE HIS LAST MARCH, GOD BLESS HIS SPIRIT.
AFTER LOOKING AT THE WAR, MY THOUGHTS KEEP RETURNING TO ALBERT.
I THOUGHT OF A STORY HIS SISTER, MARIE, USED TO TELL ON HIM THAT HAPPENED WHEN HE WAS JUST A SCHOOL BOY.
ALBERT WAS QUITE A MARBLE PLAYER AND KEPT ALL HIS LOOT IN A BAG TAWS AND GIMMIES TOGETHER. ONE DAY A BOY RODE A DONKEY TO SCHOOL. ALBERT FELL IN LOVE WITH IT AND ASKED WHAT HE WOULD SELL IT FOR. THE BOY TOLD AL HE WOULD TAKE HIS BAG OF MARBLES. SO THE DEAL WAS MADE. ALBERT TOOK THE DONKEY HOME, FED AND WATERED IT. STARTED HAVING FUN WITH IT AND FELL MORE AND MORE IN LOVE WITH HIS NEW PET. ONE MORNING THE SHERIFF SHOWED UP AND ASKED WHERE HE HAD OBTAINED THE DONKEY. ALBERT TOLD HIM THE STORY. WELL THE SHERIFF TOLD HIM THE BAD NEWS THAT THE BOY HAD STOLEN THE DONKEY AND ALBERT WOULD HAVE TO HAND IT OVER. ALBERT DID OF COURSE, BUT HE DETERMINED TO GET HIS MARBLES BACK. WENT TO THE BOY AND DEMANDED HIS MARBLES. THE BOY SAID HE HAD GAMBLED THEM AWAY AND NO LONGER HAD THEM! THIS WAS A SAD STORY AND I'M SURE BROKE ALBERT"S HEART. JUST ONE IN A LONG LIST.
ENLISTMENT RECORD:
Enlistment Date: 22 Jan 1941
Enlistment State: Texas
Enlistment City: Dallas
Branch Code: Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA
Grade Code: Private
Term of Enlistment: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law
Component: Selectees (Enlisted Men)
Source: Civil Life
Education: 4 years of high school
Civil Occupation: Sales clerks
Marital Status: Single, without dependents
Height: 68
Weight: 121
REPATRIATION INFO IN 1945:
the type of information you will find in this database for an individual includes:
* Name of prisoner or internee
* Race
* State of residence
* Report date
* Latest report date
* Grade or rank
* Service branch
* Arm or service
* Area served
* Detaining country
* Camp (the numbers listed at the end of the camp name are latitude and longitude coordinates)
* Status
* Report source
ame: Albert F Kinser
Race: White
Residence State: Texas
Report Date: 16 Sep 1943
Latest Report Date: 1 Jun 1945
Grade: Private
Grade Notes: Cadet, USMA or Chief Warrant Officer or Private or Apprentice, Seaman
Service Branch: Army
Arm or Service: Medical Department
Arm or Service Code: Medical Department Or Anc: Army Nurse Corps
Organization Type: Medical Corps (Includes regiments and battalions)
Parent Unit Type: Battalion/Training Battalion Combat/Special Troops
Area Served: North African Theatre: Italy
Detaining Country: Germany
Camp: 003
Status: Returned to Military Control, Liberated or Repatriated
Report Source: Individual has been reported through sources considered official.
Uncle Albert is the son of James Albert Kinser and Dona Callie Moore Kinser.
Albert was married twice but had no children. His early life and survival was a miracle: UNCLE ALBERT WAS BORN SEPTEMBER 28, 1915 IN CLEBURNE, JOHNSON CO., TX. THIS STORY OF HIS EARLY FIGHT FOR LIFE WAS GIVEN TO ME BY HIS SISTER, VIVIAN MARIE KINSER. MARIE WAS BORN IN 1908 THUS WAS 7 YEARS OLD WHEN THIS STORY WAS UNFOLDING.
SHORTLY AFTER ALBERT BIRTH HE BEGAN TO HAVE "STOMACH PROBLEMS". HE COULDN'T HOLD ANY FOOD IN HIS STOMACH. HE HAD STARTED OUT BEING BREAST FED BY HIS MOTHER. SHORTLY AFTER TAKING HIS MILK HE WOULD HAVE A VIOLENT VOMIT. OTHER FORMULAS WERE TRIED, BUT NOTHING HELPED. HE NEVER GAINED WEIGHT AS A NORMAL CHILD USUALLY DOES. IN FACT HE BEGAN TO LOSE WEIGHT. HE WAS TAKEN TO A CLINIC IN FT. WORTH. THE DOCTORS TOLD THE PARENTS THAT HE WAS NOT EMPTYING HIS STOMACH BECAUSE THE PYLORIC VALVE WASN'T FUNCTIONING PROPERLY. THEY TOLD THE PARENTS THAT IF NOT CORRECTED SOON HE WOULD DIE OF STARVATION. AT THIS POINT IN THE STORY I WANT TO POINT OUT THAT THE YEAR WAS 1915. THIS KIND OF OPERATION IN 1915 WAS ONLY ABOUT 10% SUCCESSFUL. THERE WERE NO ANTIBIOTICS AND THE OPERATION AT THAT TIME HAD NOT REALLY BEEN PERFECTED AND FEW SURGEONS IN TEXAS HAD EVER ATTEMPTED IT. SO DONNA AND PAPA WERE FACED WITH A DIFFICULT CHOICE.PAPA HAD BEGUN HIS PREACHING ABOUT THIS TIME. HE TOLD EVERY ONE IF ALBERT SURVIVED HE WOULD GO INTO FULL TIME MINISTRY. THE OTHER THING THEY WERE TOLD WAS THAT NO CHILDREN COULD VISIT IN ALBERT'S ROOM AND THAT IT WOULD TAKE PERHAPS 1 OR 2 MONTHS AFTER SURGERY BEFORE THEY WOULD EVEN CONSIDER LETTING HIM COME HOME. SO DONA AND PAPA SET ABOUT FINDING A PLACE FOR THE OTHER CHILDREN TO LIVE DURING THIS PERIOD. MARIE SAID SHE DOESN'T REMEMBER VERY WELL WHERE EACH OF THEM WENT, BUT FOR HERSELF. SHE SAID SHE THOUGHT ELGIE STAYED WITH GRAND PARENTS, SAMUEL PETER AND MARGRET ANNA. JUST DIDN'T REMEMBER WHERE FARRIS AND MARGARET STAYED. MARIE STAYED WITH DONA'S SISTER, SAMANTHA OR AUNT MANCE AS MOTHER KNEW HER AND HER HUSBAND, UNCLE BOB. AT THE TIME THEY HAD NO CHILDREN SO MARIE GOT ALL OF THEIR ATTENTION. SHE LOVED THAT SHE SAID AND THE ONLY TOUGH PART WAS THAT SHE HAD TO GO BACK HOME WHEN THEY FINALLY LET ALBERT RETURN . MARIE SAID SHE KEPT THINKING AUNT MANCE AND UNCLE BOB WERE GOING TO ADOPT HER. HOWEVER, SHORTLY AFTER SHE RETURNED HOME WITH HER FAMILY AUNT MANCE AND UNCLE BOB ADOPTED A SON THEY NAMED LEROY. SO ALBERT GREW UP FROM HIS SURGERY, I SAY IT IS A MIRACLE. HE WAS NEVER A VERY STRONG PERSON OR ATHLETIC IN ANY WAY. WHEN HE REGISTERED FOR THE DRAFT IN 1941 HE ONLY WEIGHED 121 LBS. AT THE END OF WW 2 AFTER 18 MONTHS AS A GERMAN POW HE WEIGHED 87 LBS. WHEN HE WORKED ON A FARM NEAR DANZIG, GERMANY HE HAD A FAIR AMOUNT OF FOOD. THE RUSSIANS WERE PUSHING WESTWARD AND HE AND SEVERAL THOUSAND OTHERS WERE FORCED MARCHED ACROSS GERMANY WITH ONLY RAW POTATOES TO EAT. THAT IS WHY HE ONLY WEIGHED 115 LBS. HE WAS FREED BY THE BRITISH IN WESTERN GERMANY CLOSE TO THE SMALL TOWN OF CELL. AFTER SEVERAL DAYS THEY LOADED HUNDREDS ABOARD A TROOP SHIP TO BRING THEM HOME AND THEY FORCED FED ALL OF THEM. THE FIRST THING I REMEMBER ABOUT ALBERT WHEN HE ARRIVED IN ABILENE IN JUNE, 1945 WAS HOW BLOATED AND PUFFY HE LOOKED. THEN HE TRIMMED UP AND AFTER SEVERAL MONTHS BEGAN TO HAVE BETTER MUSCLE
TONE AND LOOK NORMAL.
AFTER ALBERT'S SURVIVAL IN 1915 PAPA BEGAN A FULL TIME MINISTRY IN THE BAPTIST CHURCH. HE WENT FROM BEING A PASTOR TO THE EVANGELISTIC FIELD.
ALBERT joined the national guard in 1939. shortly after WW II began in 1941
He was sent to Camp Bowie in Brownwood, TEXAS where he
trained as a medical corpsman in the 36th Infantry Division. He was in the invasion of North Africa and at Salerno, Italy. He was captured by the
Germans at Salerno and remained a POW for 19 months. Uncle Albert told
me the following stories about his experiences.
While in North Africa there was a large commotion in the nearby village
that lasted all night. At sunup the natives could be seen out working in
the fields. They were able to find out that one of the women had a baby
during the night, but every thing was ok as she was pointed out working
with the other women in the field.
At the time of his capture he had been given the job of tagging the dead
on the battlefield. His company was marching along a road about 3 miles
from the beach when they came under heavy German artillery fire. Their
captain sent the order to scatter. Very soon US
troops began firing into
the same area and there was total confusion. Night came and Albert
teamed up with a buddy from Waco, Texas. They crawled into a shelled house
and spent the night. Early the next morning the shelling started again
from both sides and a water pipe broke in the basement. There were
chickens roosting and they began to make a lot of noise which drew the
attention of German troops. They were captured. and spent 10 days in box
cars while being shipped to Danzig, North Germany on the Polish border.
He and many others worked on farms. He worked for one family in
particular and was shown where a chicken laid her egg, Three daughters
treated the POWs well giving them bread and meat when they could..They
told the Americans that not everyone supported the war and did not
believe in what was happening. A German officer found out about their
help and ordered the women to be beaten. Uncle Albert brought back
pictures of the women.
Toward the end of the war the Soviet troops were heading west so the
Germans began to move the POWs west across Germany. They marched
900 miles IN about 4 months where they were retaken by the British at
Cell, Germany. Along the way many hardships were met. Their diet
consisted of potatoes, mainly eaten raw. Interestingly, they were paid in
worthless German money. They used the paper to start fires which made
the guards mad, but there was not much they could do about it. As they
marched on the road, US and British planes, thinking the POWs were
troops, fired on them as the men went to the fields. Many were killed and
wounded. The men began to march in formations making a POW and this
helped. At the end Albert had lost weight down to about 87 lbs. Before
he arrived home in mid-summer 1945 he said they were almost force fed
and he had gained a lot of weight and my first impression was that he
was bloated. He returned to work and became a shoe salesman for many
years in Abilene, TX. However, his health was broken and he never
regained it, becoming 100% disabled the last years of his life. Thank you,
Uncle Albert for your sacrifice.
After the war Uncle Albert began a career as top shoe salesman and manager of the shoe dept. at Grissoms department store in Abilene, TX. He retired around 1975 and went on total military disability. He had never totally recovered from his war experiences and died of PNEUMONIA AS A COMPLICATION OF LUNG CANCER in 1981.
Taylor Co., TEXAS war vets have established a memorial on the north side of the courthouse in Abilene, TEXAS. The center piece is a statue about 15 feet high DEPICTING a combat soldier. Surrounding the statue are bricks INSCRIBED with information about the person you wish to honor. In April 2002, Albert's sisters, Marie and Farris, had a brick placed in this memorial. It reads Albert F. Kinser, 36th Division, WWII, POW, 1915-1981
FOLLOWING OBIT FROM ABILENE REPORTER NEWS
AL Kinser
Albert Foster "Al" .Kinser, . 66, pf 2121 N. Sixth St., died at E 1 a.m. Thursday at the Veterans Admhiistration hospital in Temple Services will be at noon Saturday at El1iott-Hamil Funeral Home, 542, . Hickory St.
Dr. ,James Flamming of . First Baptist Church will officiate. Burial .wtll be at Elmwood 'Memorial Park.
Born September 29, 1915, in Cleburne, Texas he married Faye Waldrop in l950 in Abilene. She died in 1978.He was a shoe. salesman at Grissom's department stores until he retired in 1977. A veteran of World War II, he served in the: 36th Infantry Division and was a prisoner of war for' two years after he was captured by the Germans in Salerno, Italy. He was a member of First Baptist Church.
Survivors include four sisters, Mrs. Glenn Rutledge of
. 4718 Circle 19, Marie Humphrey of 1349 Hickory St. Mrs. Burl Wilkes of Arlington and Mrs. Dill Pace of Sweetwater.; a stepson,' Don Waldrop of Abilene; and. a stepdaughter, Barbara Waldrop of Montgomery, Ala.,
Pallbearers will be Billy Brashear, Horace Hanks, Sam Ritchey, Earl Wheeler, Mack Wilson and Jimmie Roe.
The family will be at 2121 N. Sixth, Apt: 109.
DEATH WAS THE RESULT OF PNEUMONIA COMPLICATED BY LUNG CANCER HERE IS A STORY FROM OUR AUNT FARRIS.
ELGIE AND MARIE WERE THE ONES WHO TOOK ALBERT DOWN TO THE VET HOSPITAL IN TEMPLE TX ON THE FIRST VISIT THIS WAS IN AUGUST OF 1981. THEY EXAMINED HIM AND SENT HIM BACK HOME.
HE CONTINUED HIS DECLINE SO ABOUT 2 WEEKS LATER AUNT FARRIS TOOK HIM BACK TO TEMPLE. FARRIS SAID IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL DAY SO SHE PARKED AND TOLD ALBERT SHE WOULD GO GET A WHEEL CHAIR AND A NURSE TO HELP HIM GET INTO THE HOSPITAL. HE SAID NO HE WANTED TO WALK IN. AND SO HE DID. AFTER THEY CHECKED HIM IN AND THE DOCTOR EXAMINED HIM, THE DOCTOR RETURNED TO FARRIS. HE SAID HE UNDERSTOOD ALBERT HAD WALKED INTO THE FRONT DOOR UNASSISTED AND TOLD FARRIS THAT WAS IMPOSSIBLE WITH THE SHAPE HE WAS IN. FARRIS SAID THAT WAS WHAT HE HAD DONE!. THE DOCTOR SAID IN THE CONDITION ALBERT WAS IN HE COULD HARDLY BELIEVE ALBERT COULD DO THAT. FARRIS SAID SHE TOLD HIM THAT ALBERT WAS PRETTY TOUGH AND HAD BEEN ON THE GERMAN DEATH MARCH IN WW2. SHE SAID THE DOCTOR NODDED HIS HEAD AND SAID HE COULD UNDERSTAND. THEY ADMITTED ALBERT TO HOSPITAL AND GAVE HIM PAIN KILLERS. THAT WAS ALL THEY COULD DO FOR HIM AS THE CANCER WAS SO ADVANCED. HE LIVED JUST A FEW MORE DAYS AND DIED. HE HAD MADE HIS LAST MARCH, GOD BLESS HIS SPIRIT.
AFTER LOOKING AT THE WAR, MY THOUGHTS KEEP RETURNING TO ALBERT.
I THOUGHT OF A STORY HIS SISTER, MARIE, USED TO TELL ON HIM THAT HAPPENED WHEN HE WAS JUST A SCHOOL BOY.
ALBERT WAS QUITE A MARBLE PLAYER AND KEPT ALL HIS LOOT IN A BAG TAWS AND GIMMIES TOGETHER. ONE DAY A BOY RODE A DONKEY TO SCHOOL. ALBERT FELL IN LOVE WITH IT AND ASKED WHAT HE WOULD SELL IT FOR. THE BOY TOLD AL HE WOULD TAKE HIS BAG OF MARBLES. SO THE DEAL WAS MADE. ALBERT TOOK THE DONKEY HOME, FED AND WATERED IT. STARTED HAVING FUN WITH IT AND FELL MORE AND MORE IN LOVE WITH HIS NEW PET. ONE MORNING THE SHERIFF SHOWED UP AND ASKED WHERE HE HAD OBTAINED THE DONKEY. ALBERT TOLD HIM THE STORY. WELL THE SHERIFF TOLD HIM THE BAD NEWS THAT THE BOY HAD STOLEN THE DONKEY AND ALBERT WOULD HAVE TO HAND IT OVER. ALBERT DID OF COURSE, BUT HE DETERMINED TO GET HIS MARBLES BACK. WENT TO THE BOY AND DEMANDED HIS MARBLES. THE BOY SAID HE HAD GAMBLED THEM AWAY AND NO LONGER HAD THEM! THIS WAS A SAD STORY AND I'M SURE BROKE ALBERT"S HEART. JUST ONE IN A LONG LIST.
ENLISTMENT RECORD:
Enlistment Date: 22 Jan 1941
Enlistment State: Texas
Enlistment City: Dallas
Branch Code: Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA
Grade Code: Private
Term of Enlistment: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law
Component: Selectees (Enlisted Men)
Source: Civil Life
Education: 4 years of high school
Civil Occupation: Sales clerks
Marital Status: Single, without dependents
Height: 68
Weight: 121
REPATRIATION INFO IN 1945:
the type of information you will find in this database for an individual includes:
* Name of prisoner or internee
* Race
* State of residence
* Report date
* Latest report date
* Grade or rank
* Service branch
* Arm or service
* Area served
* Detaining country
* Camp (the numbers listed at the end of the camp name are latitude and longitude coordinates)
* Status
* Report source
ame: Albert F Kinser
Race: White
Residence State: Texas
Report Date: 16 Sep 1943
Latest Report Date: 1 Jun 1945
Grade: Private
Grade Notes: Cadet, USMA or Chief Warrant Officer or Private or Apprentice, Seaman
Service Branch: Army
Arm or Service: Medical Department
Arm or Service Code: Medical Department Or Anc: Army Nurse Corps
Organization Type: Medical Corps (Includes regiments and battalions)
Parent Unit Type: Battalion/Training Battalion Combat/Special Troops
Area Served: North African Theatre: Italy
Detaining Country: Germany
Camp: 003
Status: Returned to Military Control, Liberated or Repatriated
Report Source: Individual has been reported through sources considered official.
