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Monday, April 5, 2010
August 26, 1945
(click letter to enlarge image)
"Sweet, you should see me sniffling your letters...
I don't know what it is but it reminds me of you"
Friday, February 26, 2010
How it all Happened:::Their Timeline:::
Red & R.S. Timeline
Introduced
- Introduced by June Reed, roommate to Alla Pearl Frost to her brother Robert S, Reed
- Date unknown, but referred to in a letter stating that they had known each other for a year before they got married.
- 4 July 1943 In Lordsburg, (Nolas)Byrd said “lets go to El Paso”— they ended up in a tourist camp with some friends “ You know honey we wasn’t getting much sleep then, we were either in a car or in a bar”
- - Somehow R.S., hit Red in eye with a beer bottle, she had a cut and a black eye, but seemed to be laughing about it. His friends (at Morenci) gave him a bad time about it.
- These memories recounted in July 4, 1944 letter from R.S. to Red
- 8 July 1943 Married In Lordsburg, N. M. By justice of the peace Nolas Byrd drove them or was with them and so was Nellie Reed Brownell. – it seems to have been an elopement on a dare
- No letters still exist from Red to R. S. during 1943. It is assumed that they were lost or destroyed. Red tells Robert to burn them and apparently he did destroy them.
- 1st letter –18 August, 1943 R.S. to Red from Clifton to St. Joseph’s Hospital, Phoenix
- 13 September, 1943 R.S. to Red from Clifton to St. Joseph’s Hospital, Phoenix
- 22 September, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 23 September, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 24 September, 1943 , R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 28 September 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 29 September, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 30 September, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 01 October, 1943 , R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA.
- 04 October, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 05 October, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 06 October, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 07 October, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 11 October, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 12 October, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 13 October, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, ,Fresno, CA
- 15 October, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 19 October, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 22 October, 1943, R.S. to Red from Clifton to Fresno General Hospital, Fresno, CA
- 27 October, 1943, R.S. to Red from Glenwood, N,M., to Fresno General Hospital
- 6 November, 1943 postcard R.S. to Red from Winslow, AZ. To Fresno General
- 8 November, 1943, R. S. to Red from Glenwood to Fresno General
- 8 November, 1943, R. S. to Red from Glenwood to Fresno General
- 10 November, 1943, R.S. to Red from Buckhorn, N.M. to Fresno General
- 11 November, 1943, R.S. to Red from Glenwood N.M. to Fresno General
- 15 November, 1943, R.S. to Red from Glenwood (Buckhorn) N.M. to Fresno General
- 16 November, 1943 R.S. to Red from Buckhorn, N.M. to Fresno General
- 21 November, 1943, R.S. to Red from Glenwood N.M. to Fresno General Hospital
- 23 November, 1943, R.S. to Red from Buckhorn N. M. to Fresno General Hospital
- 25 November, 1943, R.S. to Red from Buckhorn N/M. to Fresno General
- 28 November 1943, R.S. to Red from Buckhorn, N.M. to Fresno General Hospital
- 30 November 1943 R.S.to Red from Glenwood (Silver City) to Fresno General
- 3 December 1943, R.S. to Red from Fort Bliss ,Texas (Somewhere in Texas)
- 4 December 1943 R.S to Red from Fort Bliss, Texas
- 6 December 1943 R.S to Red from Fort Bliss, Texas
- 3 December 1943, R.S. to Red from Fort Bliss ,Texas (Somewhere in Texas)
- 4 December 1943 R.S to Red from Fort Bliss, Texas
- 6 December 1943 R.S to Red from Fort Bliss, Texas
- 8 December 1943 R.S to Red Postcard from Deming N.M.
- 8 December 1943 R.S to Red from Glenwood, N.M.
- 1 January 1944, R.S. to Red from San Diego (Camp Decator---Boot Camp)
- 5 January- move to Camp Farragut
- January 26- Boot camp over—now Seaman 2nd Class
- JANUARY 27 TELEGRAM: from Dick to Miss Alla Pearl Frost, Fresno General Hospital SEE IF YOU CAN COME TO LA SUNDAY MORNING I HAVE A ROOM 4 A M SUNDAY UNTIL 11 AM MONDAY OFF LET ME KNOW BY SATURDAY NOON . TRY TO GET OFF LOVE DICK
- JANUARY 28 1944 TELEGRAM from Red to Robert S. Reed S 2/C USNT (Radar Operator) 6d Point Loma San Dieogo, Calif ARRIVE 5;30 SUNDAY/ MEET GREYHOUND BUS LOS ANGELES LOVE RED
- Jan 30, 1944—Spent night together (mentioned in letter on Jan 31 from RS to Red.)
- Feb. 16- graduated from Radar school
- “Honey I tare your letters up or burn them as soon as I read them about twice or three times and no one gets to read them. Does that help your feelings any and you had better do the same for mine.” 25 Nov. 1943 RS to Red
- 1st Saved letter from Red to R.S.
- 20 February 1944 from Miss Alla Pearl Frost from Fresno General Hospital to Navy address( marked out and changed twice by military post
- 20 February letter from R.S. to Red from United States Naval Repair Base, San Diego, 37 CA
- 16 February1944 letter, mentions graduation from Radar School
- 21 February, 1944 R.S, to Miss Alla Pearl Frost from Receiving Station, Balboa Park .
- San Diego, CA to Fresno General Hospital
- 16 July 1944- R.S, to Miss Alla Pearl Frost at Fresno General Hospital- gives the name of his ship as A.P.c. 12. “I think it stands for Auxiallry Patrol Cargo. And the 12 is the number of the ship. I don’t know if they will censor that or not. But I heard some of the boys say they could tell what it stands for.”
- 24 February 1944 Graduation from School of Nursing of General Hospital
- 27 March 1945 Red received “orders” to report to Tacoma, Washington for basic training. Afterwards to report to Barnes General Hospital in Vancouver, Washington
- 30 March 1945 Sgt. Guy I. Frost killed in action in Germany, buried in American military cemetery in Germany. (Memorial services to be held June 10, 1944)
- 8 Oct 1945 Red writes (last letter?) about 48 replacements (nurses) expected in the next few days & she could be out (of the army) fast.
- (fire destroyed the Army records of 1912 through 1959 which include those of (Alla Pearl) Red Reed) An alternate document NA Form 13038, Certification of Military Service verifies military service and may be used for official purposes. A seal has been affixed to this document to attest to its authenticity. National Personnel Records Center
- letter sent November 7, 2008.
- Alla P. Reed N786 212
- 9 November 1945 Alla P. Reed Honorable Relief from Active Duty
- Document: Certification of Military Service
- United States Army service from March 31, 1945 to November 9, 1945
- Rank: Second Lieutenant
- 13 Dec 1945 Robert Sion Reed Honorable Discharge from U.S. Naval Service
- Document: Notice of Separation from U.S. Naval Service
- Place of Separation: PSC NOB TI San Pedro, California
- (Inducted 7 Dec. 1943 in El Paso, Texas)
- Final classification:
- REED, Robert Sion USNR
- Boatswain’s Mate Second Class, V-6
- Served on vessel USS APC 12 Sea Service World War II
- Ratings held AS,S2c,Slc,Cox., BM2 c (T)
- Service School Completed: Radar Operating School, San Diego, CA (4 weeks)
- Remarks:
- Asiatic-Pacific- 2 Stars
- American Area
- Victory Medal World War II
- Philippine Liberation
- Point System
- Home address listed as
- Glenwood, New Mexico
- Catron County
Letter from Red::: June 21, 1944:::Missing him and wishing for life with him...
(click on pages to enlarge)
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Red & Navy's Family
Robert Sion Reed
Nickname: Dick or R.S,
Born: 3 Apr 1918 Thatcher, Graham, Ariz.
Married: 8 July 1943 Lordsburg, Grant, New Mexico
Died: 4 Aug 2000 Tucson
Buried Thatcher, Graham, Ariz.
His father: Reed, Wilmer Carson His Mother: Fain, Bessie May
His wives: Frost, Alla Pearl Bearup, Mary Clara Bussell, Doris Elaine
Alla Pearl Frost
Nickname: Red
Born: 20 Mar 1923 Snowflake, Navajo, Ariz.
Died: 4 June 1979 Duncan, Greenlee, Ariz.
Buried: 7 June 1979 Snowflake, Navajo, Ariz.
Her Father: Frost, Allen
Her Mother: Turley, Pearl
Their Children
Reed, Sharon Pearl
15 June 1947 Morenci, Greenlee Ariz.
Her Husband: Gray, Howard Richard Married: 25 May 1968
Reed, Robert Allen
14 July 1950 Morenci, Greenlee, Ariz.
His Wife: Lynne
Reed, Richard Alvin
2 May 1953 Morenci, Greenlee, Ariz
His Wife: Jana Bernice Carroll
About Robert S. Reed
April 3, 1918 – August 4, 2000
Short history adapted from remarks given at the funeral service August 2000 in Duncan. AZ.
Prepared by Robert Allen Reed and Sharon Reed Gray
Robert Sion Reed was born on Apri3, 1918 in Thatcher, Arizona to Bessie May Fain and Carson Reed. He was born in a small home next to his paternal grandparents, Alabama Evans and Robert Reed. He was the second of five children born to Bessie and Carson. During his childhood the Reed family moved to Los Angeles for a short time. While living there his mother passed away ten months after her baby June was born. R.S. was only five years old at the time of his mother’s death. Shortly thereafter, the family moved back to Thatcher, where the present day John Deere dealer and Animal hospital are located. Some of Dad’s earliest memories were of his Grandpa’s farm where they had bees, chickens, a milk cow and where they raised vegetables in their garden.
The Reed family moved again when he was eight to the Prina farm in Safford near the river. He worked with his father and grandfather on the farm until he was about fifteen years old. For a short time he worked for the Conservation Core on Mount Graham at the Columbine campsite, building roads and installing corrugated pipe for road drainage. “Dad recently told us a story about when he was headed up Mount Graham to the campsite with two other fellows and they were on foot. It was getting kind of late and a truck that was headed toward the camp passed them. The other two guys he was with were able to run and jump on the truck, but he wasn’t fast enough to catch it and ended up all alone walking up the mountain with no light to guide him.”
In 1936, his father bought a farm near Glenwood, New Mexico and R.S. moved there to help work on the farm. He made a number of trips to the town of Mogollon to deliver fresh produce, hogs and chickens that they raised on the farm. This is also where R.S. developed his love of hunting. He spent a lot of his free time in the surrounding mountains hunting for deer. He stayed in Glenwood for a few years before moving to Tucson and then Phoenix to work for his Uncle John Fain and for Rale Singh on their farms.
While in Phoenix, R.S. “Dick” was introduced to Alla Pearl Frost by his sister, June. Alla Pearl was from Snowflake, Arizona and was attending nursing training at St. Joseph’s Hospital where she was June’s roommate. Dick went to work with Phelps Dodge at Morenci June and Alla Pearl came for a weekend visit in July of 1943. A joy ride and a dare later, they were married in Lordsburg, New Mexico on July 8, 1943. Due to a nursing school regulation that required students to be single, it was a year before R.S, and Alla Pearl were able to tell of their marriage to friends and family. Alla Pearl had returned to Phoenix for school and Dick continued to work at Morenci all the time writing each other and keeping their secret.
Dick joined the Navy in December of 1943. He did his training in San Francisco and was trained to be a radar specialist. The remainder of his naval career was spent on a small ship in the South Pacific putting his radar skills to work scrubbing the deck. The Navy had put him on a ship without radar! Fortunately his ship was never involved in any battles and he was bored but saved from battle trauma. The highlight of his Pacific assignment was when he was in Philippines he was able to meet with his brother Alvin and his sister June who were serving there in with the U.S. Army.
He was writing almost daily to Alla Pearl while she was in nurses training in Phoenix, then Fresno and when she worked at the dispensary in McNary. She wanted to join the military to help with the war effort and he tried to persuade her otherwise. She finally joined the Army and was stationed in Walla Walla, Washington. Their letters from this time were their only communication.
After the war and being released from their military assignments, they finally got to live together in Morenci, Arizona where they both worked for Phelps Dodge Corporation. Dick became a welder in the boiler shop and Red became a nurse at the Morenci Hospital.
In 1947, their first child was born, a daughter they named Sharon Pearl. In 1950, a son named Robert Allen and in 1953 as son named Richard Alvin completed their family. Morenci was to be their home for the next thirty-three years.
The family lived in different parts of Morenci, eventually settling in Plantsite at Sunset Street where they lived for over fifteen years. Every year the Reed family planned a major vacation, some of which included Disneyland, Yellowstone National Park, Marineland, Mazatlan Mexico and the World’s Fair in Seattle. Closer to home they also enjoyed camping at Woods Canyon Lake, Black River, Big Lake and the White Mountains.
Dick was an avid outdoorsman and he raised his children to love horses, camping fishing and hunting. They kept horses in the corrals near their Plantsite home.
Dick retired after thirty eight years with Phelps Dodge and moved to a home they had built near Duncan, Arizona on twenty one acres of land. Red retired from the hospital because she was having health problems. Shortly after the move, “Red” passed away on June 4, 1979 and was buried in Snowflake, Arizona.
Several years later he married Mary Bearup Albert and they continued to live at the little ranch near Duncan. They enjoyed the grandchildren and one of the experience that Robert and Sharon’s families remember is the family gathering at Pagosa Springs in 1985? Mary passed away in ..
Soon after that Dick and Doris Goodman began dating. They had been good friends and had dated for a time in 1981, a year before Dad married Mary. Doris encouraged Dad in his religious pursuits and eventually they were married in the LDS Mesa Temple. Eventually Doris’ children, Don, Joe and Linda were all sealed to Dick and Doris. The temple work sealing Alla Pearl to Dick was also performed in the Manti temple with Doris acting as proxy.
They have been very happy and lived in the Duncan ranchette. In early August 2000 Dick suffered a stroke and was flown to Tucson where he died on 4 August 2000 surrounded by his family.
At the funeral of Robert Sion Reed these memories were stated;
Things Dad loved to do:
- Family camp trips with family including grandkids to enjoy the forest and cool mountain air
- As long as Abby (his mule) could pack him he would be hunting
- Hunting trips with friends and family ( Eb Holmes, Bob Carrol, Booger Brownell, sons; Robert and Richard, Bobby and Clay Gomez)
- At age 82 he put in with EB Holmes fro Elk, Antelope and Deer
- His recent trip to Searchlight, Nevada to a Frost Family Reunion with Robert and Derek
- Even after the many years since Red’s death he made it a point to stay in contact with her family. He loved them very much.
- He couldn’t pass by an area without remembering a piece of history; such as his CC experiences on Mt. Graham, the many stories around Glenwood, Catwalk and the Alma Mesa area
- At the drop of a hat he would go with friends like Joe Light on whatever adventure might be in store for the day.
- His trips most mornings to visit Jigs Wagley and others to keep up on the news in the community.
- His daily walks to the school bus stop with Lisa and Lindsey to start their school day.
- He was always concerned and made frequent trips to visit his sisters Helen and Nell.
About Alla Pearl Frost
by Sharon Reed Gray
My parents got married on a dare. My mother had traveled to Morenci, Arizona with her roommate, June Reed, from nurses training at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Phoenix. She had known June’s brother, R.S. “Dick.” Reed, for over a year when June and Dick talked her into coming to Morenci to visit.
On the evening of July 7th, 1943, Dick, Red, Dick's sister; Nell Brownell and a buddy; Nolas Byrd went for a joy ride near the Arizona-New Mexico Border. They had been drinking and in the early hours of July 8th, they were pulled over by a policeman, most likely for speeding. They claimed they were trying to get to Lordsburg to get married. The averted speeding ticket resulted in a police escort to the home of Rachel Atkinson, Deputy Clerk of Hidalgo County. The poor clerk was awakened in the wee hours of the morning by the scared looking young couple at her front door. The license is officially recorded as having been issued at 5:50 a.m.
The hung-over foursome then waited outside the county courthouse til it opened. At 9:15 a.m. it is recorded that Robert S. Reed and Alla Pearl Frost were married by Justice of the Peace, C. W. Marsalis, with Nellie Brownell and Nolas Byrd serving as witnesses.
Information from the Marriage License and Marriage Certificate reveal the following:
::: Robert S. Reed, age 25 of Clifton, Arizona married Alla Pearl Frost, age 20 also of Clifton ::: (not true, she was from Snowflake, attending nurses training in Phoenix).
Keeping the secret
Now that they were married, what were they going to do? Red could not be married and be in nurses training. They had no real plans to set up housekeeping; Dick was working in Morenci, Arizona with Phelps Dodge Corporation in the copper industry but had intentions to join the service, either the Army or the Navy. It was wartime and most every able person of age was joining the military.
Alla Pearl, “Red”, went back to Phoenix with her new sister-in-law, June Reed, to continue nurses training with a great big secret. She would not be allowed to continue in nurses training at St. Joseph’s Hospital if it were known she was married.
In the fall of that year the senior class of nurses-in-training had a falling out with the administration of St. Joseph’s Hospital. They resigned as a class and moved to Fresno, California to finish school at Fresno General Hospital. Apparently it was against the rules at both hospitals for a nurse-in-training to be married so it had to remain a secret for at least another year.
World War II- Arizona. Responding to national recruiting- Uncle Sam Needs You, My Dad joined the Navy. My mother was in nurses training waiting for letters from my Dad. After she graduated from Fresno General Hospital as an R.N., she worked for a while in McNary, Arizona for Drs. Herbst and Dysterheft at the McNary Hospital. She joined the war effort as a lieutenant in the Army nursing core, and yes she had her share of training in combat boots.
My mother wore combat boots!
Combat Boots and Nurses Cap were an appropriate symbol for my mother’s life. The combat boots refer more to her life and attitude that to the actual boots she wore in boot camp. The nurse’s cap can also refer to her mothering as well as her professional life as a registered nurse, but it does define so much about her.
In my memory she was always a nurse and she was associated with the Morenci Hospital. Every week-day and many holidays my mother worked at the Hospital. She wielded a great deal of authority and even a measure of power that create fear in patients because she was the head of the dispensary and most likely the person to administer shots in the arm or the derriere to all patrons of the hospital. In a copper mining town where everyone works for “the company” and the hospital is a company hospital, a sense of authority seemed to be attached to the caretakers of the health of the community.
The company, Phelps Dodge Corporation, controlled everything. We lived in a company house, all 1200 square feet of it. Everyone else lived in a company house too.
Most were the same size as ours, only a handful of “company big shots” had larger houses. We thought it was fine since there was no other choice and the rent was only twenty-six dollars a month. The company had carpenters, plumbers and painters that took care of the maintenance needs of the houses. Whether you wanted it or not, house interiors and garage exteriors were painted every five years. Company homes were situated in neighborhoods like Plantsite, Stargo and Tent City.
We shopped at the company store, the Phelps Dodge Mercantile. The convenient thing was, it could all be on an account, so you just got a statement at the end of the month. The account could just be subtracted from your paycheck. If it happened to be a strike year, purchases could still be charged, but when the strike was over all the paycheck went to compensate the debt until it was totally settled. It gives meaning to Tennessee Ernie Ford’s mournful refrain, “I owe my soul to the company store.”
I remember my mother’s starched white nurses cap, it was worn almost like a crown, a symbol of authority and professionalism. Less authoritarian and more arbitrary were the white “nurses” shoes, thought to be unattractive but sturdy and a must for the uniformed nurse. Her dress was knee length and tight and had to be fitted with the clip-in mother of pearl buttons with the medical symbol that matched her cuff links. There were at least 15 of those buttons that went from collar to hem. She had to wear white nylons and wrestle with a girdle and garter connections. In this tight fitting outfit she changed sheets and bedpans and dealt with all the needs of the patients. She working extremely hard. In the 1940s and 1950s, R.Ns were required to do more of the tasks that are now assigned to nurse’s aides or “patient care technicians”.
As a little girl I used to sit on her bed and watch her go through the process of girding up for a gruelling day of work at the hospital in a uniform that by today’s standards seems torturous. She did complain about it sometimes. I think the words she used were “these damn buttons” and” this damn uniform” as she dealt with them daily.
The uniform looked formal and awesome on my mother. I remember her auburn red hair contrasting with the whiteness of everything else. Everyone in Morenci who knew her well called her “Red.” and the name suited her well. She was well read, she “saw red” often and she had a “red hot” personality. Red was much more descriptive than her legal name which was Alla Pearl Frost Reed. In fact she had been named Allen Pearl at birth, but as a young adult had it legally changed to Alla Pearl, which seemed more feminine.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
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