Richard A. Wertheim

sebastiaan vonk · December 2007

A long time ago, I posted a reqeust for finding the family of Lawrence F. Shea, a World War II soldier who is buried at the American War Cemetery Margraten in the Netherlands, I have adopted his grave and I take care for it. I found fortunately his family and have already contact for a few months with them. Again thank you for the help, with finding information about Lawrence F. Shea!!!

In February and October this year I have two other graves adopted. On is the grave of Richard A. Wertheim. When I was looking for information about him I noticed that he also, like Lawrence Shea, came from Kings County. I will give some more information about him!

Richard A. Wertheim was born in 1915. He had two sisters, who are both deceased. He served first in the United States National Gard and drafted after one year in the US Army Air Forces. He was married with a women who is called probably Florence Wertheim, or something similiar to this name, I don't if she is still living. Richard Wertheim was Second Lieutenant in the 401st Bomb Squadron, 91st Bomb Group. He flew 8 missions as bombardier of his plane . He died on March 6, 1944 when his plane, the B17 My Darling Also, was rammed by a German Focke Wulf 190. The plane crashed. Two crew members could bail out but the other eight members were all killed. Richard A. Wertheim was 29 of 30 years old when he was killed. He is buried now on the Ardennes War Cemetery in Belgium. In October of this year I have adopted his grave.

I would be happy if I could get in contact with his family or when I will get more information about him. I would appreciate it when you want to help me with finding his family or information about him! Here is a picture of me with Second Lieutenant Richard A. Wertheim's grave:

Thanks again!

caseopele · December 2007

Hi Sebastiaan, what a wonderful thing you're doing! I did a few searches and found these sites that may help you.

http://www.91stbombgroup.com/danamorse.html

http://www.91stbombgroup.com/

91st Bomb group forum
http://www.armyairforces.com/forum/forumid_24/tt.htm

401st Bomb Squadron
http://www.401bg.com/gallery/gallery.asp

http://www.rootsweb.com/

Dana Morse was on the My Darling Also with Richard Wertheim, he must have been one of the 2 that survived. Rootsweb is a forum for people interested in genealogy or looking for family members. Hope this helps a bit, good luck!

raw · December 2007

This is interesting stuff. I like it.

How did this project begin? Why are you doing it? To learn about history and/or to memorialize people who died in battle?

sebastiaan vonk · December 2007

caseopele wrote: Hi Sebastiaan, what a wonderful thing you're doing! I did a few searches and found these sites that may help you.

http://www.91stbombgroup.com/danamorse.html

http://www.91stbombgroup.com/

91st Bomb group forum
http://www.armyairforces.com/forum/forumid_24/tt.htm

401st Bomb Squadron
http://www.401bg.com/gallery/gallery.asp

http://www.rootsweb.com/

Dana Morse was on the My Darling Also with Richard Wertheim, he must have been one of the 2 that survived. Rootsweb is a forum for people interested in genealogy or looking for family members. Hope this helps a bit, good luck!

Thank you for looking for these sites! I knew them almost except the forum about the 91st Bomb Group. You gave me also the address of a site of the 401st Bomb Group, you thought it was the 401st Bomb Squadron I guess, but thank you for searching!

Unfortunately are both survivors of the crash deceased. Mister Dana Morse a few months ago, if I am not wrong.

raw wrote: This is interesting stuff. I like it.

How did this project begin? Why are you doing it? To learn about history and/or to memorialize people who died in battle?

Many people like me in the Netherlands and also in Belgium adopt one or more graves to commemorate them, to honor them and to say thanks for what they have done. The gave their lives for our freedom and we may not forget that!

Many people do also research to the person of who they have adopted his grave. They want to know, like me, who they were, how they lived, how they died and more. Also they want to get in contact with the family to tell them that they have adopted the grave of a relative. And the family has many times much information and pictures of the soldier.

Fallen but not Forgotten is the name of a site with many stories of soldiers who are buried on the Netherlands War Cemetery in Margraten. Also there are some stories of the adopters self. Also mine, but this one is only in Dutch yet. But all the stories are in English, I would say take a look:
www.fallennotforgotten.nl

Also for the Henri-Chapelle Cemetery, which isn't far from the Netherlands Cemetery, is a website with stories of the soldiers who are buried on this cemetery. All in English:
www.in-honored-glory.info

I have also a website, but the biggest part of my website is only in Dutch. When I have time I will try to translate some in English. Here is the address:
www.sebastiaancollectie.nl

caseopele · December 2007

Darn, that's why I shouldn't use the internet when I'm tired!

apollonia666 · December 2007

Hi Sebastiaan! I'm afraid I don't have any info to help you, but I just wanted to say it was great to hear from you again and I think it's very cool that you've adopted two more graves. Good luck with your search.

sebastiaan vonk · December 2007

Today I received an old crew picture with Richard A. Wertheim! He is the second one from the right on the bottom row (without a hat):

You can guess that I am very happy with this picture!

apollonia666 · December 2007

The thing that always strikes me about photos from WWII is how terribly young the people fighting it were. You know how in Slaughterhouse-Five Vonnegut talks about how many teenagers lied about their age to go to war? My dad, who was 15 when he did just that to join the Navy and go off to the Pacific during the last couple of years of the war, told me this was really commonplace. I have a scrapbook he kept that has some photos of some of his Navy buddies and it's obvious some of them are barely old enough to shave. So sad.

It makes me wonder how accurate the records on these soldiers might be -- if were actually a few years younger than listed I don't know if it would make it any harder for you to find info on them, but it's something to keep in mind. Those guys in your photo sure do look young.

eggcream · December 2007

What a wonderful endeavor. Good luck in your search.

sebastiaan vonk · December 2007

Thank you all!

I will receive in a few weeks an obituary of him. Maybe it will have some interesting information in it!

Tomorrow I will visit the graves which I have adopted. I will post tomorrow some pictures. If there any members here who have a relative buried on the Netherlands American Cemetery, Henri-Chapelle American Cemetery or the Ardennes American Cemetery and who want a picture of his grave, let me know! I will make one for you!

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

sebastiaan vonk · December 2007

Here are some pictures that I made today of his grave:

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

sebastiaan vonk · December 2007

Hi all,

Today I received the address where they lived before the war. It seems to be that Richard Wertheim lived with his wife, and maybe childeren, at 135 Clarkson Avenue. Does somebody know where this place exactly is?

Thanks!

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

carnivore · December 2007

Sebastiaan Vonk wrote: Hi all,

Today I received the address where they lived before the war. It seems to be that Richard Wertheim lived with his wife, and maybe childeren, at 135 Clarkson Avenue. Does somebody know where this place exactly is?

Thanks!

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

I work not far from there. Sometime in the next few days, I'll try to swing by and take a picture of the place as it looks now for you.

sebastiaan vonk · January 2008

If you want to do that, thank you very much!

Happy New Year to you all!

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

sebastiaan vonk · January 2008

Hi Carnivore!

I was wondering or you had already found time to make a picture of the place where his house was (or still is).

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

carnivore · January 2008

So after a bunch of night shifts, I was finally able to go by this building during the day. It's a nice block, with a mix of pre-war apartment buildings (4 and 6 story) and some scattered large town houses, and even a few houses with porches. Oddly enough, my parents lived on this block at 176 Clarkson, as did I for less than a year after I was born.

Here are some pics:

sebastiaan vonk · January 2008

Thank you for the pictures, Carnivore!

So if I am not wrong, 135 Clarkson Avenue is the hole building with different houses?

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

carnivore · January 2008

Sebastiaan Vonk wrote: Thank you for the pictures, Carnivore!
So if I am not wrong, 135 Clarkson Avenue is the hole building with different houses?

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

It's the whole apartment building. Richard Wertheim would have lived in one of the apartments in it. According to property shark, it was built in 1928, so it would have been there at the time.

sebastiaan vonk · January 2008

Thank you! Now I have to find out where they did live exactly!

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

sebastiaan vonk · February 2008

Here is a short update!

I tried to find out at which number they lived exactly, but there is no information over in official documents of the US Army. Also I have tried to find a relative, also unfortunately without any luck yet.

But I don't give up!

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

sebastiaan vonk · March 2008

Hi all!

I have a question and I hope someone of you is willing to help! I found an address of a man who lives in Brooklyn with the name Wertheim and it is the only one who lives in Brooklyn with this name. Is somebody willing to help and does want to call him? It costs me a lot of money and I don't talk very well English as I do write English.

If anyone is willing to help let me know and I will give you his phone number. I would appreciate it very much and would be very thankful if somebody wants to help.

Thanks!

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

sebastiaan vonk · May 2008

Hi all!

I thought that it was after a long time time to give a small update about how the research is going and to post some new pictures of his grave.

As I have been busy the last weeks with another website from me, I hadn't much time to do research. So unfortunately I don't have any new information at the moment. I hope I will get some more time in the comming weeks to do research. Also haven't no luck yet with finding his family. Last week I contacted the man who found the family of Lawrence F. Shea, who was also from Kings County. He was willing to help me again. I hope he has some luck with finding a relative.

And as anyone has information, I do like to hear it of course!

I visited his grave at May 3 and made of course some pictures. Here are two of them:

Yesterday it was Memorial Day in the United States. I was wondering or the was a ceremony in Brooklyn / New York. Anyone knows?

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

underhill_mt · May 2008

Hi Sebastiaan!

Here is a link to an organization that puts on a parade every Memorial Day in Greenpoint, Brooklyn (not far from here): http://www.greenpointveteransparade.org/ So far there are no photos in the gallery of the 2008 parade, but I'm sure they'll be up soon.

sebastiaan vonk · May 2008

Thank you! I will keep an eye on the website!

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

sebastiaan vonk · June 2008

Can a moderator move this to the Prospect Lefferts Garden forum? As it is the place where he lived before the war and not in Park Slope. :oops:

Thank you!

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

sebastiaan vonk · August 2008

Hi!

Here a small update.

Haven't done much research last weeks, but in July I got some information about this death. In this record were also letters to Richard's family. Perhaps we found a sister of him. We are try to contact her. I will give the names we found in this record as perhaps someone else know one of them or a relative.

This information is from a few years after the war.

Sisters

Ruth F. Rosenwald
1870 Batchelder Street
Brooklyn, New York

Viola Phillips

Wife

Florence Louise Braxl
52 Ridgewood Street Valley Stream
Long Island, New York

We think that Ruth and Florence both are dead. So at the moment we are hoping that we found the right Viola Phillips. Someone tried to call her, but unfortunately no reaction yet.

I will keep you updated.

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

sweet tea · August 2008

nice work. this project is always heart-warming to hear about.

just so you know, the second address should have "Valley Stream" as the town, not Long Island. (Long Island doesn't appear in mailing addresses, though people so discuss it as one entity.) Don't know if that will help at all, but just in case.

sebastiaan vonk · August 2008

Thank you!

I don't think it will make any difference, as we think that she is deceased. Didn't know that it was different though. I copied it exactly out of the record. Perhaps it has been changed later.

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

lo kee · August 2008

Sebastian this is truly a noble and generous thing you are doing. Thank you.

sebastiaan vonk · August 2008

Lo Kee wrote: Sebastian this is truly a noble and generous thing you are doing. Thank you.

Thanks!

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

sebastiaan vonk · October 2008

I thought to give you all an update. :thumleft:

After a few without a visit of his grave, I've visited his grave last week again. Here some new pictures:

No reply from a person who we wrote who could be his sister. His sister Ruth F. Rosenwald died, if we assume that she is the right Ruth, in Lakehurst, NJ. I contacted a library there today. I hope that could help me with obtaining a scan of her obituary.

Richard Wertheim's wife probably remarried with Frank Braxl. We think that she is burried at the Long Island National Cemetery. That would mean that her husband was in the army too, though we haven't found his name on that cemetery. We found a Frank J. Jr. Braxl who could have been their son who is buried at that Cemetery too. Their records are:

U.S. Veterans Gravesites, ca.1775-2006
about Florence Braxl
Name: Florence Braxl
Service Info.: S 2C US NAVY
Birth Date: 22 Apr 1914
Death Date: 7 Jan 1977
Relation: Wife of Braxl, Frank
Interment Date: 11 Jan 1977
Cemetery: Long Island National Cemetery
Cemetery Address: 2040 Wellwood Avenue Farmingdale, NY 11735-1211
Buried At: Section X Site 117b

U.S. Veterans Gravesites, ca.1775-2006
about Frank J Jr Braxl
Name: Frank J Jr Braxl
Service Info.: BM 3C US NAVY VIETNAM
Birth Date: 30 May 1947
Death Date: 9 Jun 1987
Service Start Date: 21 Sep 1966
Interment Date: 16 Sep 1992
Cemetery: Long Island National Cemetery
Cemetery Address: 2040 Wellwood Avenue Farmingdale, NY 11735-1211
Buried At: Section 2q Site 7068

We aren't sure that she is indeed the right Florence, but we think she is. If anyone has more information about them or wants to look for more information, I would appreciate it very much to hear. :thumleft:

When I got some news, I will post it here.

Best Regards,

Sebastiaan

Richard A. Wertheim

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