Edward Aloysius O'Connor — Is sober and industrious, conscientious and trustworthy.

Edward O'Connor 1918

Now that we know more about the parents of my maternal grandfather, Edward Aloysius O'Connor, let's get to know him better.  He was always a hard worker, out of necessity at first perhaps, but that instilled in him the desire to keep persevering to improve his position in life and personal growth.  He must have believed enlisting in the military would give him opportunities for a better future.  He enlisted in the United States Army on July 9, 1918, two weeks before his 21st birthday, at Fort Slocum in New York.  Just  17 days later, he was graded as a Sergeant. In January 1919, he was promoted to Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM), Headquarters Detachment of the 216th Engineers Battalion at Camp Kearny in San Diego, California.  The RSM is primarily responsible for maintaining standards and discipline and acts as a parental figure to their subordinates and also to junior officers, even though they te

World War I Service Abstract

chnically outrank the RSM.  Edward was honorably discharged by reason of demobilization on February 28, 1919, without having served overseas. It was noted on his discharge certificate that his character was "Excellent."

There is an abundance of documents kept by Edward throughout his life, especially correspondence and award certificates.  This meticulous record-keeping gives us an insight into the man he was, through his own eyes and words, as well as those of his superiors and colleagues. I, myself, probably keep more material records of events in my life than necessary, so maybe I have Grandpa O'Connor to thank, or blame, for that part of my psyche.

In 1929, Edward went to work as an Inspector of Customs for the Treasury Department, United States Customs Service, at the Port of Andrade, California. In February of 1931, E.R. Brown, Deputy Collector in Charge (Customs Service), was requested by his superior to "go into fullest detail in regard to the personnel under your jurisdiction and to give your analysis of the men under you to the end that this office may become better acquainted with personnel matters."  Below is what Mr. Brown submitted for Edward O'Connor, which also accounts for the 1919-1929 gap in his employment record:

Edward, in the middle,
at Calexico Customs Office

The following is a transcription of a letter Edward submitted when applying for a Customs Service position at the Calexico port of entry in July of 1938. He wrote of his experience up to that point which would make him eligible for such an upgrade.  The position he applied for is not specifically mentioned, just that it was one of twelve new positions in Grade CAF-7 at $2,600 per annum. 

"Education:  Graduated from public school in New York City in February 1911 and then attended Newtown High School until I was fourteen years of age when it became necessary to go to work.  Attended various evening schools in New York City, enrolling in courses in Commercial Law, French, Bookkeeping and Stenography.

Enlisted in the Engineer Corps, U.S. Army, July 9, 1918 and was honorably discharged with the rank of Regimental Sergeant-Major on February 28, 1919. 

Since my discharge from the Army, I have studied, through the mediums of correspondence schools, evening high schools (in San Diego), and reading, Auditing and Accounting, Spanish, Economics and Tariff History and Construction.

Prior to my entrance into the Customs Service, I had eighteen years experience in auditing, accounting, personnel management, office organization and procedure.  

I entered the Customs Service as an Inspector on June 9, 1929 and served at the ports of Andrade and San Ysidro.  I was appointed a Clerk at San Ysidro on January 16, 1937, and promoted to Deputy Collector at the port of Calexico July 1, 1937.

Since coming to Calexico, I have instituted a port school to serve as an adjunct to the Bureau School, and in connection with this have done much research work."

Edward in Rome, Italy, 1945

In the midst of World War II, on February 14, 1942, Edward enlisted in the Army as a Private, again answering the call to duty.  At that time, he was 44 years old, married to Lu, and a father of three.  Edward was sent to Officers Training School in Grinnell, Iowa, and then sent to Tonkawa, Oklahoma[i], to prepare the grounds for German Prisoners of War.  It may be that his experience from the WWI 216th Engineers Battalion was instrumental in securing this assignment for Edward.  Later he joined the Military Police, in his words, "because it's the only way I can get overseas."  And that he did.  As a First Lieutenant in the 2675th Regiment, Edward served in Casablanca, Sicily, and Rome under the Allied Military Government.[ii] At the end of World War II, he refused further service and was honorably discharged as a Captain in 1946.  

Lu & Edward, New Year's Eve 1945, outside
their Covington Road home in San Diego.

After Edward's military stint in World War II, he returned to the U.S. Customs Service as a Deputy Collector and remained there until his retirement at age 66, on November 5, 1963.  His retirement party organized by the Bureau of Customs office in San Diego, was held at the El Cortez Hotel, 7th and Ash Street, at 7:30 p.m. with a social hour preceding.  The price of the non-hosted dinner was $4.75 per person, not including the social hour.

San Diego Union, November 19, 1963

Afterthoughts:

1.  Edward O'Connor was certainly someone who seemed to live by the book, who obeyed the letter and spirit of the law. His military training, leadership characteristics, and attention to detail in matters of accounting and discipline through his professional, government, and military careers were all contributing factors to his demeanor and outlook on life.  But there was a hidden, humorous side of him as well. What is your memory of his wittiness? I remember that at least for one Christmas, he wrapped presents for all of the grandchildren but did not put names on them. Instead he wrote a code that only he seemed to understand on the back of the wrapped gift.  That way no one knew which gift was theirs until he said so. I think he enjoyed watching each of us trying to find our present. Did anyone ever decipher that code?  I don't remember the format, just that it was always a puzzle, to me at least.

2.  Grandma O'Connor wrote a chapter  on "Edward's Family" in her  book of life stories, "My Grandma Dotes: Anecdotes of 93 Years of the Life and times of Temperance Lulu Lord O'Connor." She had thought at times that it would be so interesting to trace his (Edward's) people—to find out the kind of man she married and lived with for 53 years.  The few times she asked him about his people, Edward was so curt, so cross, giving her so little information that she never asked again.  She never understood why he didn't want them to know her or for her to know them. I hope with the last few blog posts, that we all know more now than she had ever hoped to uncover. I know she would be amazed at how much information can now be found, because of the internet and better access to records, about people who were previously unknown to her, to us.

3.  According to Grandma O'Connor, Edward was very insistent that his name be properly spelled as "O'Connor."  The two letters and the apostrophe were very important.  That spelling signified that he was descended from the Kings of Ireland—any other spelling meant that you were of the lower classes of Ireland.  That, Edward insisted, he was NOT.  Grandma believed him, but confessed that she didn't actually know.  Perhaps, he at some point had researched the O'Connor name and some something similar to this: Variants of the name O'Connor include O'Conor, Connor, Conor and Conyers.  The O'Connors descended from Conchobbar who was King of Connacht in the 971.  The last two Kings of Connact, Turlough O'Connor, 1088-1198, and Roderick O'Connor, 1116-1198, were of this line.  There were six O'Connor septs the most important being the O'Connors of Connacht.  the O'Connor sept of Kerry had their territory north of Kerry, but were pushed to the Shannon estuary after the Anglo-Norman invasion of 1170.  The other septs were O'Connor of Corcomroe, Clare, O'Connor of Offaly and O'Connor of Keenaght, Ulster.[iii]

Edward Aloysius O'Connor
July 23, 1897 - July 8, 1973
Picture from @1963

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[i] Camp Tonkawa Prisoner of War Camp:  Between October and December 1942 more than 900 construction workers labored twenty-four hours a day to build Camp Tonkawa. The 160-acre site contained more than 180 wooden structures for 3,000 German P.O.W.s, as well as 500 U.S. Army guard troops, service personnel and civilian employees. Activated in January 1943, the post received its first P.O.W.s in August, German troops of the Afrika Corps captured in North Africa. The facility operated at or near capacity throughout its existence. Prisoners worked on area farms and ranches as well as at an alfalfa dryer plant in Tonkawa. In November 1943, a disturbance among the prisoners resulted in the death of one German soldier. Eight P.O.W.s escaped from the camp but all were recaptured. Camp Tonkawa closed in September 1945, and the P.O.W.s were returned to Europe. http://blogoklahoma.us/place.aspx?id=839

[ii] The Allied Military Government for Occupied Territories (originally abbreviated AMGOT, later AMG) was the form of military rule administered by Allied forces (American and British) during and after World War II within European territories they occupied. Allies and Italians Under Occupation: Sicily and Southern Italy, 1943-1945, by Isobel Williams (2103).  This is a good book to read if you are interested in what the Allied Military Government's role was in Italy during WWII. 

[iii] http://www.irishsurnames.com/cgi-bin/namesearch.pl