#47-Soldier-Tony Lloyd, POW in World War II

A HERO, A life cut short, and we will never forget

Every Memorial Day I think of the story that my mother Helen Lloyd Shaffner, told about Tony B. Lloyd.  He was her first cousin, once removed.  Which means that she & Tony shared the same ancestor, Albert Gallatin Lloyd.  Albert was Tony's grandfather; while he was Mom's great grandfather.  But they were close in years, Tony born in 1915 and mom, Helen Lloyd, was born in 1924.  They lived in Waitsburg, Washington.  

(In my genealogy collection, I have the original newspaper articles.  But not always are they dated or the newspaper's name listed.)

Tony was called up with other reserve officers in August, 1940, and reported for duty with the coast artillery corps at March field, Calif., and a year later was transferred for duty in the Philippines, at Fort Mills.

Tony was a First Lieutenant, USA, assigned to Battery H. 60th Coast Art. Reg., Corrigodore, PI.  He was taken a POW when the island was captured by the Japanese during WWII.   

He died January 7, 1943 in the Kokura POW Camp, Shioku, Japan.

"The Times"

Waitsburg, Washington

Friday, December 21, 1945 

Lt. Tony Lloyd Dies in Japanese Prison Camp

News Arrives Here of Death on January 7, 1943 

A telegram from the War Department has just been received by Mr. and Mrs. Wesley A. Lloyd notifying them of the death of their son, First Lt. Tony Boynton Lloyd in a prison Camp in Japan, January 7, 1943.  Tony Lloyd was born at the old farm home west of Waitsburg, March 12, 1915.  ................"

Following is the text of the message received:  

"The Secretary of war has asked me to express his deep regret that your son, First Lieutenant Tony B. Lloyd, died in Japan, January 7, 1943, as a result of malnutrition while a prisoner of war of the Japanese government.  I regret that unavoidable circumstances made necessary the unusual lapse of time in reporting your son's death to you.

 Tony was posthumously awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in action on Corregidor in March of 1946. 

The Silver Star Citation reads

 "For Gallantry in action on Corregidor, Philippine Islands, on 28 April 1942.  During a heavy Japanese artillery concentration on a battery position, the electrical power transmission cables were destroyed.  Completely disregarding his own safety, Lieutenant Lloyd, Battery H, 60th Coast Artillery Regiment (Anti-aircraft) left cover, exposed himself to enemy fire for two hours, and repaired these vital cables thereby bringing the battery back into synchronization.  By his sustained gallantry and courageous devotion to duty, Lieutenant Lloyd rendered invaluable aid to our forces during a critical period of operation." (newspaper clipping from the Waitsburg Times)

   Lt. Lloyd, now established as the first Waitsburg man to die in the service of his country,

Tony's parents, Wes and Ina Lloyd

Tony Lloyd

Wes Lloyd had a friendship with the local Indian tribe who camped on the Lloyd farm.

For the kindness of the Lloyd family, they were given Indian artifacts.

The entire collection is now on housed and on display at Fort Walla Walla Museum in Walla Walla, Washington.

I have pictures of Tony as a child, but not as a  young adult.  

Time Magazine, April 13, 1942

Behind the Bataan Line

Tony Lloyd is the man standing

The picture is labeled

"Money changing hands during a lull

The picture below was clipped from a captured Japanese newsreel film showing the surrender of American troops on Corregidor.  

The man on the extreme right has been identified as Lt. Tony Lloyd.\

One scene (on the right) featured several American prisoners, hands in air, awaiting the next command of their guards. 

His parents actually saw their son's picture in a newsreel. which was shown before the movie at the movie theater.

The manager of the theater was kind enough to unroll the film and cut out the part of the picture that Wes and Ina thought was their son.  The last letter they received from him was written November 17, 1941 before war was declared.  They received a brief, indirect message two months before they saw the newsreel from an Army friend of Tony's that he was all right and in a prison camp somewhere in the Philippines.  His parents tried to contact him through the Red Cross.

Tony was with General Wainwright at the time Cooregidor was captured.  He was with a Coast Artillery anti-aircraft outfit.  These men of Corregidor were marched down the streets of Manila in wretched condition to prove to the silent thousands of natives that the Jap conquerors were superior in every way.  They were led to Billibid prison were the Americans were separated from the Filipinos and taken to Cabanatuan in May of 1942.  From the story of Tony's existence must be left to the imagination until further information can come from the lips of those who survived.  

Corregidor.

   That he was taken prisoner there was strikingly revealed on the screen of the Waitsburg theater when a newsreel flash prepared from Japanese war films was shown.   The parents were positive one of the captives was their son, and when a special reprint was made from the film any lingering doubts were removed.

   It was thought he later escaped.  Consistent rumors had him serving with Filipino, and later, Chinese guerrillas, where his resourcefulness and skill with weapons were being utilized against the common enemy.  Now it is known that following the surrender he was variously at Billbid prison, Cabanatuan and finally Kokura, Japan on Shokuku island, near Narumi, Japan. 

Died of Starvation

   His death there was due to malnutrition, but of the events during the preceding months it is thought nothing further will ever be made known, except by survivors, or through later war department releases

 Tony B Lloyd died 7 January 1943.

His parents were notified at Christmas time in 1945.

I can't even image the difficulty his parents had not knowing where or what had happened to their son.  And to learn at Christmas that their son had died of starvation as a POW.  He was their first son.  

Tony B. Lloyd's headstone

City Cemetery, Waitsburg, Washington
He was 28 years old.

Lloyd's Meat Market

My great grandfather, George Martin Lloyd,purchased a meat market in Waitsburg, Washington in 1889.    It was sold in 1936 by his son, George Marvin Lloyd.    The Lloyd's owned the meat market for 47 years.

George and his wife, Nellie Susan Towsley.

They were married 18 December 1889 in Waitsburg, Washington

The picture is labeled George Martin Lloyd ( in suit), early 1900's

Second person is not identified.  

Notice the Lard Buckets hanging on wall

The meat market in 1920

Father and son

George Martin and George Marvin Lloyd

George Marvin, the son, is cutting meat

One of the Lard Buckets

From my mother's collection!

1935

The Lloyd Market had meat recipe books

Even one for Christmas

Interesting recipes

More china

Another portion of my Mother's collection of china, which she said came through the Lloyd family.  

If anyone has information on the type or style, please comment!

The glass is very thin,, the are obviously very old.  And beautiful.

This was a favorite of Mom's.  Another very old piece, but not as old as she claimed.  Mother even wrote to an antique magazine requesting information.  (I am looking for the letter)

Every time we went near an antique store, she looked for this pattern.

And then on a trip to Alabama, the mother of their friend opened her china cabinet and had the entire set!  The lady was kind enough to add to mother's collection and gave her a piece.  

The Women in my father's Family

Mother's Day got me to thinking of all of my female ancestors.    I decided to find the pictures, thus the delay in posting!  Quite a collection of women!  I can't imagine their lives, what they lived through, and how hard they worked.

Margaret Maria Fetter was born 19 May 1820 in Pennsylvania.  She married Gabriel Shaffner (father of John Martin Shaffner)  24 December 1845 in Manheim, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.  Margaret died 11 November 1903 in Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania.  She is also buried in the East Harrisburg Cemetery.  The date on the picture written by Donnee Shaffner Stibal is about 1901.  She is holding Walter Ruskin Shaffner.  Estimating Margaret's age would make her 81 year old.  Margaret's ancestor were from France; her Great Grandfather was George Fredric Fanoit who came from Montebeliard,  France in 1842.

Elizabeth Deborah Fletcher, who was born 4 July 1858 in Covington, Tioga County, Pennsylvania.  She married John Martin Shaffner on 16 September 1880 in Whitesville, Allegheny County, New York.  There is no date on the picture.  Elizabeth died 17 November 1899 in Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania.  I discovered that she was buried with her father-in-law at the East Harrisburg Cemetery.  There was no headstone.  Her last child, Walter Ruskin Shaffner, was born 7 September 1899.  I wonder if she was pregnant in this picture.

The Peter Paul Deewall Family.

Peter Paul came to the U.S. in 1842.  He married Catherine Troutman in Pennsylvania in 1847.

Mary Etta was the oldest girl born in 1831.  George Albert was the youngest son born in 1865

Catherine died in 1877, so this picture was taken in the 1870's.  

Mary Etta Deewall Kurtz, who was born 17 December 1849 in Pennsylvania.  Her father was Peter Paul Deewall (Duval)  who came to the U.S. in 1842 from Ludweiler, Germany.  Mary Etta married Emanuel Kurtz 23 February 1871 in Pennsylvania.  

My grandmother, Della Kurtz Shaffner.  This picture was taken in 1905 taken at her high school graduation.  She was salutatorian, although her name is at the top of the graduate list so perhaps she was valedictorian.   And I have the speech that she gave, which is labeled her salutatory speech.    She graduated from Muncy High School, in Muncy, Pennsylvania.

Della Kurtz Shaffner, my grandmother.  She married by grandfather, John Fanoit Shaffner on 12 September 1913 after their trip through Yellowstone Park.  Donnee Shaffner Stibal wrote on the picture:  Jerry and Grandma.  She rode the horse from Custer, Montana to Dillon, Montana.  After John & Della married they returned to Simms, ND where he worked as telegrapher on the railroad.  He also worked at Custer, Montana as a telegrapher.  They homesteaded near Dillon, Beaverhead County, Montana.  The story I heard was that Grandpa rode the horse to Dillon!  Since Donnee got the information from Grandpa; I will believe her story!

Looking for Thomas S. Lloyd

Inheriting my mother's genealogy files sparked my interest in the hobby.  Although she inherited a lot of information from her aunt Gilla, who probably inherited information from other family members;  Helen Lloyd Shaffner continued her own research, and the collection grew.  And I have added to the collection through the years.  One big missing component of the research is the lack of  documentation.  When I asked my mother how she knew or if the information was authentic, her response was well..."Aunt Gilla said".

I felt I had to learn a lot about genealogy before I tackled the Lloyd files.

So I am finally beginning the search for Thomas S. Lloyd's ancestry.  But I am not the first family member to look for his ancestry!

Thomas is my 4th great grandfather, who was born in 1763 and died in 1857.  The one certain thing is that he is buried near Rutledge, Grainger, Tennessee in the Lloyd Cemetery on the Cabbage Farm. Family story is that he was born in Chester County, Pennsylvania.  Family story is that he served in the NC Brigade in the Revolutionary War.  Yes, I am trying to prove he served.  Yes, I am trying to prove his parents and where he was born.     

Gilla Ann Lloyd Mellinger (1873-1947) worked very hard on the Lloyd genealogy.  These are pictures from her trip to Rutledge, Tennessee.  The pictures were taken 17 October 1927.  I have negatives and pictures that were made from the negatives.

Thomas S. Lloyd

Thomas S. Lloyd

His wife, Jane.  I have a marriage bond for Thomas & Jane M. Culley (McCullough)

Aunt Gilla researching genealogy in Tennessee in 1927

Isn't this a great picture?  Cleaning and trimming branches at the cemetery.

A view from the cemetery or possible the cemetery.

Thomas S. Lloyd's smoke house.  

I wonder if it is still visible?

My mother,  Helen Lloyd Shaffner had a wonderful collection of china.   These are a few of the pieces in my collection.   I truly wish I had taken better notes as to the origin of the china.  I know some are family items, some reportedly came on the Oregon Wagon Train as ancestors moved west and some were purchased.

Henry Gabel Farming

Often we forget what life was like for our ancestors.  To make a living was hard work, especially in agriculture.  Often a family did not have money for a camera.   It is easy to not understand or even know what agriculture was like 70 years, or even 50 years ago.  Thankfully there are a few pictures to remind us of what life was like.  

Henry Gabel (Leroy's grandfather) with a team of white mules.  It looks like he is hauling hay or straw.  Since he was born in 1901, I would guess the time frame of this picture to be in the 30's.  

Henry Gabel, Leroy's grandfather with a team cultivating a row crop.  Probably sugar beets  Notice the iron wheels on the cultivator.  Think it would rough riding?  Imagine spending a day cultivating.

And don't forget that the team had to be harnessed, usually before breakfast.  Often the team was unharnessed at lunch and feed and watered.  All before the teamster ate.

Henry Gabel with a pen of Hereford cattle.  Since there were no feed trucks, all the feed was

shoveled onto a truck and shoveled off into a bunk.  

Henry Gabel with a load of beets.  He is holding a beet fork which was used to load the truck.  Notice the piles of beets.  They were forked onto the truck.  It is hard to tell the type of truck, but we think the picture is in the late 1930's or early 1940's.   The beet puller lifted the beets up out of the ground. Then a worker came along, lifted the beets, cut the tops off and put the beets into a windrow or a pile.  Wonder how many acres they dug per day?