Question about Corps Boots from a class of '41 Aggie who died in WW II

5,095 Views | 30 Replies | Last: 9 mo ago by millerjohnr
Gomer95
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10:11a, 11/3/22
AG
I will post this in a few forums besides this one but I have a friend with no ties to A&M who bought some Corps Boots about 10 years ago at an Estate Sale and had them cleaned and oiled and he was looking to sell them. He asked me about how to do that best since I was an Aggie and even though he has no ties to A&M, he knows how much Aggies would love these. Well, after investigating the name "John G. Ellzey" in the boots, I discovered that John Green Ellzey was Fightin' Texas Aggie Class of '41 and according to the Association of Former Students, John Ellzey '41 died in August of 1944 as a result of wounds received in the Normandy Invasion. That information really moved both me and the person wanting to sell them. So I have a few questions:

Does anyone know if there are any of John Ellzey's family that might would want them?
Would the Corps Center be interested in them?

If anyone reading this is interested in buying them, PM me and I will give you my friend's name and email address. He is hoping to get some money from them not because of greed but at this time he could use the money although we just want to see where all this goes because he had no idea of the story behind these boots until now. I've attached pics of the boots and name and please let me know suggestions on what to do with them or if anyone wants to purchase them and of course Private Message me for any questions or more info. Thanks Ags.





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Irish 2.0
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11:24a, 11/3/22
Pm'd you
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whoop1995
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12:19p, 11/3/22
AG
There is this program at the Corp called the boot loan program

https://corpsofcadets.org/bootloan

I do not know how much they are but I would buy them from your friend for $200 and then I would donate to them to this program

I can't tell from the condition if they could be daily wearers again but I could take them to the boot company to holicks to figure it out and I would pay for that.

If they couldn't be made into useable I would then go to the corps museum on campus and donate for one of the displays - I am sure they have room for a pair of boots somewhere of historical importance.

Not a Corp member when I was at Texas a&m but I was ex military and one who believe that there are certain places for things that may not look important to those who don't know.

I collect ticket stubs! looking for a 1944 orange bowl ticket stub and Aggie vs tu stubs - 1926 and below, 1935-1937, 1939-1944, 1946-1948, 1950, 1953, 1956-1957, 1959, 1960, 1963-1966, 1969-1970, 1973, 1974, 1980, 1984, 1990, 2004, 2008 also looking for vs Villanova 1949
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AggieP18
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5:21p, 11/3/22
These things belong behind glass in the MSC if he died due to wounds suffered at Normandy.
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Matsui
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9:44p, 11/3/22
AG
Get those to the school
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In reply to AggieP18 • 10:54p, 11/3/22
AG
AggieP18 said:
These things belong behind glass in the MSC if he died due to wounds suffered at Normandy.

Either there or with his family
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BrazosDog02
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In reply to AggieP18 • 12:30p, 11/5/22
AG
AggieP18 said:
These things belong behind glass in the MSC if he died due to wounds suffered at Normandy.


Why? So a bunch of folks can stare at a pair of boots that mean nothing to them from someone they don't know and say "that's cool" as they sashay past? It's a pair of old boots like every other pair of old boots. I don't feel it serves any purpose to do this.

No. Get those to a senior or someone that can use and wear them. These are meaningful items meant to be enjoyed, not stared at. They can be enjoyed by a new family who knows the history. Way better use of them. In a few hundred years it's all going to be rotting and trash, I say let someone use or enjoy them if you can't find a family member right now. No sense in delaying any longer.
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army79
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11:18a, 11/7/22
Call Dennis Davenport at the Corps of Cadets Association. He has located a relative of Mr. Ellzey that would like the boots.

877/892-4222

Thanks and Gig 'em!
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Gomer95
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In reply to army79 • 11:19a, 11/7/22
AG
I will! Thank you!
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OutlawAg17
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In reply to Gomer95 • 9:19a, 11/14/22
AG
Amazing how good they look after 80 years. Echoing other posts though, these belong with the family. Their retirement has been paid in blood
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RikkiTikkaTagem
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In reply to Gomer95 • 9:55a, 11/14/22
AG
Gomer95 said:
I will! Thank you!


Will you do a follow up post on this at the end? We all love a good story and with the way football season has gone, this fanbase would probably like a win and a story like this would be much needed.
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byfLuger41
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10:12a, 11/14/22
AG
I am obviously late to the thread, but here is some info on 2Lt Ellzey:



As a WWII collector, I am glad these made it home to the family as that is where they belong.


Good bull.
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Smeghead4761
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In reply to byfLuger41 • 2:07a, 11/15/22
byfLuger41 said:
I am obviously late to the thread, but here is some info on 2Lt Ellzey:



As a WWII collector, I am glad these made it home to the family as that is where they belong.


Good bull.
If I'm reading that correctly, he was assigned to the 9th Infantry Regiment (Machus Keep Up the Fire!), part of the 2nd Infantry Division.

Could possibly look up the unit reports for that day. My quick web search shows that on the day 2LT Ellzey died (17 Aug 1944), 2ID was reassigned from V Corps to XIX Corps, then to VIII Corps a day later for the assault on the port city of Brest.

My google searching also turned up a Congressman Jake Ellzey, TX-6 (south of Dallas). Wonder if he's any relation?
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PLUM LOCO
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6:53p, 11/15/22
AG
Quote:
result of wounds received in the Normandy Invasion.
Possibly one of Rudder's men?
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byfLuger41
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In reply to PLUM LOCO • 7:18p, 11/15/22
AG
PLUM LOCO said:
Quote:
result of wounds received in the Normandy Invasion.
Possibly one of Rudder's men?

This cadet was 2nd ID, not 2nd/5th RB.


HTH
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Smeghead4761
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In reply to byfLuger41 • 11:28p, 11/15/22
byfLuger41 said:
PLUM LOCO said:
Quote:
result of wounds received in the Normandy Invasion.
Possibly one of Rudder's men?

This cadet was 2nd ID, not 2nd/5th RB.


HTH
2nd Infantry Division went ashore at OMAHA on D+1 (7 June 1944). I don't know about how the Association classifies things in their records, but for the military, Died of Wounds (DoW) is separate from Killed in Action. DoW means the individual was wounded and was evacuated to some sort of medical treatment facility - and aid station or hospital - and subsequently passed due to those wounds. KIA means they never made it to any sort of treatment facility.

If DoW in the Association's records means the same thing as it does in the Army's (and the Association is probably cribbing from the Army's records, so good chance), it would mean that sometime on or after 7 June 1944, 2LT Ellzey was hit and taken to an aid station or hospital, and he expired on 17 August 1944.
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byfLuger41
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In reply to Smeghead4761 • 7:26p, 11/16/22
AG
I was processing your post and it made me think to grab my old unit history!!!

2nd Lt Ellzey is listed on page 195 as being KIA. Where did you find DoW? Not that I disagree with you, but I will put a lot more credit into my original 2nd ID unit history than most other sources.

I was able to ascertain from the unit history that 2Lt Ellzey was in the 9th Infantry Regiment.


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Smeghead4761
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In reply to byfLuger41 • 1:47a, 11/17/22
I got it from the OP (third paragraph) who said he contacted the Association, who told him they had it listed that he died from wounds received in Normandy.

In court, that would be called hearsay, but this is the internet.

I was mostly pointing out that, while the terms 'died of his wounds' and 'killed in action' can be largely interchangable in colloquial usage, they have specific definitions in military use.
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byfLuger41
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In reply to Smeghead4761 • 7:06a, 11/17/22
AG
Smeghead4761 said:
I got it from the OP (third paragraph) who said he contacted the Association, who told him they had it listed that he died from wounds received in Normandy.

In court, that would be called hearsay, but this is the internet.

I was mostly pointing out that, while the terms 'died of his wounds' and 'killed in action' can be largely interchangeable in colloquial usage, they have specific definitions in military use.


Roger that.

Totally overlooked that in the OP (blaming flu brain). All this 2nd ID talk also reminded me of a unique picture taken during the Normandy campaign:



"A smiling and lucky to be alive Tech Sgt. Meredith J. Rogers, 30 from Sunburst, NC shows how lucky he is when his helmet was punctured by a sniper's bullet during fighting in Normandy with the US 2nd Infantry Division, 13 July 1944"
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Gomer95
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In reply to Smeghead4761 • 8:28a, 11/17/22
AG
Actually when I looked him up on the Association of Former Students online "Find an Aggie" website, I found the info from an old Battalion silver taps notification and I was going off of that. It said specifically:

Died in English hospital on Aug. 17, 1944, of wounds received in Normandy invasion on Aug. 11, 1944.

So I don't know if that is the "official military stance" of cause of death, that's just why I said what I did fyi.
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byfLuger41
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In reply to Gomer95 • 10:23a, 11/17/22
AG
Rgr.

Need to locate the AAR for Aug 11, 1944 which would tell us where he was wounded.

I suspect he was KIA/WIA in or around the Vire, FR area or maybe during the advance to Tinchebray, FR.

Will attempt to locate AAR the next few weeks.
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Gomer95
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In reply to byfLuger41 • 10:38a, 11/17/22
AG
Cool. This is all so fascinating to me. Thanks.
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byfLuger41
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In reply to Gomer95 • 10:53a, 11/17/22
AG
Gomer95 said:
Cool. This is all so fascinating to me. Thanks.


The research piece adds an entirely new dimension to collecting WWII memorabilia. The tangible items are equally as fun, but digging into a name found on any piece, especially a pair of Sr boots, it was makes for good bull stories.

The bigger question is where did his Sr ring end up?!


ttfn

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Smeghead4761
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In reply to Gomer95 • 3:31a, 11/18/22
Gomer95 said:
Actually when I looked him up on the Association of Former Students online "Find an Aggie" website, I found the info from an old Battalion silver taps notification and I was going off of that. It said specifically:

Died in English hospital on Aug. 17, 1944, of wounds received in Normandy invasion on Aug. 11, 1944.

So I don't know if that is the "official military stance" of cause of death, that's just why I said what I did fyi.
That is pretty much a textbook example of Died of Wounds.

Link seems to be broken, but I found this: World War II Operations Reports, 1940-1948 in the Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1917-1981 (Record Group 407)
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Gomer95
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11:12a, 11/18/22
AG
UPDATE ON THE CORPS BOOTS!!!!!!!

We tried as a first option to see if any family members wanted them but that option fell through so an Aggie that had seen this here on Texags ended up buying them from my friend and I believe he is going to take them back to Holick's and explain the history behind them and they will in some form or fashion end up BACK at the university, either on a new cadet that knows and understands the history or the university itself.

I had no idea when I looked up Mr. Elzey's info that it would turn into what it was but it has been so much fun personally for me to find out his Aggie history, his WWII history, the highest sacrifice that he made for ALL of us, and that the Aggie Legacy of his boots that I know he must have valued very highly will live on through whatever Texas A&M University destination they end up at.

Thanks to all of you for your help, insights, and comments and Gig 'Em!
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byfLuger41
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In reply to Gomer95 • 8:05p, 11/18/22
AG
Good bull.

Please keep me in mind should the boots become available again as I am an interested buyer.


Godspeed!
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Mark Fairchild
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12:13a, 11/19/22
AG
Just happened upon this post, and it has only reinforced my belief of what a special place AGGIELAND is! With so much changing in this world we live in, it truly touches my heart to know that AGGIES still care about their fellowman. Good Bull all around!
Gig'em, Ole Army Class of '70
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ABATTBQ87
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5:43p, 4/8/25
AG
Senior Picture, 1941 Longhorn



Poultry and Egg Club, 1939 Longhorn

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ABATTBQ87
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In reply to ABATTBQ87 • 12:11p, 4/9/25
AG
ABATTBQ87 said:
Senior Picture, 1941 Longhorn

Another Aggie from that page: CAPT. BALLARD P. DURHAMKilled in Belgium on Sept. 9, 1944, and buried in the Ardennes American Cemetery.


Ballard P. "Bull" Durham graduated from the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas in 1941 at the age of 22. He majored in Mechanical Engineering. While at Texas A&M, he worked his way through school as a waiter on campus in Duncan Dinning Hall. He was a Distinguished Student, a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and a Cadet Lieutenant in G Battery, Field Artillery.

Capt Durham was commander of Battery C of the 391st Field Artillery Battalion of the 3rd Armored Division. Captain Durham was killed instantly by enemy artillery fire on 9 September 1944 while exposing himself to enemy fire to direct the firing of guns in his unit.

The NARA WWII casualty listings by state and county show Durham, Ballard P, Capt, from Wise County, Texas, as killed in action on 9 Sept 1944. A cenotaph marker was placed in memory of Captain Durham at the Slidell cemetery in Wise County.

The Wise County Messenger (Decatur, Texas) 14 Dec 1944, Thu Page 1 KILLED IN ACTION Below is a letter received by Mrs. R F Durham, postmaster at Slidell, concerning the death of her son, Captain Ballard Powell Durham, who was killed in Belgium: "Nov. 15, 1944, Mrs. Zylphia C. Durham, Slidell, Texas, My dear Mrs. Durham, I wish to extend to you my deepest sympathy in the loss of your son, Captain Ballard P. Durham, 0409647, who was killed in action on Sept. 9, 1944, in Belgium. On Sept. 9, 1944, we were engaged in a rapid drive across Belgium in pursuit of the retreating enemy army. Captain Durham was one of my principal assistants during this drive. He was performing the duty of Battery Commander of Battery "C" on Sept. 9, 1944. Captain Durham was hunting for a position from which to observe and place artillery fire upon the enemy. He was about 300 yards from his battery's position when he was killed instantly by enemy artillery fire."
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rwtxag83
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4:09p, 4/10/25
AG
Ellzy had just turned 25 years old. My God....


Here.


See signature...
Greater love hath no man than this....
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millerjohnr
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5:59p, 4/15/25
AG
Here
aggie_john
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