Bob was born in Artesia, California and lived most of his life in Bellflower, California. Soon after Bob was born his father left his mother. Bob never knew his father, and had no contact with him.
I guess I first met Bob when I was born. Bob was seven years older than I and we were second cousins once removed.
Bob was drafted into the US Army early in WWII. He had about one month of basic training and then was deployed to North Africa.
He and a couple others saw a German tank coming down the road they were on, so they jumped in a ditch. After a while they did not hear the tank any longer, so Bob stuck his head up to see where the tank was. It was right beside them and a German solder said to Bob, in English that the war is over for you.
They were taken to a holding area and flown to Germany to a prisoner of war camp. They worked, on a railroad that the German's where using to dump concrete on a road beside the railroad tracts. Bob told me that there were never two loads of cement the same.
The prisoners would mix the cement with too much sand, then too much gravel, then too much cement. They did all they could to fowl up the work they were doing. Bob was later moved to a farm to work. One day he and another prisoner escaped and went into the woods hoping to make it back to the American lines.
After several days they got hungry, so they went back to the farm where they stayed until the war was over.
Bob came home and was discharged from the Army. Back home was a little tough on Bob, so he reenlisted in the Army and was sent to Japan.
By then I had enlisted in the Navy and was station on the island of Guam. Bob and I wrote many letters to each other at that time telling each other what we were doing.
After we both were discharged I went to school on the GI Bill. Bob did not take advantage of the GI Bill. When I became self-employed, Bob went to work for me doing aircraft repair.
Bob died when he was 50 years old. He was helping me build a house. He never recover from lung cancer, after surgery at a VA hospital. Robert died in his home in Lucern, Lake County, California.
Kenneth Caldwell
I guess I first met Bob when I was born. Bob was seven years older than I and we were second cousins once removed.
Bob was drafted into the US Army early in WWII. He had about one month of basic training and then was deployed to North Africa.
He and a couple others saw a German tank coming down the road they were on, so they jumped in a ditch. After a while they did not hear the tank any longer, so Bob stuck his head up to see where the tank was. It was right beside them and a German solder said to Bob, in English that the war is over for you.
They were taken to a holding area and flown to Germany to a prisoner of war camp. They worked, on a railroad that the German's where using to dump concrete on a road beside the railroad tracts. Bob told me that there were never two loads of cement the same.
The prisoners would mix the cement with too much sand, then too much gravel, then too much cement. They did all they could to fowl up the work they were doing. Bob was later moved to a farm to work. One day he and another prisoner escaped and went into the woods hoping to make it back to the American lines.
After several days they got hungry, so they went back to the farm where they stayed until the war was over.
Bob came home and was discharged from the Army. Back home was a little tough on Bob, so he reenlisted in the Army and was sent to Japan.
By then I had enlisted in the Navy and was station on the island of Guam. Bob and I wrote many letters to each other at that time telling each other what we were doing.
After we both were discharged I went to school on the GI Bill. Bob did not take advantage of the GI Bill. When I became self-employed, Bob went to work for me doing aircraft repair.
Bob died when he was 50 years old. He was helping me build a house. He never recover from lung cancer, after surgery at a VA hospital. Robert died in his home in Lucern, Lake County, California.
Kenneth Caldwell
Bob was born in Artesia, California and lived most of his life in Bellflower, California. Soon after Bob was born his father left his mother. Bob never knew his father, and had no contact with him.
I guess I first met Bob when I was born. Bob was seven years older than I and we were second cousins once removed.
Bob was drafted into the US Army early in WWII. He had about one month of basic training and then was deployed to North Africa.
He and a couple others saw a German tank coming down the road they were on, so they jumped in a ditch. After a while they did not hear the tank any longer, so Bob stuck his head up to see where the tank was. It was right beside them and a German solder said to Bob, in English that the war is over for you.
They were taken to a holding area and flown to Germany to a prisoner of war camp. They worked, on a railroad that the German's where using to dump concrete on a road beside the railroad tracts. Bob told me that there were never two loads of cement the same.
The prisoners would mix the cement with too much sand, then too much gravel, then too much cement. They did all they could to fowl up the work they were doing. Bob was later moved to a farm to work. One day he and another prisoner escaped and went into the woods hoping to make it back to the American lines.
After several days they got hungry, so they went back to the farm where they stayed until the war was over.
Bob came home and was discharged from the Army. Back home was a little tough on Bob, so he reenlisted in the Army and was sent to Japan.
By then I had enlisted in the Navy and was station on the island of Guam. Bob and I wrote many letters to each other at that time telling each other what we were doing.
After we both were discharged I went to school on the GI Bill. Bob did not take advantage of the GI Bill. When I became self-employed, Bob went to work for me doing aircraft repair.
Bob died when he was 50 years old. He was helping me build a house. He never recover from lung cancer, after surgery at a VA hospital. Robert died in his home in Lucern, Lake County, California.
Kenneth Caldwell
I guess I first met Bob when I was born. Bob was seven years older than I and we were second cousins once removed.
Bob was drafted into the US Army early in WWII. He had about one month of basic training and then was deployed to North Africa.
He and a couple others saw a German tank coming down the road they were on, so they jumped in a ditch. After a while they did not hear the tank any longer, so Bob stuck his head up to see where the tank was. It was right beside them and a German solder said to Bob, in English that the war is over for you.
They were taken to a holding area and flown to Germany to a prisoner of war camp. They worked, on a railroad that the German's where using to dump concrete on a road beside the railroad tracts. Bob told me that there were never two loads of cement the same.
The prisoners would mix the cement with too much sand, then too much gravel, then too much cement. They did all they could to fowl up the work they were doing. Bob was later moved to a farm to work. One day he and another prisoner escaped and went into the woods hoping to make it back to the American lines.
After several days they got hungry, so they went back to the farm where they stayed until the war was over.
Bob came home and was discharged from the Army. Back home was a little tough on Bob, so he reenlisted in the Army and was sent to Japan.
By then I had enlisted in the Navy and was station on the island of Guam. Bob and I wrote many letters to each other at that time telling each other what we were doing.
After we both were discharged I went to school on the GI Bill. Bob did not take advantage of the GI Bill. When I became self-employed, Bob went to work for me doing aircraft repair.
Bob died when he was 50 years old. He was helping me build a house. He never recover from lung cancer, after surgery at a VA hospital. Robert died in his home in Lucern, Lake County, California.
Kenneth Caldwell
Inscription
Robert S. Duckworth. California. PFC US Army
World War II. Oct 4 1922 - Oct 22 1972
Family Members
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