The following was written by himself, sometime before he passed away, for his genealogy/family tree webpage:
"I was born 27 October 1928 at St. Paul, Minnesota in St. Joseph Hospital. My parents were Mathias Peter Gillen and Floyd Margaret Herdeg. I was baptized at St. Columbia's Catholic Church on 11 November 1928. My godparents were Michael Herdeg, my maternal grandfather and Christina Gillen, my paternal grandmother. My parents were living at 1793 West Minnehaha St. in St Paul when I was born.
When I was four years old, my Mom died. Dad and we children, Gene, Joan & Floyd, moved in with our Uncle Joe and Aunt Tillie on Westminster St. in St. Paul.
My first six years of grade school were spent at St. Patrick's School on Mississippi St. and later on Desoto St. when they built a new church and school at that site. In 1940 when we moved to Stillwater Road in Ramsey County, I attended District 14A School for two years, graduating from grade school in 1942. My high school years were spent at St. Agnes High on Lafond Street in St. Paul. Had to take the bus and streetcar to school and back home every day. While attended St. Agnes I was expected to go to Grandma Gillen's house every day for lunch. Guess that was one of the ways my father could keep track of me during the school day. My formal education ended in June 1946 when I graduated from high school.
In 1945 during summer vacation, I got a job with Minnesota Mining & Mfg. Co. in their Tape Slitting Dept. and when high school was over in 1946, 3M Co. rehired me. I continued to work there until I was drafted into the Army during the Korean War on Nov 27, 1950. Previous to that I worked part-time after school and weekends for John Geisinger at his gas station-icehouse and bar at the corner of Stillwater Road and East County Line Road. (Ramsey County-Washington County line)
I was drafted along with about 150 other guys from St. Paul and amazingly most of us stayed together during our two year Army tenure. Upon entering the Army we were transported via train to Fort Riley in Kansas for testing and issue of uniforms, etc. After about two weeks in Fort Riley we were again transported by train to San Francisco and bussed to Fort Baker, just across the Golden Gate Bridge in Marin County. There we learned that we had been selected to train to be surveyors and we were assigned to the 551st Engineer Base Survey Company, part of the 30th Engineer Battalion of the 6th Army. Our "Basic Training" was performed around the hills of Fort Baker and about two weeks at Fort Ord near Monterey, California. In the Summer of 1951 we were sent to Alaska and surveyed on the Kenai Peninsula, near the town of Kenai. In the Fall we returned to San Francisco to Fort Scott in the San Francisco Presidio. Then before Christmas of 1951 we were sent to Southern California to the town of Elsinore. A building at the Elsinore Airport was our barracks although that airport was not in use at that time. We surveyed around the mountains in that area and also around Riverside. In the Spring of 1952 we were sent back to Fort Scott to prepare to return to Alaska. This time we sailed to the town of Unalakleet ( a god-forsaken Eskimo village ), south of Nome. Our company surveyed there along the Yukon River and other small towns in the area. My squad did not participate much in this operation. We were assigned to the Base Camp in Unalakleet to perform back up duties at the camp and at the airport. My duties were pretty boring, I was the ranking NCO, other than the First Sergeant, and it was my job to appoint other guys to jobs the First dreamed up to keep us occupied. However we managed to spent most of our days playing softball at the Airport there and playing poker and cribbage in our squad tent. I did manage to get away from there for a couple weeks by volunteering to participate in a survey job atop a hill near the town of St. Michael. I think we left Unalakleet about the end of August or beginning of September and were sent back to Fort Scott. At that time we only had two or three months to serve before discharge and despite many rumors about being held over, we were discharged on 27 November 1952, exactly two years of service.
I need to mention here that a couple of things happened in 1952 while I was in the Army that affected the rest of my life. First my Dad was transferred by West Publishing Company in St. Paul to Buffalo, New York and that move left me without a home in St. Paul. Secondly and most important, I met my future wife, Dolores, on a blind date set up by one of her girl friends.
Dolores and I were married on 14 February 1954 in St. Finn Barrs Catholic Church in San Francisco. We lived for a few months in an apartment at 29th and Fulton by Golden Gate Park and in the Summer of 1954, purchased a new home on Longford Drive in South San Francisco. While living there our first three children were born. I was working for Standard Oil Co. of California as a Station Manager and later operated my own Service Station with a partner during that time period. That venture lasted until 1971 when I went to work for The US Postal Service. In the Fall of 1959 we sold that home and moved to another home on Bellevue Avenue in Daly City. Our last child, Chris, was born there. In 1969 we moved to another home in the St. Francis Heights area of Daly City at 57 Midvale Drive. We lived there until 1984 when all the kids were grown and into their own homes. Dolores and I wanted to move to a warmer weather place so we bought a new home in Ceres, California in the center of the state, about 90 miles east of San Francisco."
NOTE: After his wife Dolores' death, he moved to Pacheco to be close to his children.
"I was born 27 October 1928 at St. Paul, Minnesota in St. Joseph Hospital. My parents were Mathias Peter Gillen and Floyd Margaret Herdeg. I was baptized at St. Columbia's Catholic Church on 11 November 1928. My godparents were Michael Herdeg, my maternal grandfather and Christina Gillen, my paternal grandmother. My parents were living at 1793 West Minnehaha St. in St Paul when I was born.
When I was four years old, my Mom died. Dad and we children, Gene, Joan & Floyd, moved in with our Uncle Joe and Aunt Tillie on Westminster St. in St. Paul.
My first six years of grade school were spent at St. Patrick's School on Mississippi St. and later on Desoto St. when they built a new church and school at that site. In 1940 when we moved to Stillwater Road in Ramsey County, I attended District 14A School for two years, graduating from grade school in 1942. My high school years were spent at St. Agnes High on Lafond Street in St. Paul. Had to take the bus and streetcar to school and back home every day. While attended St. Agnes I was expected to go to Grandma Gillen's house every day for lunch. Guess that was one of the ways my father could keep track of me during the school day. My formal education ended in June 1946 when I graduated from high school.
In 1945 during summer vacation, I got a job with Minnesota Mining & Mfg. Co. in their Tape Slitting Dept. and when high school was over in 1946, 3M Co. rehired me. I continued to work there until I was drafted into the Army during the Korean War on Nov 27, 1950. Previous to that I worked part-time after school and weekends for John Geisinger at his gas station-icehouse and bar at the corner of Stillwater Road and East County Line Road. (Ramsey County-Washington County line)
I was drafted along with about 150 other guys from St. Paul and amazingly most of us stayed together during our two year Army tenure. Upon entering the Army we were transported via train to Fort Riley in Kansas for testing and issue of uniforms, etc. After about two weeks in Fort Riley we were again transported by train to San Francisco and bussed to Fort Baker, just across the Golden Gate Bridge in Marin County. There we learned that we had been selected to train to be surveyors and we were assigned to the 551st Engineer Base Survey Company, part of the 30th Engineer Battalion of the 6th Army. Our "Basic Training" was performed around the hills of Fort Baker and about two weeks at Fort Ord near Monterey, California. In the Summer of 1951 we were sent to Alaska and surveyed on the Kenai Peninsula, near the town of Kenai. In the Fall we returned to San Francisco to Fort Scott in the San Francisco Presidio. Then before Christmas of 1951 we were sent to Southern California to the town of Elsinore. A building at the Elsinore Airport was our barracks although that airport was not in use at that time. We surveyed around the mountains in that area and also around Riverside. In the Spring of 1952 we were sent back to Fort Scott to prepare to return to Alaska. This time we sailed to the town of Unalakleet ( a god-forsaken Eskimo village ), south of Nome. Our company surveyed there along the Yukon River and other small towns in the area. My squad did not participate much in this operation. We were assigned to the Base Camp in Unalakleet to perform back up duties at the camp and at the airport. My duties were pretty boring, I was the ranking NCO, other than the First Sergeant, and it was my job to appoint other guys to jobs the First dreamed up to keep us occupied. However we managed to spent most of our days playing softball at the Airport there and playing poker and cribbage in our squad tent. I did manage to get away from there for a couple weeks by volunteering to participate in a survey job atop a hill near the town of St. Michael. I think we left Unalakleet about the end of August or beginning of September and were sent back to Fort Scott. At that time we only had two or three months to serve before discharge and despite many rumors about being held over, we were discharged on 27 November 1952, exactly two years of service.
I need to mention here that a couple of things happened in 1952 while I was in the Army that affected the rest of my life. First my Dad was transferred by West Publishing Company in St. Paul to Buffalo, New York and that move left me without a home in St. Paul. Secondly and most important, I met my future wife, Dolores, on a blind date set up by one of her girl friends.
Dolores and I were married on 14 February 1954 in St. Finn Barrs Catholic Church in San Francisco. We lived for a few months in an apartment at 29th and Fulton by Golden Gate Park and in the Summer of 1954, purchased a new home on Longford Drive in South San Francisco. While living there our first three children were born. I was working for Standard Oil Co. of California as a Station Manager and later operated my own Service Station with a partner during that time period. That venture lasted until 1971 when I went to work for The US Postal Service. In the Fall of 1959 we sold that home and moved to another home on Bellevue Avenue in Daly City. Our last child, Chris, was born there. In 1969 we moved to another home in the St. Francis Heights area of Daly City at 57 Midvale Drive. We lived there until 1984 when all the kids were grown and into their own homes. Dolores and I wanted to move to a warmer weather place so we bought a new home in Ceres, California in the center of the state, about 90 miles east of San Francisco."
NOTE: After his wife Dolores' death, he moved to Pacheco to be close to his children.
The following was written by himself, sometime before he passed away, for his genealogy/family tree webpage:
"I was born 27 October 1928 at St. Paul, Minnesota in St. Joseph Hospital. My parents were Mathias Peter Gillen and Floyd Margaret Herdeg. I was baptized at St. Columbia's Catholic Church on 11 November 1928. My godparents were Michael Herdeg, my maternal grandfather and Christina Gillen, my paternal grandmother. My parents were living at 1793 West Minnehaha St. in St Paul when I was born.
When I was four years old, my Mom died. Dad and we children, Gene, Joan & Floyd, moved in with our Uncle Joe and Aunt Tillie on Westminster St. in St. Paul.
My first six years of grade school were spent at St. Patrick's School on Mississippi St. and later on Desoto St. when they built a new church and school at that site. In 1940 when we moved to Stillwater Road in Ramsey County, I attended District 14A School for two years, graduating from grade school in 1942. My high school years were spent at St. Agnes High on Lafond Street in St. Paul. Had to take the bus and streetcar to school and back home every day. While attended St. Agnes I was expected to go to Grandma Gillen's house every day for lunch. Guess that was one of the ways my father could keep track of me during the school day. My formal education ended in June 1946 when I graduated from high school.
In 1945 during summer vacation, I got a job with Minnesota Mining & Mfg. Co. in their Tape Slitting Dept. and when high school was over in 1946, 3M Co. rehired me. I continued to work there until I was drafted into the Army during the Korean War on Nov 27, 1950. Previous to that I worked part-time after school and weekends for John Geisinger at his gas station-icehouse and bar at the corner of Stillwater Road and East County Line Road. (Ramsey County-Washington County line)
I was drafted along with about 150 other guys from St. Paul and amazingly most of us stayed together during our two year Army tenure. Upon entering the Army we were transported via train to Fort Riley in Kansas for testing and issue of uniforms, etc. After about two weeks in Fort Riley we were again transported by train to San Francisco and bussed to Fort Baker, just across the Golden Gate Bridge in Marin County. There we learned that we had been selected to train to be surveyors and we were assigned to the 551st Engineer Base Survey Company, part of the 30th Engineer Battalion of the 6th Army. Our "Basic Training" was performed around the hills of Fort Baker and about two weeks at Fort Ord near Monterey, California. In the Summer of 1951 we were sent to Alaska and surveyed on the Kenai Peninsula, near the town of Kenai. In the Fall we returned to San Francisco to Fort Scott in the San Francisco Presidio. Then before Christmas of 1951 we were sent to Southern California to the town of Elsinore. A building at the Elsinore Airport was our barracks although that airport was not in use at that time. We surveyed around the mountains in that area and also around Riverside. In the Spring of 1952 we were sent back to Fort Scott to prepare to return to Alaska. This time we sailed to the town of Unalakleet ( a god-forsaken Eskimo village ), south of Nome. Our company surveyed there along the Yukon River and other small towns in the area. My squad did not participate much in this operation. We were assigned to the Base Camp in Unalakleet to perform back up duties at the camp and at the airport. My duties were pretty boring, I was the ranking NCO, other than the First Sergeant, and it was my job to appoint other guys to jobs the First dreamed up to keep us occupied. However we managed to spent most of our days playing softball at the Airport there and playing poker and cribbage in our squad tent. I did manage to get away from there for a couple weeks by volunteering to participate in a survey job atop a hill near the town of St. Michael. I think we left Unalakleet about the end of August or beginning of September and were sent back to Fort Scott. At that time we only had two or three months to serve before discharge and despite many rumors about being held over, we were discharged on 27 November 1952, exactly two years of service.
I need to mention here that a couple of things happened in 1952 while I was in the Army that affected the rest of my life. First my Dad was transferred by West Publishing Company in St. Paul to Buffalo, New York and that move left me without a home in St. Paul. Secondly and most important, I met my future wife, Dolores, on a blind date set up by one of her girl friends.
Dolores and I were married on 14 February 1954 in St. Finn Barrs Catholic Church in San Francisco. We lived for a few months in an apartment at 29th and Fulton by Golden Gate Park and in the Summer of 1954, purchased a new home on Longford Drive in South San Francisco. While living there our first three children were born. I was working for Standard Oil Co. of California as a Station Manager and later operated my own Service Station with a partner during that time period. That venture lasted until 1971 when I went to work for The US Postal Service. In the Fall of 1959 we sold that home and moved to another home on Bellevue Avenue in Daly City. Our last child, Chris, was born there. In 1969 we moved to another home in the St. Francis Heights area of Daly City at 57 Midvale Drive. We lived there until 1984 when all the kids were grown and into their own homes. Dolores and I wanted to move to a warmer weather place so we bought a new home in Ceres, California in the center of the state, about 90 miles east of San Francisco."
NOTE: After his wife Dolores' death, he moved to Pacheco to be close to his children.
"I was born 27 October 1928 at St. Paul, Minnesota in St. Joseph Hospital. My parents were Mathias Peter Gillen and Floyd Margaret Herdeg. I was baptized at St. Columbia's Catholic Church on 11 November 1928. My godparents were Michael Herdeg, my maternal grandfather and Christina Gillen, my paternal grandmother. My parents were living at 1793 West Minnehaha St. in St Paul when I was born.
When I was four years old, my Mom died. Dad and we children, Gene, Joan & Floyd, moved in with our Uncle Joe and Aunt Tillie on Westminster St. in St. Paul.
My first six years of grade school were spent at St. Patrick's School on Mississippi St. and later on Desoto St. when they built a new church and school at that site. In 1940 when we moved to Stillwater Road in Ramsey County, I attended District 14A School for two years, graduating from grade school in 1942. My high school years were spent at St. Agnes High on Lafond Street in St. Paul. Had to take the bus and streetcar to school and back home every day. While attended St. Agnes I was expected to go to Grandma Gillen's house every day for lunch. Guess that was one of the ways my father could keep track of me during the school day. My formal education ended in June 1946 when I graduated from high school.
In 1945 during summer vacation, I got a job with Minnesota Mining & Mfg. Co. in their Tape Slitting Dept. and when high school was over in 1946, 3M Co. rehired me. I continued to work there until I was drafted into the Army during the Korean War on Nov 27, 1950. Previous to that I worked part-time after school and weekends for John Geisinger at his gas station-icehouse and bar at the corner of Stillwater Road and East County Line Road. (Ramsey County-Washington County line)
I was drafted along with about 150 other guys from St. Paul and amazingly most of us stayed together during our two year Army tenure. Upon entering the Army we were transported via train to Fort Riley in Kansas for testing and issue of uniforms, etc. After about two weeks in Fort Riley we were again transported by train to San Francisco and bussed to Fort Baker, just across the Golden Gate Bridge in Marin County. There we learned that we had been selected to train to be surveyors and we were assigned to the 551st Engineer Base Survey Company, part of the 30th Engineer Battalion of the 6th Army. Our "Basic Training" was performed around the hills of Fort Baker and about two weeks at Fort Ord near Monterey, California. In the Summer of 1951 we were sent to Alaska and surveyed on the Kenai Peninsula, near the town of Kenai. In the Fall we returned to San Francisco to Fort Scott in the San Francisco Presidio. Then before Christmas of 1951 we were sent to Southern California to the town of Elsinore. A building at the Elsinore Airport was our barracks although that airport was not in use at that time. We surveyed around the mountains in that area and also around Riverside. In the Spring of 1952 we were sent back to Fort Scott to prepare to return to Alaska. This time we sailed to the town of Unalakleet ( a god-forsaken Eskimo village ), south of Nome. Our company surveyed there along the Yukon River and other small towns in the area. My squad did not participate much in this operation. We were assigned to the Base Camp in Unalakleet to perform back up duties at the camp and at the airport. My duties were pretty boring, I was the ranking NCO, other than the First Sergeant, and it was my job to appoint other guys to jobs the First dreamed up to keep us occupied. However we managed to spent most of our days playing softball at the Airport there and playing poker and cribbage in our squad tent. I did manage to get away from there for a couple weeks by volunteering to participate in a survey job atop a hill near the town of St. Michael. I think we left Unalakleet about the end of August or beginning of September and were sent back to Fort Scott. At that time we only had two or three months to serve before discharge and despite many rumors about being held over, we were discharged on 27 November 1952, exactly two years of service.
I need to mention here that a couple of things happened in 1952 while I was in the Army that affected the rest of my life. First my Dad was transferred by West Publishing Company in St. Paul to Buffalo, New York and that move left me without a home in St. Paul. Secondly and most important, I met my future wife, Dolores, on a blind date set up by one of her girl friends.
Dolores and I were married on 14 February 1954 in St. Finn Barrs Catholic Church in San Francisco. We lived for a few months in an apartment at 29th and Fulton by Golden Gate Park and in the Summer of 1954, purchased a new home on Longford Drive in South San Francisco. While living there our first three children were born. I was working for Standard Oil Co. of California as a Station Manager and later operated my own Service Station with a partner during that time period. That venture lasted until 1971 when I went to work for The US Postal Service. In the Fall of 1959 we sold that home and moved to another home on Bellevue Avenue in Daly City. Our last child, Chris, was born there. In 1969 we moved to another home in the St. Francis Heights area of Daly City at 57 Midvale Drive. We lived there until 1984 when all the kids were grown and into their own homes. Dolores and I wanted to move to a warmer weather place so we bought a new home in Ceres, California in the center of the state, about 90 miles east of San Francisco."
NOTE: After his wife Dolores' death, he moved to Pacheco to be close to his children.
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