Stalter, Milo C. 

MILO CHESTER
STALTER

APPRENTICE 1st CLASS
U.S. NAVY

Milo Chester Stalter was born on the 23rd of June, 1925, and was the fourth and youngest son of Dorus Stalter and Matilda Catherine (Roop) Stalter. He lived with his parents and his brothers, Dale, Robert, and Dorus Jr. at 310 N. First Street Decatur, Indiana for the duration of his childhood. Dale and Robert would both serve in WWII and were stationed in England and North Africa respectively. 

Milo attended Decatur High School and would have graduated with the class of 1943 but enlisted on his 17th birthday (June 23, 1942). He enlisted in the Navy as a hospital apprentice and would achieve the rank of Hospital Apprentice First Class. His assigned serial number was 6265175. Milo's training took place in a few different locations including the Great Lakes Naval Training Station, Naval General Hospital in Bremerton, Washington, and at the Naval Air Station, Territory of Hawaii. 

The United States Naval Reserve was the unit in which Milo was training to be a part of and it was a group of Naval Sailors who were ready to be called to action at any time, hence the title of "Reserve." Upon the U.S. entry into the war, Naval Reserve sailors were all called to active duty. It was actually Naval Reserve sailors aboard the USS Ward that fired the first shots by the United States which sank a Japanese mini-submarine near the entrance to Pearl Harbor just six months prior to Milo's enlistment. 

Young Milo died on Tuesday March 14, 1944. His death was a result from a fall from a truck at the Naval Air Station in Hawaii. He was buried temporarily at Alawa Naval Cemetery, Island of Oahu, Hawaii and was later interred in Decatur, Indiana. 

For his service, Milo earned the WWII Victory Medal as well as the American Campaign Medal. 

Information researched and collected by John Thomas, 2016. 

SOURCES

Indiana Historical Bureau, comp. Gold Star Honor Roll: Adams County. Bloomington: Indiana War History Commission, 1949. Print. Vol. 1 of Indiana in World War II.

           “Milo Chester Stalter (1925-1944) - Find a Grave...” Findagrave.com, 2024, www.findagrave.com/memorial/44901741/milo-chester-stalter. Accessed 19 Dec. 2024.

Ravelings Yearbook Staff, ed. Ravelings Yearbook. Decatur, IN: Decatur High School, 1944. Print.

Yearbook Staff, ed. 1936 Yearbook. Decatur, IN: Decatur Catholic High School, 1937. Print.

SUPPLEMENTARY