Letters and Documents

The items below consist of either scanned family documents or newspaper articles obtained through research.  I've included small photos of the letters or articles, accompanied by transcribed text.

1942-11-19 Spring Valley Sun article

Published in the Spring Valley Sun on November 19th, 1942.  I obtained this copy through the University of Wisconsin-River Falls Archives.

Spring Valley has two first-class air officers in the U.S. army air corps; they are Lieutenants Barry C. Conway and Howard B. Christenson.  Both received their coveted silver wings and commissions in the last week of October.

Barry and Howard were pals through the fifth grade of school; they grew up in comradeship in Spring Valley and it was their privilege to carry on beyond high school together at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

The two boys decided to enter service together and were accepted by the army air force at the same time.  What is more unique, they both finished primary training together, becoming separated only in the final stages of their advanced work.

Best omen for the future work of these two boys is that their flight squadron finished without having lost a plane or pilot, or even having a plane damaged in a bad landing.  This is almost an unbelievable feat for a training squadron.

As they neared the end of their first leg of combat training, it became apparent that they could not continue together.  Both "hot" pilots, both above the average in training acceptance and ability, gave them both special consideration in assignments.  The army air force decided that Howard was a pilot desinted to do bombing work in the big, fast fellow, the B-26's and better, and that Barry should be sent to learn scouting and reconnaissance work.

Both of these jobs mean handling the best planes the army possesses in the field.  Barry's job is flying the super-fast light plane equipped for taking pictures; he and his photographer-gunner fly alone.  Only the most intrepid pilots are given this duty.  Howard's job is being chief of a crew of never less than five men, running a machine weighing tons and carrying more tons of destruction in the form of bombs.  What is more, Howard's ship must fly in formation with others for protection.

In continuing their training, Lieut. and Mrs. Howard Christenson have been moved to Florida.  Lieut. Conway is in training in Colorado.  Dr. and Mrs. John M. Conway and Mr. and Mrs. H. B. Christenson are to be congratulated on the success made by their sons in this important work.

1944-06-29 Obituary

Obituary published on the front page of The Sun newspaper (Spring Valley, WI) on June 29, 1944.  I obtained this copy from the Wisconsin Historical Society (https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Article/CS4436).  Full text of the article:

LT. BARRY CONWAY

Lt. Barry Conway was born to Dr. and Mrs. John M. Conway in Spring Valley February 5, 1921.  He spent his entire boyhood in this community, going through the Spring Valley grade and high schools.

After his graduation here he attended the University of Wisconsin.  Later he worked for the Illinois Bell Telephone Co.

Barry enlisted in the army air force when he was just 21 years of age and was sent to Santa Ana, Calif,. for his pre-flight training.  He received his wings and his commission as a lieutenant on December 8, 1942, and was assigned to Photo Mapping Squad at Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Then began a long and grueling period of training and waiting.  Waiting to hear from the various fronts on the successes and failures of the methods used in gaining pictures.  His orders came through in March of this year to move into the Pacific area, though he left this country much later.  He was killed in action over New Guinea on June 9, 1944, a little more than a month after reaching the front.  Thus did Barry Conway give his life that those of us at home might live in freedom.

1944-07 Letter from LT Ralph Simms, navigator on Barry's crew

LT Ralph Simms was the navigator on Barry's crew, and was one of two survivors of the crash that claimed eight lives.  A month after the crash, he wrote this letter to Barry's parents.

Lt. R. L. Simms

20th C. M. Sq. APO 713 Unit 1

℅ P.M. 3. F. Calif.

July 13th 1944

Dear Folks-

I do not know whether Barry ever mentioned my name in his letters.  However I was the navigator on his crew.

It is rather hard to write this as there is a lot I can’t say, due to the censor.

However I wish to offer my sympathy for what recently happened.  I know how hard it must be for you, as I have flown with that crew for a year.  In that time you more or less become attached to those people.

I was in the plane with them and I was fortunate not to be killed.  I can not say much except that Barry died immediately with out any suffering for which I’m thankful.  He was given a military funeral the next day officiated by a priest and is buried here in New Guinea.

I’m afraid that is all I can say in this letter except to again offer my condolences.

Sincerely, yours

Barry’s friend

Ralph Simms

1946(?)-01-07 Seven Page Letter from LT Jay Robbins

This letter was written to Barry's father by Barry's friend and an eyewitness to the crash, LT Jay Robbins.  It includes many more details than the official accident report, which included only a sentence or two about the cause.  I do not know for sure what year this letter was written - one note indicated 1946 but I'm not certain.

1948-07-01 Laid to rest in Spring Valley, WI

From the Spring Valley Sun newspaper published on July 1, 1948.   This photo was on the website findagrave.com, and I contacted the user who posted it, RiverFallsHistory, and he was able to provide the full text that accompanied the photo. 

The body of Lt. Barry Conway, son of Dr. and Mrs. Conway, will be laid in its final resting place Friday morning with services at the Gevin Funeral Home at 9 o'clock and followed by a reqiuem mass at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in the village.  Burial is in the village Catholic cemetery.

Fr. Poquette, state chaplain of the American Legion of Wisconsin will conduct the short service at the funeral home.  The Legion will attend the servies in a body and be in charge of the committal services at the grave.

The body arrived Tuesday with Lt. Anthony G. Rais, of the U.S. Air Force, in company.

Business places in Spring Valley will observe the services by closing from 9 o'clock until 11.

1950-05-18 Spring Valley Sun - for Memorial Day

Published in the Spring Valley Sun on May 18th, 1950.  I obtained this copy through the University of Wisconsin-River Falls Archives.

"Bordering these columns at the top and the bottom are photos of 12 Spring Valley youths who gave their lives in World War II so that you and I might live in freedom.  Missing is the thirteenth fallen hero -- Rudolph Larson -- whose photo was not available.

But even though these keen young men are gone, their memories are very fresh indeed.

Lt. Barry Conway was one of the University of Wisconsin heroes honored in an impressive campus ceremony last fall.

Gail Scritchfield's name has been immortalized by the Spring Valley high school Class of '39 in the annual athletic trophy which bears his name.

In March the body of Cpl. Herman Marquardt Jr. was returned from the battlefield to St. Louis, where he was buried with honors.  Every one of them will be honored on Memorial Day, May 30th, when the American Legion hopes to dedicate its granite monument at Veterans' Memorial Park.  In addition, the following heroes of World War I will be similarly honored:

Ernest Erickson, Peter A. Forsythe, Edwin Jahr, Clair O. Lewiston, Edgar L. Linder, Wm Mattison, Peter Nystrom, Ralph Rickerd, Robert C. Stein, Albert I. Stein, Edward Wurtz."

------------------------------------

I wanted to see if I could find a photo of the "granite monument at Veterans' Memorial Park" dedicated on Memorial Day, 1950.   The search led me to an article published just a couple of weeks prior, the text is below (https://westernwisconsin.news/american-legion-post-227-unveils-new-veterans-war-memorial/)

------------------------------------

SPRING VALLEY, WI – On Wednesday, May 8, 2024, at 6:00 p.m., the Rickerd-Danielson American Legion Post 227 and Auxiliary Unit 227 will be holding a short groundbreaking ceremony for the new Veteran’s War Memorial.

It has been several years since the original Veterans War Memorial was removed as part of the old Spring Valley Nursing Home demolition. We have begun working to build a new memorial in tribute to those from the Spring Valley area who gave their lives in conflict while serving in the United States Armed Forces.

We are building this outdoor memorial with accessibility in mind. We hope that anyone wishing to may come to read names of the fallen and take a moment to honor their memory.

The location for this monument is just west of the original location and next door to Spring Valley Dentistry near Park Drive and World War I Veterans Memorial Highway (State Highway 29).

We are inviting the public to come out, join us and be part of this groundbreaking. We will be available to try and answer your questions about the memorial.

------------------------------------

Perhaps the 1950 monument was the one mentioned in the nursing home demolition?  I reached out to the American Legion Post 227 to ask if it was the monument at "Veterans' Memorial Park", and it appears that it was.  They shared this photo of the old monument before the demolition:

They wrote:

"The granite plaque was on one side of a brick and concrete monument that stood out in front of the old Spring Valley Nursing home.  The granite mentioned in the article was only ever the plaques that I know of. I don't believe it was ever moved as it stood there since at least the early 1970's.  It stood roughly 3 foot tall x 3 foot long x 2 foot wide.  At the time the "park" was more of the front lawn of the home.  The new site is only about 50 yards from the original. We should be done by Memorial Day 2025."

They shared this design of the new memorial, scheduled for completion in 2025. (Update May 2025: see the bottom of this page for the new memorial)

One other note - I shared the link to this website with the Post, and they shared several comments, including "A lot of familiar last names in the yearbook [photos]."   Also, on their website they have a photo of a 1942 log book from American Legion Post 227 Auxiliary, and sure enough there's an entry for Violet Conway (Barry's mother), at the very bottom of this photo:

1982-12-09 Interview with siblings John and Mary Ellen

In December 1982, my father conducted an interview with his mother and uncle (Barry’s sister and brother) to document a family oral history on cassette tape.  He transcribed the interviews in 1990 before a family reunion.  Below are excerpts from the interview that relate to Barry.  When comparing with other historical documents, there are some discrepancies with a few facts and dates. However, the interview is presented in its original recorded form.

ON THE OCCASION OF THE CONWAY-DES JARLAIS REUNION,

BRECKINRIDGE, COLORADO,

JUNE 29-JULY 7, 1990

HEREWITH A TRANSCRIPT OF A VERBAL INTERVIEW OF

JOHN EDWARD CONWAY AND

MARY ELLEN CONWAY DES JARLAIS,

RELATING SOME TALES OF THEIR EARLY YEARS

SUCH INTERVIEW HAVING BEEN RECORDED

IN KAILUA, ISLAND OF OAHU

DECEMBER 9, 1982

[break]

M. :  Mary Ellen Conway Des Jarlais

J. :  John Edward Conway

[break]

Q.  When was Barry born?

J.  (Sighs.)  Brother Barry was born February 6th, 1921.  He died June 6th, 1944, in New Guinea–that’s Saidor.

Q.  Do you recollect what happened?  It was in the war . . .

J.  He was a pilot of a B-24, primarily a bomber.  He was on a photo-reconnaissance mission and they returned to Saidor where they had a one-way landing strip.  They were having not quite a hurricane, but quite a storm and as they landed either a tire blew out or something and the plane swerved and crashed into an embankment alongside the runway.  Immediately there was a fiery holocaust; of the twelve persons on board only one survived because he was thrown from the plane.  I suppose the rest actually burned to death.

M.  Later Barry was brought back to Spring Valley.  Mother and Dad were really very happy about that because they knew then he was back home.  So he’s buried in Spring Valley where Mother and Dad are.  It’s difficult to say there was comfort in that but there was comfort in that.  That was more than other family’s knew of what happened–some just didn’t know.  It was very traumatic.  We (Bob) were living in South Carolina at the time and I recall the evening that Mother and Dad called up (sighs).  It was unbelievable but also believable because this was happening all about you during World War II.  It was toughest for Mother and Dad because they thought Barry was in the prime of his life.  And that’s true.  How old was Barry at that time, John?

J.  Twenty three.

M.  You know, when you devote so much to children and lose them at that age, it’s very tough to take.  So I remember that Bob and I went back (to Wisconsin.)

I remember the last time we saw Barry.  It was really very sad and I don’t know if we should dwell on this tonight.  It was in Savannah, Georgia–it was a staging area which meant it was in preparation to go overseas.  He wasn’t quite sure if he was going into the European theater or into the Pacific area.

We have a number of pictures taken at that time and I definitely remember them because I was wearing a little Empress Eugeny hat.  Gracious, talk about high fashion!  (laughter)  And a coat that I’d made that I later left in Japan with a very fine designer.  I switched it for a kimono  that was made for the present crown princess of Japan.

At any rate, Barry told us at that time that he’d never return.  He was with the 20th Bomber Squadron…, no, the 20th Reconnaissance Squadron.

Q.  He said that very seriously?

M.  No, very casually.  I said, “Why in the world do you say that, Barry?”  He said, “Well, look at the 19th, the previous one that went.  No one returned.”  

Of course, that was very foreboding.  How do you deny statistics?  And, of course, it proved to be true.  

And one little thing before we leave Barry.  Oma Umble, my dearest friend in Honolulu, was a burial sergeant, or something like that.  She was in charge of all the records from the Far East at that time!  And undoubtedly, Barry’s death records went through Oma’s hands.  No question about it.  She knows a good deal about Saidor, New Guinea.  If you haven’t looked at the map, you ought to look at it.

There are different tales about Saidor that day.  A friend of ours from West Point, John, said that was called Bloody Thursday.  And there were a number of wrecks on the airstrip that day–it was a very, very small airstrip.  

Everyone wanted to land there; they were running out of fuel and they were desperate.  In his opinion–this was Glen Taylor, if you remember him–the airstrip was full of wrecked airplanes.  Any airplane that tried to land was bound to crash with others on the airstrip.  Glen’s explanation was that probably his plane hit another.  Barry was the co-pilot; I think the St. Paul paper said that when their wing hit a wreck the plane swung into an embankment.  

He was a very handsome young man and a very special brother.

Q.  Any special memories of him from childhood?

J.  My last memories of Barry were that he was stationed at Will Roger Field in Oklahoma City the last time we saw him.  He had a 1940 Buick and since we were stationed 150-200 miles north in Kansas he asked us to come pick up the car and use it till he got back.  So Doris and I took the train down to Oklahoma City from Harrington and saw Barry, probably in March or April.  He left in June for New Guinea.   

[break, now talking about Christmas and going to Church]

M.  Do you remember Dad’s greatest disappointment about Christmas?  About the train tracks?

J.  This one particular Christmas one or all of us got this train.  Umpa had spent probably two or three hours after midnight getting all of the track onto a big piece of cardboard so we wouldn’t have to put it all together each time we used it.

So we came down in the morning and played with it till we got tired and then went to show Mother and Dad what Santa had brought us for Christmas.  So we proceeded to cut all the track off of the cardboard that he had spent three hours putting on! (laughter)  So we carried it upstairs and said, “Look what Santa brought!”  I thought he was going to have a heart attack!  He was very upset but what could he do!

[break] 

M.  And John and Barry were altar boys.  Tell about Barry’s first experience as an alter boy! (laughs)

J.  I’ll never forget that!  Barry was probably five or six and I was about ten.  It was a weekday, thank goodness.  We came out from behind the altar; Barry was following me and he stopped.  I turned and told him to keep coming!  He finally got out where he was supposed to be; then half way through the mass he expelled a little flautus!  You could hear it all over the church!  (laughter).  And Father Mullenkampf looked around! (laughter)

1997-07-22 Letter from Howard to Mary Ellen

Excerpt from the start of the letter signed by Howard:

July 22, 1997

Dear Mary Ellen,

You and your family are in my thoughts so often.  Your whole family enriched my young years so much and my thanks were never expressed.  I was home on leave in Spring Valley on June 9, 1944 when I received the horrible news of Barry's death and then spent several hours with your parents, which was soon after the telegram had arrived.  I sincerely wanted to comfort them.  I still mourn for Barry and many others.

Unfortunately, in the transition from military to civilian life -- enjoying life, busy as a teacher encouraging students, caught up in new communities' activities -- I neglected your parents, perhaps also thinking my presence would rekindle the hurt of Barry's loss.  I now believe I was wrong.  I should have been bold in the face of their grief, but at the time, I was inadequate.

(The letter goes on catching up on life events.  I'm not sure how often they stayed in touch; Howard thanks Mary Ellen for sending a Christmas letter.  He describes moving to Martell Township in 1977 so correspondence may not have been too frequent).

2025-05-26 Dedication of the new Veteran's Memorial in Spring Valley

Update May 2025:

The new memorial was dedicated on Memorial Day, May 26, 2025 by the Spring Valley Legion Post 227 & Auxiliary (Rickerd-Danielson Legion Post 227).  This photo is from their Facebook page.

The dedication of the memorial in 2025 was live streamed by Spring Valley Post 227.   They shared information about everyone on the monument and below is when they mentioned Barry.