Jerry Allen Bumgarner (November 8, 1935–March 1, 1983)
Janice M. Colegrove Bumgarner (January 1, 1935–July 26, 1991)
By Ramonita Ramirez and Abigail Padfield
Early Life
Jerry Allen Bumgarner was born in St. Charles, IL on November 8, 1935, to Leslie Bumgarner and Caroline Rogers.1 Leslie Bumgarner served in the US Navy during World War I.2 Sometime before August 1924, Caroline moved to Kane County, IL from Sevier County, TN.3 Leslie worked as a plumber and owned the home the Bumgarner family lived in.4 According to the 1940 census, Jerry had an older brother named Royer.5 Jerry attended high school at St. Charles High School. As seen in his yearbook photographs, he participated in the C Club, track, and football.6
Service
At the age of nineteen, Jerry Bumgarner enlisted in the US Marine Corps on June 25, 1954.7 He went through basic training at Camp Pendleton in San Diego, CA.8 In 1955, Jerry was a Private (E1) with Baker Company, 7th Engineer Battalion.9 By January 1956, he reached the rank of Private First Class (E2).10 He was discharged on June 24, 1956.11
The 7th Engineer Battalion is a support battalion. During the Korean War, the Battalion was quickly built up with equipment and troops for deployment. However, orders for deployment were never signed, so the 7th Engineer Battalion never went abroad. Because of new equipment the 7th Engineer Battalion maintained, it quickly became the training command for all engineers before being sent overseas. As a support battalion, these Marines constructed both civil and government infrastructure.12
Bumgarner’s records associate his service with the Korean War.13 However, North and South Korea entered an armistice about eleven months before Bumgarner’s enlistment began.14 Bumgarner's battalion did not serve overseas. Regardless, it trained soldiers critical to the war effort.15
Marriage and Janice Bumgarner
After serving in the Marine Corps, Bumgarner married Janice M. Colegrove.16 The date of their marriage is unknown due to limited records. Janice was born in Batavia, IL around 1935.17 The Bumgarners had six children: one son and five daughters.19
Post Service
By 1960, Bumgarner and his wife returned to St. Charles, IL. According to the 1960 City Directory seen here, he worked as a plumber, just as his father did. The directory also shows Bumgarner's brother living in St. Charles and working as a plumber.20 The final residence of the Bumgarners was in Clearwater, FL. Jerry Bumgarner was forty-seven years old when he died on March 1, 1983.21 Janice Bumgarner passed away eight years later on July 26, 1991.22 Jerry Bumgarner was memorialized in Florida National Cemetery on July 21, 1994. Janice was memorialized there with her husband on April 16, 1998.23
Endnotes
1 “1940 United States Federal Census,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed April 6, 2017) entry for Jerry A Bumgarner, Year: 1940; Census Place: St Charles, Kane, Illinois; Roll: T627_822; Page: 10A; Enumeration District: 45-108.
2 “U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File 1850-2010,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed July 19, 2017) entry for Leslie Bumgarner.
3 “1910 United States Federal Census,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed April 6, 2017) entry for Caroline Rogers, Year: 1910; Census Place: Civil District 10, Sevier, Tennessee; Roll: T624_1518; Page: 7B; Enumeration District: 0144; FHL microfilm: 1375531; “Illinois, County Marriages, 1800-1940,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed July 19, 2017) entry for Caroline Rogers.
4 “1940 United States Federal Census,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed April 6, 2017) entry for Leslie G Bumgarner, Year: 1940; Census Place: St Charles, Kane, Illinois; Roll: T627_822; Page: 10A; Enumeration District: 45-108.
5 Ibid.
6 “U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012,” Ancestry.com, database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed April 6, 2017) entry for Jerry A Bumgarner.
7 “U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File 1850-2010,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed July 19, 2017), entry for Jer Bumgarner.
8 “U.S. Marine Corps Muster Rolls, 1798-1958,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed July 19, 2017), entry for Jerry A Bumgarner, Microfilm Publication T1118, 123 rolls. ARC ID: 922159. Records of the U.S. Marine Corps, Record Group 127, Roll 2689.
9 “U.S. Marine Corps Muster Rolls, 1798-1958,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed July 19, 2017), entry for Jerry A Bumgarner, Microfilm Publication T1118, 123 rolls. ARC ID: 922159. Records of the U.S. Marine Corps, Record Group 127, Roll 2954.
10 “U.S. Marine Corps Muster Rolls, 1798-1958,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed July 19, 2017), entry for Jerry A Bumgarner, Microfilm Publication T1118, 123 rolls. ARC ID: 922159. Records of the U.S. Marine Corps, Record Group 127, Roll 3269.
11 “U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File 1850-2010,” entry for Jer Bumgarner.
12 “7th Engineer Support Battalion,” Marines.mil, http://www.1stmlg.marines.mil/Units/7ESB/History.aspx (accessed July 19, 2017).
13 Jerry Bumgarner, National Cemetery Administration, National Gravesite Locator, http://gravelocator.cem.va.gov/
14 Allan R. Millett, “The Korean War,” History Now 31 (Spring 2012), accessed July 19, 2017, https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/postwar-politics-and-origins-cold-war/essays/korean-war.
15 “7th Engineer Support Battalion,” Marines.mil.
16 Janice M Bumgarner, National Cemetery Administration, National Gravesite Locator, http://gravelocator.cem.va.gov/
17 Obituary for Janice M Bumgarner, Chicago Tribune, July 30, 1991, accessed July 19, 2017, Newspapers.com.
18 Janice M Bumgarner, National Cemetery Administration.
19 Obituary, Chicago Tribune.
20 “U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995,” Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed April 6, 2017), entry for Jerry A. Bumgarner.
21 “U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File 1850-2010,” entry for Jer Bumgarner.
22 Janice M Bumgarner, National Cemetery Administration.
23 Jerry Bumgarner, National Cemetery Administration; Janice M Bumgarner, National Cemetery Administration.
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