Joseph Gabriel Adams, Jr. (June 27, 1933–August 20, 1994)
By Michael Ruttenbur and Holly Baker
Early Life
Joseph Gabriel Adams Jr. was born in Burlington, New Jersey on June 27, 1933. In 1940, the US Census, seen here, indicated that six-year-old Joseph and his family lived in Edgewater Park, New Jersey. Joseph Adams Sr. was a college educated farmer. His mother Eloise Schmierer was a high school graduate and a stay-at-home mother from New Jersey. Eloise’s grandparents, George and Barbara Schmierer, were immigrants, migrating from Germany in 1848. Joseph also had a younger sister named Ruth Adams.1
Military Service
The Korean War began June 25, 1950, just a few days before Joseph G. Adams Jr.’s seventeenth birthday. Adams enlisted in the US Navy on September 25, 1957, four years after the end of the Korean War. During his service in the Navy, Adams made it to the rank of Engineman 2nd Class (EN2), which roughly equates to Private or Airman in the Army and Air Force respectively.2 No further information could be found on his years of service.
Life After Military Service
After serving in the military, Adams moved to Vero Beach, Florida. An Orlando Sentinel article from November 27, 1968, seen here, listed Adams as a new deputy in the Indian River County Sheriff's Department. Before becoming a deputy, Adams was a member of the sheriff's auxiliary. He was formerly employed at Vero Beach Auto Supply.3
Adams was married twice. On July 8, 1977, he married Eunice Thomas in Indian River County, FL. Eunice was born in Valdosta, GA in 1941. In 1979, Eunice Thomas Adams died at the age of thirty-seven at Indian River Memorial Hospital in Vero Beach. On May 29, 1982, Adams married Virginia Louise Lester from Asheville, North Carolina. That same year, Adams lived on 20th Avenue in Vero Beach, Florida.4 He lived at the same address until his death on August 20, 1994 at the age of sixty-one. Adams is memorialized at Florida National Cemetery near Bushnell, Florida. His memorial was erected March 17, 1995. His headstone reads, “EN2 US Navy, Korea.” His memorial is located at Section MC, Site 24.5
Endnotes
1 “1940 United States Census,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed August 11, 2017), entry for Joseph Gabriel Adams, Jr.; “1900 United States Census,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed August 11, 2017), entry for George Schmierer.
2 “The Korean War: Setting the Stage and Brief Overview,” New Jersey Department of Military & Veterans Affairs, accessed August 11, 2017, http://www.nj.gov/military/korea/factsheets/overview.html; “U.S. Veterans Gravesites, 1775-2006,” National Cemetery Administration, Ancestry.com (accessed August 8, 2017), entry for Joseph Gabriel Adams, Jr.
3 “Four Deputies Approved For Sheriffs Unit,” November 27, 1968, The Orlando Sentinel, page 22, Newspapers.com
4 “Florida Marriage Indexes, 1822-1875 and 1927-2001,” database, Ancestry.com (accessed August 11, 2017), entry for Joseph Gabriel Adams and Eunice Thomas, July 8, 1977; Eunice Thomas Obituary, June 29, 1979, Florida Today, page 1B, Newspapers.com.;“Ancestry.com. Florida Marriage Indexes, 1822-1875 and 1927-2001,” database, Ancestry.com (accessed August 11, 2017), entry for Virginia Louise Lester and Joseph Gabriel Adams, May 29, 1982; “U.S. Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume 1,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed August 11, 2017), entry for Joseph Gabriel Adams, Jr.
5 “U.S. Veterans Gravesites, 1775-2006,” National Cemetery Administration, Ancestry.com, https://ancestry.com, (accessed August 8, 2017), entry for Joseph Gabriel Adams, Jr.; “U.S. Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume 1,” database, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed August 11, 2017), entry for Joseph Gabriel Adams, Jr.
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