Richard H. Vaisey (October 10, 1924–December 29,1996)

By Allan Schmidt and Harper Norris

Early Life in Rochester

1930 Census, Richard Vaisey, line 78

Richard Vaisey was born October 18, 1924 in Rochester, New York, to Arthur and Mary Vaisey. Richard had two younger siblings, Robert and John, and two older half siblings, Dorothy and William, as seen by his census record here.12 The Vaisey Family grew up in Rochester, New York where Richard’s father owned a shoe repair shop.

1940 Franklin High Yearbook Photo

Richard attended Franklin High School in Rochester, New York, as seen by his yearbook photo here. In high school, he was active on the varsity soccer and track teams.3 During his time in high school, Richard worked as a lens grinder and polisher for an optician.4 Richard completed three years of high school before enlisting in the US Army at the age of eighteen.5

Service in the Pacific Campaign

In World War II, Vaisey served on a mortar squadron in the southwest Pacific Ocean fighting the Japanese as part of the United State’s Pacific campaign. According to a newspaper account, he and his squadmates kept firing their mortar, nicknamed “Mutt,”, at the Japanese, expending large amounts of ammunition. The mortar was hot enough to light a cigarette from this sustained fire.6 In a mortar squad, Vaisey would have been part of a five-man team composed of a corporal and four privates. Two privates were deemed ammunition bearers, and the other two were gunners. The squad would have been armed with .30 caliber carbines, .45 caliber pistols, and a .30-caliber rifle.7

Private Vaisey was stationed in the southwest Pacific Theatre during World War II. During Vaisey’s time in the region, the US Sixth Army began the invasion of the Lingayen Gulf on Luzon in the Philippines on January 9, 1945. In February of the same year, the Sixth Army attacked the Japanese in Manila. The fighting in Manila was brutal; tragically, nearly 100,000 Filipino civilians lost their lives defending their city alongside American soldiers while combating the Japanese defense of the city. The battle of Manila was the only time in the Pacific Theatre that the Americans met the Japanese in a major metropolitan city.8 It is possible that Vaisey’s mortar squad saw action in this battle.

Post-War Life

Before being released from the Army, Richard returned home to be the best man in the wedding of his friend Melvin Corson.9 Just a few months later, Richard was discharged on January 11, 1946, and he returned home to Rochester, NY. 10 After being discharged, he worked for many years as a lineman for Rochester Gas and Electric.11 He married Geraldine Mensing, also of Rochester, on August 26, 1950. He and Geraldine had two children—a son named Neal and a daughter named Lynn. Upon retirement, Richard and Geraldine moved to Venice, Florida. Richard passed away at age 72 on December 28, 1996. He is memorialized at Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida.12 Three years after his death, Geraldine Vaisey passed away on August 27, 2000.13

Endnotes

1 “1940 United States Federal Census,” database, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com accessed March 13, 2017), entry for Richard Vaisey, Rochester, Monroe, New York.

2 “1930 United States Federal Census,” database, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com accessed March 13, 2017), entry for Richard Vaisey, New York.

3 “US School Yearbooks 1880-2012,” database, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com accessed August 1, 2017), entry for Richard Vaisey, New York.

4 “Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938 - 1946 (Enlistment Records),” database, The National Archives (https://aad.archives.gov/aad/record-detail.jsp?dt=893&mtch=2&tf=F&q=Richard+H.+Vaisey&bc. accessed March 13, 2017), entry for Ricard Vaisey, Army serial number 12208274.

5 “Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938 - 1946 (Enlistment Records),” database, The National Archives (https://aad.archives.gov/aad/record-detail.jsp?dt=893&mtch=2&tf=F&q=Richard+H.+Vaisey&bc. accessed March 13, 2017), entry for Ricard Vaisey, Army serial number 12208274.

6 “Service Stars,” Democrat and Chronicle, February 12, 1945, accessed March 27, 2017, Newspaper.com.

7 “Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938 - 1946 (Enlistment Records),” database, The National Archives (https://aad.archives.gov/aad/record-detail.jsp?dt=893&mtch=2&tf=F&q=Richard+H.+Vaisey&bc. accessed March 13, 2017), entry for Ricard Vaisey, Army serial number 12208274.

8 Kevin McEnery, The XIV Corps. Battle for Manila: February 1945 (Pickle Partners Publishing 1993), 7.

9 “Recent Wedding Rites, Democrat and Chronicle, October 22, 1945, March 13, 2017, Newspapers.com.

10 “Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850- 2010,” (Ancestry.com: accessed March 13,2017), entry for Richard Vaisey.

11 “Holes for Poles,” Democrat and Chronicle, August 29, 1954, Newspapers.com., accessed March 27, 2017.

12 U.S. Veterans Gravesites Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com/, accessed March 13, 2017), entry for Richard Vaisey;
National Cemetery Administration, "Richard H. Vaisey," US Department of Veterans Affairs, accessed September 18, 2018, https://gravelocator.cem.va.gov/NGLMap?ID=6110750

13 “US Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed August 1, 2017), entry for Geraldine Vaisey, Florida.

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