^{As we celebrate Flag Day and the adoption of the U.S. flag on June 14, 1777 by Congress, Lori Bailey is learning more about her grandfather’s accomplishments as both a soldier and an individual. His plane was shot down by enemy fire in 1944. (Photo by Lori Bailey)}

Long-forgotten Mementos Unpack Soldier’s Personal, Military History

By DARLA M. YOUNGS
ONEONTA

“I found these fascinating treasures in a box of things left behind by my grandmother, Gertrude Fuller, when she passed. They are pictures and letters from my grandfather when he was overseas fighting in World War II,” wrote Lori Bailey in a recent e-mail.

Sgt. Harold L. Fuller was a rear gunner pilot killed in action in 1944. According to Bailey, his final mission was aboard a B-24 Dogpatch Raider on February 3, 1944. There were 53 ships out of the 193 Airborne that abandoned their mission over Zuiderzee due to high cloud cover. The B24 41-24192 (Sgt. Fuller’s plane) was struck by enemy fire and crashed at the Royal Air Force station in Hardwick, England, killing nine of the 10 aboard.

Fuller was a self-taught carpenter, a jack-of-all-trades, and a talented ice skater and barrel jumper. According to clippings provided by Bailey, he was training for the Olympics when he was called to serve his country in World War II. Fuller’s dream of competing was never realized. The Olympics were cancelled that year and he joined the Army Air Forces.

“He was also a song writer and was being asked to appear on radio and early TV,” Bailey wrote.

A newspaper clipping from the “Adirondack Daily Enterprise” dated November 26, 1940, boasted of Fuller’s musical accomplishments: “A penchant for writing songs in his spare time may augur a composer’s career for Harold Fuller of this village, who has received a copyright and the interest of several music publishers for his waltz, ‘Starlight and Moonlight.’”

The article goes on to say that Fuller’s waltz would make its formal debut later that week, when it was to be introduced by Bryce Lavigne and his orchestra, “after it is orchestrated and polished up.”

Harold Fuller was 20 years old when he married Gertrude L. Sessions in 1930. They had one child, Janice L. Fuller, who later married Richard Kelly in Oneonta, where they resided until their deaths. Lori Bailey is the daughter of Janice and Richard.

“One of the letters here is signed by our President Johnson,” Bailey wrote of the mementos she uncovered. “There is a handmade ring that he made for my grandma out of nickels. You can also see in one pic that he was training for the Olympics, skating and barrel jumping. I should look into having one of his songs recorded. And, yes … one of the photos is of Hitler with a little girl at his tea house. It was smuggled out of Germany at a time when that was a real no-no.”

Other artifacts in the grouping include a photo of Fuller and the men he served with on his final mission, handwritten songs including “Starlight and Moonlight,” information about his Purple Heart, notification from the U.S. War Department regarding Fuller’s final resting place, and the flag that widows placed on their doors after they learned of the loss of their loved one.

Sgt. Fuller’s remains were committed to the Cambridge American Cemetery in Cambridge, England—plot B, row 5, grave 7. He was 34 at the time of his death.