Leading Out At Sea
By Lucy LeVon
Harry Wilkenson McGinniss III
2/23/1917 - 11/15/1993
Harry Wilkenson McGinniss III was born in Kentucky on February 23rd, 1917.[1] He was the youngest of his siblings, having two older sisters – Arria and Bell. Although his entire family was born in Kentucky, they moved to West Virginia in 1920 and his father, Harry Wilkenson McGinniss, became a coal miner. Eventually, the family would move again, this time to Maryland, where Harry would graduate from high school in 1935. Harry was extremely active in high school, participating in several clubs such as student council, interfraternity council, Kappa Phi Sigma, track, tennis, and the aero club. He would then go on to university for the next four years and complete his degree. After graduating from the University of Maryland, Harry returned home and worked as a life insurance agent.
In October of 1940, once the Selective Service Act was passed, Harry filled out his draft registration card; however, he was not called to service until 1942. Prior to this, Harry was married to Barbara Mace in June of 1942. Very little is known of her life despite her being originally from Iowa. Once called to service, Harry was a part of the United States Navy and would retire as a Lieutenant Junior Grade in 1944. During World War II, Lieutenant Junior Grade had a plethora of responsibilities. These included leading lower-grade sailors, planning and supervising missions, operating and maintaining weapons and other systems, and overall managing daily tasks.
Although there is no trace of Harry’s life after the war, it is likely that he continued to work as an insurance agent and eventually moved to Colorado. This is where he passed away in November of 1993 at the age of seventy-six. He is currently buried at Fort Logan in section C1-B.
Footnotes ↓
[1] Information for this biography can be found at:
https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6061 https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree, https://www.google.com/urlq=https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections, https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1265/record https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2345/records
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