WWII John J. Reardon (Ortonville, Dakota: moving, cemetery, county)

[swinny]

Hello

I am Andy Swinnen from the Netherlands .
I recently adopted a grave of a soldier from WW2

We caretakers of the graves at the Netherlands/Belgium American Cemetery and Memorial ( Margraten and Henri Chapelle ) are the ones who will see to it that the men and women buried there will not be forgotten

I go there often with my wife and children to see that his grave is well being taken care for.
I always put flowers on his grave.

I now have Internet and i am trying to find out as much as possible about him but its very hard to find anything about him.
I would like to know everything about him so i can explane it to my children who s in that grave and what kind of man it was.
Now i am always looking at his grave and try to imagine who he was

I am trying the find a face or story behind the grave of this brave men, but i run out of help
So i hope i am at the right address.

Its about S/Sgt John J. Reardon ( ID 17110566 ) from Big Stone Minnesota, who was born in 1922 and died on 2 nov. 1944 in a b-17 plane crash in Europe and flew with the 615th Bomber Squadron, 401st Bomber Group, Heavy

I really hope you can help me or know someone else.

Thank you very much

Greetings, Andy Swinnen

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by swinny

Its about S/Sgt John J. Reardon ( ID 17110566 ) from Big Stone Minnesota, who was born in 1922 and died on 2 nov. 1944 in a b-17 plane crash in Europe and flew with the 615th Bomber Squadron, 401st Bomber Group, Heavy

Big Stone County is the name of a county in Minnesota on the western border just south of the big hump.

Big Stone City, South Dakota (where my grandfather grew up) and Ortonville, Minnesota (where my father grew up) are both right at the Minnesota/South Dakota border at the southern tip of Big Stone Lake, which is also the headwater of the Minnesota River.

Big Stone County web site

Big Stone County Information on Wikipedia

Not a lot of specific information, but maybe that'll get you started. Good luck!

[moving123456]

Is that the cemetery in the southern tip of the Netherlands? I visited it a couple years ago when I was staying in Meerssen. It was both interesting and sad to see such a huge cemetery of Americans overseas. It looked like people were taking very good care of it though.

This was the place.....

[swinny]

Thanks Rcsteiner for the links.

And to moving123456 , yes , this is Margraten on your pictures.
I have 3 soldiers adopted there, but John J Reardon is on the wall of missing in Henri Chapelle in Belgium.
Just 15 miles from Margraten Netherlands.
Nice pictures

Andy

[TravisW]

For more info on Sgt. Reardon, I'd write or call the following:

Big Stone County Historical Society
Hwy. 12 & Hwy. 75
Ortonville, MN 56278

Phone: (320) 839-3359.

[swinny]

OK thanks

I am going to do that right now, I let you know
Andy

[swinny]

I found his addres from 1944

John J. Reardon
Johnson Minnesota

Andy

[swinny]

I came in contact with a person after adding a add in a local newspaper of Ortonville.
I got a lot of beautiful reactions , and also a picture of John before he went to war , wonderful.

The people told me his family had moved to Kansas in 1950 , so I will make a new topic in the Kansas section.

Thanks for all of your help
Andy