Search for veteran's family turns up empty

[Andy in West Oz]

Times Recorder - www.zanesvilletimesrecorder.com - Zanesville, OH


Search for WWII veteran's relatives turns up empty
By JOSIE McCORMICK
Staff Writer

COSHOCTON - The search for a relative to claim military pictures of Coshocton County World War II Veteran Ralph C. Kemp has hit a dead end. In May, Dewitt Bond brought pictures of Kemp during his days in the military to the Tribune in hopes of having them returned to a relative. Bond, formerly of Coshocton County and now a resident of North Carolina, discovered the photos in a box of books he bought at an auction more than 30 years ago. Over the past month, many people have described Kemp as the son of a grocery store owner, a brother, a husband, a father and a musician. People also debated about whether or not his last name had an "f" at the end of it, but no one is aware of any living relatives. Tom Leech, a Coshocton County World War II veteran, knew Kemp from their days together in the Boy Scout Band, which was not affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America. "The band started around 1926 and we'd play everywhere from summer concerts to socials to hog roasts," Leech said. "If we were asked to play, we'd go. We also spent two or three days at the county fair." He remembered Ralph playing the drums and his brother Carlos Jr. playing trumpet in the Boy Scout Band. "Ralph was an excellent drummer, probably one of the best ever to come out of this community," Leech said. Mary Duling of Coshocton, didn't know Ralph too well, but her brother Noble Burger was friends with Carlos. "He (Carlos) was a nice person," she said. "He and my brother became friends because they played in the Coshocton Community Band." Carlos and Burger also entered the service together and ended up playing in the Air Force Band. According to Duling, they spent time in Mississippi and Oklahoma while in the service. Dick Jones another Coshocton County World War II veteran, has newspaper clippings of Ralph and Carlos in their uniforms. "I met both of them at one time or another and remember them playing in bands," he said. At some point after World War II, Ralph returned to Coshocton. Leech found him listed in city directories, however, in the 1964 and 1971 editions, Ralph's name was spelled Kempf. In both he was listed as living on North Ninth Street and being married to Doris Kempf. The 1971 directory also lists Ralph's son, James and Carlos and his wife. Leech had a gap in his books and his next directory, one for the year 1983, had no entries for Ralph or Carlos. "Ralph, I'm pretty sure is deceased," Leech said. The only Coshocton Tribune obituaries found for the family were ones for Ralph and Carlos' mother and father, Carlos G. and Nora V. Kempf. In their father's obituary from 1965, the brothers' last name is spelled without a "f," but their father's includes it. According to Matt Miller, funeral director at Given-Dawson Funeral Home, families changing the spelling of their last names is not uncommon. "It could happen and it has," he said. "I've dealt with many families who spelled names a certain way for years and later changed them by a few letters to fit in more with what other folks names were at the time." Nora's obituary ran in 1977 and lists Ralph as residing in Coshocton and Carlos in Clearwater, Fla. Jones remembers Nora from her days as a beautician and being the owner of Kempf Beauty Shop in Coshocton. Nora, however, wasn't the only entrepreneur in her family. Her husband also owned a business, Kempf and Sons Grocery. Bill Given a local collector of military memorabilia recalled the store. "I knew Ralph because when I was a young kid I went to the grocery store a lot," he said. Bond had hoped to return Ralph's ribbons and photos to a relative, but since one has not turned up, Given is happy to add them to his collection, which is displayed in his Coshocton home. A large percentage of Given's collection is from area veterans or their family members and he shares many of the items when he speaks to various organizations.