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Private First Class James Oland Rose

  • Unit: 79th Infantry Division, 315th Infantry Regiment, Company E
  • Service Number: 36639475
  • Date of Birth: November 6, 1923
  • Entered the Military: February 5, 1943
  • Date of Death: November 15, 1944
  • Hometown: Harrisburg, Illinois
  • Place of Death: Montigny, France
  • Award(s): Purple Heart
  • Cemetery: Block B, Row 4, Grave 26. Epinal American Cemetery, Dinozé, France
Contributed by Mrs. Marjorie DeNeal
Harrisburg High School (Harrisburg, Illinois)
2024/2025

Early Life

James “Jimmie” Oland Rose was born in Saline County, Illinois, on November 6, 1923, to James Elbert and Vernella Ramsey Rose. They had six children: Thurman, Mildred, James Oland, Mary, Lillian, and Leatha. The Rose family lived in Harrisburg, Illinois, where James grew up and attended school. 

Raised in Southern Illinois, Rose’s hometown of Harrisburg is in Saline County in the lower third of the state. Rose attended grade school and started at Harrisburg Township High School in the fall of 1937. The high school yearbook, the Keystone, shows that he was involved in the Stamp Club.  Rose graduated in the spring of 1941 with honors.

Before leaving for the U.S. Army, James Rose was a member of Gaskins City Missionary Baptist Church and had a job in town. He worked at Illinois Brokerage on Main Street. The Illinois Brokerage was a store that sold a little bit of everything, including clothes, shoes, fabric, and general supplies.

James as a sophomore (standing, second from left) with other Stamp Club members in the Keystone yearbook, 1939. Harrisburg Township High School.
James, as a junior, smiles for his Keystone yearbook photo, 1940. Harrisburg Township High School. 
James registered for the draft when he was 18 years old, on June 29, 1942. Ancestry.

Homefront

James Rose’s hometown of Harrisburg was a rural southern Illinois town. Most of its capital came from agriculture and the region’s coal mines. Coal mining started in the area during the last part of the nineteenth century. By the 1930s, Saline County had some of the best coal in Illinois, with 8-10 seams being mined. During the Great Depression, like most regions, Harrisburg experienced hardships. Sixty-one percent of the region’s residents received welfare, one of the highest percentages in the nation at the time. 

With the beginning of World War II in 1941, employment rose. West of Harrisburg in a nearby town, the Illinois Ordnance Plant, commonly called Ordill, employed 10,000 people from southern Illinois. Ordill made bombs for the war effort and was a large complex of 500 buildings. To the north of Harrisburg, the Big Inch Pipeline ran to the “Big Four” railroad hub, where oil was loaded onto tankers for the war. In all, the wartime economy of Southern Illinois was crucial in supplying resources the nation needed.

In Harrisburg, over 1,000 students and former students served in the armed forces. Students raised $90,000 for war funds during the war. Interestingly enough, southern Illinois, including Harrisburg, raised millions of dollars auctioning and reauctioning a pig named King Neptune. King Neptune was raised as a 4-H Project and was given to a naval recruiter, who auctioned the pig numerous times to raise $19 million in war bonds. 

Postcard showing South Main Street in Harrisburg, Illinois. The Brokerage store was James Rose’s place of employment in the 1940s. Courtesy of Marjorie DeNeal.
King Neptune, the U.S. Navy pig, sold over $19 million in war bonds throughout Southern Illinois and the Midwest, with $255,000 in Harrisburg, Illinois. St. Louis Globe-Democrat, January 25, 1945.
The Marion Weekly Leader reported that General Eisenhower told the workers at the Ordill Plant that they were making a difference in the war effort. Marion Weekly Leader, May 20, 1943.

Military Experience

The Selective Service called up James Rose in January 1943. The Harrisburg Daily Register article stated that he volunteered when his number was called. He was inducted into the U.S. Army on February 5, 1943.

In training, Rose bounced around the country. In the local paper, his mother reported that he was at Camp Roberts training with the 87th Infantry Training Battalion, 1st Platoon in March 1943. The military sent him to mathematics classes at Pasadena College as part of the Special Training and Reassignment Unit (STAR). Five months later, he participated in the Army Specialized Training Unit (ASTU) at the University of Oklahoma.

James Rose came home to visit his mother in March 1944, just before he left for France. Rose arrived overseas in June 1944. At some point, he was reassigned as a combat infantryman to the 79th Infantry Division. In September 1944, Rose’s mother reported to the newspaper that he was fighting in France and had been awarded a Combat Infantryman’s Badge. The same article stated that James’ older brother, Thurman, was also serving overseas. 

By September 1944, James Rose, assigned to Company E, 315th Infantry Regiment, 79th Infantry Division, moved southeast from the Belgian border. At the end of October and the beginning of November 1944, the division moved through northeastern France. They rested for 16 days west of Luneville before moving toward the Rhine. The 79th Infantry Division was assigned to drive through the Vosges Mountains and take the city of Alsace. Along the way, the division moved near Montigny, France.

On the morning of November 15, 1944, shortly after Rose’s 21st birthday, Company E of the 315th Infantry Regiment moved out of Montigny to clear high ground near Ancerviller, France. Movement started at 7:00 a.m. in a blinding snowfall. Enemy resistance was fierce. One hour into the attack, Private First Class James Rose was hit by machine gun fire while crossing through a field, which killed him instantly. The 79th Infantry Division later completed its objective by pushing through Ancerviller and clearing the town of Halloville.

A map of the path of the 79th Infantry Division with painted scenes.
This print shows the movement of the 79th Infantry through France from October 25, 1944, to February 14, 1945. Bangor Public Library.

Commemoration

Rose’s mother, Vernella, received a Western Union Telegram dated November 29, 1944, with news that her son was killed in action. During World War II, Rose was one of over 120 young men who died in uniform from Saline County, Illinois.

In Harrisburg, Illinois, family and friends held a memorial in January 1945, at Gaskins City Missionary Baptist Church. James was temporarily interred in a French cemetery. Vernella decided to leave her son in France permanently. 

More than three years after his death, James Rose was laid to rest in the Epinal American Cemetery, cared for by the American Battle Monuments Commission. Some of his brothers in arms from the 79th Infantry Division are buried with him at the same cemetery. 

In his hometown of Harrisburg, community members sought the names of the men who died during World War I and World War II who had attended Harrisburg Township High School or had lived in Harrisburg. They compiled the names of those individuals and created a memorial at the high school’s Taylor Memorial Field. Today, thousands of football and soccer fans each year walk by James Rose’s name among the list of locals who perished in World War I and World War II. 

James Oland Rose gave his life for his country. Like so many young men at the time, he came from a small rural town far from the fields of France. Rose left his mother, Vernella Rose, and a large family to fight for the United States. It is an honor to say that James Rose has not been forgotten, and that his service and sacrifice live on through the freedom and liberties Americans have today.

Western Union telegram notification sent to Vernella Rose, James Oland Rose’s mother, November 29, 1944. Courtesy of Ron Stilley.
Display of James Rose’s flag and Purple Heart, 2024. Courtesy of Ron Stilley.
The Harrisburg Daily Register published an article announcing that James Rose had been killed in action in France. The Harrisburg Daily Register, November 30, 1944.
James Rose's name on a local war memorial.
At the end of Taylor Field, the names of Harrisburg Township High School students who gave their lives for their country are chiseled for new generations. James Rose is listed in the far right column. February 28, 2025. Courtesy of Marjorie DeNeal.
James Rose’s grave at Epinal American Cemetery in Dinozé, France. American Battle Monuments Commission.

Bibliography

Primary Sources

Bluford Rose. U.S. Headstones Application for Military Veterans, 1861-1985. Digital images.http://ancestry.com.

“Card of Thanks.” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], January 15, 1945. Newspapers.com (7304749). 

“Congratulates Ordill Workers: Gen. Eisenhower Tells Employees All Share in Victory.” Marion Weekly Reader [Marion, IL], May 20, 1943. Newspapers.com (754769490).

“Draft Board Names Group to Be Called.” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], January 1943.

“Eighty Saline County Army Dead Listed in Compilation by the War Department.” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], June 27, 1946. Newspapers.com (16197641). 

“Farewell Party for Three Brokerage Employes [sic].” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], October 1942. 

Genuine Cuteich-Chicago. “Business Section, South Main Street, Harrisburg, Ill.” C.T. American Art. Postcard. Courtesy of Marjorie DeNeal.

Genuine Cuteich-Chicago. “Harrisburg Township High School, Harrisburg, Ill.” C.T. American Art. Postcard. Courtesy of Marjorie DeNeal.

“HTHS, Teachers and Students Enter Actively in All Activities to Aid War Effort.” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], May 8, 1945. Newspapers.com (7332079). 

“Illinois Ordnance Plant, Ordill.” Marion Illinois History Preservation. Accessed January 8, 2024. https://www.mihp.org/2013/09/illinois-ordnance-plant-ordill/#/. 

Illinois. Saline County. 1930 U.S. Census. Digital images. http://ancestry.com.

Illinois. Saline County. 1940 U.S. Census. Digital images. http://ancestry.com.

Illinois. Saline County. 1950 U.S. Census. Digital images. http://ancestry.com.

Illinois. Williamson County. 1910 U.S. Census. Digital images. http://ancestry.com.

“James Elbert Rose.” Illinois, U.S. Deaths and Stillborn Index: 1916-1947. http://ancestry.com. 

James Oland Rose. Individual Deceased Personnel File, Department of the Army. National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.

James Oland Rose. World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947. Digital images. https://www.ancestry.com/.

Keystone. Harrisburg Township High School, 1938.

Keystone.Harrisburg Township High School, 1939. 

Keystone. Harrisburg Township High School, 1940.

“King Neptune Aids Drive at Harrisburg.” Centralia Evening Sentinel [Centralia, IL], April 12, 1942. https://access.newspaperarchive.com/us/illinois/centralia/centralia-evening-sentinel/1943/04-12/page-7. 

“King Neptune: WWII’s Pig with a Purpose.” U.S. Naval Institute. Accessed January 28, 2024. https://www.usni.org/magazines/naval-history-magazine/2013/march/king-neptune-world-war-iis-pig-purpose. 

Letter from Captain Bernard V. Deutchman to Mrs. Vernella Rose, Harrisburg, IL, April 11, 1945.  

“Memorial Service Sunday for Pfc. James Oland Rose.” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], January 13, 1945. Newspapers.com (7304165).

“Mother Gets Purple Heart Awarded to Son Killed in Action.” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], February 1, 1945. Newspapers.com (7307939).

“Our Men in Service.” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], August 7, 1943.

“Our Men in Service.” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], March 1943. 

“Our Men in Service.” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], May 1943.

“Patriotic Porker Brings Home the Bacon for Uncle Sam to the Tune of $17,000,000.” St. Louis Globe Democrat [St. Louis, MO], January 25, 1945. Newspapers.com (573462333). 

“Pfc. James Rose is Killed in Action in France.” The Daily Register, [Harrisburg, IL],  November 30, 1944. NewspaperArchive.com.  

“Proud of Our Ordill Plant: Major Miller Tells Herrin Rotary Plant is Satisfactory.” Marion Weekly Reader. [Marion, IL], April 15, 1943. Newspapers.com (754769273).

Rose-Stilley Family Records, 1930-1948. Courtesy of Ron Stilley. 

“Saline County Honor Roll.” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], May 8, 1945. Newspapers.com (7331778). 

“Sons in France With Fighting 79th Division.” Daily Register [Harrisburg, IL], September 13, 1944. 

Telegram from  Witsell to Mrs. Vernella Rose, Harrisburg, IL, November 29, 1944.

Thurman Rose. U.S. Dept. of Veteran Affairs BIRLS Death File 1850-2010. http://ancestry.com.

Thurman E. Rose. Indiana State Board of Health Medical Certificate of Death. http://ancestry.com. 

Secondary Sources

“Beatrice Mildred Rose Stilley.” Find a Grave. Updated December 29, 2006. Accessed December 19, 2024. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/17210879/beatrice_mildred_stilley.  

The Cross of Lorraine: A Combat History of the 79th Infantry Division June 1942-December 1945. Army and Navy, 1946.

“James Elbert Rose.” Find a Grave. Updated October 13, 2012. Accessed December 19, 2024. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/98854662/james_elbert_rose. 

“James O. Rose.” American Battle Monuments Commission. Accessed November 24, 2024. https://www.abmc.gov/decedent-search/rose%3Djames. 

“James Oland Rose.” Find a Grave. Updated November 3, 2024. Accessed February 28, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56375209/james-oland-rose. 

“Letha Fern Rose Hall.” Find a Grave. Updated December 20, 2020. Accessed December 19, 2024. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/219994968/letha_fern_hall. 

“Lillian Jeanette Rose Alexander.” Find a Grave. Updated September 29, 2018. Accessed December 19, 2024. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/193546371/lillian_jeanette_alexander.

“Mary Maxidean Rose Moore.” Find a Grave. Updated October 22, 2014. Accessed December 19, 2024. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/137626948/mary_maxidean_moore. 

Neely-Steit, Gabriel. “Big Inch Story Rolls On: Illinois Town Played Major Role in WWII” Southern Illinoisan [Carbondale, IL],  October 13, 2019. https://www.news-journal.com/news/local/big-inch-story-rolls-on-illinois-town-played-major-role-in-world-war-ii/article_26e4b858-0575-11ea-bd00-bb5745e7f7fa.html. 

“PFC James Oland Rose.” Find a Grave. Updated August 7, 2010. Accessed November 22, 2024. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56375209/james_oland_rose.

The Staff of the Mitchell-Carnegie Public Library. “A History of Saline County.” Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society (1908-1984) 27, no. 1 (1934): 31–54. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40187821.

This profile was researched and created through the Researching Silent Heroes program, sponsored by the American Battle Monuments Commission.