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Sergeant James Ray West

James West's grave at Lorraine American Cemetery with an American and French flag.
  • Unit: 137th Infantry Regiment, 35th Infantry Division, Company L
  • Service Number: Gas, Kansas
  • Date of Birth: November 30, 1914
  • Entered the Military: November 20, 1940
  • Date of Death: September 17, 1944
  • Hometown: Gas City, Kansas
  • Place of Death: Eastern France
  • Award(s): Bronze Star, Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster
  • Cemetery: Plot G, Row 9, Grave 28. Lorraine American Cemetery, Saint-Avold, France
Contributed by Mrs. Jillian Elliott
Southeast High School (Cherokee, Kansas)
2024/2025

Early Life

James Ray West was born to Charles Edwin West and Fransina “Sina” Mourning West on November 30, 1914, in Gas City, Kansas. Along with James, Charles and Sina had seven other children, including James’ twin, Martha Ruby. 

In 1920, Charles West supported the family working as a teamster. By 1930, the family composition had changed. On February 18, 1930, James’s father, Charles, died suddenly. The 1930 census showed that Sina and her sons Thomas and Glen worked on their farm, likely to make ends meet after losing their husband and father. Another son, Elza, was employed as a cook in a cafe. Ray and Martha were only 15 years old.

Sina West with Ruby and James Ray West. Courtesy of Angela Rowbottom.
The West family, living in Allen County, Kansas. James Ray West reported as Ray, 1920. National Archives and Records Administration.
The West family, living in Allen County, Kansas, following the death of Charles West, 1930. National Archives and Records Administration.

Homefront

James West came from rural Kansas where farming was prevalent. The community has a rich history that dates back to its founding in the 1860s. The town’s newspaper, although it changed names a time or two, remains in production over 150 years after its founding in 1867. In fact, the paper is still owned by the members of the family who purchased it in 1882.

West was born in Gas City, and resided in Iola, Kansas, a nearby town in southeast Kansas. Iola opened a Pet Milk factory in 1924. In the 1930’s H.L. Miller and Sons opened a dressmaking shop. 

Like many rural areas, the city built a water powered electrical plant and relied on the natural resources available in the area. When some of those resources were depleted, they lost a portion of their manufacturers as a result.

The Iola Chamber of Commerce reported that the city relied on public works projects during the Great Depression, as well as through World War II and the postwar period. These projects built new homes and businesses, new schools, rebuilt and repaved roads, and constructed a National Guard Armory.

An automobile garage in Iola, Kansas. Iola Chamber of Commerce.
The Santa Fe Railroad stopping at the train station in Iola, Kansas. Iola Chamber of Commerce.

Military Experience

West completed his World War II draft registration card on November 20, 1940, at age 25. He was was drafted in September 1942. Before he left, he married Lavena Clites. Together, they had a daughter named Ralinda.

Records state that West was stationed in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, in September 1942, and moved to Camp Wolters, Texas, in the same month. 

By 1944, West was assigned to Company L, 137th Infantry Regiment, a Kansas National Guard unit that was attached to the 35th Infantry Division. West joined the regiment sometime in 1944. 

The 137th Infantry Regiment boarded the SS Thomas H. Barry on May 11, 1944, and arrived in England on May 24, 1944. They trained in England for two months before they departed for Omaha Beach at Colleville-sur-Mer, France, in early July 1944. 

The 137th Infantry Regiment fought in the Normandy Campaign through the Battle of Saint-Lô in July 1944. The unit continued pushing towards Germany and, by mid-September, reached eastern France. 

West was wounded and was awarded a Purple Heart after a hard-fought battle in France on July 18, 1944. During a night operation, West knocked out a machine gun emplacement operated by the enemy after a 75-yard advancement. His heroic act of bravery gave his company the ability to continue their advance. West also received a Bronze Star for his actions.

James Ray West’s draft registration card, November 20, 1940. National Archives and Records Administration.
James Ray West and Lavena Clites were married before he left for the military. The Iola Register, August 31, 1942.

Commemoration

Along the way James Ray West was promoted to sergeant. He was wounded in action on September 13, 1944, and died from these wounds on September 17. He was temporarily buried in Andilly, France. His Individual Deceased Personnel File provided information concerning how the government attempted to contact his wife, Lavena. However, she had remarried a man named Courtney Kaufman, which meant that she was no longer the next of kin.

The government then struggled to locate his mother. Eventually, contact was made, and the message of West’s death reached his mother, who wrote a letter asking for her son’s remains to be buried in France. Today, James Ray West is buried in Lorraine American Cemetery, Saint-Avold, France.

Newspaper article commemorating Sergeant West’s service and death in the line of duty, c.1944. Ancestry.
Newspaper article explaining West’s citation for heroism. The Iola Register, October 2, 1944.
Sina West wrote this letter to the U.S. government and asked for her son’s remains to be buried in France, October 22, 1948. Individual Deceased Personnel File.
This November 22, 1948, letter was written by a staff member in the Memorial Service, Home Service Division, about difficulties reaching Sina West. Individual Deceased Personnel File.
James Ray West is buried in Lorraine American Cemetery in Saint-Avold, France. American Battle Monuments Commission.

Bibliography

Primary Sources

“137th (US) Infantry Regiment – 35th (US) ID – July 1944 – After Action Reports.” DDay Overlord. Accessed February 27, 2025. https://www.dday-overlord.com/en/battle-of-normandy/after-action-reports/35th-infantry/137th-infantry-regiment-july-1944.  

James Ray West. U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947. Digital images. https://ancestryclassroom.com. 

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

James R. West, U.S., Headstone and Interment Records for U.S. Military Cemeteries on Foreign Soil, 1942-1949. 

Kansas. Allen County. 1920 U.S. Census. Digital images. https://ancestryclassroom.com.

Kansas. Allen County. 1930 U.S. Census. Digital images. https://ancestryclassroom.com.

“Locals.” The Iola Register [Iola, KS], August 31, 1942. Newspapers.com (17904471). 

“Mrs. C. Kaufman, Humbolt, Is Dead.” August 31, 1942. Newspapers.com (17904471). 

“Sgt. James West Cited for Heroism.”  The Iola Register [Iola, KS], October 2, 1944. Newspapers.com (636184447). 

“Sgt. J. R. West Dies As Resllt [sic] of Wounds.” Digital image. https://ancestryclassroom.com.

Secondary Sources

“Charles Edwin West.” Find a Grave. Updated January 13, 2011. Accessed April 24, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/64141255/charles-edwin-west.

“Combat History of the 137th Infantry Regiment.” Coulthart Family History Center. Accessed April 24, 2025. http://www.coulthart.com/134/137chapter-1.htm.  

“History of Iola, Kansas.” Iola Area Chamber of Commerce. Accessed January 29, 2025. https://www.iolachamber.org/welcome/history.html.  

“History of the Iola Register.” The Iola Register. Accessed January 29, 2025. https://www.iolaregister.com/about-us/history-of-the-iola-register. 

“James R. West.” American Battle Monuments Commission. Accessed February 27, 2025. https://api.abmc.gov/decedent-search/west%3Djames-2.  

“Lavena Clites Kaufman.” Find a Grave. Updated October 28, 2011. Accessed April 24, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/79413190/lavena-kaufman. 

“National Unified Archive of American Gold Star Veterans.” Honor States, 2023. https://www.honorstates.org/.  

“Sgt James Ray West.” Find a Grave. Updated August 8, 2010. Accessed January 29, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56662180/james-ray-west. 

“World War II: 35th Infantry Division.” Museum of the Kansas National Guard. Accessed April 24, 2025. https://kansasguardmuseum.com/world-war-ii-35th-infantry-division/.

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