First Lieutenant Leon Clay Wesson

- Unit: Organized Reserve Corps (ORC) Artillery
- Date of Birth: March 6, 1927
- Entered the Military: September 19, 1945
- Date of Death: October 18, 2011
- Hometown: Gary, Indiana
- Place of Death: South Bend, Indiana
- Award(s): World War II Victory Medal, Korean Service Medal with three Bronze Stars, and United Nations Service Medal
- Cemetery: Columbarium A, Row W1, Site D2. Crown Hill National Cemetery, Indianapolis, Indiana
Mentored by Mrs. Lori Grant Feliciano
Cold Spring School at Marian University
2024/2025
Early Life
Leon Clay Wesson was born on March 6, 1927, in Gary, Indiana, to Clay and Sophenia Nelson Wesson. He grew up with three brothers: Cleo (a World War II veteran), Rhanders, and Rufus, as well as a sister, Charleen.
Wesson attended a segregated high school in Gary, Indiana. He registered for the draft on March 6, 1945, and was inducted on September 19, 1945, at Camp Atterbury near Edinburg, Indiana.


Homefront
Steel Town
Throughout the early twentieth century, Gary, Indiana, was known as a steel town. United States Steel’s Gary Works opened in the early 1900s and continued to manufacture steel for World War I and World War II. As one of the largest steel mills in the world, it was a crucial part of U.S. steel production during the Korean War years, for both military and industrial use.
After World War II, President Harry S. Truman sought to control inflation by advocating for price controls and increased taxes. As part of those efforts, he attempted to mediate labor disputes in key industries, including the steel industry. In 1952, when steel companies refused to meet union demands for higher wages, Truman issued Executive Order 10340 and seized control of the steel industry so that production would not be slowed or halted due to a strike. However, the Supreme Court quickly overturned this order, when it ruled Truman did not have the constitutional power to do so.
A Changing Population
Gary’s population increased by 18.6% when immigrants and migrants flocked to the city for jobs in manufacturing between 1940 and 1950. Because of this, the city experienced issues with segregation and inequality.
As early as 1912, African American students were allowed to attend the Froebel School in Gary, but a report published by the United States Bureau of Education in 1914 indicated that “the other patrons of the school, most of whom are foreigners, strenuously object to mixing colored children with the others; so they were placed in separate classes in charge of two colored teachers. . .” As a result, Froebel remained internally segregated. In the fall of 1945, after the school allowed more African American students to attend, White students held a strike that was later referred to as a “Hate Strike.”
A Changing World
Television ownership was on the rise in the late 1940s and early 1950s, which meant families had more access to entertainment programs and the news. People could see what was going on beyond their community, which included the Korean War.
Families were encouraged to grow their own food as often as possible during wartime. Larger farms contributed to the war effort by feeding military personnel. As a world agricultural leader, more than 65% of Indiana farms exported corn, hogs, dairy, and eggs by 1949.



Military Experience
Serving in World War II
Wesson was assigned to the Cavalry Detachment, 1802nd Special Regiment, a unit which supported the training of cadets at the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. Wesson worked as a truck driver in the unit. On November 30, 1946, he was honorably discharged.
From 1948 to 1950, he attended West Virginia State College on the G.I. Bill. He later received a Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary Education from Hampton University, a historically Black college. During this time, he also joined the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.
Recalled for the Korean War
After being recalled to active duty at the beginning of the Korean War, Wesson attended artillery school at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, from November 1951 to May 1952. His training included learning fire direction techniques, which enabled soldiers to calculate firing data accurately and coordinate artillery fire to support infantry and armored units. He was also trained to identify and locate enemy targets using a variety of methods. This training ensured artillery personnel were well-prepared to provide effective fire support while deployed.
After training, Wesson deployed to Korea and earned a promotion to first lieutenant on December 15, 1952. During his service, the U.S. Army’s Organized Reserve Corps (ORC) primarily functioned to bolster understrength active Army units. This allowed individual reservists, such as Wesson, to fill personnel gaps rather than deploying entire reserve units. After his service in Korea, Wesson received an honorable discharge from Camp Carson, Colorado, on August 2, 1953.



Veteran Experience
Marriage and Family
After leaving the military, Wesson worked for the Department of Labor for more than 30 years. In 1969, he married Maxine (Pearl) Carter, and they had two sons, Thomas and Alex, and a daughter, Paula. After retiring from the Department of Labor, he worked as a groundskeeper and was an active member of Elbel Golf Course in South Bend, Indiana. Wesson enjoyed bowling and golfing throughout his retirement.
A Life of Service and Philanthropy
The Wessons were involved in their community in many ways, which included serving on the committee of the North Central Provincial Council of the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity, leading a local Boy Scout troop, and as being members of the Greater Saint John Missionary Baptist Church. Wesson was an avid bowler and even combined his love of bowling with the Special Olympics when he organized bowling tournaments for individuals with disabilities in South Bend.

Commemoration
Leon Wesson passed away on October 18, 2011. He is buried at Crown Hill National Cemetery in Indianapolis, Indiana, with a gravestone bearing the inscription: “1st Lieutenant World War II, Korea, Avid Golfer.”
Upon his death, his body was donated to the Indiana University—Purdue University Indianapolis Science Department.
His wife, Pearl, continued living in Indiana near their adult children and grandchildren until her death in 2023.


Bibliography
Primary Sources
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Executive Order 10340—Directing the Secretary of Commerce to Take Possession of and Operate the Plants and Facilities of Certain Steel Companies. April 8, 1952. Federal Register. https://www.federalregister.gov/executive-order/10340.
“Gary Shocked by School Strike.” Indianapolis Recorder [Indianapolis, Indiana], September 29, 1945. https://newspapers.library.in.gov/cgi-bin/indiana?a=d&d=INR19450929-01.1.1&srpos=156&e=——-en-20–141-byDA-txt-txIN-%22froebel%22+%2b+%22strike%22——.
Leon Clay Wesson, DD-214, Department of the Army. National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.
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Leon Clay Wesson, Final Pay Voucher, Department of the Army. National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.
Leon Clay Wesson. Indiana, U.S., Birth Certificates, 1907-1944. Digital images. https://ancestry.com.
Leon Clay Wesson. Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2017. Digital images. https://ancestry.com.
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Leon Clay Wesson. World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947. Digital Images. https://ancestry.com.
Moriarty, William John. Rock at camp entrance. Photograph. 1943. Camp Atterbury World War II Photograph Collection, Indiana State Library. https://indianamemory.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16066coll13/id/279/.
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Coker, Kathryn Roe. United States Army Reserve Mobilization for the Korean War. Office of Army Reserve History, 2013. https://www.usar.army.mil/Portals/98/Documents/historycorner/Korean%20War%20Pub_Revised%20June%2012-2013.pdf.
“Documenting the War Effort Exhibition.” Harvard Business School. Accessed November 7, 2024. https://www.library.hbs.edu/us-steel/exhibition/documenting-the-wartime-effort.
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“Leon Clay Wesson.” Find a Grave. Accessed March 24, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/79357095/leon-clay-wesson.
“Leon Clay Wesson.” Veterans Legacy Memorial, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.vlm.cem.va.gov/LEONCLAYWESSON/a2fc6b.
Pannell, Keith. “100th Anniversary of the Field Artillery School.” Fires, May-June 2011. https://morrisswett.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/api/collection/p15766coll2/id/13/download.
“Pearl Maxine Wesson.” Find a Grave. Updated August 19, 2023. Accessed November 25, 2024. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/255433285/pearl-maxine-wesson#view-photo=278692458.
“Pearl Maxine Wesson.” Legacy. Updated April 24, 2023. Accessed November 25, 2024. https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/name/pearl-wesson-obituary?id=51711196#obituary.
Pfeiffer, Casey. “A Challenge to Integration: The Froebel School Strikes of 1945.” The Indiana History Blog, March 3, 2017. blog.history.in.gov/a-challenge-to-integration-the-froebel-school-strikes-of-1945/.
Springate, Megan. “Victory Gardens on the World War II Home Front.” National Park Service. November 16, 2023. Accessed November 25, 2024. www.nps.gov/articles/000/victory-gardens-on-the-world-war-ii-home-front.htm.
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This profile was funded by a grant from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. The opinions, findings, and conclusions stated herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.