Mint Cafe

In the 1940's my mother worked (under-aged, I think), for the MINT CAFE in downtown Wausau, Wisconsin, while she was going to high school. As someone who lived in the rural areas, you pretty much had to move into town to be able to attend school, unless you had someone to drive you. These were the days before mandatory busing. She also had to work to support herself, and talked about having only one dress to wear to school in those days. When I can locate the picture, I'll post my mother in her waitress uniform outside the restaurant.

I was able to get this flier last month when I stopped by during vacation with my children for a quick dinner. Note that it has been around since 1888! Does anyone out there know the history of the MINT CAFE?








Upate (2-27-19)
As promised when the original post was written, this, I think, is a picture of my mother when she was a waitress at the Mint Cafe.  If not there, at least from that general period of time. 

The Korean Conflict

My father fought in the Second Infantry Division in the Korean War. Following is the Wikipedia account of the 2ID's role in that conflict:
"With the outbreak of hostilities in Korea during the summer of 1950, the 2nd Infantry Division was quickly alerted for movement to the Far East Command. The division arrived in Korea, via Pusan on July 23, becoming the first unit to reach Korea directly from the United States. Initially employed piecemeal, the entire division was committed as a unit on August 24, 1950, relieving the 24th Infantry Division at the Naktong River Line. The first big test came when the North Koreans struck in a desperate human wave attack on the night of August 31. In the 16-day battle that followed, the division’s clerks, bandsmen, technical and supply personnel joined in the fight to defend against the attackers.

Shortly thereafter, the 2ID was the first unit to break out of the Pusan Perimeter and they led the Eighth Army drive to the Manchurian Border. Now within fifty miles of the Manchurian border when Chinese forces entered the fight, soldiers of the 2nd Infantry Division were given the mission of protecting the rear and right flank of the Eighth Army as it retired to the South. Fighting around Kunu-ri cost the division nearly one third of its strength, but was ten times more costly to the enemy and the way was kept open. The Chinese winter offensive was finally blunted by the 2nd Infantry Division on January 31 at Wonju. Taking up the offensive in a two-prong attack in February 1951, the Division repulsed a powerful Chinese counter-offensive in the epic battles of Chipyong-ni and Wonju. The United Nations front was saved and the general offensive continued.

Again in April and May 1951, the 2nd Infantry Division was instrumental in smashing the communist's spring offensive. For its part in this action the 2nd Infantry Division was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation. What followed were alternating periods of combat and rest, with the division participating in the Battle of Bloody Ridge and Battle of Heartbreak Ridge. Finally, on April 9, 1954, the Division was moved to a rear area near Chi-po-ri and on August 20, 1954, four years after its last unit arrived in Korea, the 2ID was alerted for re-deployment to the United States.

The more than 7,000 combat deaths of the 2nd Division in Korea are the highest total among any modern U.S. division in any war since 1900. Its nearly 15000 combat deaths in World War I, World II, and Korea are the greatest combined total of all U.S. divisions and equal its average combat strength."

Law and Order

For many years my father had an interest in police and security work. He became part of the Military Police Corps sometime late in 1946, early 1947 at the latest. The pictures of him as a military police officer are taken fairly close to his retirement in the early 1960's, I believe, based on his uniform and decorations. The branch insignia, as seen here also, is of the old type pistol sometimes referred to as the Harper's Ferry Pistol. It was selected since it was the first American Military pistol and continued as the Army's standard model for many years. Also, the insignia shows that he was assigned to the 504th Military Police Battalion, which is designated as a combat military police battalion. They were known also as the "Dragonfighters," which is reflected in the regimental insignia my father wore on his epaulets, as seen here in the dragon being grasped by a fist. The motto on the insignia is "Duty, Justice, and Honor."

A couple of links for future research would be Dean's 504th MP site, and a history of the battalion is located at GlobalSecurity.org.

Although its history dates back as far as 1922, the beginnings of the battalion as such appears to be dated at 1941. It was deactivated in 1947 and reactivated again in 1950 which is when I think my father most likely became part of it at the beginning of the Korean conflict. The article at GlobalSecurity.org notes that: "On 2 October 1950, the 504th was reactivated at Camp Gordon, Georgia and for the next 12 years, remained a combat ready military police force that was called many times to deploy throughout the world." The 504th was finally restationed in Ft. Lewis in 1962, a year before my father's retirement from active duty.

After retirement he drove cab for a time in Stevens Point, WI, and eventually ended up in private security work (which suited his experience in the military.) His first employment in 1970 was with Pinkerton Security Service. The web page for Pinkerton's includes the rich history of this very old agency. Wikipedia also has an article for those interested in the more ancient history. He picture to the right with him in a gray coat and badge is him as a Pinkerton guard. I believe he was living and working in Wausau by this time. He not not with this agency for very long.

His next employment was with J. J. Security, Inc. Although they were headquartered out of Green Bay, my father was employed at the Wausau office. You can see his ID card here with a picture of him when he first started, which is given away by the old "horned rim" glasses he wore when he met and married my mother in the early 1970's. His name is listed with a rank of" Captain", and I'm sure he enjoyed being bumped up to officer status after spending all those years in the Army as a non-com! The picture below this is of the general manager of the agency, Dolph T. Lehman.

J. J. Security was originally founded in 1967, so it was a relatively new company when my father joined in the early 70's. The name was changed in 1995 to "J.J. Protective Services, Inc." to reflect the change in the organization, which was obviously branching out into a variety of protective services. At present the remnants of my father's old company are in Pro-Tec Fire Services, LTD, and International Total Service, Inc., which bought out the security contracts of J.J. Protective Services in 1996. -- To the right you can see a picture of the old communications equipment they were using, probably in the early to mid 1970's.

My father was not in the best of health when he began working for J.J. Security, since he had already suffered one heart attack during his time in the military. He would be forced to retire permanently by the 1980's when his heart trouble became acute, resulting in open heart surgery and by-pass work, and eventually as he was also forced on oxygen 24-7 as his emphysema likewise became acute. He enjoyed his work with the company, and I think that he felt a sense of pride when they filled more than one position when he was replaced. Not only was he given a uniform and a pager to wear, but his company car was this homely purple AMC Gremlin (I have a picture of it and will post it when I find it!). It lacked air conditioning and rode like a truck.

By the way, I worked for J. J. Security myself while my father was still alive, beginning after college graduation in the summer between college and seminary (1983). My father had retired from the company by this time.

My Father and the 17th Airborne Division

My adopted father, George S. Engebretson, was a retired veteran of the U.S. Army, having served a total of 23 years (1940-1963). His service covered both World War II and Korea. The picture to the right shows him as a young private (about age 23) freshly decorated after the conflicts of World War II, probably in 1946 when he finished his first tour of duty. There is a dashing quality at this stage before the rigors of time and stress aged him as you will see in a later photo. My aunt tells me that during this time he bleached his hair with peroxide.

You will notice the shoulder patch on his left sleeve as that of the 17th Airborne Division, as well as the Parachutist's badge acknowledging one combat jump. He is also wearing the Combat Infantryman Badge, First Award. His final metals at retirement had the badge with the Second Award commendation. His ribbons include the Good Conduct medal and what appear as various campaign medals below that, which would have included the American Defense Service Ribbon and the European-African-Middle Eastern Service Ribbon . There is an Army Presidential Unit Citation above his right pocket. At retirement he had received two additional awards acknowledged by two oak leaf pins, for a total of three awards. This citation was given for extraordinary heroism in action against an army enemy on or after December 7, 1941. His rank insignia is Private First Class, Sixth Grade(E2). He held this rank four months into his next enlistment in 1946, after which he was promoted to Corporal, Fifth Grade (E-3). He retired as a Staff Sergeant, E6. The rank structure has changed a lot since he first enlisted, and E-3 is now Private First Class, and what was PFC is now just a Private.

Also, in 1947 Congress authorized the awarding of the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service too recipients of the Combat Infantryman award. This is probably when he was presented with this medal, which does not yet appear on his picture above.

A history of the 17th ("Thunder From Heaven") Airborne Division during WWII can be found at this site. The 17th Division was activated in 1943 and officially disbanded in 1945. They participated in the famous Battle of the Bulge, specifically in the Ardennes Offensive in France and Belgium, and then later in Operation Varsity, the airborne assault on the Rhine, which was the last full scale airborne drop of WW II. It was also the first airborne invasion over the Rhine into Germany itself.

My father served specifically in the 513th Parachute Infantry. According to a history of the unit:
"The regiment was constituted on 26 December 1942 and assigned to the 13th Airborne Division. It moved from Fort Benning to Fort Bragg before being assigned to Camp Mackall, North Carolina in January 1944, but was transferred to the Tennessee Maneuver Area and assigned to the 17th Airborne Division in March 1944.
The 513th was not sent overseas until after D-Day and was still in training in England during Operation Market Garden. During the crisis of the Battle of the Bulge, the division was flown into Reims, France and moved by truck into southern Belgium. In January 1945, the Regiment was sent into the assault on Flamierge...After the conclusion of the Ardennes campaign, the division was withdrawn in preparation for Operation Varsity. The regiment dropped with the rest of the division into Germany near Wesel in its only combat drop."

Cliff Grass

When I was still a kid it was tradition with my mother to watch Guy Lambardo's band, the Royal Canadians (see the Wikipedia article on Guy Lombardo for more information, as well as another article at the Canadian Encyclopedia site) , play on New Year's Eve at the Waldorf Astoria, which they did until 1976. The interest, of course, came from the fact that her cousin, Cliff Grass, was a vocalist and sax player in the band which he joined in 1946 and later retired from in 1975. He passed away in 1993. Guy Lambardo died in 1977.

The pictures to the right are from my mother's collection and were found in a menu from The Cocoanut Grove nightclub in LA at the famous Ambassador Hotel on Wilshire Boulevard. He signed the menu in 1958 "to my favorite cousin." Sadly the Ambassador closed to the general public in 1989 after a decline in the 1970's. The assassination of Robert F. Kennedy occurred at this hotel in 1968 which may have contributed to the eventual decline. It was demolished in 2005-2006, with parts of the Cocoanut Grove nightclub retained for future inclusion in a school.

The second photo is captioned as "Cliff Grass Featured With Gray Gordon And His Orchestra." Gray Gordan formed his first band in 1936. At a site featuring information on the historic "Big Bands," it is mentioned that:
"Cliff Grass, who was the primary vocalist, also played lead alto-sax. He was vocalist on the bands biggest sellling record 'Blue In The Black of Night' (Bluebird 7838)."

From the Canadian Encyclopedia referenced above, this section illustrates the work and scope of the band during Cliff's era:
"The Royal Canadians also took residencies in Los Angeles in the 1930s and long engagements in other New York nightclubs after leaving the Roosevelt Grill in 1962. The orchestra toured extensively in the USA and Canada, performing both for dances in small communities and in the nightclubs of major cities. Though heard most often on the CBS network, it also had radio shows on NBC and MBS and was seen in a series telecast on WNBT, New York, in the mid-1950s from the Roosevelt Grill. The Royal Canadians appeared in the movies Many Happy Returns (1934), Stage Door Canteen (1943), and No Leave, No Love (1946), performed at the inaugural balls for every US president from F.D. Roosevelt to Dwight Eisenhower, and again in 1985 for Ronald Reagan, and played for several World Series at Yankee Stadium, New York."

Side note: The first picture shows Cliff at a microphone with the call letters "WIBC." This was a radio station in Indianapolis, Indiana, and there is a very informative Wikipedia article on this as well.

Additional note: YouTube has some video footage where Cliff Grass is singing at Darktown Strutters Ball. Go to this site.

Ollie Hammond's Steak House

Before I was born in 1960, my mother worked at the then well-known restaurant Ollie Hammond's Steak House on Wilshire Boulevard. She told me that she helped to open another restaurant. By 1950 there were at least three restaurants, one located in the Beverly Hills area on La Cieneca, the one on Wilshire, and the third at Third and Fairfax. According to a history of the restaurant from one of the menus in the 1950's, Ollie Hammond built his first Steak House during the early part of 1934 (said to be 16 years old at the writing of that history.) The Beverly Hills site opened in June of 1940, and the Town & Country Steak House opened on June 24, 1942. Based on memories of what my mother told me, I am assuming that there may have been yet a fourth restaurant that she helped open in another location, although I have not yet found confirmation for that.

My mother also told me that Mr. Hammond had been involved in an auto accident, probably not long before 1960, and suffered some kind of head injury. He was told to stay home and rest, but didn't follow through as he should have. As a result there were noticeable personality changes, and she found it difficult to work for him after that. Although my mother could not work at the restaurant after 1960, since she was now a single mother, she did continue doing payroll and other work for some time after that. I know that after Ollie Hammond's, and before we moved in the mid-60's she worked for Poor Richard's Restaurant as well, and possibly for Lawry's or Carl's (?).

My mother (seated to the right in the photo, in a navy blue dress suit) initially worked for Ollie Hammonds as a waitress and probably as hostess, but later became a manager of the restaurant, and as I indicated above, possibly helped to open another site. My godfather was also a key member of the business, whose name was Vaughn K. Thompson (pictured on the left side of the photo in the dark suit and tie.) I think that he may have been one of the main chefs and possibly a general manager or co-owner with Mr. Hammond. The pictures I see of him are usually with a chef's hat. He was originally from Utah and was a Mormon by faith. His death may have occurred around 1977. My natural father, William D. Smith, a waiter at Ollie Hammond's, took over my mother's position after my birth. I don't think he is in the photo.

Ollie Hammond's restaurant on La Cienega is said by some to have eventually burned down and I'm not sure about the fate of the other restaurants. Others claim it didn't burn down, but simply disappeared. Mr. Hammond, I read, had served as president of the Santa Monica Rotary Club from 1969 to 1970, but other than that I could not locate any other information on him via the Web. The picture to the right, from my mother's collection, was probably taken sometime in the 1950's. My guess is that he was probably in his 50's at this point. I think that he may have been an engineer by trade, and I seem to remember that she told me the original restaurant was started with money from an inheritance.

There are a few sites on the Web with some recollections regarding Ollie Hammond's, although none that describe Mr. Hammond or other workers of the time. The most informative was at the site called "Chowhound." It has a nice description of the restaurant, which some described as a cross between a coffee shop and a fine-dining restaurant, which fits with what my mother had described. The original restaurant begun in 1934 had 18 stools and 2 booths. The building was expanded in 1935, and from that date began a 24-hour business. My mother also made mention of the distinctive red leather booths, a kind of trademark of Ollie Hammond's.

The final picture is of Mr. Thompson at one of the red leather booths, showing a somewhat different view of the restaurant's interior.

Note:  Ollie Hammond's last restaurant closed in 1979. 

Addendum:  I'm not sure if this is the Vaughn K. Thompson I listed above, but it fits what little I know about him.  I believe my mother said that he was of the Mormon faith, so his connection with Utah would make sense.  He also lived in LA. at the time my mother was there, as far as I know ( https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/KV2L-4QG/vaughn-keele-thompson-1911-1976.)

Family Names

My family tree is probably a bit more complicated than some, and therefore involves a few more names to which I am connected. I list them here in the event that someone may be researching family trees connected with any of them.

ENGEBRETSON - I was adopted by my father George Engebretson in 1974, who was the son of the late Douglas Engebretson (1895-1925) and Stella nee Duranso. His first marriage was to a Gerda nee Schnell of Germany, in 1955 while he was stationed overseas. They were divorced in 1958, but had one daughter Caroline. Gerda later died in 1971. He was married to my mother Dorothy in 1972. He passed away in 1988. My mother passed away in 2002. Prior to 1974 I carried my mother's maiden name Grass. George lived from 1922 to 1988, and was a highly decorated veteran of World War II and the Korean conflict, earning the Bronze Star among other medals. During World War II he fought in the famous Normandy Invasion and was most likely present at the Nuremberg War Trials. But more of that later....

SMITH - Now how's that for a common name! Unfortunately this was the name of my natural father, William D. Smith. I was born in Pasadena in 1960 and lost track of him years ago since my mother chose to raise me by herself, and we moved from the coast in the late 60's. There must be literally hundreds, if not thousands of men by his name associated with California. I believe he may have passed away sometime in the 1970's. He worked for the well-known Ollie Hammond's Steak House in California back in the 1950's and 1960's. More about Ollie Hammonds in a future article....

GRASS - This was my mother's maiden name. My natural grandfather, who passed away in 1933 from an auto accident, was Charles Grass. Dorothy, my mother, was a cousin of the well-known Cliff Grass, past member of Guy Lambardo's band. More on that later.... BTW, my grandmother ran across some information that suggests that the name Grass may be a variation of DeGrass (DeGrasse?), a French name. For many years we thought that it was an Anglicization of an Austrian name Grauf or Graus, or something like that.

MACAULEY - This name reflects a Scotch-Irish heritage. This was my maternal grandmother's maiden name. Her first name was Pearl. The McCauley family from which I am descended is mainly connected with Crandon, Wisconsin. My great-grandfather was Thomas Walter Macauley (1873 - 1937). My great-great grandfather was William Macauley who had been born in New York state, city unknown. He died in 1897. My maternal great-grandmother was Margaret (nee Rupp) Macauley (1882-1964). My great-great grandfather's mother's maiden name was Reynolds, and she was born in Ireland.

BOHLMAN - This is the name of my mother's stepfather, the only grandfather I really ever knew. His name was Leonard, and he passed away in 1986. I believe my grandmother remarried in 1937.