THE EARLIER YEARS
These are photos of Pat and me from the age of
three up to the time we were married in 1956
Dave on left at age 3, and brother Julian
Harrison Ark, 1932 |
Pat at age 3, in Little Rock Ark, 1936 |
I was born in Harrison, Arkansas, and lived at various locations
there until I left in 1950. Pat was born in Little Rock and lived
there until the age of 12. During this period her father passed
away. In 1945 her mother remarried and moved to Philadelphia, Pa.
Pat moved to Harrison and lived with her aunt and cousins until
she could join her mother in Philadelphia.
Pat at age 13, attending Harrison
Junior High, 1946 |
Dave, Age 17, back from North Dakota wheat
harvest, junior at Harrison High, 1946 |
In 1946 Pat's cousin Bud, returned from duty with the Army of Occupation in Japan.
He was a country music player, and through a mutual friend I was introduced to
Bud and many sessions of "making music" took place on the front steps of his
home there in Harrison. Thats where I first met Pat, as she and her cousin
Betty would sit on the steps in the evening as we played and sang. Betty's
mom, Marie, kept close tabs on the girls, and at 9 PM in they went, ready or
not. Our sessions continued, sometimes until well after midnight. Over a period
of time I became very close to Bud - he and I became inseparable, and did
almost everything together. I came to feel a part of the family and was treated
that way by them all. This continued on up until 1948. By this time I
had begun to have a special feeling when I was with Pat, and missed her
a lot when we were apart. She was still too young to date, but we
had many good times there at the house. Came the day though, that she was
to leave for Philadelphia, and it was with a very large lump in my throat
that I drove her to the bus station to say goodby forever to my first love. |
The year, 1948. Pat on the front steps of the
home in Harrison where so many evenings were spent and
so many good memories were created.
Easter Sunday 1948, Harrison. Pat, Dave,
Louise Valentine, Bill, Bud, and Betty Johnson
The Johnsons were Pats cousins and Louise was a
friend of Betty.
Excepting me, all in the photo
are now gone.
In 1948, Pat left Harrison to join her mother in Philadelphia. Here
she would finish high school and would be employed at several
businesses, among them, Atlantic Refining, and Bonwit-Teller.
Pat, Philadelphia, 1952 |
Pat at Atlantic Refining, 1953 |
I stayed in Harrison until 1950, at which time I went to Sacramento,
California where I was employed by Sacramento City Lines. In August
of that year I received notice that my draft number had been selected
for the Korean War. I immediately sought out the Air Force Recruiting Office
and joined the USAF. I was sent to Lackland AFB Texas, and then
to FE Warren AFB in Wyoming.
Dave,Lackland AFB in
September 1950 |
FE Warren AFB, Cheyenne, Wyo
in Jan 1951 |
Upon completing tech school I was assigned to Kirtland AFB, New Mexico.
In 1952 I was selected for assignment to Eniwetok, the Marshall Islands,
to participate in atomic testing.
Summer of 52, R&R in Honolulu
from atomic tests at Eniwetok |
Philadelphia in 1952. She and her
girlfirend were model posing
on the roof of their building.
(missed her calling!) |
On completion I returned to Kirtland AFB and stayed there until
my enlistment ended in 1954. During this period a lot of water
had passed under the bridge for the both of us. While home
on leave that year, I found that Pat had also returned to
Harrison on vacation, and we "discovered" each other again,
for the first time since 1948.
Together again! Six years were
as though they had never been.
Summer of 1954 |
She returned to Philadelphia, I returned to Kirtland, and we corresponded
continuously for the next year at which time we met again In Harrison. This time
I asked her to marry me, she said yes, and we became engaged.
She Said Yes!! Winter of 1955 |
I was reassigned from Kirtland AFB to Indian Springs AB, Nevada
for more atomic testing, and she returned to Philadelphia. I corresponded
continuously with Pat and her mother, and made arrangements for Pat
to join me. In 1956 she and her mom moved back to Little Rock
and Pat prepared to join me in Nevada.
Going-Away, Atlantic Refining Co.
Philadelphia. Early 1956 |
Indian Springs - hanging on every
word. She's on her way! |
She arrived in Las Vegas on 2 May 1956.
We were married by a Justice of the Peace,
and after a weekend Las Vegas "honeymoon"
went home to Indian Springs.
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Our home at Indian Springs was
a 27 foot 8 wide house trailer |
The three months we lived here were some
of the happiest days of our lives |
We lived here for only three months. In August 1956 I was to
receive orders for assignment to a classified project that would
take me away for two years. We moved the trailer to Little Rock
where Pat remained while I was away. I was at an undisclosed
location in the U.S., was allowed Christmas leave, and was off
again overseas for another year. Only after I returned could I
disclose I had been assigned to the U-2 project which ended
when Francis Gary Powers was shot down over Russia. This was
the first of two more unaccompanied overseas assignments
during the next fourteen years, but that's another story.
Marie Johnson's living room at 412 North Rowland,
in Harrison, with some of the gang. September 1954.
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