Life Stories & News
Published more than seventy-six years after Kenneth’s death, this hometown retrospective brings together census records, earlier newspaper reporting, military information, and family details to tell a broader story of his life.
From the family archive
The article reports that Kenneth Francis Dutton was born on 13 October 1921 in Angelo, Wisconsin, to Walter and Pearl (Davis) Dutton. His father was a World War I veteran. In the 1930 census, eight-year-old Kenneth lived with his large family on their farm while his father worked independently as an automobile repairman. Kenneth later graduated from Sparta High School in 1939.
According to the retrospective, Kenneth first trained with the Army Air Corps at Lowry Field, Colorado, remained there as an instructor for eight months, and then spent a year in Alaska. After returning to the United States because of injuries, he completed Officer Candidate School at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, on 1 September 1942. He was then assigned to an engineer unit and departed for overseas duty in late December 1943.
Kenneth was not the only Dutton serving. The article identifies brothers Eldon in naval aviation, LaVerne in Marine aviation, and Ralph in the Army Air Corps. Ralph had recently returned from Italy after being wounded. Kenneth’s wife, the former Margaret Stencie, was living in Cleveland, while his parents, sister Pauline, and brothers Wayne and Rollin remained part of the family account.
Drawing on a 1948 La Crosse Tribune report, the article explains that Kenneth’s remains were returned to the United States for reburial. He was laid to rest in Angelo Cemetery, and the retrospective reports that he received the Purple Heart posthumously.
The download is the complete scanned newspaper page, including the original article, photograph, neighboring stories, and advertisements.