Skip to main content

Charles William Stitely

T/4 in 603rd Engineer Camouflage Bn : HQ & Service Co

Military occupational specialty: 14 (automotive mechanic, second echelon)

ASN#33200593

Born 1914 in MD, Died 1980

County of residence at enlistment: Frederick County, MD
Other residence(s): Woodsboro, MD; Middleburg, MD; Ladiesburg, MD; Keymar, MD; Washington, DC; Orlando, FL; Sterling Park, VA
United States Army, European Theatre of Operations
Occupation before the war: semiskilled occupations in manufacture of textiles, n.e.c.
Source: 603rd Camouflage Engineer Roster provided by W. Anderson; 603rd roster in Seymour Nussenbaum's scrapbook, June 1943; Photo Caption Seymour Nussenbaum Scrapbook; Unit Shipment 10143-B, 23d HQ, from le Havre 23 June 1945;  militaryyearbookproject.org/references/old-mos-codes/wwii-era/army...

Charles Stitely was born on May 11, 1914 in Woodsboro, MD. He was the middle of five children (the only son) and his father was a farmer.

He left school after the 7th grade; when he registered for the draft, on October 11, 1940, he was living in Keymark, MD and working as a laborer at the Blue Ridge Rubber Co. in Taneytown, MD. He enlisted on May 19, 1942, at which time he was living in Frederick County, MD; his job is listed in the category of "semiskilled occupations in the manufacture of textiles."

He was assigned to the 603rd Engineer Camouflage Battalion, and served in Europe with the unit. He was discharged on October 26, 1945 with the rank of PFC.

Somewhere along the line, probably before the war, Charles had married a woman named Evelyn; they divorced in August, 1946. By that time, he had moved to Washington, DC and was working for the Sun Oil Co. as a service station attendant. On November 23, 1946 he married Mildred Lucille Phillips of Arlington, VA in Waxpool, VA, and the couple settled in Washington.

By 1950, the Stitelys were living in Orlando, FL; Charles was working as a clerk in a grocery store. But their time in Florida seemed short-lived, and at some point they moved back to Virginia. When he died, on December 9, 1980, Charles was working as an insurance supervisor. He and Mildred (sometimes known as Lucille) were living in Sterling Park, VA and Charles had been active in the Kemper Masonic Lodge No. 64 and the Arlington Centennial Lodge No. 81. He was also a deacon at the Arlington Baptist Church.

He is buried at National Memorial Park in Falls Church, VA.

Sources:

1920 census

https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/175305684/person/282486182310/facts?_phsrc=wVT15&_phstart=successSource

1930 census

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/105279345:6224?tid=&pid=&queryId=c376bcf9f1eb073d11e09b8de755389b&_phsrc=wVT13&_phstart=successSource

1940 census

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/150079779:2442?tid=&pid=&queryId=c376bcf9f1eb073d11e09b8de755389b&_phsrc=wVT8&_phstart=successSource

1940 draft card

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/5819777:2238?tid=&pid=&queryId=c376bcf9f1eb073d11e09b8de755389b&_phsrc=tlo2&_phstart=successSource

1942 enlistment record

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/1553473:8939?tid=&pid=&queryId=c376bcf9f1eb073d11e09b8de755389b&_phsrc=wVT3&_phstart=successSource

1944 World War II Hospital Admission Card Files

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/15940447:61817?tid=&pid=&queryId=c376bcf9f1eb073d11e09b8de755389b&_phsrc=wVT9&_phstart=successSource

1946 article in The News (Frederick, MD) about his divorce

https://www.newspapers.com/image/33889979/?terms=charles%20william%20stitely&match=1

1946 marriage record

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/11433843:9279?tid=&pid=&queryId=c376bcf9f1eb073d11e09b8de755389b&_phsrc=tlo1&_phstart=successSource

1946 article in The News (Frederick, MD) about his 2nd marriage

https://www.newspapers.com/image/33891845/?terms=mildred%20lucille&match=1

1950 census

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/80673166:62308?tid=&pid=&queryId=c376bcf9f1eb073d11e09b8de755389b&_phsrc=wVT11&_phstart=successSource

1980 obituary in The Evening Sun (Hanover PA)

https://www.newspapers.com/image/522410215/?article=3409b485-77e5-4e27-b8d9-a6b67087e94e&focus=0.16975388,0.65934974,0.3951289,0.81225085&xid=3355&_ga=2.226649246.2085007488.1691009741-800203432.1689007330

1980 Find a Grave record

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/167233310/charles-w.-stitely?_gl=1*p3vpf*_gcl_au*MTczMjE3ODg1Ni4xNjg5MDA3MzI4*_ga*ODAwMjAzNDMyLjE2ODkwMDczMzA.*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*MjE3YjlmMWItZDBmNy00NzE1LWE3ODEtNGEwNjk0NTYzNzkzLjY5LjEuMTY5MTAyNDAyOC41NC4wLjA.

1980 VA death record

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/6838807:2441?tid=&pid=&queryId=c376bcf9f1eb073d11e09b8de755389b&_phsrc=wVT10&_phstart=successSource

Please Support Our Ongoing Efforts

The soldiers of The Ghost Army used inflatable tanks, sound effects, and imagination to fool the Germans on the battlefields of Europe. The Ghost Army Legacy Project is ensuring that these men and their accomplishments are never forgotten.

Give via credit card by clicking the yellow “Donate” button.

Or, send a check to:

Ghost Army Legacy Project
1305 S. Michigan Ave. #1104
Chicago, IL 60605

All donations are tax-deductible!