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Jacob David "Jack" Gell

PVT in 603rd Engineer Camouflage Bn : Co A

ASN#12157191

Born 1922 in NY, Died 2004

Artist

County of residence at enlistment: New York County, NY
Other residence(s): New York, NY; Chicago, IL; Denver, CO; Atlanta, GA; Portland, OR
United States Army, European Theatre of Operations
Occupation before the war: advertising agents
College education before the war: Pratt 2 years
Source: 603rd Camouflage Engineer Roster provided by W. Anderson; Photo of 603rd Company A, 13 May 1945

Jacob Gell was born on February 25, 1922, in New York City. He was the youngest of four children, born to parents who had emigrated from Poland.

He attended James Monroe High School in the Bronx, and went on to study art at Pratt Institute in New York for two years.

At the time he registered for the draft, on June 30, 1942, he was working for Denver Advertising in Denver, CO. This was possibly a summer or other temporary job, since he listed a residential address in Denver, but his family's Bronx address as his mailing address.

Jack enlisted on October 21, 1942; his profession is listed as "advertising agent" and he was back in New York City.

After his service he married Edith Skolnick, on July 11, 1945. They would go on to have three children: Wendy, Sheila, and Jonathan. They remained in New York for six years; Jack worked in advertising and he plied his craft in New York, Chicago, Atlanta, and Portland, Oregon.

They moved to the Rogue Valley in Oregon in 1991. There Jack was a member of Temple Emek Shalom in Ashland, and enjoyed practicing his art in retirement—painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, and playing the harmonica.

Edith died in 1997, and Jack died on September 15, 2004 in Ashland, Oregon, and is buried at Jacksonville Cemetery in Jacksonville, Oregon. His obituary (which is no longer available online) mentions that he served in the 603rd.

Sources:

1930 census

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/31035326:6224?indiv=1&tid=&pid=&queryId=8122e4ef26d86c087c1a064a79364e5d&usePUB=true&_phsrc=OXm76&_phstart=successSource

1940 census

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/12849808:2442?indiv=1&tid=&pid=&queryId=8122e4ef26d86c087c1a064a79364e5d&usePUB=true&_phsrc=OXm78&_phstart=successSource

1942 draft registration

https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=2238&h=194379773&tid=&pid=&queryId=7026b9d9518e114a6171e914a1515f93&usePUB=true&_phsrc=OXm73&_phstart=successSource

1942 enlistment record

https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=8939&h=5298149&tid=&pid=&queryId=d10c8b30ae760fa602edc6a24b960846&usePUB=true&_phsrc=OXm63&_phstart=successSource

1945 marriage license

https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=61406&h=1282332&tid=&pid=&queryId=7026b9d9518e114a6171e914a1515f93&usePUB=true&_phsrc=OXm80&_phstart=successSource

2004 Social Security death index

https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=3693&h=74211465&tid=&pid=&queryId=7026b9d9518e114a6171e914a1515f93&usePUB=true&_phsrc=OXm71&_phstart=successSource

2004 Find a Grave record

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/66310744/jacob-david-gell

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