William James Harney Jr.
T/5 in Signal Co, Special : Radio B
Military occupational specialty: 776 (radio operator, low speed)
ASN#13102274
Born 1923 in NJ, Died 2003
County of enlistment: Baltimore, MD
Other residence(s): Roseland, NJ; Baltimore, MD; Pasadena, CA; Arcadia, CA; Hemet, CA
United States Army, European Theatre of Operations
College education after the war: West Coast Univ.
Bill Harney was born on August 5, 1923 in West New York, NJ, the second of twelve children. His father was a newspaper salesman, and later an auto salesman. In 1930 the family was living in Roseland, NJ, and by 1940 they had moved to Baltimore, MD.
Bill registered for the draft on June 30, 1942. At the time he was living with his family and not employed. He enlisted less than six weeks later, on August 7, 1942, and was eventually assigned to the Signal Company Special as a radio operator. He saw service in Europe with the unit, and was discharged on October 21, 1945 with the rank of T/5.
A few years after the war, Bill married Donna Lee Zimmerman and they settled in southern California. Bill used his GI Bill benefits to attend college, graduating from West Coast University in 1954. Bill and Donna became the parents of four children: Janet, Bill III, Terri, and Leanne.
He worked as an aeronautical engineer at Hughes Aircraft and the TRW Space and Defense Sector, and later as a consultant at Raytheon in Redondo Beach. The family lived in Pasadena and later in Arcadia, CA.
Bill was active in his free time—involved with boating, sailing, tennis, and golf. In retirement, he and his wife moved to Hemet, CA.
Bill died on November 1, 2003 and is buried at Riverside National Cemetery in Riverside, CA.
Sources:
1923 New Jersey birth index
1930 census
https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/19790451:6224?ssrc=pt&tid=88480219&pid=48589739072
1940 census
1942 draft card
1942 enlistment record
1951 Pasadena city directory
1958 Los Angeles county voter registration record
1993 US public records index
2002 US phone and address directories
2003 Find a Grave record
2003 Social Security applications and claims index
2003 VA death record
2003 obituary in the Ventura County Star (CA)
https://www.newspapers.com/image/776784274/?terms=james%20harney&match=1
2024 (March 15) GALP Veteran Biography Worksheet from son William J. Harney III