Albion Abraham Blinks

1898-1984

Father Nm: Alfred Ernest 1859-1948; Oldest known Ancestor – Samuel Blinks 1753 Tenterden Kent.

Mother Nm: Katherine Kitty Bowman 1863.

Marriage Dt: Married Ruetta Day on New Years Eve 1925 in Boston, MA.
Married Bernice Sweany in 1982.

K comments: Brother Malcolm Edward served in the US Navy in WW1.

Spouse comments: Ruetta Townsley Day BIRTH 25 DEC 1890 • Brighton, Iowa
DEATH 20 AUG 1980 • Chehalis, Washington

.

Children: Stan Blinks 12-15-1927 in NYC.

BIRTH 1898

1900 CENSUS MARION TOWNSHIP, LINN, IOWA

1. Head A E Blinks M 41 Illinois
2. Wife Catharine Blinks F 33 Iowa
3. Son Malcolm Blinks M 30 Iowa
4. Son Roscoe Blinks M 9 Iowa
5. Son Alben Blinks M 2 Iowa

1910 CENSUS MARION LINN IOWA

1. Alfred L Blinks M 51y Illinois
2. Kathy Blinks F 43y Iowa
3. Malcolm E Blinks M 21y Iowa Labourer
4. Roscoe Blinks M 18y Iowa
5. Albion Blinks M 12y Iowa

Notes:

Albion was a landscape artist. Died of a stroke

Online War Photo Album	US Army

WW1

Albion Abraham Blinks, 1898, Iowa, Private   Student Army Training Corps, Univ of Iowa

1918

• Sept. Volunteered for University Infantry Cadets fore runner of Officers Traing this was in 1918 and he is unlikely to have served overseas.

After the War

1920 Census Marion Ward 2, Linn, Iowa

1. Alfred E Blinks Head M 60 Illinois
2. Kathryn B Blinks Wife F 53 Iowa
3. Albion A Blinks Son M 22 Iowa

1924

Sails overseas alone as a Student and his recorded returning to USA via Montreal in 1924 from England.

1930 Census Bronxville, Westchester, New York

Confirms WW1 veteran

1. Albion A Blinks Head M 32 Iowa
2. Ruetta Blinks Wife F 37 Iowa
3. Stanley E Blinks Son M 2 New York
4. Marie Demanovich Servant F 29 Pennsylvania

1939

Name: Ruetta Day Blinks MA
Yearbook Date: 1939
School: Middle Tennessee State Teachers College
School Location: Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA
Faculty

1940 Census Ward 2, Stillwater, Stillwater City, Payne, Oklahoma

1. Albion A Blinks Head M 42 Iowa, Landscape Architect
2. Ruetta Day Blinks Wife F Iowa
3. Stanley Blinks Son M 12 New York

WW2

Blinks Albion A, Chief Petty Officer, CCM 3578014, 7th Construction Battalion US Navy

1942

• 25 February. Drafted age 43 years Occupation Area Engineer at a military base, Fort Wolters Texas. His occupation is likely why at 43 he was recruited into the Navy and one of the Construction Battalions

1942

Albion recruited for his knowledge and skills in Landscaping would have been allocated to a Naval Construction Battalion likely from the start and it appears that he may have been with the 7th Construction Battalion from the beginning. The Battalion conducted two tours of duty.

1942 to Samoa in the south Pacific, the 7th Bn Log above refers to ‘Straw Stack’ as the destination this was the code name for Tutuila, Samoa.

By the end of this tour of duty, the 7th Bn are returned to Parks Base San Francisco where the Naval Support book indicates they were actively involved in building Waves base Buildings and facilities

1945

The second tour of duty outline below was into combat areas and eventually to be the occupier of a Surrendered Japan. Albion features strongly in the log book for the 2nd tour of duty as a Chief Petty Officer he had a leadership role for his Platoon Two.

Note: The predominant evidence of the type of service (when and where Albion served) is the logbook of the 7th US Navy Construction Battalion that shows  Albion as a member of this Battalion. The key activities covered in the logbook are the building of facilities on Saipan, the support for the attack on Iwo Jima and after that Island was taken and then Okinawa the occupation and building of facilities at Okinawa.

As an aside the logbook also tells us that Albion was the Treasurer and Caterer for the Petty Officers Club

• Oct. Naval Muster shows onboard the battleship USS New York BB34 probably returning home.
• In 1945. USS New York departed 12 January and rendezvoused with Idaho, Tennessee, Nevada, Texas, and Arkansas, forming a support force for the invasion of Iwo Jima. New York lost a blade off her port screw just before the invasion began^[ and briefly put in for temporary repairs at Eniwetok from 5 to 7 February. She returned to the group, which was near Saipan, on 11 February. Together, they arrived at Iwo Jima on 16 February and began the pre-invasion bombardment. During the three days of shore bombardment that followed, New York expended 6,417 rounds, including 1,037 14-inch rounds. One of her salvoes struck the primary ammunition dump on the island, causing “the most spectacular secondary explosion in the campaign.”^[ She retired from the area on 19 February and arrived at Ulithi on 21 February – wikipedia
• Recorded as with US Naval Construction Battalion No· 133

Landscaper

 

Death 1984 age 86 years

Linn County, Iowa, USA
Death 11 Feb 1984 (aged 85)
Chehalis, Lewis County, Washington, USA
Burial  Claquato Cemetery

Sources

1. US Navy Rosters
2. US Navy Support Books 7th Construction Battalion under 133 Const Bn – Ancestry
3. The 7th US Navy Construction Battalion

Gallery