Sunday, June 14, 2015

George Garber Lauten 1915 - 2006

1936 UCLA
George Lauten
1915-2006

In keeping with his wishes, no funeral services will be held for retired United States Air Force Colonel George Lauten, 90, who died Sept. 30, 2006. Family members only were present when Kent Whitney dedicated his grave on Oct. 9 at the Lone Pine Cemetery. He was buried with full military honors.

Lauten was born Dec. 10, 1915 in Pittsburgh, Penn. to Evelyn Elizabeth Garber and Wallace Bayne Lauten. He had one older brother, John, (see obit below) and a younger sister, Josephine. (see marriage certificate below) His family moved to California when he was 12 years old and settled in Glendale.

George graduated from Hoover High School and was Student Body President of his freshman class. He attended UCLA and belonged to the Sigma Nu fraternity, and served two-and-a-half years in ROTC. He played on the freshman teams in football, basketball and track.

George joined the Air Force Jan. 3, 1941, receiving his wings Aug. 15, 1941 at Stockton Air Force Base. He was an instructor at Minter Field in basic training, and was Section Commander at Sioux City, Iowa, a combat training center.

At this time of his life he fell in love with his wife, Ila, and convinced her that she could not live without him. He said many times through the years that the smartest thing he had ever done was to talk her into marrying him. They got married and lived happily ever after for 61 years. They had three wonderful children, traveled to most of the United States in their motor home and made several trips to foreign countries.

Colonel Lauten asked for and got his wish for combat duty and was sent to Raddlesden, England and became part of the 447th Bomb Group. The Eight U.S. Army Air Force was the largest, most powerful aerial armada in history. George was commanding officer of the 708th Bombardment Squadron during World War II.

He had more than 600 men under his command and flew 14 missions. During a special raid over enemy territory, the two lead squadrons had to drop behind because of mechanical failures. This put George and his squadron at the front. He led 360 "flying fortresses," (B-17s) in one of the 10 largest raids during the war. George had his wife's name painted in huge letters on one of the planes he flew.

Colonel Lauten was awarding the World War II Victory Medal, the American Theater Medal, European-African Medal, Middle Eastern Theatre Medal with three battle stars, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the air medal with one oak leaf cluster, the American Defense Medal and the Croix De Guerre for helping in to liberate France. He served in the U.S.A., England and France.

Several years ago George received word that his name had been added to the American Air Museum in Britain, the "Founder's Registry of Honor," for recognition along with other pilots and air crews in participating in the great battles of World War II.

Colonel Lauten was modest about his accomplishments and would probably turn over in his grave if he knew some of the above was being made public. He loved his family. They always came first and he was always there for them. Often he drove long distances to watch them participate in ball games, recitals and gymnastics. He was fun-loving, honest, charming, always a gentleman and lived a wonderful life.

A year ago he had a bad fall fracturing four ribs, but recovered enough to walk his granddaughter Misty down the aisle when she married Joseph Bernal in June.

Colonel Lauten was a very special man and everyone who knew him liked him or loved him. His children and grandchildren felt he was their hero. He will be greatly missed by his family and friends.

He is survived by his wife, Ila; daughter, Suzanne and her husband Robert O'Leno; son, Paul Lauten and his wife Linda; daughter Lori Lauten; two granddaughters, Misty and her husband Joseph Bernal who are expecting their first child in the spring and Shannon Naylor; two grandsons, Noah O'Leno and Adam O'Leno and his wife Jessie; four great-grandchildren, Raquel, Adam Jr., Elias, and Aidden; brother, Colonel John Lauten who is 93; and two nieces Linda Spellman and Sandy Collier.

The Inyo Register, Bishop CA

Note: George was baptized into the LDS church in 1962 and went to the temple in 1964.

George ran his own restaurant on San Fernando Road in Glendale which was called Lauten's Coffee Shop.  The restaurant opened in 1941.   It was a steak house.  Paul and I worked there as dishwashers and later as cooks.  George walked around and greeted the guests and was an honest owner and employer.  In the mid 1960s he moved to Lone Pine, CA and opened up Bobo's Bonanza on the main street.  Kent Gardiner


Research:
1920 census:
 





George's father

1930 census:

1935 George is a freshman at UCLA, right
UCLA Class list



 




























Bobo's Bonanza, Lone Pine, owned by George in the late 1960s







Oregon death index:
Note, could Josephine died in Medford, OR?



Burial:
Mount Whitney Cemetery
Lone Pine
Inyo County
California, USA



George's father:

1900 census:





Wallace Bayne Lauten was the son of Louis and Katherine "Kate" (Hilands) Lautenslager. He was the husband of Evelyn (Garber) Lauten.

Pittsburgh Academy Bulletin
July 1906,
Emanon President, one term
Bayne Lautenslager

World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918
Name: Wallace Bayne Lautenslager
City: Pittsburgh
County: Allegheny
State: Pennsylvania
Birth Place: Pennsylvania Birth Date: 20 November 1887
Race: Caucasian
Draft Board: 8
FHL Roll Number: 1908756

1920 census:

1930 census:




George's father's sister: 
Alice Forsyth (born Lautenslager) was born on month day 1893, at birth place, Pennsylvania, to Louis Lautenslager and Katherine (Kate) Lautenslager (born Hilands).
Louis was born in December 1859, in Ohio.
Katherine was born in September 1862, in Pennsylvania, United States.
Alice had one brother: Wallace Bayne Lauten.
Alice married Andrew Watson Forsyth.
Andrew was born in 1875, in Missouri, United States.
Alice lived in 1900, at address, Pennsylvania.
Alice passed away on month day 1992, at age 99 at death place, Pennsylvania.

George's brother:
                                  
                                  Colonel John Lauten
Lauten, John Hilands
August 17, 1913 - March 22, 2010
John Hilands Lauten (96) was born August 17, 1913, in Pittsburg, PA. In 1927, he and his family moved to Glendale, CA, where he graduated from Hoover High School and was proud that he helped put the first huge H on the hill behind the school.


Following high school, he graduated from UC Berkeley and Boalt Law School, continuing his participation in ROTC which he first started in high school. While at Boalt, he met and married Virginia Brady - a marriage of almost 60 years until her death in 1997 and one which produced two daughters.


After earning his law degree, they moved back to Glendale where he passed the bar and was hired as a Deputy City Attorney by the city of Glendale. His career, though, was interrupted by World War II when he enlisted as a lieutenant in the U.S. Army. After intensive training in intelligence operations, he went first to North Africa under General George Patton. From there they moved to Sicily and Italy and then on to England where he served under General Omar Bradley and was chosen to be one of five men who planned the landing at Omaha Beach. Following the Normandy landings, he served under General Eisenhower in the European theater - serving in France, Luxembourg, Belgium, the battle of the Bridge at Remagen and the Battle of the Bulge as a part of the 1st Division 16th Infantry - The Big Red One. At the end of his military career, he was a Colonel in the army.


Following his return home in the fall of 1945, he again rejoined the Glendale legal staff as the Assistant City Attorney, a position he held for 13 years. He also became active in various civic organizations - the Junior Chamber of Commerce and the Lion's Club - and he served as Commander of the local American Legion Post.
In 1958, John and his family moved to Fresno where he was City Attorney for over four years. He was then enticed back to Southern California when he accepted the position of Legal Counsel of the Metropolitan Water District. Later, he was named General Manager of the MWD, the first non-engineer to hold the position - which he did until his retirement at age 65.


In recent years, he maintained his interest in politics, California water, and the Big Red One. At age 91 he joined a reunion tour of the Big Red One, going back to see all the European battle grounds. He went on his own and had a wonderful time reliving the experience. Even the day before died in his sleep at home (Vintage Assisted Living in Simi Valley), he was trying to figure out how to attend this year's Big Red One reunion in Houston,TX.
John was probably the most scrupulously honest person you would ever meet. He was warm-hearted, generous and the epitome of a fine gentleman. He will be sorely missed by his friends and family.
He is survived by daughters, Linda Spellman of Thousand Oaks and Sandra Collier of Sun Valley; four grandchildren, Jim Spellman, Jodi Spellman Smith, John Spellman and Jen'e Spellman; and two great grandchildren.


Arrangements are under the direction of Conejo Mountain Funeral Home, Crematory and Memorial Park in Camarillo. Inurnment will also take place at Conejo Mountain.

Published in the Los Angeles Times on Mar. 28, 2010 
From left to right:
Col. George A. Taylor, 16th Infantry commanding officer; Major Carl W. Plitt, S-3; Major Charles E. Tegtmeyer. Regimental Surgeon; Major John H. Lauten, S-2; and Captain William Friedman, S-1. Photo taken during amphibious exercise in England, early 1944
U.S. Army
Awards of the Silver Star

Ila's sister: 
Obituary: Fay Peart Gilbert
Published: Thursday, May 18 2006 12:00 a.m. MDT


Fay Peart Gilbert 1916 ~ 2006 Our sweet loving mother and grandmother passed away at her daughter's home on May 13, 2006. She was born May 26, 1916 in Cache ID, to Emma Berntsen and Mariner Wilford Peart. She was so proud of her pioneer and Norwegian heritage, and of her long blonde hair at age 89. At the age of four she developed polio and paralysis but overcame both within a year. She had a wonderful happy childhood with her sweet sister Ila. She graduated from West High School where she met our dad, LeRoy Nicholas Gilbert.

They loved to dance under the stars at Saltair. They married December 20,1935 and had four children, Gary, Jon, Judy, and Gil. They were married for 47 years until his death in 1982. She looked forward to Sunday phone calls from her sister Ila, Thursday visits from Jon and Gil and their fun surprises, She loved to go shopping with Judy and lunch at Sizzlers. She loved talking Jazz basketball with Kaye and Sean. She loved fishing, flowers and fresh air and slept with the window open all year long. Brent could make her smile anytime. She could draw beautifully. She loved teddy bears and antiques and enjoyed hearing interesting and funny things about her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

She was so proud of all her grandchildren and everything they have accomplished. Lori and Sean helped take care of her and kept her laughing. She will be truly missed! She is survived by two sons, Jon Paul Gilbert (Kaye) of Sandy UT; Gil Chris Gilbert of Salt Lake City UT; and one daughter, Judy Linda Lemmon (Brent) of Harrisville UT; one sister and brother-in-law, Ila and George Lauten of Lone Pine, CA; 12 grandchildren, 18 great-grandchildren, three great-great-grandchildren.

Preceded in death by her husband Roy and her first son Gary LeRoy Gilbert. A special thanks to IHC Hospice of Ogden. Graveside services will be held May 20, 2006 at 12:00 noon at the Mount Olivet Cemetery 1324 East 500 South SLC. Friends may pay their respects to the family from 10:30 to 11:30 at the Larkin Mortuary 260 East South Temple SLC just prior to the graveside service.