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PRIVATE FIRST CLASS THOMAS
JOSEPH was born in 1915 to George M. and Edna Joseph. His
mother passed away before he was 14. He grew up in Gloucester City NJ,
where the family rented a home in 1930 at 403 Bergen Street. His
grandmother Hester Joseph, and aunt Lilly Carney and family lived next
door at 405. His father worked first as a driver, and later as a night
watchman in a nearby coal and lumber yard. His last address before
entering the Army was 719 Hunter Street in Gloucester City NJ.
Thomas Joseph was inducted
into the Army early in the war, reporting for active duty on May 8, 1942
at Fort Dix NJ. After basic training he was assigned as a rifleman to Company E,
143rd Infantry Regiment, 36th Infantry Division.
The 36th Infantry Division
landed in North Africa, April 13, 1943, and trained at Arzew and Rabat.
It first saw action, September 9, 1943, when it landed at Paestum on the
Gulf of Salerno. The waiting enemy launched counterattacks, but the 36th
advanced slowly, securing the area from Agropoli to Altavilla. He was
killed in action near Ponte Sele, Italy on September 18, 1943.
Thomas Joseph was survived
by his brother, George Joseph Jr., of 212 Essex Street, Gloucester City
NJ, brothers Robert E. and Theodore P. Joseph, and sisters Lilly Mae,
Margaret, Ula N. and Hester J. Joseph, sister -in-law Martha Joseph, and
nephew George M. Joseph III.
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