Jackson man saw Hindenburg crash, Nazis tried to blow him up, and he saved kids from fire
JACKSON - In late November 1944, Wally Jamison was fighting his way through northeastern France with General George Patton’s Third Army, having just liberated the city of Metz, when he got hit in the back with an exploding 20-millimeter artillery shell.
The Lakewood High School graduate, then 21 years old, crawled into depression in the ground that had been created by tank tracks and waited for help. The German fire kept coming. All told, Jamison absorbed parts of four bursts from 20mm rounds. His right foot was in so much pain, he thought it had been blown apart.
Eventually a medic came to his aid, assured him his foot was intact, and delivered a startling verdict upon examining his back.
“You got hit in your C-rations — what a mess,” the medic said, as recalled by Jamison years later. “There’s blood, hot dogs and beans all over.”
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As Jamison later wrote, “hot dogs and beans probably saved my life.”
What a life it’s been. Witness to the Hindenburg disaster, co-founder of Cassville Volunteer Fire Company and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4703 in Jackson, good Samaritan who once saved two children from a burning house, Jamison turns 100 years old on Tuesday. The township is throwing a parade in his honor Saturday, starting at 11:30 a.m. at the Jackson Justice Complex and ending around noon at the VFW on Magnolia Drive, where a ceremony and party will take place recognizing this civic icon.
“The man is an unbelievable fixture of Jackson — he’s living history,” longtime Jackson Mayor Michael Reina said. “I hope everybody comes out to honor this gentleman, because he deserves nothing less. This is what America was built on, men like this.”
Jamison still gets around pretty well, using a walker or cane. On Wednesday, during an hourlong visit by the Asbury Park Press, he said only a couple of words. He did make everyone in his household laugh by briefly sticking his tongue out as he posed for photos, his sense of timing impeccable.
“He doesn’t say much anymore, but he’s still here,” said Margaret Jamison, his wife of 41 years. “And I think he’s a national treasure.”
Witnessed the Hindenburg crash
Jamison’s family claims roots in the Jackson area dating back to the 1700s. His great-grandfather fought for the Union in the Civil War alongside three sons, two of whom perished in combat. As a 14-year-old on May 6, 1937, Jamison showed up at Lakehurst Naval Air Station in Manchester to witness the arrival of the German zeppelin Hindenburg, which burst into flames and crashed upon its descent, killing 35 of the 97 people on board.
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After hitching a ride home to tell his parents about the tragedy, Jamison happened up on a news reporter who was looking for directions to the base. Jamison guided him back to the scene, receiving a $20 tip for his assistance — the equivalent of $400 today.
“His mother said, ‘That will buy you all your clothes for the school year,’” Margaret Jamison said.
'A hero's welcome'
For his service in World War II, Jamison received a Bronze Star and Purple Heart, among other distinctions. He landed at Normandy a couple months after the initial invasion and pushed through the countryside with the XX Corps’ 95th Infantry Division.
His shrapnel injuries, which extended from his back down his right leg and to his right foot, stranded him just west of the Saar River in Germany. A full day passed before rescuers pulled him from the ditch, and he spent the next night lying on a patch of hay in a nearby barn, waiting for a doctor.
“I was sure that if I closed my eyes, I would never open them again,” he wrote later.
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Jamison returned to France several times over the ensuing decades, including in 2019 for the 75th anniversary of D-Day. The French government awarded him Legion of Honor, its highest decoration, and the Croix de Guerre medal for valorous service.
During each visit to France, he was hailed by residents of the towns he helped liberate.
“A hero’s welcome,” Margaret Jamison said. “Shows you how much they still care.”
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Saving lives from fire
After the war Jamison settled down with his first wife, Margaret Havens, and raised five children while working for the Ocean County Road Department. He also served in various civic capacities, from Jackson school board member to Boy Scouts troop leader to manager of Pleasant Grove United Methodist Church’s cemetery. And, of course, he fought fires. In 1962, as the story goes, he rushed into a burning home, saved two children who were trapped in their bedroom, and then dragged out a police officer who had fallen unconscious due to smoke inhalation.
Through the subsequent decades, many members of Jamison’s growing family — which now includes 11 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren — followed in his footsteps as volunteer firefighters.
“He’s inspired everybody,” said great-nephew Matthew Jamison, a Jackson police officer who’s also served with the Jackson Mills fire station. “He’s definitely somebody to live up to, and I think the rest of our family has tried their absolute best to do that, as hard as that is.”
In the 1990s, Purple Heart memorials for Monmouth and Ocean counties were dedicated in Freehold and Toms River, respectively. Wally Jamison, drawing on his lifetime of service, wrote the inscription that appears on both.
“The bled for liberty, selflessly serving their country,” it reads. “They are true patriots, whose boundless heroism has kept us free.”
Jerry Carino is community columnist for the Asbury Park Press, focusing on the Jersey Shore’s interesting people, inspiring stories and pressing issues. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Jackson WWII veteran who saw Hindenburg gets parade for 100th birthday
