 1920 - 1997 (77 years) Submit Photo / Document
Has 2 ancestors but no descendants in this family tree.
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| Name |
Wesley Knowlton Duce |
| Birth |
28 Aug 1920 |
Cardston, Cardston, Alberta, Canada  |
| Gender |
Male |
| Initiatory (LDS) |
24 Jul 1945 |
ALBER |
| FamilySearch ID |
KW83-4X4 |
| Death |
18 Oct 1997 |
Jefferson, Washington, United States |
| Burial |
Everett, Snohomish, Washington, United States |
| Headstones |
 Submit Headstone Photo |
| Person ID |
I21849 |
mytree |
| Last Modified |
25 Feb 2024 |
| Father |
Thomas William Duce, b. 4 Dec 1871, Hyde Park, Cache, Utah, United States d. 15 Nov 1947, Everett, Snohomish, Washington, United States (Age 75 years) |
| Mother |
Fannie Knowlton, b. 9 Jan 1889, Grantsville, Tooele, Utah, United States d. 4 Jan 1976, Marysville, Snohomish, Washington, United States (Age 86 years) |
| Marriage |
11 Jun 1913 |
Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States |
| Family ID |
F10556 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Family |
Vera Louise Leishman, b. 3 Oct 1927, Ogden, Weber, Utah, United States d. 10 Jun 2000, Washington, United States (Age 72 years) |
| Marriage |
4 Jan 1949 |
Logan, Cache, Utah, United States |
| Family ID |
F10555 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Last Modified |
5 May 2024 |
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| Event Map |
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 | Birth - 28 Aug 1920 - Cardston, Cardston, Alberta, Canada |
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 | Initiatory (LDS) - 24 Jul 1945 - ALBER |
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 | Marriage - 4 Jan 1949 - Logan, Cache, Utah, United States |
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 | Death - 18 Oct 1997 - Jefferson, Washington, United States |
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 | Burial - - Everett, Snohomish, Washington, United States |
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| Notes |
- I graduated from Everett High School in 1939 with an average grade o f B . I had some interest in aviation mechanics and forestry, but reall y coul dn't make up my mind what I wanted to do. Mom asked me to write do wn a li st of all of the occupations I could think of and then cross ou t thos e I didn't want. I did this and she later reminded me that I firs t crosse d out Lawyer with the comment "I don't like to argue with peopl e so tha t is out".
In September of 1939 Hitler invaded Poland and World War 2 began. I volu n teered for the Air Force and was trained as a weather Forecaster. I wa s a ssigned to Air Force units in Western United States. In the Summer o f 194 2 I was assigned to the First Special Service Forces and was traine d in d emolition and paratroop jumping. In 1943 I was a Master Sgt. & wa s assign ed to Officer Candidate School in Miami Beach, Fla. On graduatio n I was a ssigned to Northwestern Canada and ended up as a Captain in th e 16th Weat her Squadron Headquarters at Edmonton, Alberta.
N. Eldon Tanner had been my school teacher in Cardston and he was now t h e Minister of Lands & Mines of the Provincial Government & also our chu rc h Branch President. I got well acquainted with him & stopped in to se e hi m as I was being reassigned home at the conclusion of the War. He ma d e a comment that greatly effected my life. He asked what I was going t o d o when I got home. I responded that I did not know, maybe I would g o int o business. He said "I have wished that I had at least a year of la w stud y, maybe just as background". He didn't tell me I should do it bu t I coul d tell he was strongly suggesting it. On my way home I thought a bout it a nd decided to go to the U of Washington and apply .
In September of 1945 I went to see the Dean of the Law School at Univ . o f Wash. He said I needed 4 years of college to get into Law School . I ha d 1 year of College while stationed in Sacramento, Ca, and a lot o f milit ary classes & some correspondence schools and all of these adde d up t o 2 years of college credit. He decided that as a Captain I shoul d have l earned something and with the war he didn't know how many studen ts woul d be applying so he said: "I will let you attend our school and w e will s ee how you do." I didn't set any records but I did get through O K and pas sed the Bar exam in 1948.
Most of my teen years were spent in Everett, Wa. This forestry centere d c ity on the edge of Puget Sound was a big change from prairie living . Sudd enly I shifted from the huge majority in religious values to the e xtrem e minority and I felt uncomfortable for a while. School routines we re lar gely the same but after school it was "now we want you to stay clo se to h ome, unless you have permission to go". This counsel was relaxe d as I go t older. Fun things were swimming team events, rifle club, woo d working a nd reading.
My father wanted to teach me how to work. We would occasionally g o t o the woods and cut wood. He bought a fertilizer business and had m e wor k there at times. On my graduating from the 9th grade he bought a s mall g as station on 33rd & Rucker that mainly sold gas & oil. He turne d over th is Shell service station to me and bought me enough gas & oil t o get star ted. I ran it for the summer months. I acquired a lot of exper ience in de aling with the public and a small amount of money. (I extende d credit t o some people and they didn't ever pay me.) The last 2 summer s of high sc hool were spent working for the Sunfreeze Ice Cream Co. Thi s was the bes t tasting job I ever had.
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Has 2 ancestors but no descendants in this family tree.
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