Descendants of Venable Wesley (1832-1862)

James H. Wesley, son of Venable Wesley and Elizabeth J. [Whitehead] Wesley, married Clara Harris and had ten children: Herman H. (born November 1887); Marjorie E. (born August 1889); Sylvester J. (born January 1892); Horace W. (born February 1895); Olive E. (born July 1896); James E. (born November 1897); Harry E. (born November 1898); Lilian;  John Hampton, my grandfather, (born 25 July 1903); and Catherine.

John Hampton Wesley, Sr., “Pop,” as he was known by his fourteen grandchildren, was too young for World War I and too old for World War II.  He married Beatrice Bulmer Wesley and had four sons, all of whom served in the military:  John Hampton Wesley, Jr., Army Air Corps; Richard Harris Wesley, Sr., Marine Corps; Robert Lee Wesley, Sr., Navy; and Eugene Arthur Wesley, Air Force.

John H. Wesley, Jr., (26 December 1925-19 December 1989), was born in Easton, Pennsylvania. He was inducted into the Army Air Corps on 14 January 1944, shortly after his eighteeenth birthday, and entered into active service on 26 January 1944 in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Military Occupational Specialty and No. Airplane Armorer Gunner 612 Military Qualification AAF Air Crew Badge Pistol Marksman; Battles and Campaigns: North Appennies Po Valley Rhineland, Air Combat Balkans Campaigns; Decorations and Citations: Ameican Theater Good Conduct Medal, Victory Medals, Air Medal with One Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster, European African Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with Four Bronze Battle Stars. Date of Departure 2 October 1944, Italy Date of Arrival 8 October 1944; 18 Jun 1945 US - 27 Jun 1945. Highest Rank Held was Staff Sargent. Reason and Authority for Seperation: Demobilization AR-615-365 AS Changed RR1-1; Service Schools Attended: Flexible Gunnery, Las Begos AAF Field Heavy Lower Turrets, 6 weeks. Buried in Florida National Cemetery, Bushnell Florida. Section 110 Grave Site 207. Name on grave Wesley, John H Jr.

Richard Harris Wesley, Sr. enlisted in the Marine Corps and left for basic training prior to completing his junior year in high school. He wrote the following poem entitled "War."  Although undated, I believe the poem was written at some point during his military service in World War II.

War is a dismal dealing,
War is full of hate,
War has no lovely feeling,
War is a soldier’s fate.

War is a monster's creation,
War is a bloody debate,
War has no consecration,
War is a soldier’s fate.

War is a killer’s madness,
War has no outward gate,
Was is a whole world’s madness,
War is a soldier’s fate.

Two of John Hampton Wesley, Sr.'s grandchildren, great great-grandsons of Venable, served in the military. Bruce Tice Wesley, son of John Hampton, Jr., served in Vietnam. He was assigned to the the U.S. Army 4th Infantry Division, A and B Batterys 5/16th Field Artillery (155 Sps track howitzers) in Pleiku, Vietnam. His mos (job assigned) was Fire Direction Control [FDC], repsonsible for finding artillery range, elevation, and deflection to targets. Following eight months with the 4th Infantry, he was transferred to the 1st Air Cavalry Division at AnKhe, Vietnam. For the next four months he was assigned to Headquarters Battery 2/19 Field Artillery 105 trail howitzers in Quang Tri province. Promoted to Specialist E-5, he left Vietnam in August 1968 at the end of a one-year tour of duty. Following service in the Marine Corps, Robert Lee Wesley, Jr., son of Robert Lee, Sr., is currently serving with the Pennsylvania Army National Guard in Iraq.