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JHS Class Of 1944 Graduate Hopes To Keep Memory Alive

Robert Ellis, a member of the Jamestown High School 1944 graduating class, has long been working on keeping the memory of the class alive.

By 1944, the United States had already been in World War II for three years. The graduating class had lived through the Great Depression as children. Some of them, Ellis said, never graduated and instead left school early to join the war.

Others went on to marry their high school sweethearts.

“World War II had many unforeseen effects on the graduates of 1944,” Ellis said. “Many of the boys went off to join the war. A number of class members went on to achieve prominence at the national level and the local level.”

Charles Goodell, for example, was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1959 to fill the vacancy left by the death of Rep. Daniel Reed. In 1968, he was appointed to the U.S. Senate after Robert Kennedy was assassinated.

When Goodell was in high school, he was elected president of the Honor Society.

James Roselle was the voice of Jamestown and surrounding communities for 62 years.

He broadcast from radio station WJTN and for 42 of those years, he greeted his audience from Chautauqua Institution during its nine-week session. He interviewed such notables as President Bill Clinton, Tim Russert, Tony Bennett, Mark Russell, Mickey Mantle and Jane Goodall.

J. Norman Herby was elected to the Jamestown City Council for eight years and served as president of the council for two of those years. Later, he was elected to represent District 14 in the Chautauqua County Legislature.

“There were 376 members in the class of 19944,” Ellis said. “There were 251 girls and 125 boys. As of Nov. 4, there are still 109 of my class members still living.”

Ellis had compiled binders filled with articles, lists, menus, jokes and speeches from reunions, all pertaining to the class of 1944. He still has his year book, filled with signatures from classmates, as well as quotes and positions held while in school. The last reunion held for the class was for the 70 year anniversary.

“It’s been 75 years since we graduated,” Ellis said. “And with Veterans Day, it’s important to remember those who left school early or after graduating to keep our country safe. Some of them didn’t come back.”

He added that growing up during the war meant rationing food and gas. There were never more than five automobiles in the high school parking lot, he said.

“We ate few food products with sugar and walked a great deal,” he said. “No wonder a good number of us are still alive at 93.”

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