Stephen S. Curry, a Glenwood City veteran
By Cara L. Dempski
GLENWOOD CITY — The American Legion Curry-Ainsworth Post 168 in Glenwood City bears the name of two young people killed in action in two separate wars: Private Steve S. Curry, who died in World War I, and Second Lieutenant Ellen Ainsworth, who died in hostilities during World War II.
While a great deal of research and attention has been dedicated to Ainsworth in recent months due to the local post office being renamed in her memory, relatively little has been said regarding Private Curry.
Steve Samuel Curry was born November 22, 1893 in the St. Croix County town of Springfield to Phillip and Ellen Curry (Jaeger). Phillip Curry died when Steve only eight years old.
An article in the July 17, 1902 edition of the Glenwood Tribune indicated Mr. Curry was killed in a farming accident after his team of horses ran away with the rake they were pulling while gathering hay. Ellen Curry eventually married Albert Jaeger and lived with him in a house that sat in the 300 block of Pine Street in Glenwood City.
An article printed in the April 17, 1919 edition of the Tribune indicates Private Curry moved to Glenwood City with his mother when he was approximately 12 years old, and he completed his formal schooling in the Glenwood City grammar room.
The article goes on to state Curry went to work immediately after school. He held several traveling positions before moving to St. Paul, Minnesota, to work for United Cigar Stores, Co. as a store manager.
Friends in Glenwood City described Curry as “neat and trim in appearance,” and “quiet, but keen of mind and of splendid business ability.”
It is unclear from the article if Curry was employed by United Cigar when president Woodrow Wilson addressed congress on April 2, 1917, to request a formal declaration of war against Germany.
Private Curry enlisted in the army – or “followed the colors,” as the Tribune article put it – on September 19, 1917, and spent two months at Camp Grant near Rockford, Illinois, with the 341st Infantry, Company D. Curry was then transferred to the 345th Infantry based out of Camp Pike, Arkansas.
There are conflicting dates for when Curry arrived in Europe. The Tribune story indicated he did not leave Arkansas until June of that year, but other sources indicate Curry wrote a letter to his mother, Ellen Jaeger, dated April 15, 1918.
Curry wrote to his mother from England and included a copy of a souvenir greeting from King George. When Curry moved on from England, he joined the army’s 26th “Yankee” division in eastern France. The Yankee division reportedly participated in some of the bloodiest battles of the war, its men having been used as “shock” troops all during that October.
The letter from England was the last one Jaeger ever received from her son.
The Glenwood Tribune reported Jaeger had received a telegram from the war department indicating Curry had gone missing on October 14, 1918. Jaeger heard no further news until April 9, 1919, when she received a telegram from the army’s adjutant general informing her that Curry was listed as missing in action October 25, 1918, and was killed in action October 26, 1918, north of Verdun.
Steve Curry was survived by his mother, Ellen; four sisters: Mrs. E.L. Walsh, Mrs. Geo. Kelly of New Richmond, and Alice and Agnes of Glenwood City; and a brother, Phillip J. of St. Paul. He has relatives living in the New Richmond area, but family members have little information regarding him, his work, or his service during World War I.
Curry’s body arrived in Glenwood City under U.S. escort on Saturday, October 23, 1921. On Monday, October 25, the Stephen S. Curry Post No. 168 escorted the remains from the residence of Mrs. Ellen Jaeger to St. John’s Catholic church, where a large crowd had assembled for the services in the charge of Father P. G. Rivers. The funeral procession then proceeded to Wilson cemetery, where interment was made.
Glenwood City representatives honored Curry when they named the local legion post the Curry American Legion Post. The name was further amended to the Curry-Ainsworth American Legion Post in 1977.
Editor’s Note: The staff of the Tribune Press Reporter would like to thank Mrs. Paula DeWitt for sharing the information she has collected about Private Curry for use in this article. Mrs. DeWitt has been researching Curry for the past year after receiving a phone call from his niece.
