Post History
On November 5, 1930, the decision to organize an American Legion Post resulted from the conclusion of 16 local veterans that the American Legion was the representative Veterans' organization in this country.
FOUNDING MEMBERS
Ira Jerome Gehringer - (1896 – 1984) Ira Jerome “Jack” Gehringer was born in Chicago on July 18, 1896. He joined the US Army Air Service on February 20, 1918 and became a Sergeant First Class. He was discharged on March 21, 1919.
Jack and his wife, Frankie, moved into a home at 314 S. Hi-Lusi (Mount Prospect) in 1927. They had two children: Jack Jr. and Billie-Jean. Jack Jr. served in the Marines during World War II. Interestingly, the siblings married their spouses in a double ceremony at South Church in September 1946.
As a civilian, Jack worked as a building contractor and in the Electromotive Division of General Motors. His civilian work was important enough for him to receive a gas ration card during World War II. He also ran a repair shop for nearly 20 years. Over that time, he earned the nickname “Mr. Fix-It.”
Jack and Frankie were both very active in Mount Prospect organizations. Jack was an early member of Mount Prospect’s Chamber of Commerce and was a charter member of Mount Prospect’s American Legion Post 525. Newspaper accounts note that Jack was one of the key organizers of the post. He served as the post’s first Senior Vice Commander. Later in life he enjoyed painting with acrylics and even displayed his work in local art shows.
The American Legion was clearly important to the Gehringer family because the social columns in newspapers often report that the Gehringers were spending time with other American Legion couples and families. Frankie was involved in the American Legion Auxiliary, and often hosted meetings in their home on Hi-Lusi. She was also active in the Mount Prospect Woman’s Club and helped that organization establish the Mount Prospect Public Library in 1930. She served as a librarian before it became a tax-supported institution. In 1931, Frankie ran for a seat on the District 57 school board too.
Jack passed away on December 18, 1981 at the age of 84.
Walter W. Weiss - (1893 - 1973) Walter William Weiss was born in Chicago, Illinois on July 24, 1893 to George and Bertha Kappes Weiss. Walter registered for the draft in June 1917 while working on a farm in Calaveras County, California. After serving in the military he married Helen Eudora Lewis (1901-1988) in Gloucester County, Virginia in June 1919. They lived in Chicago in 1920. Sometime before 1930 they moved to Mount Prospect, Illinois where according to the 1930 Census they lived on I-Oka street. By 1942 they were living at 309 Sha-bonee Trail. Walter worked as a lawyer for a Chicago firm but later became a partner in his own firm. He was very active with the Improvement Association and the American Legion Post 525 of which he was the first commander. He also was involved in local politics. Walter and Helen had two children: Virginia Weiss Schuler (1920-2011) and Walter W. Weiss, Jr. (1922-2004). Before 1950 the Weiss family moved to Cuba Township in Lake County, Illinois. Walter continued to work as a lawyer. Sometime later Walter and Helen moved to Gloucester Point, Virginia. Walter died there on February 26, 1973. He is buried in Gloucester Point Cemetery.
Raymond Wilfred Fenton (1894 – 1978) Raymond Wilfred Fenton was born on November 7, 1894. He was living in Chicago by the time the United States entered World War I. Ray enlisted in the Army on January 25, 1918 and began training for an Army truck outfit. The officers, however, switched his role to clerk and mapmaker before the end of his training. He served in France for 14 months as Sergent Quartermaster. After the Armistice ended the war, Ray turned his talents in another direction. He organized and directed the Jazz Beaux, an entertainment detachment that traveled across Europe performing for members of the American Expeditionary Forces still deployed overseas.
Shortly after returning from France, Ray married Josephine (b1897-d1956) on November 25, 1920 in Chicago. Together they had two daughters, Elizabeth and Florence. Elizabeth “Betty” served in the WAVES during World War II. Florence had two daughters: Jane and Patricia. The Fenton family moved to 419 S. I-Oka in Mount Prospect in 1930.
Ray was a lively, artistic man who brought that creativity and enthusiasm to all his endeavors. His civilian occupation was as advertising manager at People’s Gas, Light, and Coke Company. In that role he organized conventions and gave talks at his company and for the Public Utilities Advertising Association (PUAA). An account of one of his talks notes that he accompanied his lecture with “illustrations in a humorous style.” In 1955 he was elected as president of the PUAA. Ray retired in 1959 after 36 years in the advertising industry.
Outside of work, Ray kept busy with a number of local organizations. Notably, he was one of the founding members of Mount Prospect’s American Legion Post 525. He served as the post’s first historian. Previously, he had joined another area American Legion where he was director of a performance group that staged shows for Chicago-area veterans’ hospitals.
Ray became well-known for his entertainment talents. His name frequently appears with local plays and performances as the director of, producer of, actor in, or participant in all three roles. Some of the organizations that called upon his talent were the P.T.A., the St. Paul’s Young People group, and the People’s Gas Post 336. He organized and served as master of ceremonies for events around town too, such as the 1935 Boy Scout Festival and various American Legion and Auxiliary ceremonies. He always brought his own artistic style to each event. For instance, a 1946 announcement for the American Legion Auxiliary installation ceremony notes that “Ray Fenton will officiate as master of ceremonies in his own inimitable style.”
His wife, Josephine, was also active in community life. She was a member of the American Legion Auxiliary, the Mount Prospect Woman’s Club, and the Fortnightly Club before her passing in 1956.
Ray married for a second time on March 17, 1959 in Chicago. Mildred Leavitt (b.1890-d1974) had also had a long career in advertising in Chicago, so they likely knew each other from work connections over the years. The couple moved to Menlo Park, California shortly after their wedding. Ray’s daughter, Florence, lived nearby, and Betty eventually moved there too.
Just like in Mount Prospect, Ray found many ways to contribute to his local community through his entertainment background. He directed the recreation program at the Retarded Children’s Guild and directed a band at Little House, a senior citizens’ activity center. The band at Little House was called the TNTs, which stood for Tunes, Nonsense, and Tempo. This unique group included 30 musicians playing a variety of instruments and used no music, only playing together in the keys of C, F, and G. They were clearly a talented group since newspaper articles routinely report that they played at local hospitals, other senior centers, and Little House parties.
Ray passed away in San Francisco on February 4, 1978.
Wyman Lahtinen
Ernest M. Luckner - (1894 - 1976) Ernest Marck Luckner was born in Chicago, Illinois to Adam and Jennie Westcott Luckner on May 24, 1894. His parents were from New York. In 1900 they lived on Irving Avenue but moved to Wilcox Avenue by 1910. Ernest worked then delivering groceries. On his World War I draft registration form in 1917 his occupation is listed as a salesman at H. Channon & Co. He then lived on Cornelia Avenue in Chicago. Ernest enlisted in the army on May 17, 1917 and was discharged on May 10, 1919. He served as a private in Battery D, 149th US Field Artillery, 67th Artillery Brigade. An Arlington Heights Herald newspaper article in the 1930s noted that he was part of the Rainbow Division that served with the French army in the Champagne area of France in July 1918.
Just a few months after he returned home in 1919, Ernest married Florence Frey on October 22, 1919. They were married at the Irving Park Methodist Church in Chicago. In 1920 the young couple lived on Kolin Avenue in Chicago. Ernest worked then as a salesman with a machinery business. Their only child, Robert Henry, was born on February 14, 1922 in Chicago. The family moved to Mount Prospect in 1929, according to an article about their 50th wedding anniversary. In 1930 they were living at 311 I-Oka. Florence’s family, the Freys, lived at 309 I-Oka. Ernest worked as an accountant with a coal company. By 1940 the Luckners were living at 309 I-Oka and Ernest still worked as an accountant. Both Ernest and Florence were involved with the American Legion Post 525. Ernest was named commander of the post in November 1932. Ernest was also a member of the VFW Post 1337. Florence was also very active in the Order of the Eastern Star and the Women’s Republican Club of the 13th Congression District. The Luckners still lived at 309 I-Oka in 1950 along with Florence’s sister, Myrtle. Ernest continued to work as a bookkeeper with a coal company.
The 1960s brought both sadness and some celebration to the Luckners. Their son, Robert, died of cancer in 1963. They did have grandchildren, Warren and Bonnie, however. In 1969 they celebrated their 50th anniversary. More sadness came in February 1975 when Florence passed away after many years facing illness. Ernest passed away not long afterwards of heart failure on June 27, 1976. He had been retired by then and lived at 203 S. Elmhurst Avenue in Mount Prospect. Both of the Luckners are buried at Mount Emblem Cemetery in Elmhurst.
I.E. Besander - (1893 – 1951) Inge Emil Besander was born in Summitt, Michigan on October 30, 1893. He grew up in Marquette, Michigan and married Lydia Hartvigh there on December 26, 1921. Lydia was working as a nurse at the time of her marriage, and Inge was an accountant.
In 1929, Inge and Lydia moved their family to a home they built at 123 S. Albert Street in Mount Prospect. In the following years they added a garage and an enclosed porch. Together they had three children: Donald, Florence, and James.
Besander enlisted in the US Army on August 29, 1918. He served as a private in the 41st Field Artillery, Battery C until he was discharged on January 16, 1919.
After Besander’s time in the Army, he became a real estate agent for many years. Throughout the 1920s he worked for the H. Roy Berry Company and Busse Realty, which were both influential agencies in Mount Prospect at the time. In 1931 he opened his own real estate office on Northwest Highway.
Inge was elected as Mount Prospect’s third mayor in 1937, serving until 1945. He initiated many changes that modernized the Village, including combining the offices of Village collector, water collector, and treasurer, and starting a tax-supported garbage collection program. Building codes and zoning ordinances were reworked too. Importantly, Besander secured funds from the federal New Deal’s Works Progress Administration to pave streets.
Outside of Besander’s work, he was very active in local organizations, including the Lions Club, the Shriners, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1337. He was one of the founding members of American Legion Post 525. He and Robert Hilliard served as assistants to the post’s Service Officer, A. C. Wallentin.
Inge Besander passed away on February 21, 1951 at the age of 57. He was buried in Marquette, Michigan, where he had often returned to visit family.
Valentine F. Weber - (1895 – 1970) Valentine Frank Weber was born on February 11, 1895. He enlisted in the Army on December 10, 1917, and rose to the rank of Sergeant First Class in the Army Ordnance Corps. He specifically worked on supplying the headquarters. Weber was discharged on February 7, 1919, approximately three months after the end of World War I.
Valentine married Florence M. Gordon in Chicago on May 24, 1922. Together they had three children: Virginia, Tom, and Philip. Interestingly, Virigina and Tom married siblings from La Junta, Colorado. Tom married Margaret Jean Mays in July 1948, and Virginia married William Mays in June 1949. Margaret served as Virginia’s matron of honor.
The Weber family moved to Mount Prospect around 1928 and lived at 110 Prospect Manor. When ineffective sewers became an urgent issue in this subdivision in 1947, Valentine stepped up as head of a committee to study and resolve the situation.
Valentine’s civilian occupation was as a surveyor. At the time of his enlistment in the Army, he was employed by the Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad. In 1936 he became a Commonwealth Edison surveyor, eventually earning a position as senior surveyor in the transmission engineering department. He retired from ComEd in 1956. Valentine put his surveying skills to work for the community too. He ran for County Surveyor in 1932 and was part of Mount Prospect’s Planning Commission until 1946. In that position he laid out baseball diamonds in area parks and helped resolve an issue in 1945 regarding subdivisions that crossed town lines in Mount Prospect and Arlington Heights.
Both Valentine and Florence were active in the community during their time in Mount Prospect. Florence served as chairman of the PTA’s social committee in the 1930s and participated in the Mount Prospect Woman’s Club. Valentine worked with the local Boy Scout and Cub Scout troop, attended the Mount Prospect Community Church, and played tennis and golf. He was also a founding member of American Legion Post 525. In 1940 he volunteered as a registrar for the local draft board, along with many of his fellow American Legion members.
By the time Valentine retired from ComEd in 1956, he and Florence had moved to Chicago. The newspaper article about his retirement notes that he and Florence would be moving to Pittsfield, Illinois in the near future. The move was intended to help Virginia and William on their farm. Later on, Valentine and Florence moved to Bloomingdale, Indiana. Valentine passed away there on February 10, 1970, one day before his birthday.
R.E. Gray - (1899-1984) Rollin Edward Gray was born in Homer, Champaign County, Illinois on January 8, 1899. He often went by R. E. Gray. In 1900 he lived with his family in Allerton, Vermillion County, Illinois. By 1910 he was living with his family in Sidell which is also in Vermillion County. He volunteered with Battery A 67th Brigade, 42d Division, Rainbow Division, 149th U. S. Field Artillery. He enlisted on April 7, 1917 and was discharged May 9, 1919. The 1920 Census shows him as “Roland Grey” living in South Bend, Indiana. He married Marcile Ileen Smith on April 6, 1923 in Coldwater, Branch County, Michigan. By 1930 he and Marcile had three daughters and were living in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Gray worked primarily as a printer. The 1930 Census was taken April 5, 1930. Sometime after this the Grays moved to Mount Prospect. Based on Herald articles which relate Mrs. Gray’s activities with the American Legion Auxiliary, the family left Mount Prospect around 1933. The 1940 Census shows the family living in Syracuse, Indiana where Rollin worked as a salesman with a press corporation. This census also indicates that the family lived in Park Ridge, Illinois in 1935.
In 1950 Rollin was living with his wife, Marcile, in Roanoke, Huntington County, Indiana where he was again working as a printer. Their daughters, Barbara, Beverly and Betty, had married and moved away. He and his wife lived simply. In retirement they lived near Warsaw, Koscuisko County, Indiana. Rollin E. Gray died from pneumonia and cancer in the Veterans Administration Hospital in Fort Wayne, Indiana on November 9, 1984. He is buried in Syracuse Cemetery in Syracuse, Indiana. His obituary from the South Bend Tribune noted he had 14 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren. He was also a member of the American Legion Post 47 in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Elmer C. Hauptly
Robert J. Hilliard
Stanley G. Kent - (1893 – 1963) Stanley George Kent was born on August 24, 1893. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy on April 6, 1917, and achieved the rank of Chief Yeoman before his honorable discharge on January 9, 1920.
Stanley married Rosine Leonhardt (1896 – 1975) some time after he returned from military service. They moved to 312 S. Wille Street in Mount Prospect, and Rosine’s brother, sister, and mother also lived with them.
During the 1930s Stanley worked as an accountant at a lumber company, and Rosine owned and operated Rosine’s Beauty Parlor. Newspaper social columns report that Rosine underwent a serious operation in 1933 and was ill in 1934. By 1935 Rosine and Stanley had moved to Park Ridge. Although their reasons for moving are unclear, it is possible that their decision may have been motivated by Rosine’s health issues. By 1940 the couple was living in Chicago, by 1942 they were living in Des Plaines, and they were back in Chicago by the 1950 census. Over those years Stanley was an auditor for a wholesale lumber company and an accountant at an orchestra hall.
Both Stanley and Rosine were active in the American Legion and American Legion Auxiliary, frequently hosting meetings in their home on Wille Street. Stanley was a charter member of Post 525 but initially did not serve on the executive board. In 1932 a newspaper article listed him as the contact person for new members, and in 1933 he was elected as the 9th District delegate.
Stanley was also active in the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1337. He was elected Junior Vice in 1931 and helped establish the clubhouse in the former Katz farmhouse at the corner of Elmhurst Avenue and Memory Lane.
Stanley passed away in December 1963 and is buried in Ridgewood Cemetery with Rosine.
Albert C. Haake
Paul J. Jonas
Joseph F. Bernhard
James N. Sime
A.C. Wallentin
Patriotic Days
MEMORIAL DAY has always been an outstanding occasion in this community. In addition to memorial events throughout the Mount Prospect community, the goal of every Veteran to it's last man is to keep MEMORIAL DAY sacred to the memory of our war dead of all of the wars of the country; and all graves are decorated on this National Holiday.
ARMISTICE DAY, now called VETERANS' DAY, originally marked the end of fighting in World War I. It is an important holiday on the calendar of Legionnaires everywhere and in the hearts of all Veterans. It has been in Mount Prospect. Annually the Post sponsors Veterans Day activities for the local schools. An important tradition was established when the Post led in the memorial exercises at 11 o'clock on the morning of November 11, marking the exact hour of the cessation of hostility on the war fronts.
Grave Decoration
Since it's inception American Legion Post 525 has been a leader in this community in the area of grave decoration; Each year, active members place a flag on each American Legion and VFW members graves.
Scholarships and Community Projects
American LegionPost 525 sponsors various scholarships for the further education of our children. We also sponsor and financially assist many worthy community projects and programs initiated by the National American Legion.
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