Person:Walter Moore (9)

Walter Denton Moore – Early Life

My father, Walter Denton MOORE, was born May 7, 1911 at Edison, Morrow County, Ohio, the son of Daisy Denton MOORE & Frank Homer MOORE. During the next 18 years, he lived in Edison, Columbus, Bucyrus, Mt. Gilead, and Marion, OH. In fact, while he lived in the small town of Edison, he lived in several different houses. He once said he thought his father had a drop of gypsy blood because he didn't like living in the same place for too long. By the time my dad was 10, he had lived in 13 different houses.

Dad did extremely well in school and was skipped from first to third grade, where he continued to get high grades. His diary tells of his first "honor" when he was chosen to write a poster for the Morrow County Fair because he was the best penman. He says, "it is hard to imagine now.!" The diary was written in 1930, and I can attest that his penmanship got even worse.

He was 10 years old when he "accepted his first position" as a farmhand for a Mr. Hickson (this was probably his grandfather Denton's half-brother). He was paid six cents an hour and all the lemonade he could drink, earning the grand total of 78 cents.

In 1922, the family moved to Marion Oh. He lived in this city the rest of his life except for college and the Navy. He continued to achieve in school and met schoolmates whose friendships lasted their whole lives. School in Marion wasn't as pleasant as it had been at his other schools. He found that there was more emphasis on athletics, and he felt green and awkward in this area. He also was terrified of girls! He writes, "If I saw them coming down the street, I crossed the street or beat it down an alley. When I talked to them, as I was sometimes forced to do, I stammered and blushed to painfulness." Later in life, he changed a great deal in this area.

During his Freshman year in high school, he saw many famous men. Because he was a Boy Scout, he saw Lloyd George, the British Prime Minister. He also saw President Warren G. Harding. Harding's home was in Marion, so Dad saw him several times, shook hands with him three times, and saw him while he lay in state. At Pres. Harding's funeral, Dad saw Thomas A. Edison, General Pershing, Henry Ford, and Calvin Coolidge.

His Sophomore year wasn't a happy one. He developed an inveriority complex and began to dread school. He doesn't make it clear what the cause of his comples was, but things began to improve in his Junior year. His Sophomore English teacher asked him to take a Journalism class in his Junior year and he was put on the Quiver staff as a reporter. The Quiver was Harding High School's yearbook, and he also became Assistant advertising manager. Because of this he was forced to sell to “hard-boiled business men” and, as he wrote, “blossomed under their sometimes none to gentle manners and remarks.” He found he was becoming more popular.

Because he had become more comfortable around people, he was elected secretary to the Hi Y Club. He also campaigned to become editor of the school paper, but failed. Instead, he became Business Manager for bothe the paper and the yearbook. This position ended up giving him more experience that if he'd been editor. The year ended with congratulations on his school record from the National Honor Society.

During his Senior year, he became so busy with activities that his grades suffered. He was Business Manager of the Quiver, President of the National Honor Society, President of the French Club (Le Petit Salon), and Secretary of the Hi Y. Other activities included several committees, the Senior Play, making speeches. This was the year of his first girlfriend – the first of many. He writes, “I came to have the idea that I was something of a Don Juan.” That idea was “very effectively killed” not too long after high school ended.

Dad graduated from Harding High School in Marion Ohio in 1928.

--Caseycatnip 15:46, 25 July 2007 (MDT)

In 1929, he was appointed to the Naval Academy. He was unable to attend because of Illness.

MOORE, WALTER DENTON LT US NAVY WORLD WAR II DATE OF BIRTH: 05/07/1911 DATE OF DEATH: 01/06/2002 BURIED AT: MARION CEMETERY 620 DELAWARE AVENUE MARION, OH 43302

Served aboard the aircraft carriers Lexington, Franklin, & the Randolph during WWII.

1. ↑ Walter Denton Moore Death Cirtificate.

   in daughter's possession

2. ↑ Marion Harding High School Quiver.
3. ↑ Marion Star, The (Newspaper) - September 19, 1935, Marion, Ohio <http://www.newspaperarchive.com/newspapers1/na0010/524636/5878366.html>
   
   
   Walter D. Moore of 248 Gurley avenue, one of Marions younge lawyers, was named attorney fo tho Marlon County Humane society at Its meeting last night In th ...