Person:Raymond Wardwell (4)

World War II Enlistment Record:

Birth Year: 1915 Race: White, citizen Nativity State or Country: Maine State: Maine County or City: Cumberland Enlistment Date: 23 Apr 1945 Enlistment State: Maine Enlistment City: Portland Branch Code: No branch assignment Grade: Private Grade Code: Private Term of Enlistment: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law Source: Civil Life Education: 3 years of high school Marital Status: Married Height: 60

1945 Portland Directory shows him living on Brook Road.

"Raymond G. Wardwell, a former Liberty ship worker and grocery store manager who once rescued two teen-agers from the Fore River in Portland, died at his residence Friday after a long illness. Mr. Wardell, 79, lived on Oak Lane. He was born in Rockland, a son of Gerald and Lucy Brown Wardwell. .He attended Lincolnville and Augusta schools. Mr. Wardwell started out as a grocery clerk at First National Stores. He worked his way up through the grocery store chain to the position of store manager. He managed several Portland-based stores for First National during his 35-year career. His son, John G. Wardwell Sr. of Casco, said his father received recognition in 1939 for a rescue he made while visiting the gravesite of his wife's parents, who are buried at Forest City Cemetery in South Portland. His son said his father and mother were standing at the gravesite, near the Fore River, when they noticed a raft that had capsized. Mr. Wardwell dove into the river and pulled two teen-agers to shore. During World War II, Mr. Wardwell worked at the South Portland Shipyard where he helped build Liberty ships. He was drafted into the Army while working at the shipyard. After the war he was assigned to duty in Japan, where he helped rebuild damaged airstrips and roads. Mr. Wardwell lived in Portland from the late 1930s until about 1980. He and his wife moved to Casco, where they lived in a camp that he built by himself. They moved to Windham about five years ago. At the time of his retirement from the grocery chain in the mid-70s, Mr. Wardwell took a job with Creighton and Sons in Portland and delivered flowers for the firm. Mr. Wardwell was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows in Portland and was a former member of the Elks Club of Portland. His hobbies included candlepin bowling and automotive mechanics. He enjoyed automotive bodywork and painting. ``It wasn't a business. They just liked tinkering on cars, his son said. ``My father was very friendly. He had a lot of friends in Portland. He was very outgoing. Surviving are his wife of 55 years, Audrey Withee Wardwell of Windham; a son, John G. Wardwell of Casco; a daughter, Mrs. Wilbert (Judith Rae) Jewett of Sebago Lake; three grandsons and two great-grandsons. A memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday at the Dolby Funeral Chapel, 434 River Road, Windham. Burial will follow in Forest City Cemetery, South Portland." -Portland Press Herald 21 August 1994

1. ↑ Social Security Death Index.
2. ↑ Social Security Death Index.