Edward J. Langel

World War II

Ed Langel was born near Templeton on April 16, 1914, to Clem and Anna (Fangman) Langel. He was one of 16 children. Ed attended school at Sacred Heart in Templeton. His brother Vince also served during World War II.

Ed registered for the military draft on October 16, 1940, and listed his employer as his mother as his father had died earlier in 1940. He was inducted into the US Army at Camp Dodge near Des Moines, IA on August 26, 1942. He was assigned serial number 37 426 297. Ed was immediately sent to Fort Leavenworth, KS.

On September 8, 1942, Ed was sent to Camp Callan near La Jolla, CA. Camp Callan was a training base for coastal artillery which was a reaction to the concern about a Japanese invasion of the West Coast early in the war. After the tide had begun to turn, the focus of Camp Callan shifted to anti-aircraft artillery (AAA) training. Ed was assigned initially to Battery A of the 54th AAA Battalion. After his training was completed on November 23, 1942, he was assigned to Battery C of the 507th AAA Regiment (Mobile) which had been reorganized at Camp Haan near Riverside, CA.

On January 20, 1943, the 507th AAA Regiment (Mobile) was moved to North Long Beach, CA for coastal defense. Ed remained with this unit until it was inactivated on August 16, 1943. Thereafter, the 1st Battalion was redesignated the 220th AAA (Gun) Battalion. Ed remained with this unit for the rest of 1943 and all of 1944.

As the war continued to evolve, priorities changed and, on February 15, 1945, Ed was sent to Camp Gruber, OK for field artillery training. By June 30, 1945, this training was complete and Ed was sent to the Philippine Islands. By this time, the Japanese had been largely defeated in the Philippines with the exception of the island of Luzon. While in the Philippines, records indicate Ed was a member of the 55th Field Artillery Battalion. Specific unit activity has not been found. It is likely that this unit was involved in the final clean-up of Luzon as well as preparation for the anticipated invasion of Japan.

The atomic bomb attacks on Japan in early August, 1945, brought the Pacific war to a close eliminating the need for the invasion. Ed remained overseas until returning to the United States on February 7, 1946. He was immediately discharged as a PFC (private first class).

Ed returned to Templeton and farmed south of town for the remainder of this life. He never married. He died at a hospital in Rochester, MN on November 26, 1974 at age 60. He was buried at Sacred Heart Cemetery in Templeton.