Jack Irwin Dalton

Their Story

Jack Irwin Dalton was born in Binger, Oklahoma, on January 20, 1933, to Frank and Ruby.¹ According to US Census data, he had three siblings: Verla, Ronald, and Carol. However, according to his obituary, his siblings included Jan and Vada as well.² Something that could be true is that Jan could be Verla’s middle name and the name she went by. Vada was considered to be a half-sister according to that same obituary. In the 1940 US Census, his family lived in Eagle, Arkansas, but in the 1950 Census, they lived in Omaha, Nebraska.³ His father worked as a laborer and a night watchman, while his mother worked as a secretary. Dalton went to Norfolk High School in the Omaha area where he was on the football team.⁴ During his high school years, he also worked as a cook at a café.

After high school, he enlisted into the United States Marine Corps on November 3, 1950. He served in the Marines for 23 years, serving in the Korean and Vietnam Wars. He rose to the rank of Master Sergeant. It is unknown where he was deployed during the wars, or what his job was in the military. He was discharged on October 31, 1973.

While he was in the military, he married Mary Garrison in 1954.⁵ Together, they had 6 children: Stephen, John, Tim, Dan, Julie, and Brenda. After his military service, he worked for the Big River Equipment Company in Bettendorf for 5 years. Afterwards, he and his wife moved to Alaska for 4 years where Dalton worked at couple jobs: one as a cook for logging camps, and another for a cook and maintenance worker for the Alaska Marine Highway. After this, they moved back to the Quad Cities. Dalton was a member of the Milan American Legion and Milan Veterans of Foreign Wars.

Sadly, on November 30, 1990, Jack Dalton died from a long-time illness.⁶ Though not much is known about his military service, he certainly lived an interesting life, moving from state to state while he was young, and in Alaska when he was older. Including his military service, Dalton undoubtedly was able to see many parts of the world, from Southeast Asia to close to the Arctic Circle in Alaska. It can also be assumed that he was a great father, son, and husband to his family.