Kenneth Kurtz Laud

Their Story

Kenneth K. Laud was born August 28, 1918, in Pella, Iowa, (some sources say Peoria, Iowa, which is near Pella)^[1] the youngest of nine children born to Walter and Matilda (Dunlevy) Laud. He was raised in Oskaloosa, Iowa, and attended Beacon High School. He was employed at the Clay Products Co. for approximately four years before he enlisted in the armed forces.^[2]

Kenny, as he was known to family and friends, enlisted in the 113^th Cavalry, Iowa National Guard January 13, 1941, and was stationed at Camp Bowie, Texas. He requested to be transferred to the U. S. Army Air Corps. Laud had a year of training at the Texas Army Base before he went to an Army Air Corps base somewhere in Georgia. Later he was sent to New York City and then to England. In August 1942 he was stationed at Polebrook Field in England.

He was a member of the 8th Air Force, 97th Bomb Group, 326^th Bomb Squadron. He was the radio operator and waist gunner on a B-17 “Flying Fortress”, Tail number 41-24441 nicknamed “Francis X” after the pilot, 2Lt. Francis Schwartzenbeck.

On October 21, 1942, on a mission to bomb the submarine pens at Lorient, France, the Francis X was shot down. Of the ten men on board the B17 only four survived. Kenny was one of the survivors and was captured and taken to Luft Stalag XVII-B in Krems, Austria.  This was the Stalag featured in the movie Stalag 17. Kenny was a prisoner of war for 925 days. He was liberated on May 3, 1945, after six men from the 13th Armored Division arrived and easily captured the remaining guards who numbered 205.^[3] Other units of the 13th Armored soon arrived and organized the evacuation of the POWs by C-47 to France on May 9, 1945.

Staff Sergeant Kenneth K. Laud was the recipient of the WWII Prisoner of War Medal.

The citation reads:

Sergeant Kenneth K. Laud, United States Army Air Forces, was captured by German forces after he was shot down on October 21, 1942, and was held as a Prisoner of War until his return to the U.S. Military Control at the end of hostilities on May 31^st, 1945.^[4] 

He was also awarded the Purple Heart and Air Medal.

After returning from the war, Kenny married Mary Ann Berdahl in 1946. He was self-employed for 65 years. He owned and operated Kenneth K. Laud Concrete Construction, completing his last job at age 93.^[5] He enjoyed working and reading about history.

Kenneth Kurtz Laud, 96, of East Moline, Illinois, died Saturday, March 7, 2015, at his home.

                                                                       

Kenneth Kurtz Laud (1918-2015) – Find a Grave Memorial

photo from Photos of Kenneth Kurtz Laud – Find a Grave Memorial

^[1] Iowa, U.S., World War II Bonus Case Files, 1947-1954 – Ancestry.com

^[2] Kenneth Kurtz Laud (1918-2015) – Find a Grave Memorial

^[3] Stalag Luft 17b POW German Camp Krems, Austria (b24.net)

^[4] Kenneth Laud – Recipient – (militarytimes.com)

^[5] 08 Mar 2015, 8 – The Dispatch at Newspapers.com