Civil War ☆ WWI ☆ WWII ☆ Korea ☆ Vietnam ☆ Iraq I ☆ Iraq II ☆ Afghanistan
| Name | Narrative | Branch and Rank | Unit and Specialty | Conflict/Arena | Born/Died |
| Paul Wilmerton | Paul Wilmerton was born December 27, 1834. Possibly Bridgeboro or Delanco. the son of Abraham amd Mary "Polly" Marter. Sibling of Meriam Wilmerton who married Andress J. Ridgway. Paul enlisted as a Union soldier in the Civil War on August 25, 1862 and was mustered in the G Company, 23rd NJ Reg Vol Infantry on September 13, 1862. He served through the December 1862 Fredericksburg Campaign and the May 1863 Chancellorville Campaign. He was honorably discharged with his regiment on June 27, 1863. He married Ruth Ann Hackney in Burlington Township. Paul died on January 13, 1900 at age 65. Location unknown. He is buried in Beverly National Cemetery. | Union Army PVT | Co G, 23rd NJ Reg Vol Inf. | Civil War | 1834 - 1900 |
| Russell H. Wilmerton | Russell H. Wilmerton was born and raised in Beverly. He was a direct descendant of Delanco town founder, Richard Wilmerton. Russel served in the USAF during the Vietnam Conflict. He may have also served in Korea. He married Barbara Bishop. They moved to Delanco and lived on Walnut Street in Delanco. Russ died in 2013. | USAF. Rank | Unit? | Vietnam | -2013 |
| John B. “Hecker” Wilson | John B. “Hecker” Wilson was born in 1907, the son of John and Carlotta Wilson. According to newspaper reports, a 17-year old “Hecker” Wilson gained local notoriety for snatching Babe Ruth’s fifth-inning home run baseball during the famous exhibition game played in Delanco on July 1, 1924. He later gave the ball away to a friend. John was living with his widowed mother and Mary C. Wilson at Barnitz Grove at 101 Delview Avenue in Delanco in 1929. The 1940 Census lists him in Delanco. John was 85 years old living in Arlington VA in 1992. | Branch? Rank? | Unit? | WWII | 1907 – |
| Robert “Wink” Winkelspecht | Robert "Wink" Winkelspecht, was born in Beverly in 1925. He graduated of Palmyra High School. He joined the US Navy and served honorably in the US Army in WWII. After the war Bob was living at 224 Cedar Avenue. He was a mechanic by trade and worked for Associated Box Co for 22 years. in 1946 Bob joined Washington Fire Co No 1 and served as Fire Chief in 1955, 1956, and 1959. He was honored for 50 years of service in 1997. He was also an active member of the VFW. Bob died October 15, 2010 at age 83. He was buried in Monument Cemetery in Beverly. | US Navy, US Army, Rank? | Unit? | WWII | 1925 – 2010 |
| William H. "Bill" Wittmeyer | William H. "Bill" Wittmeyer was born February 20, 1918 on Edgewood Ave in Delanco. He joined the US Army and served in the 116th Anti-Aircraft Artillery in the 1st Army in the European Theater of Operations during WWII. He was engaged in the Battle of the Bulge and was awarded 5 major battle stars. Bill served as a driver for General Patton at times. Bill married Ruth H. Wittmeyer. They lived in Cinnaminson. Bill died July 2, 1995. Bill was listed on the original Delanco WW II Honor Roll. | US Army, rank | 116th AAA, 1st Army | WWII, Europe | 1918 – 1995 |
| William C. Wolverton | William C. "Bill" Wolverton was born in Delanco in 1902 and attended local schools. He joined the US Navy at age 18 and was selected for the Navy Band in WWI. He also served in the US Army in WWII and was active with veterans’ organizations after the war. He worked in Delanco as a special officer for the police force. He joined Washington Fire Co. becoming a Life Member and Recording Secretary. He was also active on the Delanco Zoning Board, Board of Health, and Board of Education. He lived at 511 Ash Street in Delanco and was active at 1st Presbyterian Church. Bill died in 1996 at age 94. | US Navy US Army | Navy Bandsman | WWI WWII | 1902 – 1996 |
| Stanley D. Wood | Stanley D. Wood was listed on the original Delanco WW II Honor Roll. | ? | ? | WWII | ? |
| Cooper Woodington | Cooper Woodington was born in January 1839, the son of Alexander Woodington and Sarah Anne Cooper, and was raised in Bridgeboro. For several months in 1861 – 1862, Cooper lived at the Delaranco Hotel with the civilian crew of Brutus de Villeroi’s salvage submarine, Alligator. Alexander Rhodes recruited him to the position of hardhat diver, and he remained with the project with the prototype, then the military version of the submarine. He sailed with the Alligator to City Point Virginia. He was eventually discharged in Washington DC. See Alice’s crew biographies. Cooper and Mary Elizabeth Dewson married on March 15, 1862 in Burlington, New Jersey. They had 9 children: Franklin, Mary Elizabeth, Alexander, William Washington, Samuel, Henry Harry, Norman C., Aubrey Devere, and Elizabeth Woodington. Cooper died Feb 14, 1924 at age 84 and is buried in Monument Cemetery in Beverly. Some of his descendants still live in the Delanco area. | Union Navy, Rank? | Alligator crew | Civil War | 1840 – 1924 |
| Richard J. Yardumian | Richard James Yardumian was born March 10, 1928, the son of Berge Haig and Carrie Angstadt Yardumian. Richard joined the US Air Force and served during the Korean Conflict, earning the rank of Staff Sergeant. He married Alice J. Yardumian. The couple lived in Delanco, where Alice served as Head Librarian following the retirement of Elizabeth Lewis in 1967. She was still serving in 1976 when she was acknowledged for her assistance in researching newspaper articles from Delanco Library for The Delanco Story (1976). The couple later moved to Riverton, New Jersey, then Avon Park, Florida. Alice died January 9, 1995 and James died April 29, 2007. They are buried in Florida National Cemetery, Bushnell Florida. | US Air Force SSGT | ? | Korea | 1928 - 2007 |
| Edward Zimmermann, Jr. | Edward Zimmermann, Jr. was born in Delanco to Edward and Anne Gardner Zimmermann, Sr. The family lived at 303 Union Avenue. Ed joined the US Navy and served in WWII. He later moved to Cape May where they built and rented out rowboats by the hour. They built a snackbar and cabins for fishermen to stay overnight. They did wonderful business from May to October. Ed left the business for a job in Schenectady, New York. | US Navy ? | ? ? | WWII ? | ? |
| Edward Zimmermann, Sr. | Edward Zimmermann, Sr. was born January 8, 1887. He married Anna Gardner Zimmermann. The couple lived at 303 Union Avenue in Delanco in 1906. In 1917, when WWI broke out, Ed was drafted and sent to Camp Meade. He was assigned to the 304th field signal battalion connected with the 79th division. He went overseas and fought in the Battle of the Argonne Forest in Germany. He suffered a shot of mustard gas before he could get his mask on and suffered a very sore throat burn. Medics gave him some iodine to gargle, but failed to put it on his service record. Ed attained the rank of PFC by seperation. After the war his throat got so bad it cost him $1,000 for treatment of the tissues in his throat. Uncle Sam would do nothing about it because there was no documentation in his service record. Ed married Anna "Nan" Gardner in 1920. According to The Delanco Story, Ed Zimmermann and Ted Heywood of the athletic association were largely credited with obtaining the Bambino, Babe Ruth for the famous exhibition game played in Delanco on July 1, 1924. They began negotiating with the New York Yankees seven weeks prior to the event. Ed and Nan had moved to Cape May Beach and were settled with a fishing livery. His son, had returned from service in the Navy after World War II and they together built a number of row boats and built some cabins for overnight fishermen. They also had a little snack bar and did quite a flourishing business from May till October. They would tow the fishermen with an outboard motor boat and anchor them and return to shore, giving the men an appointed time to return to pick up the boats as they were hired by the hour. Their son decided to give it up and got work in Schenectady, NY and Ed and Nan ran the business but finally gave it up, making quite a profit on real estate. They retired in their home at Town Bank, New Jersey. Nan did practical nursing and Ed was Tax Collector until he became ill. Ed died August 25, 1965. Anna died June 6, 1973. Both are buried in Beverly National Cemetery. | US Army, PFC | B Co, 304th Signal Bat, 79th Div | WWI Camp Meade Argonne Forest Germany | 1887 - 1965 |
| John K. Zimmermann II | John Kulmbach Zimmermann II was born February 26, 1913 in Philadelphia to Louis Dietz Zimmermann, Sr and Mary Josephine Paull Zimmermann. The extended family lived at Orchard & Vine, then 309 Vine Street, then 218 Walter Avenue in Delanco. They moved to Palmyra by 1938. Like his brother Louis, John joined the Merchant Marine in January or February of 1942 and served until August or September of 1945. He served aboard an oiler (tanker) sailing up and down the East Coast between Philadelphia and Texas, and later, through the Panama Canal and out into the South Pacific Ocean. His ship, the SS Yeager, then supplied oil from San Pedro, California to the US Navy in the various islands in the South Pacific. John advanced from Ordinary Seaman to Able Bodied Seaman and Pumpman, corresponding to the position of a non-com in the navy. For a time, John and his brother, Louis served together aboard the US Yeager for a run from San Pedro to Hawaii, then east through the Panama Canal to Curacao off the coast of Venezuela, then west again through the Panama Canal to the New Hebrides Islands in the South Pacific, then back to California. After his service ended, John married Anna M. Lawson on January 23, 1946. One child: Nancy Jo. John died July 28, 1978. Anna died in 1986. | US Merchant Marine AB Seaman | SS Yeager Pumpman | WWII Atlantic, Pacific, Carribean | 1913 - 1978 |
| Louis D. Zimmermann, Jr | Louis Dietz Zimmermann, Jr. was born March 22, 1911 in Philadelphia to Louis Dietz Zimmermann, Sr and Mary Josephine Paull Zimmermann. The extended family lived at Orchard & Vine, then 309 Vine Street, then 218 Walter Avenue in Delanco, New Jersey. They moved to Palmyra, New Jersey by 1938. Louis related that he wanted to join the US Navy, but failed the test. He learned that the Merchant Marine was an honorable alternative, so he joined and served in the Merchant Marine during WWII from March 1942 to January 31, 1946. He sailed aboard the US Aquidale, SS Nancy Lykes, and SS Yeager working up from Ordinary Seaman to Able Bodied Seaman. He graduated from four months officer's training at Fort Trumbull, Connecticut to become a 3rd Mate aboard the SS Richard Coulter, SS Robert C. Tuttle, and SS Thomas Stone. He sailed in the Pacific, Atlantic, Arctic and Indian Oceans and the Mediterranean, Greenlands and Barents Seas. Louis left the Merchant Marine on January 31, 1946. He married Sara K "Sally" Quinn in October 1947 in Philadelphia. The family lived at 5335 N 48th St in Philadelphia for many years; then moved to Westmont, New Jersey, then Medford Leas in Medford, New Jersey. Sally passed from Alzheimers on June 18, 1988. Louis moved into Medford Leas in 1993, where he died on October 8, 2001 at age 90. Both are buried in Lakeview Memorial Park in Cinnaminson. Louis' personal account of his merchant marine experiences were donated to the Delanco History Board in 2021. | US Merchant Marine 3rd Officer | 3rd Officer Liberty Ships Aquidale, Nancy Lykes, Yeager, Richard Coulter Robert C. Tuttle, Thomas Stone | WWII Atlantic, Pacific, Mediterranean, Indian Ocean | 1911-2001 |
| William F. Zimmermann | William Franz Zimmermann was born March 5, 1892 to Charles and Emma Cecelia Zimmermann of Philadelphia. He quit school before high school and got a job as a messenger at Cramp's Shipyard at the drydock and later transferred to the main shipyard. He later took Mechanical Drawing with Mathematics courses with International Correspondence School. During this time, Bill was transferred to I. P. Morris Co., builders of Hydroelectric turbines. He started as a tracer, later worked designing different parts of hydraulic turbines. The Company built most of the units at Niagara Falls and in California. Later he worked at the Barret Mfg. Co. designing chemical process stills and machinery during WWI. They manufactured materials for high explosives. Bill's family moved to Union Avenue in 1906. Bill liked Delanco and the Rancocas Creek so much that, at the age of 16, he and two friends who worked at the shipyard, Abe Leonard and Joseph Wilkins, formed a club called the "Triple Alliance Club". They rented a bungalow on the Thoroughfare in Delanco. Bill was exempted from the draft, but waived the exemption and entered the US Army. He was sent to Camp Meade in September of 1918, was assigned to 154th Depot Brigade and trained in Infantry regulations. Then the entire Camp was put under Quarantine due to a severe epidemic of Influenza. There were 100,000 men training, 10,000 cases of flu, and 1,000 men died. Bill saw men drop on the training field and die the next day. The war ended, otherwise he would have been assigned to an overseas bound unit, the 11th Division. Later he was assigned to the Engineering Department of the Camp Utilities. He designed a fire alarm system for the entire Camp. They surveyed the areas where sand had been excavated (to build camp roads) as the government paid landowners per yard for the sand used. Later they laid out tennis courts, baseball diamonds (which were never used), a rifle range, and the foundations for a pumping station. Bill was offered a job with the contractor who took over the operation of the camp utilities at $1.35 an hour (fair pay at the time) but he said he had enough of camp life and was discharged as a sergeant in May, 1919. By this time, the Triple Alliance Club had disbanded. The boys married and had other interests, Bill's parents took over the club. Bill fell in love with Alvine Fest and they married on July 26, 1926. Their son, Robert was born September 5, 1927. Alvine died October 28, 1947 at age 55. Bill married (2nd) Mrs. Lillian M. Kettler. Bill died November 21, 1989 and is buried with Alvine in Northwood Cemetery in Philadelphia. | US Army Sgt. | 154th Depot Brigade Engineering Camp Utilities | WWI Camp Meade | 1892-1929 |
| Robert G. Zoll | Robert George Zoll was born in Riverside in 1930. He served in the US Army during Korean War. After the war he moved to Delanco. He married Helen, then worked as a Pipe Fitter at Hercules in Burlington until his retirement. He served as a Past Master of the Riverside Masonic Lodge in 1993 and was a member of Pemberton Lodge of Delanco. Robert died February 18, 2017. He was buried in Lakeview Memorial Park, Cinnaminson, NJ. | US Army, ? | ? | Korea | 1930 - 2017 |
Updated October 30, 2023