Title: Clifford Jansonius
Dates: 1943-1946
Collection Number: MSS 11135
Quantity: 1.25 feet
Abstract: Papers consist of correspondence, records of the Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit #584, U.S. Navy documents, printed material, World War II newsletters and newspapers, photographs and negatives. Jansonius (1909-1980) was a former Burleigh County Judge, who served in the Navy during World War II (WWII).
Provenance: The Clifford E. Jansonius World War II Papers were donated to the Museum Division of the State Historical Society along with Jansonius’ uniform in 2004 by Annette Langford (Mus #2004.11). The papers were transferred to the Archives in September 2010, and Langford signed a gift agreement with the State Archives on August 24, 2012.
Property Rights: The State Historical Society of North Dakota owns the property rights to this collection.
Copyrights: Copyrights to this collection remain with the donor, publisher, author, or author's heirs. Researchers should consult the 1976 Copyright Act, Public Law 94-553, Title 17, U.S. Code or an archivist at this repository if clarification of copyright requirements is needed.
Access: This collection is open under the rules and regulations of the State Historical Society of North Dakota.
Citation: Researchers are requested to cite the collection title, collection number, and the State Historical Society of North Dakota in all footnote and bibliographic references.
Related Collections: Jansonius’ uniform (Mus #2004.11)
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH
From Jansonius’ Obituary in The Bismarck Tribune, August 27, 1980 p. 30
“A man characterized as a walking encyclopedia whose inquisitive mind took him to nearly every country in the world died Tuesday morning in Munich, Germany.
Former Fourth District (now South Central District) Judge Clifford E. Jansonius, 71, Bismarck, died there while vacationing with his wife, Gladys. They had visited Germany to see the famous Passion Play at Oberammergau.
A memorial service [was] held at 11 a.m. [August 28th] at Lutheran Church of the Cross, Bismarck.
Mr. Jansonius followed his father’s footsteps when he entered the Fourth District courtroom and picked up the gavel. His father, Fred Jansonius, was district judge for 25 years.
The younger Jansonius was born February 2, 1909, at Bowden. He attended the University of North Dakota for a year, then attended the Gregg School of Court Reporting in Chicago. He passed up the academic approach to law, choosing instead to study under his father. He was admitted to the bar in 1934.
He married Gladys Ramona Fadness August 8, 1931.
He was an assistant in the North Dakota Attorney General’s beginning in 1941. In 1943 he joined the U.S. Navy.
Perhaps his wanderlust was rooted in the 18 months he spent in Europe during World War II. Friends find it difficult to name a country that Mr. Jansonius had not yet visited.
When he returned, he started a law practice in Bismarck with Alvin C. Struts, a former attorney general. In 1951 he served in the legislature as a Nonpartisan League representative from Burleigh County.
Former Burleigh County District Judge W. C. “Pat” Lynch, who worked with Mr. Jansonius as a law partner in Bismarck and later as a district judge in the same courthouse, called Mr. Jansonius “ a man of the highest moral character and integrity. He had the quality a good judge must have – an even temperament. He was a joy to work with.”
Mr. Jansonius is survived by his wife; two daughters, Mrs. Robert (Annette) Langford, Wayzata, Minn., and Mrs. Quentin (Carol) Marino, Ann Arbor, Mich.; six grandchildren; and a brother, Dr. John Jansonius, Jamestown.”
BOX / FOLDER INVENTORY
Box 1:
1 Correspondence, 1943-1946
2 Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit #584: Jansonius’ request for a change of duty, inventory of gear being mailed and roster with names and addresses, 1945
3 Miscellaneous documents:
Appointment as leader of a contingent of selected men from Local Board No. 1 of Burleigh County, ND, 1943
Nametag, ca. 1943
National Service Life Veterans Administration Insurance certificate, 1943
Recruiting letter, 1943
Monthly quota of skilled trade ratings desired in the construction battalion for seventh corp. induction area and pay scale for Sea Bees, ca. 1943
“10 facts about the emergency maternity and infant care program for wives and babies of enlisted men in the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th Grades of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard” flyer and allotment check stubs for Gladys Jansonius, 1943
Meal and Lodging request documents, 1943
Transfer orders, 1945
Honorable discharge certificates, 1945
Decommissioning ceremony minutes/report, 1945
4 Miscellaneous printed material:
U.S. Navy Rating description booklet, Chief Yeoman, n.d.
Bulletin of Information for Persons Registered, Director of Selective Service, 1940
“Somewhere in England,” by Norman L. Miller autographed for “Jan” by
Miller, 1944
Thanksgiving Day menu, “Somewhere in England,” 1944
Christmas greetings, “Somewhere in England,” 1944
Protestant Services, Hut Area Recreation Hall, program, 1944
“C. E. Jansonius” stencil
U.S. Navy Divine Services, 1944
U.S. Navy Christmas Carols, 1944
5 Newsletters and newspapers, including issues of:
“584th Bee-Con”
“Bee Lines”
“The U.S. Navy Liberator”
The Stars and Stripes
Box 2: Photographs:
11135-01 Jansonius portrait in uniform, ca. 1944
11135-02 Jansonius in uniform, ca. 1944
11135-03 Jansonius, ca. 1944
11135-04 Jansonius portrait in uniform, ca. 1944 (print and negative)
11135-05 Jansonius with fellow sailors and soldiers, ca. 1944
11135-06 Procession of Naval members possibly at a training center, ca. 1943
11135-07 Jansonius in uniform standing next to automobile, ca. 1944
11135-08 Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit #584 group portrait
(identification list is in Box 2 with the photo)
11135-09 Large group portrait of U.S. Navy members, ca. 1944
11135-10 Jansonius portrait in uniform, ca. 1944
11135-11 Cunard White Star Liner “Queen Elizabeth” commercial print
11135-12 Side portrait of Jansonius in uniform, ca. 1944 (print and negative)
11135-13 Balsters residence, England? 1944
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