The caption under the photo reads:

The Salem Observer
Vol. 38, No. 3
Thursday, May 22, 2003

Adding to the scrolls

Name of mother who served in war will join son on Salem war monument this Memorial Day

BY ERIC BAXTER >>>

Among the names of those war veterans on the Salem War Memorial is inscribed Raymond A. Philbrick Jr.

Philbrick enlisted in the Army in 1943 and served as a war photographer and photo lab technician in both Europe and the Pacific before leaving the service in 1946 with the rank of corporal.

His time was like thousands of others serving during World War II. But one part of his experience sets him apart. Or rather, the experiences of his mother help set his experience apart.

This Memorial Day, Philbrick’s mother’s name will be added to the rolls of the soldiers and veterans on the memorial making them the only mother and son hailing from Salem to have served at the same time in the same war.

While the knowledge of having Carrie E. Philbrick sharing space with his name is a thrill, it’s the honor of having his mother’s wartime effort and “unique” personality acknowledged that is the real treat.

“I used to tell people my mother really did wear combat boots,” said Philbrick with a laugh during a phone call to his home in Florida where he retired to in 1987, a year before his mother died.

Carrie Philbrick was born in 1900 at a time when choices for women were limited. She raised three children, of which Philbrick was the youngest, many of those years as a single mother.

When Philbrick enlisted in March 1943 at 18, his mother was left at home alone. Her two daughters had married and moved away. One month later, Philbrick’s mother enlisted as well, joining the Women’s Army Air Corps. She was living in Salem at the time she enlisted.

While her reasons for joining were never clear, Philbrick said he believed it had something to do with loneliness but more to do with her character. She left her job in the winding room of a Lawrence mill to join the service.

“She was very patriotic, she felt she had a duty to help her country. She was proud of the country,” he said.

Setting her apart from other volunteers was her age. At 43, she was among the oldest volunteers allowed for active duty.

“Really, that made her remarkable as well,” said Philbrick.

After the war she marched in every parade, joined the American Legion and then, when old age robbed her of mobility, she would ride in a car at parades, proud of what she and other soldiers had done.

“Every time she would see a flag she would tear a little,” said Philbrick.

The pair went through basic training at the same time and Philbrick took one of his leaves from his camp in Louisiana to visit her in Texas before going overseas.

A newspaper clipping from the time talks about the reunion and how the two compared notes on camp life, complimented each other on their uniforms and shared news about a new tooth Philbrick’s 11-month old son had recently cut.

Then the two split and while Philbrick served overseas his mother was stationed as an operations clerk at a base in Georgia.

In an ironic twist of fate his mother came out of service as a line corporal and outranked his technical corporal status.

“She was a unique woman and I think she deserves this recognition,” he said.

Photo and article courtesy of
The Salem Observer

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