The Genealogy of William Mortensen Vaughan: The Biography of U.S. Army Band Member Sidney Knowlton Vaughan by William Mortensen Vaughan

Epitaph

Sidney Knowlton Vaughan
(1923-2011)
U.S. Army Band Member from Chicago, Illinois

Basic Data

Full Name at Birth: Sidney Knowlton Vaughan

Relationship to Me: Uncle (my father's brother)

WikiTree ID: Vaughan-4005

FamilySearch ID: LXMT-HDN

Alias: Sid

Date of Birth: 30/31 July 1923

Place of Birth: Chicago, Illinois

Gender: male

U.S. Military Service Number: unknown

Father: William Swift Vaughan

Mother: Maud Osborn Knowlton

Siblings*:

William Knowlton Vaughan

Wife: Charlotte Allaben

Date of Marriage: 13 April 1946

Place of Marriage: Glen Ellyn, Illinois

Offspring**:
David Sidney Vaughan
Warren Charles Vaughan

Date of Death: 18 April 2011

Place of Death: Mount Vernon, Linn, Iowa

Place of Burial: Mount Vernon Cemetery, Mount Vernon, Linn, Iowa

Biography

Sidney Knowlton Vaughan was born on the 30th or 31st of July, 1923, in Chicago, Illinois, to William Swift Vaughan and Maud Knowlton Vaughan. His only sibling, William Knowlton Vaughan, (a.k.a. "Bill") had already been born, on June 14, 1921, also in Chicago.

Sid graduated from high school in Glen Ellyn, Illinois (presumably, in 1940 or 1941, when he was approximately 17 or 18 years old).

Sid served in the U.S. Army from 1943 to 1946 (from age 20 to 23, approximately), but remained Stateside during Word War II, playing in the U.S. Army Band, whereas his brother served overseas during that war.

Sid married Charlotte Allaben, daughter of Max and Flora Allaben, in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, on April 13, 1946, when he was approximately 23 years old, after (or near the end of) his military service. Given the dates of Sid's wedding and Bill's discharge from the U.S. Army, Bill must have attended Sid's wedding while on Terminal Leave.

Sid received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Music from VanderCook College of Music, in Chicago, and a Master of Science Degree in Education from Northern Illinois State University. He taught public school band, was a high school counselor in Indiana. He was also a vocational counselor and audio visual specialist at Cornell College for several years, until he opened a T.V. sales and service store in Solon, and later in Newhall (presumably, Iowa). Sidney was a member of the Mount Vernon American Legion Post.

"Sidney K. Vaughan," of the Meth Wick Community, formerly of Mount Vernon, Iowa, died at age 87, at the Mercy Medical Center, while connected to a dialysis machine, Monday, April 18, 2011. Services were to be held at 1:00 p.m., Thursday, at the First Church of the Nazarene, by the Rev. Timothy Carter. Inurnment was to be at the Mount Vernon Cemetery, at a later date. Cedar Memorial Westside Chapel was entrusted with arrangements.

Survivors included his wife, Charlotte Allaben Vaughan; five grandchildren; four great grandchildren; his sister-in-law, Merle Allen; and his brother's only child, Willam Mortensen Vaughan.

He was preceded in death by his parents (William Swift Vaughan and Maud Osborn Knowlton Vaughan; his brother, William Knowlton Vaughan; and two sons, David Vaughan and Warren Vaughan.

Early in his career, he had been a railroad agent with the CB&O Railroad in Illinois. One of his hobbies was donating and installing telegraph displays at several railroad depot museums, including Ushers Ferry Pioneer Village, where he was a volunteer host. He loved and gave time to his family, his church, and to the Gideons.

One of the few photographs of Bill and Sid are of them with their grandmother, Edna Osborn, at "the Shacks in Channahon." These "Shacks" may have formed part of a Hooverville.

As children, Bill and Sid created a magazine they called "Boys' Nature," with colored pencils, pens, a typewriter, and acorn clips.

According to the U.S. Census of 1940, "William," "Maud K.," William K.," and "Sydney K. Vaughan" resided at 814 Hillside Avenue, Glen Ellyn Village, Milton Township, DuPage County, Illinois. William was sixty years old (born circa 1880). Maud and the boys were thirty-seven, eighteen, and sixteen years old (born circa 1893, 1922 and 1924, respectively).

World War II

The last time I saw my Uncle Sid alive was in the spring of 2008, when I visited him at the Meth Wick Community in Cedar Rapids, Iowa where he lived with his wife, my Aunt Char. He told me, during this visit, that he had played Stateside, during World War II, in the U.S. Army Band.

Research Notes

To the best of my knowledge, Sidney only had one sibling, who was an older brother, named William Knowlton Vaughan, also known as "Bill." Sidney was known as "Sid." Sid only had one wife, Charlotte Allaben, a.k.a. my "Aunt Char"; and neither of them had but two children, David Sidney Vaughan and Warren Charles Vaughan.

During the U.S. Census of 1930, "Sidney K. Vaughn," at age 6, was found living with his parents, "William S. Vaughn," age 50; and "Maud K. Vaughn," age 37; and his brother, "Willian (sic) K. Vaughan," age 8, in "Milton, DuPage, Illinois, United States."

During the U.S. Census of 1940, "Sidney K. Vaughn," at age 16, was found living with his parents, "William Vaughan," age 60; and "Maud K. Vaughan," age 47; and his brother, "William K. Vaughan," age 18, in "Glen Ellyn, Milton Township, DuPage, Illinois, United States."

Mistaken Identities

Based on data at Fold3.com, approximately one dozen men identified as "Sidney Vaughan" are listed among their records. Approximately two dozen men identified as "Sidney Vaughn" are listed among their records. Other men are listed who are named "Sidney Vaughan," but have different middle initials. Several other men have different first names, but their middle and last names are "Sidney Vaughan." Several others have "Sydney Vaughan" for their first and middle names, but other surnames, such as "Ellis," "Lawrence," "Pack," and "Williams." Only my uncle seems to be listed as "Sidney K. Vaughan" and/or "Sidney Knowlton Vaughan." Several of the men named "Sidney Vaughan" who registered for the Draft and/or served in World War II, include:


Sidney Knowlton Vaughan (my Uncle Sid)
Birth Date: 30 Jul 1923
Death Date: 18 Apr 2011
Residence: 814 Hillside Ave., Glen Ellyn, DuPage, Illinois
Next of Kin: Wm. S. Vaughan
Last 4, SSN: 2572

Sidney Vaughan
Birth Date: 1 Feb 1914
Death Date: 6 Apr 1992
Enlistment: 19 May 1943

Sidney Vaughan
U.S. Navy
Enlistment: 19 May 1943
Discharge: 18 Feb 1946

Sidney Vaughan
Birth Date: 21 May 1891
Birth Place: West Catasauqua, Pennsylvania

Sidney Vaughan
Birth Date: 15 Jan 1890
Residence: Michigan

Sidney Vaughan
U.K. Royal Artillery
Death Date: 1952
Enlistment: 30 Sep 1940
Discharge: 14 Jul 1953

Discrepancies

The only evidence I ever had, that my Uncle Sid served in the U.S. Army Band, Stateside, during World War II, was his word.

As of February 27, 2021, I have yet to find a record of Sidney Knowlton Vaughan's date of enlistment or discharge, or any information regarding when, where, or with whom he served. However, I have found a copy of his registration for the Draft, and a Veterans Affairs Beneficiary Identification Records Locator Subsystem (B.I.R.L.S.) record for him, which indicates that a man named "Sidney Vaughan" was born July 30, 1923 (a day earlier than other records indicate); he allegedly enlisted July 30, 1924 (when he was about one year old); he died on January 22, 2004 (although I saw him alive in 2008, and other records indicate that he died on April 18, 2011); and he was connected with an "Other Service."

There are several discrepancies in the records of Illinois Birth Certificates for Uncle Sid and his brother (my father), William "Bill" Knowlton Vaughan, as recorded on FamilySearch.org. Sid's indicates that his name was "Sidney Knowelton Vaughan"; his father's, "Wm Vaughan"; and his mother's, "Maud Knowleton." William's indicates that his name was "Wm Knowlton Vaughan "; his father's, "Wm R Vaughan"; and his mother's, "Maud Knowlton." According to our family traditions, and our Books of Remembrance, Sid's father was "William Swift Vaughan," and his middle name (also his mother's maiden name) was "Knowlton." I have no logical explanation for the middle initial "R." in William Swift Vaughan's name on the record of Bill's birth, or for the alternate spellings of "Knowlton."

There are discrepancies in Sid's date of birth as seen on his tombstone, and on the records of his birth - the 30th versus the 31st of July, 1923. He was probably born the night of July 30th, in the wee hours of the 31st.

Trivia

Sidney Knowlton Vaughan's father, William Swift Vaughan, only had two children, both of whom were sons; Sidney also only had two children, both of whom were sons.

The Genealogy of William Mortensen Vaughan

Saturday, February 19, 2022

The Biography of U.S. Army Band Member Sidney Knowlton Vaughan by William Mortensen Vaughan