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                    bigpigeon.us webpage WWII Dead > Roster Hub > Roster Kj-Kz © 2025 by Robert A. Christiansen, updated by RAC 10 May 2025
​                    Part 18/38 of the Pottawattamie Area World War II Dead Roster, 20 "Kj-Kz" records
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† Klefman, Gordon Louis, SN 0-325-561, US Army, Pott. Co. & Douglas Co., NE
  • b. 11 Jan 1915 Co. Bluffs; s/o Louis J. Klefman (b. Mondamin, Harrison Co.) & Nellie M. Harriman (b. Co. Bluffs); family moved to Omaha about 1940.
  • living in Kansas City, KS in 1940.
  • previous Iowa National Guard Service; enlisted in Air Corps 29 May 1941 at Fort Leavenworth, KS from Douglas Co., NE; transferred to artillery; service credited to Douglas Co., NE; buried Memorial Park Cem., Council Bluffs.
  • Co. C, 1st Ranger Bn. (one of 500 original US Army Rangers); KIA 10 Nov 1942 near Oran, Algeria, North Africa.
  • The MTO > North Africa > Operation Torch.

† Kloewer, Eugene John, SN 37-436-471, US Army, Shelby Co.
  • b. 25 Jun 1921 Earling/Harlan, Shelby Co.; s/o Frank A. Kloewer & Anna M. Rau, both b. Westphalia, Shelby Co.
  • entered service 5 Oct 1942 from Rt. 3, Harlan, Shelby Co.; service credited to Shelby Co.; buried Epinal American Cem., SE of Epinal, Lorraine, France; cenotaph Sts. Peter and Paul Cem., Defiance, Shelby Co.
  • 753rd Tank Bn., Seventh Army; KIA 15 Sep 1944, Burgundy area, France.
  • The ETO > Liberation > Southern France. 

† Knapp, Clyde Alfred, SN 0-328-819, US Army Air Force, Los Angeles Co., CA & Pott. Co.
  • b. 9 Jan 1909 Omaha; s/o George W. Knapp (b. Douglas Co., NE) & Beulah B. West (b. Fremont Co., IA); family lived in at least six Midwest locations; parents divorced.
  • married Joycelyn Nadine Howard 1936, two children; moved to Los Angeles Co., CA after marrying.
  • unknown service entry date & location; service credited to Mobile Co., AL, reason unknown; body not recovered; memorialized Tablets of the Missing; North Africa American Cem., Carthage, Tunisia.
  • 154th Observation Sqdn., 68th Observation Gp., Twelfth Air Force; based at Oujda, NE Morocco, North Africa; Douglas A-20 Havoc pilot; KIA 7 Jan 1943 in North Africa; aircraft with crew of four disappeared on a mission.
  • The MTO > MTO Air War.

† Knapp, Rexford James “Rex”, SN 316-35-72, US Navy, Shelby Co.
  • b. 21 Aug 1913 Manilla, Crawford Co.; s/o Edward J. Knapp (b. La Salle Co., IL) & Julia J. Luxford (b. Illinois); family moved from Jefferson Twp., Shelby Co. to Harlan, Shelby Co. before 1918 and to Co. Bluffs in early 1930s.
  • married Rose Marie Thomas of Hawaii, three children.
  • entered service 1933 from Co. Bluffs; next of kin wife, Mrs. Rose Marie Knapp, 505 6th St., Navy Housing, Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii; buried Union Twp. Cem., Defiance, Shelby Co.
  • Cruiser USS Minneapolis (CA-36); KIA 30 Nov 1942 in Ironbottom Sound off Guadalcanal, Solomon Is.; Minneapolis torpedoed by Japanese destroyer & heavily damaged.
  • Battle of Tassafaronga - South & SW Pacific > Solomons Naval War.

† Knight, DeVere Hiram, SN 20-706-798, US Army, Mills Co.
  • b. 5 Aug 1915 Malvern, Mills Co.; s/o Harvey J. Knight (b. Malvern, Mills Co.) & Emily C. Clary (b. Seward Co., NE).
  • entered service with National Guard 10 Feb 1941 from Malvern, Mills Co.; service credited to Mills Co.; buried Malvern Cem.
  • Co. M (Red Oak), 168th Inf. Regt., 34th Inf. Div., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 4 Nov 1943 near Hill 400, NE of Venafro, 20 miles east of Cassino, Italy, sniper fire.
  • The MTO > Italy > The Volturno Line.

† Knudsen, Robert Dearld, SN 896,935, US Marine Corps, Pott. Co. & Jackson Co., MO
  • b. 26 Sep 1925 Co. Bluffs; s/o George Knudsen (b. Co. Bluffs; d. 1929) & Retha Jane Daugherty (b. Holt Co., MO); family living in Co. Bluffs 1940; mother married John R. Broyles  Jan 1943 and moved to Kansas City, MO.
  • entered service 25 Oct 1943 from Co. Bluffs; next of kin mother, Mrs. Retha Broyles, 612 1/2 E. 12th St., Kansas City, MO; buried Jefferson City Natl. Cem., Jefferson City, Cole Co., MO.
  • Co. H, 7th Marine Regt., 1st Marine Div.; KIA 14 May 1945 Okinawa, Ryukyu Is., Japan.
  • Iwo Jima & Okinawa > Land Battle of Okinawa.

† Knutson, Harold Norman, SN 39-092-195, US Army Air Force, Pott. Co. & Josephine Co., OR
  • b. 2 Feb 1920 Hawarden, Sioux Co.; s/o Emil M. Knutson (b. Union Co., SD) & Edna M. Caster (b. Hardin Co.); family lived in Sioux and Marshall Cos., moving to Co. Bluffs in early 1940s.
  • lived in Grants Pass, Josephine Co., OR in early 1940s.
  • entered service 7 Mar 1942 from Hawarden, Sioux Co.; service credited to Josephine Co., OR; body not recovered; memorialized Courts of the Missing, Natl. Cem. of the Pacific, Honolulu, Oahu, HI; cenotaph in Cedar Lawn Cem., Co. Bluffs.
  • 36th Bomb. Sqdn., 28th Bomb Gp., Eleventh Air Force; based at Elmendorf Field, Anchorage, Alaska Territory; Boeing B-17E Flying Fortress #41-9146 crew member with pilot Albert J. Wilsey Jr.; KIA 28 Aug 1942 Aleutian Is., Alaska; aircraft disappeared returning from three-plane mission over Kiska Is. led by Col. William O. Eareckson; all nine died.
  • North Pacific > Alaska.
++++++++++
† Knutson, Noble Malvin, SN 37-190-416, US Army, Sioux & Woodbury Cos.
  • b. 1 Oct 1905 Vilas, Miner Co., SD; s/o Ole Knutson (b. Norway; d. 1940) & Bertha Nelson (b. Norway' d. 1944); family moved to Hawarden, Sioux Co. about 1913.
  • moved to Sioux City, Woodbury Co. about 1938.
  • entered service at unknown date; service credited to Woodbury Co.; buried Normandy American Cem., Colleville-sur-Mer, France.
  • 358th Inf. Regt., 90th Inf. Div.; KIA 10 Jul 1944  NW of St. Lo near Gonfreville, Normandy, France.
  • The ETO > Normandy Campaign > Normandy, July 1944. 
++++++++++
about Harold and Noble Knutson:
  • Harold and Noble Knutson were nephew and uncle.

† Koebel, Kenneth L., SN 0-421-117, US Army Air Force, Pima Co., AZ & Pott. Co.
  • b. 17 Nov 1919 Atlantic, Cass Co.
  • entered service from unknown location 15 Oct 1940; service credited to Pima Co., AZ; body not recovered; memorialized Walls of the Missing, Manila American Cem., Luzon, Philippines.
  • 13th or 33rd Pursuit Sqdn.; KIA 1 Mar 1942, 430 miles south of Java, Dutch East Indies; on old aircraft carrier USS Langley (CV-1); Langley sunk by Japanese air attack, 177 Army Air Force survivors transferred to destroyer USS Edsall (DD-219) which then headed towards Java; Edsall sunk by Japanese surface ships; most Edsall survivors were left in the water; of the survivors rescued by the Japanese most - maybe all - subsequently died in captivity or were executed.
  • Japan Lashes Out > The Dutch Indies Lost.
++++++++++
† Koebel, Leonard Lavern, SN 0-726-911, US Army Air Force, Pima Co., AZ & Pott. Co.
  • b. 14 Jul 1917 Creston, Union Co.
  • unknown service entry date and location; service credited to Pima Co., AZ; buried Greenwood Cem., San Diego, CA.
  • 401 Bomb. Sqdn., 91st Bomb. Gp.; Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress #41-24451 bombardier; DNB 3 Oct 1942 Ballymena, County Antrim, Northern Ireland; crash en route from US, eight died, two survived.
  • The ETO > ETO Comm. Zone.
++++++++++
about Kenneth L. and Leonard Lavern Koebel:
  • sons of Charles O. Koebel (b. Red Oak, Montgomery Co.) & Olivia B. Madison (b. Gregory Co., SD); family lived in Atlantic, Cass Co. 1920, in Denver, CO 1923 & 1930; parents divorced; mother married Harvey N. Hamilton 1933; in San Antonio, TX 1935; in Tucson, AZ 1940. 

† Koenemann, Howard Oscar, SN 20-706-799, US Army, Montgomery Co.
  • b. 10 Jul 1918 Sabula, Jackson Co.; s/o Otto H. Koenemann & Caroline Friday (d. 1918), both b. Jackson Co.; father married Ada Hubbirt Mar 1922 in Johnson Co., IA; family moved to Red Oak before 1925.
  • entered service with National Guard 10 Feb 1941 at Red Oak, Montgomery Co.; service credited to Montgomery Co.; buried Sicily-Rome American Cem., Nettuno, Lazio, Italy.
  • Co. M (Red Oak), 168th Inf. Regt., 34th Inf. Div., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 3 Dec 1943 Mt. Pantano, NE of Cassino, Lazio, Italy.
  • Battle of Mt. Pantano - The MTO > Italy > The Bernhardt Line.
  • Notes: posthumous Silver Star.

† Kranz, Fred Roger, SN 905,601, US Marine Corps, Cook Co., IL & Pott. Co.
  • b. 22 Apr 1924 Oelwein, Fayette Co.; s/o Fred A. Kranz (b. Chickasaw Co.) & Irene Kaufman (b. Wisconsin); parents divorced early 1930s; father moved to Minden, Pott. Co. in early 1930s & to Co. Bluffs in early 1940s; father married Margaret E. ____; mother married James L. Wallace (b. Tennessee) and lived inCook Co., IL.
  • in Frazee, Becker Co., MN 1940 & 1942.
  • entered service 11 Nov 1943; service credited to Cook Co., IL; next of kin mother, Mrs. Irene K. Wallace, Box 83, Posen, IL; buried Fort Snelling Natl. Cem., Minneapolis, Hennepin Co., MN.
  • Co. C, 1st Marine Regt., 1st Marine Div; KIA 17 Sep 1944 Peleliu Is., Palau Is., east of the Philippines.
  • Battle of Peleliu - Central Pacific > Palau Islands.

† Kraschel, James Norman, SN 17-152-672, US Army Air Force, Shelby Co. 
  • b. 25 Mar 1924 Harlan, Shelby Co.
  • attended University of Iowa 1942-43.
  • entered service 1 Feb 1943 from Harlan, Shelby Co.; service credited to Shelby Co.; buried Harlan Cem., Shelby Co.
  • 868th Bomb. Sqdn., attached directly to Thirteenth Air Force headquarters; based at Yontan Airfield, Okinawa Is., Japan; flying radar-equipped Consolidated SB-24 Liberator search bombers specializing in night missions; tail number and pilot unknown; DNB 24 Sep 1945, Okinawa, Ryukyu Is., Japan, aircraft accident after Japan surrendered.
  • WWII Japan > The Pacific Base Areas.​
† Kraschel, Richard Nelson, civilian, Shelby Co. 
  • b. 25 Jan 1919 Harlan, Shelby Co.
  • buried Harlan Cem., Shelby Co.
  • test pilot for Bell Aircraft, Buffalo, NY; d. 29 May 1943 near Niagara Falls, NY; Bell P-39 Airacobra malfunction; bailed out at low altitude and parachute failed to open.
about James Norman and Richard Nelson Kraschel:
  • sons of Nelson G. Kraschel (b. Macon Co., IL) & Agnes J. Johnson (b. Co. Bluffs); Nelson Kraschel was Governor of Iowa 1937-39.

† Kreger, Lewis Elwin, SN 37-261-801, US Army, Pott. Co.
  • b. 6 Nov 1920 Co. Bluffs; s/o Melvin L. Kreger (b. Thomas Co., KS) & Hazel F. Dalton (b. Monona Co.).
  • entered service 16 Sep 1942 from Co. Bluffs; service credited to Pott. Co.; buried Brittany American Cem., St.-James, Manche Dept., Normandy, France.
  • 28th Inf. Regt., 8th Inf. Div., VIII Corps; KIA 31 Aug 1944, near Brest, Brittany, France.
  • Battle of Brittany - The ETO > Liberation > Brittany.

† Kroman, Albert Harold, SN 0-1-169-605, US Army, Shelby Co.
  • b. 18 Sep 1914 Jackson Twp., rural Elk Horn, Shelby Co.; s/o Andrew Hansen Kroman (d. 1939) & Christina M. Christensen, both b. Shelby Co..
  • entered service 27 Mar 1941 from Elk Horn, Shelby Co.; service credited to Shelby Co.; buried Elk Horn Cem.
  • unit unknown (Artillery OCS graduate, Fort Sill, OK); KIA 3 Jun 1944 approaching Rome, Lazio, Italy.
  • The MTO > Italy > Cassino to Rome.

† Kuehn, Russell Dale, SN 37-693-128, US Army, Cass Co.
  • b. 15 Oct 1918 Anita, Cass Co.; s/o Frederick L. Kuehn (b. Kearney Co., NE) & Pearl A. Gissible (b. Iowa).
  • married Mildred D. Smith of Cass Co. Jun 1941 in Nodaway Co., MO.
  • entered service at unknown date from Rt. 2, Anita, Cass Co.; service credited to Cass Co.; buried Evergreen Cem., Anita.
  • Co. K, 137th Inf. Regt., 35th Inf. Div., XII Corps, Third Army; KIA 17 Dec 1944 near Bliesbruck, east of Sarreguemines, Moselle Dept., Lorraine, France.
  • The ETO > War of Attrition > Lorraine/Third Army.
​
† Kuhl, Robert Lawrence, SN 0-2-062-828, US Army Air Force, Adams Co.
  • b. 28 Dec 1921 Harlan, Shelby Co.; s/o Lawrence A. Kuhl (b. Earling, Shelby Co.) & Priscilla M. Meuer (b. Day Co., SD); family moved to Corning, Adams Co. in late 1920s.
  • entered service 20 Feb 1943 from Corning, Adams Co.; service credited to Adams Co.; buried Cavalry Cem., Corning.
  • 261st Base Unit, Abilene Army Air Field, Taylor Co., TX; Republic P-47D Thunderbolt #42-74757 pilot; d. 31 Oct 1944 1/2 mile SE of field; spin and stall.

​† Kussman, Edward William, SN 37-261-765, US Army Air Force, Pott. Co.
  • b. 25 Jun 1919 Cumberland, Cass Co.; s/o John F. Kussman (b. Chariton Co., MO) & Elva M. Stender (b. Adams Co.); family moved to Co. Bluffs in late 1920s.
  • entered service 2 Sep 1942 from Co. Bluffs; service credited to Pott. Co.; buried Cambridge American Cem., Coton, Cambridgeshire, England.
  • 856 Bomb. Sqdn., 492nd Bomb. Gp., Eighth Air Force; based at North Pickenham, Norfolk, England; Consolidated B-24 Liberator #42-50331 waist gunner with pilot Henry L. Polansky; KIA 31 Mar 1945, near Kirkwall, Orkney Is., Scotland; aircraft lost power and crashed returning from aborted Operation Carpetbagger mission; one survived; 13 died included six Norwegian Special Forces members.
  • The ETO > ETO Air War > Eighth Air Force.

† Kyhnn, George Russell, SN 37-698-181, US Army, Audubon & Marshall Cos.
  • ​b. 8 Aug 1914 rural Audubon, Hamlin Twp., Audubon Co.; s/o John Kyhnn (b. Audubon Co.) & Agnes Nielsen (b. Audubon Co.).
  • married Vera M. Gale of Marshall Co. Sep 1938 in Audubon, one child.
  • entered service 8 Jun 1944 from Marshalltown, Marshall Co.; service credited to Marshall Co.; buried Riverside Cem., Marshalltown.
  • Co. B, 473rd Inf. Regt., 92nd Inf. Div., IV Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 13 Apr 1945 Hill 366, near Carrara, Tuscany, Italy.
  • Operation Second Wind - The MTO > Italy > The Po Valley.
  • Notes: The 473rd Inf. Regt. was constituted in-theater in Jan 1945 from surplus anti-aircraft personnel and assigned to the 92nd Inf. Div. (colored) in the last several months of WWII.
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