Regret to Inform You: The Human Cost of WWII in Lowell, Mass.

By Richard P. Howe Jr.

I’ve long been intrigued by the bronze tablets in the entry hall of the Lowell Memorial Auditorium. They memorialize Lowell residents who died while serving in the military during time of war. I was particularly interested in the tablets devoted to World War II which contain 441 names.

From time to time, other projects caused me to research several of the individuals listed. I found their stories fascinating and wanted to learn more. I’ve now done that with my latest book.

Regret to Inform You: The Human Cost of WWII in Lowell, Mass. provides a biographical sketch of each of the 441 individuals listed on the World War II tablets. Where and when were they born? Where did they live? What were their families like? Where did they work before joining the military? Where did they serve, how did they die, and where were they buried? I tried to answer these questions for each.

The book may be purchased from the online print-on-demand publisher Lulu.com at this link.

A PDF of the full book is also available for free elsewhere on this website if you prefer reading an ebook.

As a sample of the book’s contents, here are three of the stories contained in it:

Elisee Dufresne – Born in Quebec in 1897, Elisee Dufresne, also known as Joseph Elisee Dufresne, came to Lowell in 1910 with his parents and six brothers. The family lived at 2 Lavallee Place, and all worked in a cotton mill. Elisee entered the U.S. Army in 1918 and was stationed at Camp Devens. While there, he became a U.S. citizen. After that war, he returned to the family home and resumed work in a mill. However, he rejoined the U.S. Army in 1925 and became a career soldier. When the United States entered World War II, Elisee was a Corporal with the 31st Infantry Regiment in the Philippines. He was taken prisoner by the Japanese in the surrender of Bataan and died in a Japanese prisoner of war camp in the Philippines on May 31, 1942. He is buried in the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.

John F. Gormley – Born in Lowell in 1922, John Francis Gormley lived at 408 Middlesex Street with his parents. John worked at Merrimack Manufacturing Company on Dutton Street. An Ordnanceman 2nd Class in the U.S. Navy, John was assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Princeton. He was killed in action on October 24, 1944, at age 21, when a Japanese bomb caused a tremendous explosion on the Princeton, killing 229 of its crew and eventually sinking the ship during the Battle of Leyte Gulf in the Philippines. John is buried in the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.

James P. Scondras – Born in Lowell in 1920, James P. Scondras lived at 287 Dutton Street with his parents and four siblings. His mother and father were born in Greece. His father owned a restaurant in which the entire family worked. James was a student and a star athlete at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester. A 1st Lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps, James was assigned to the 3rd Marine Division. He was killed in action on Iwo Jima on February 25, 1945, at age 24. He is buried in Westlawn Cemetery. In 1965, Lowell dedicated the gymnasium at the Rogers School to his memory as the James Scondras Gymnasium. His brother, David, was killed in action in France in 1944.