Cpt. Ejler Bernhard Petersen
(1914 - 2002)
Profile
Cpt. E. B. Petersen was in New York as a student when the war broke out in September 1939. He enlisted in the US Army Air Corps in February 1942. He joined the SHAEF Mission to Denmark and arrived to Copenhagen in early May 1945 with the first allied troops.
Ejler Bernhard Petersen was born on 10 July 1914 in Copenhagen, to porter Hans Peter Petersen and Bertha Kristine Petersen (née Ingemansen).[1] Petersen grew up in Copenhagen. His father died in 1921, when he was only seven years old.
Petersen left Denmark onboard the Norwegian tanker MT Realf on 26 August 1939. He was, thus, at sea as war was declared in early September 1939. The ship arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 10 September 1939.[2] His plan was to stay in the United States for six months to study. He lived at the International House on Riverside Drive. He was the president of the student council in 1940.[3] At the time of the draft, he was employed by the shipping form Isbrandtsen-Moller Co. Inc. in New York.[4]
Petersen enlisted as a private (32217974) in the US Army at Camp Upton Yaphank in New York on 19 February 1942.[5] Little is known about his service at this point. He was naturalised as a United States citizen on 1 September 1942 in Trenton, New Jersey.[6]
On 18 February 1945, Petersen joined the SHAEF Mission to Denmark as a 1st Lieutenant.[7] He returned to Copenhagen on 6 May 1945 as part of this mission. He was one of the first American servicemen after the liberation of Denmark.[8] He served in Denmark for nine months and was promoted to captain.[9] He was released from service on 5 June 1946.[10]
Petersen returned to the United States after the war. He married Laura Mae on 6 May 1955.[11] He died in Red Wing, Goodhue, Minnesota on 15 February 2002.[12]
Endnotes
[1] DNA: 1916 Census of Denmark.
[2] Ancestry: Pennsylvania, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists, 1798-1962.
[3] Yearbook 1940, International House, Resident Directory and Addendum, https://issuu.com/ihouse-nyc/docs/1940_ready (accessed on 9 November 2024).
[4] Ancestry: U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947.
[5] Ancestry: U.S., World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946.
[6] Ancestry: New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists.
[7] TNA: AIR 24/1485.
[8] Blandt Landsmænd, Den Danske Pioneer, 31 May 1945, p. 8.
[9] Blandt Landsmænd, Den Danske Pioneer, 28 March 1946, p. 8.
[10] Ancestry: U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010.
[11] Blandt Landsmænd, Den Danske Pioneer, 19 May 19, 1955, p. 2.
[12] U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014.