Post by kanowarrior on Apr 6, 2012 11:35:32 GMT -5
Posted: Fri, Apr. 6, 2012, 3:01 AM
John D. Stewart, 90, lawyer, real estate broker, honored WWII vet
By Walter F. Naedele
Inquirer Staff Writer
When John D. Stewart caught a 50-pound bass a mile north of Barnegat Inlet on Nov. 7, 1961, it was celebrated as a world record.
It was not Mr. Stewart's first remarkable achievement.
During World War II, Second Lt. Stewart earned a Silver Star for saving much of his battalion on Nov. 23, 1944, during the battle of the Huertgen Forest.
Mr. Stewart, 90, of Cinnaminson, a former Northeast Philadelphia lawyer and real estate broker, died Thursday, March 29, of heart failure at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital.
Mr. Stewart's Silver Star citation reads, in part:
"After two companies of the battalion had come under murderous enemy artillery fire resulting in heavy casualties, Lt. Stewart with complete disregard for his own safety, when the companies began to show signs of disorganization, organized them into a perimeter defense which successfully repulsed several determined enemy counterattacks.
"His leadership when all other officers were killed or wounded permitted the battalion to hold its ground and enabled the wounded to be evacuated. . . .
"He returned eight times throughout the night," despite continued German artillery bombardment, "to search for wounded men."
The citation reported that his "leadership resulted in the saving of a considerable portion of his battalion."
His son, Michael, said in a Thursday interview that Mr. Stewart was seriously wounded on Nov. 28, 1944, and spent 23 months in military hospitals.
"He had some problems later in life. They had to remove part of his intestine" because he had been shot in the abdomen, his son said.
Mr. Stewart grew up in Springfield, Delaware County; earned a bachelor's degree at the University of Pennsylvania in 1943; and, after a real estate career, earned his law degree at Temple University in 1973.
In November 1961, Philadelphia Daily News outdoor columnist Ben Callaway reported that Mr. Stewart's 50-pound bass catch "topped the existing International Spin Fishing Association standard of 45 pounds, 8 ounces, set in 1958."
His son said that "he went fishing all the time. . . . When he was a real estate broker, he actually went shad fishing in suit and tie so my mother wouldn't know."
Mr. Stewart was a member of the Holmesburg Fish and Game Protective Association at the time of the catch.
After World War II, his son said, Mr. Stewart sold new rowhouses in Northeast Philadelphia, often to returning veterans like himself, until 1949, when he opened John D. Stewart Real Estate & Insurance in Mayfair.
With his law degree, he practiced with Embery, Outterson & Fuges in Frankford until 1981, when he opened his own practice in Lawndale. He retired in 1992.
Besides his son, Mr. Stewart is survived by his wife, Elizabeth; daughters Patricia Morton, Barbara Brown, and Susan Baratta; nine grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
Visitation was set from 10 a.m. Monday, April 9, at Calvary Presbyterian Church, 300 Fourth St., Riverton, before an 11 a.m. memorial service there.
John D. Stewart, 90, lawyer, real estate broker, honored WWII vet
By Walter F. Naedele
Inquirer Staff Writer
When John D. Stewart caught a 50-pound bass a mile north of Barnegat Inlet on Nov. 7, 1961, it was celebrated as a world record.
It was not Mr. Stewart's first remarkable achievement.
During World War II, Second Lt. Stewart earned a Silver Star for saving much of his battalion on Nov. 23, 1944, during the battle of the Huertgen Forest.
Mr. Stewart, 90, of Cinnaminson, a former Northeast Philadelphia lawyer and real estate broker, died Thursday, March 29, of heart failure at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital.
Mr. Stewart's Silver Star citation reads, in part:
"After two companies of the battalion had come under murderous enemy artillery fire resulting in heavy casualties, Lt. Stewart with complete disregard for his own safety, when the companies began to show signs of disorganization, organized them into a perimeter defense which successfully repulsed several determined enemy counterattacks.
"His leadership when all other officers were killed or wounded permitted the battalion to hold its ground and enabled the wounded to be evacuated. . . .
"He returned eight times throughout the night," despite continued German artillery bombardment, "to search for wounded men."
The citation reported that his "leadership resulted in the saving of a considerable portion of his battalion."
His son, Michael, said in a Thursday interview that Mr. Stewart was seriously wounded on Nov. 28, 1944, and spent 23 months in military hospitals.
"He had some problems later in life. They had to remove part of his intestine" because he had been shot in the abdomen, his son said.
Mr. Stewart grew up in Springfield, Delaware County; earned a bachelor's degree at the University of Pennsylvania in 1943; and, after a real estate career, earned his law degree at Temple University in 1973.
In November 1961, Philadelphia Daily News outdoor columnist Ben Callaway reported that Mr. Stewart's 50-pound bass catch "topped the existing International Spin Fishing Association standard of 45 pounds, 8 ounces, set in 1958."
His son said that "he went fishing all the time. . . . When he was a real estate broker, he actually went shad fishing in suit and tie so my mother wouldn't know."
Mr. Stewart was a member of the Holmesburg Fish and Game Protective Association at the time of the catch.
After World War II, his son said, Mr. Stewart sold new rowhouses in Northeast Philadelphia, often to returning veterans like himself, until 1949, when he opened John D. Stewart Real Estate & Insurance in Mayfair.
With his law degree, he practiced with Embery, Outterson & Fuges in Frankford until 1981, when he opened his own practice in Lawndale. He retired in 1992.
Besides his son, Mr. Stewart is survived by his wife, Elizabeth; daughters Patricia Morton, Barbara Brown, and Susan Baratta; nine grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
Visitation was set from 10 a.m. Monday, April 9, at Calvary Presbyterian Church, 300 Fourth St., Riverton, before an 11 a.m. memorial service there.
Attachments:
