Gerald Alexander O'Rouark

1895-1974

 Dominic Vautier
11-11

Gerald O'Rouark at West Point

Gerald was my uncle and I can describe him as "sympatico", that is, he was a kind man although somewhat rigid and retiring.  He was the old style republican and a fanatic Montgomery Ward stockholder and very proud of it.  He also valued education above all else and offered to pay my tuition through grad school.  I accepted.

when I was a child he would come to visit us from time to time.  We referred to him as "rich uncle Gerald" because he wore a new suit, had an expensive camera and drove a nice car, standards that were beyond our comprehension.  My mom often spoke harshly about him and never really liked her big brother although mom had a way of immediately changing her opinion of anybody anytime, anywhere, any way, so sibling revelry was not to be taken seriously in this case.  Nevertheless I think my mother was secretly proud of Gerald because he had done well in his life.

Gerald was the oldest son of James O'Rouark, who (I was told) changed his last name from O'Rourke because he did not want to be associated with those "dirty Catholics" or maybe perhaps he just had to have a more unique last name than plain old O'Rourke. But there are plenty of O'Rouarks in Ireland.

He was a smart kid and did well in school.  He attended the University of Idaho in 1915 and excelled in sports.  He was said to have been the first miler to break 5 minutes at the Moscow College.  Because of this notoriety he received a favorable endorsement from the U. S. congressmen from Idaho and was able to apply to the Military Academy at West Point and was accepted.  Mom described how he did stretching exercises to gain 1/2 inch to meet the height requirement but lost it on the train ride back east.  So he stretched vigorously before the physical and was barely able to pass.  Gerald may have struggled at the academy because mom said he had to study by the light from under the door after lights out in order to keep his grades up.  Mom also described the harassment the Gerald endured at the hands of upperclassmen.

He was graduated from West Point in November, 1918, and was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the Army.  He then went to Fort Sill in December of that year.  In 1919 Gerald was sent to war torn Europe and was stationed at Brest, France and later that year was assigned to Germany as part of the Army of Occupation.

His subsequent military experiences included extensive tours in Hawaii.  He married Violet Johnson, one of the three Johnson sisters and had one son Terrance.  Gerald served for many years in Hawaii and achieved the rank of Lt. Colonel.  I think he had to be eventually discharged for heath reasons.  His heart was never very strong and he may have suffered from congestive heart failure as my mother did.  Gerald was at Pearl Harbor in 1941 (see postcard below) and did try to get back into active service after December 7th.  My mom told me many stories but I have no way to verify any of it.  Gerald and Violet eventually retired to Dallas, Oregon.  I spoke to him and visited him many times before his death.

Gerald had one son Terence O'Rouark (1922-2016) who had an interesting life serving during the war and was involved in the Manhattan Project.  Terence had one daughter, Nancy (Ward) O'Rouark. He retired to Boise, ID. 

More can be found on the O'Rouark Family here.

Gerald with his little sister Allegra and brother Douglass.

Gerald during his days at University of Moscow, Idaho.

While he was in High School in Coeur d'Alene.

High School Junior class picture.