Individual Details

Jeweler, soldier, family historian, and family man

Henry Lurquin enlisted in the National Guard in 1914. He was a veteran of the 1916 in the border expedition against Pancho Villa in Mexico, along with John Beno. He then served for seventeen months overseas in World War I, in France and as part of the Army of Occupation in Germany. In Germany, he completed his officer training. Between the wars, he returned to his work as a jeweler and watchmaker, with shops in Green Bay and In Oconto Falls. At the same time he continued to serve in the National Guard. He commanded Battery B from 1921 to 1926, then joined the 121st Field Artillery Staff, serving as adjutant of the 2nd battalion until 1941. He also served as an officer at the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp in Leona, Wisconsin. Henry returned to active duty with the Army again on 15 October 1940. He trained soldiers at Camp Livingston, Louisiana until 1943. He was then placed in command of a field artillery battalion at Camp Maxey in Texas, and in March of 1944 he took his unit overseas to England. He would have followed the D-Day Invasion Force into France, but he was struck with illness, and had to spend two months in an English hospital. From there, he returned to spend another month and a half in an American military hospital in Clinton, Iowa. Eventually, he was released from active duty early in 1945. At that time, he held the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

He was jokingly called "The Little Colonel," because he was rather short.

Henry was an active member of the Knights of Columbus.

Henry was very proud of his historic house and his family history. Indeed, he was the first in the family to become quite interested in local and family history, writing a biographical tribute to his grandfather, Felix Lurquin. He passed the family history torch to his daughter, Mary Ann Defnet. With much credit to both of them, I've tried to pick it up from there.

Although he was only a member of the Beno clan by marriage, he became one of the most solid members of the Beno Family Organization. He served as its secretary and treasurer, and was editor of the family newsletter, The Beno Bulletin, for many years. Family members fondly remember him and Dee at the Beno Family Picnics each year, enjoying their family, while also keeping the program on track. Henry would wear his trademark pith helmet, to protect his bald head from the sun.

Like his father and grandfather before him, Henry was a gifted gardener. The yard in back of the house had shrunk considerably from the wide-open fields of earlier days, and he did not grow large crops of vegetables for sale. However, he took great pleasure in the small but beautiful garden he maintained behind the house, with two rose trellises connected by a brick path, a lovely variety of flowers, and a surprising amount of vegetables for such a small space -- all shaded by a lovely pear tree. To the shock and sadness of family members, the people who bought the house after Henry's death black-topped the whole thing over.

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Birth	6 Feb 1893	Fort Howard, Brown, Wisconsin, United States
Military	1916 - 1945
Marriage	14 Apr 1920	Green Bay, Brown, Wisconsin, United States - Mary Odile "Dee or Delia" BENO
Military	1925	Captain, National Guard - Green Bay, Brown, Wisconsin, United States
Census (family)	Apr 1930	410 Oakland, Green Bay, Brown, Wisconsin, United States - Mary Odile "Dee or Delia" BENO
Occupation	Apr 1930	Jeweler - Green Bay, Brown, Wisconsin, United States
Census (family)	Apr 1940	974 Dousman St., Green Bay, Brown, Wisconsin, United States - Mary Odile "Dee or Delia" BENO
Occupation	Apr 1940	Watchmaker - Green Bay, Brown, Wisconsin, United States
Death	20 Apr 1974	Green Bay, Brown, Wisconsin, United States
Burial	23 Apr 1974	Allouez Catholic Cemetery, Allouez, Brown, Wisconsin, United States

Spouse	Mary Odile "Dee or Delia" BENO ( - )
Child	Margaret Frances "Marge" LURQUIN (1921 - 2011)
Child	Bernice Mary LURQUIN ( - 2010)
Child	John Henry LURQUIN (1924 - 2004)
Child	Robert Joseph LURQUIN (1928 - 2018)
Child	Mary Antoinette LURQUIN (1930 - 2016)
Child	James Benno LURQUIN (1935 - 1979)

Father	Joseph John LURQUIN (1866 - )
Mother	Frances Margaret DEUSTER (1865 - 1938)
Sibling	Felix Louis A. LURQUIN (1895 - 1928)
Sibling	Ferdinand H. LURQUIN (1897 - 1975)
Sibling	Dorothy Antoinette LURQUIN (1898 - 1979)
Sibling	Louis James LURQUIN (1901 - 1990)
Sibling	Agnes Barbara LURQUIN (1903 - 1993)

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