ROCHELLE — Thomas Plumb of Rochelle served in the United States Marine Corps from 1955-1959. He was in charge of a motor pool at 29 Palms Marine Base in California for most of his time in the service. 

Plumb grew up in Lisle, Illinois and graduated from high school and went to work for a railroad. Six months after that, he chose to enlist in the Marines after his selective service status was 1A, which he figured would cause him to be drafted at some point soon. 

In 1955, Plumb reported to boot camp at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego in California for 10 weeks of training. He spent an additional two weeks on rifle training at the nearby Camp Matthews. 

“I was very good at rifle and rated high expert at that,” Plumb said. “Back then we used open-sight rifles. We shot from 200, 300 and 500 yards. At 500 yards, one click of wind will move your bullet three feet. You had to be pretty accurate to shoot in those days. After rifle training and graduation, I went to Camp Pendleton in Oceanside, California for five weeks of recon training. That was an elite group. We really went through hell for five weeks. We went up and down mountains and they'd take us out in the ocean and dump us five miles out and tell us to swim to shore. It was just constant for five weeks. And then I graduated from that.”

Plumb was then assigned to 29 Palms Marine Base in California in the Mojave Desert. He was assigned to a gun battalion there, but was placed in an office before being moved to driving in a motor pool less than a month later. He drove a 10-ton truck and picked up rounds from the Navy base in San Diego to be shot in the field at 29 Palms, which is 50 square miles in the desert and provided a lot of room for firing weapons. 

“I did well in the motor pool and the staff sergeant there liked me,” Plumb said. “He had to move on to supply and wanted me to take over the motor pool section, but I was only a corporal. They granted me special movement up to staff sergeant for just that time. That's where I stayed up until I was discharged. I then left the service in 1959 and came back home to Illinois and went back to work for the railroad.”

Plumb said he chose to enlist because he didn’t want to get drafted at an inopportune time, and because he didn’t want to serve in the United States Army. 

“I chose the Marines because I probably thought I was tough,” Plumb said. “I'm not sure why. There was just something about the Marines. I read that they were the best trained. When I was at 29 Palms we packed our bags. That's when Eisenhower sent the troops to Lebanon for an uprising and we were attached to the First Division Marines. Then they sent another division instead of us. That was the only time I thought I may be deployed.”

Plumb called the Marine Corps training “tough” and said from the time he got off the bus from the airport, he knew he was in the Marine Corps. His platoon started with 68 men in boot camp and only 43 remained at graduation. 

“The rest didn't make it,” Plumb said. “A lot of them got out on medical conditions. Some went over the fence and just left. It weeds people out. It's a mental thing. What they do is completely tear you down and then build you back up. It takes a lot of discipline. You better know your military book of what you're supposed to do. You don't go into a building with your hat on unless you're under arms. If you're out on the sidewalk and you meet an officer, you’d better damn well salute them.”

Plumb was on several trips to take equipment to San Diego to load onboard Navy ships. He was also onboard ships for training exercises in the Pacific, such as going on the ocean and “attacking” Camp Pendleton.

One of the more unique experiences related to Plumb’s service was returning home to Illinois to get his car before driving it all the way back out to California on Route 66, or as he called it, “The Mother Road.”

Plumb’s civilian career included working as an executive and investigator for the railroad before working in the freight forwarding industry. When he retired and his daughter lived in the area, he decided to move to Rochelle and buy a pickup truck, a bass boat and a set of golf clubs. He’s lived in the Hub City since 2001. He’s involved with the Rochelle Kiwanis Golden K and American Legion clubs. He’s 88 years old. 

“I've really enjoyed being out here all this time,” Plumb said. “It's peaceful here. I think my service and everything I learned while I was in the Marines helped me with my career and my life since. It taught me how to read people. I've always remarked that I could get along with people because I could read them.”

Honoring Our American Hero is a series that prints twice a month in the News-Leader. If you know a military veteran you would like to have featured, contact Jeff Helfrich at jhelfrich@rochellenews-leader.com or call 815-561-2151.