Wichita veteran serves at US Disciplinary Barracks

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Brice Watson, a nearly 97-year-old World War II veteran, has a story to tell.

That story begins with his childhood, growing up in the Oklahoma panhandle in the 1930s.

“I seen the Dust Bowl,” Watson said. “The Great Depression. In fact, one day, the dust bowl come at school. We didn’t have no electricity. We lived three-and-a-half miles from school if you follow the road. It got so dark at school. The teacher let us out.”

Watson and his brothers followed the road and made it home. His family moved to an area along the Missouri-Arkansas state line, where he was drafted while in high school in Washburn, Missouri.

“I got out of school on a Friday and left Monday morning for basic training,” Watson said. “In fact, I missed school to go take my physical that I had to take in St. Louis, Missouri.”

Watson said he was in basic training when it was announced over the radio Japan had signed the surrender, ending World War II.

“Well, felt pretty good about that,” Watson said. “Of course, we finished up our basic training. Basic training was pretty rough.”

After basic training, he reported to Fort Riley, where soldiers fresh out of basic training were being sent overseas.

“And I was extra if someone got sick or if they didn’t have the quota, but luckily, they didn’t need me. And so I didn’t have to go,” Watson said.

So Watson was sent to the federal prison at Fort Leavenworth, where he was a guard at the U.S Disciplinary Barracks.

“And then they transferred me into the mess hall as the overseer,” Watson said. “Prisoners done the kitchen work, so I had to oversee them.”

Then, he was transferred to the prison hospital, where he served as a medic. He remained there until he was discharged in November 1946.

Watson and his wife, Ruby, moved to Kansas in 1955, and he went to work for Cessna in the shipping department. He spent 27 years at Cessna until he retired in 1993.

Watson will be 97 in December and said he didn’t think he’d be around this long, but he stays very active. He bowls in two leagues and takes mile-long walks at the Derby Recreation Center.

If you want to nominate a veteran for our Veteran Salute, email KSN reporter Jason Lamb at [email protected].