"Physical Impairments Cease to be Disabilities"

People with Physical Disabilities at the Sioux Ordnance Depot

Introduction

Even though the Sioux Ordnance Depot's Commanding Officer, Harold J. Preble, found many employees, the labor shortage continued to impact operations at the Depot. Another group of employees hired at the Depot were people with physical disabilities.* They became one of the Depot's highly-valued groups of employees because of their contributions during the war effort.

Perception of Disability

Prior to World War II, society negatively viewed people with disabilities. Disability historians argue that the term "ability" was linked to employment. Ability meant that a person could get a job and support himself.  Because of this perception, people in America, even in Nebraska, labeled individuals with disabilities as an undesirable group of people who were helpless, needy, and a burden to their communities.[1]

Commanding Officer Harvey Bower presenting Vesper "Bud" Jackson with an award, 1961. Cheyenne County Historical Society, Sioux Army Depot Collection.
Pamphlet from the American Federation for the Physically Handicapped that provides data on disability in the United States, c. 1942. Courtesy of the University of Texas at Arlington. [2]

However, World War II made disability more visible. Organizations like the American Federation for the Physically Handicapped (AFPH) used this as an opportunity to advocate for employment and other rights for people with physical disabilities.

As the war went on, the federal government began encouraging businesses, defense industries, and military installations to hire people with disabilities. Nebraska's War Manpower Commission Director Mary E. Sawtell said:


"The handicapped can fill many of the jobs where 

vacancies are causing employers headaches... The reservoir 

of competent labor by handicapped persons has only 

begun to be utilized."[3]


Not much was known about the "reserve of unused manpower," so government leaders did not know how many people were part of this group.[4] They also did not know what abilities these people possessed. Yet, places like the Sioux Ordnance Depot gave people with disabilities the chance to show their abilities and prove their skills. 

Placement According to Ability

Community leaders, government officials, and local observers around the nation understood that if individuals with disabilities were placed in positions best suited to their abilities, they would be able to contribute to the war effort efficiently. 

In fact, some industries intentionally sought people with specific physical disabilities because they believed that they had valuable skills, abilities, and talents to share with the war effort. 

The Personnel Division at the Sioux Ordnance Depot placed employees in positions that best suited their abilities not only so they could hire people with disabilities but also to help maximixe the labor potential of all Depot laborers. Focusing on a person's abilities rather than his or her disability contributed to the Depot's overall success of the employment of people with physical disabilities. Preble issued a memorandum explaining the Depot's personnel policies and personnel placement process. 

Clip from Depot Memorandum No. 14. Title reads, “Personnel Policies.” The first point reads, “The ever-increasing work load requires that the personnel of the Depot be fully utilized. In order to assure maximum utilization in a declining labor market, each worker must be employed full time at his highest skill under the best possible working conditions so that he may produce at the highest rate per hour possible. Maximum utilization means greater production and an earlier victory.”
Point #1 on Depot Memorandum No. 14 shows Preble's desire to use employees in positions best suited to their abilities. [5]
Clip from Depot Memorandum No. 14. The page reads, “Memorandum. Subject: Civilian Placement Policy. To: All Officers and Department Heads. Objectives: 1. The Sioux Ordnance Depot in its constant effort to meet the objectives of maximum production with the minimum number of personnel has established various programs for assuring maximum utilization of its civilian working force. 2. When the capacities of individual employees are used fully, waste is avoided and personal effort in quantity and quality of work is stimulated. Therefore, careful selection and assignment of personnel to positions for which they are best suited by skill, ability and aptitude are the most important objectives of all subject programs. 3. A further objective is to utilize all sources of manpower—woman-power, older persons, the physically handicapped, etc.—so as to make available to the maximum extent possible those men in the employ of the War Department who are eligible for induction into the Armed Forces.”
The Civilian Placement Policy Objectives from Depot Memorandum No. 14 show the Depot's goals of maximizing the abilities of its employees. [6]

William Louis Koenecke was one of the Depot's employeees who had a physical disability. When he was eight years old, Koenecke was involved in an accident that resulted in the amputation of his legs below the knee. 

In 1944, Koenecke was hired at the Depot as a clerk in the field office, a position best suited to his abilities. Working at a desk did not interfere with Koenecke's prosthetic legs at all. With a career of over twenty years at the Depot, Koenecke showed what people with disabilities could accomplish if placed in jobs that allowed them to flourish.

Safety Measures

Maximizing the labor of Depot employees included keeping them safe. The Depot's leadership also wanted to prevent accidents that could lead to disabilities or interfere with operations, so they stressed safety protocols. These often included mentions of the proper attire for employees, appropriate operational procedures, and necessary precautions to take with hazardous materials. 


William Louis Koenecke started working at the Depot in 1944 as a clerk, 1951. [7]
A page from the Depot Employee Handbook shows the seriousness of smoking in prohibited areas, c.1940s. Courtesy of Diana Hollingsworth. 

Many employees remembered the harsh consequences for the simple act of smoking and carrying matches on the Depot property. Despite the risks, some employees still broke the rules. Joe Behm remembered one of the ways employees would get around some of the safety protocols. 

Behm_Smoking Safety.mp3

Click here to view a transcript of the audio clip

LeRoy Virgil, who worked at the Depot in the 1950s, also remembered smoking in a prohibited area. 

Virgil_Smoking Safety.mp3

Click here for to view a transcript of the audio clip

Impact of Employment

To encourage employers to hire more people with physical disabilities, places around the country shared the success they witnessed at their own establishments. 

Josephus Henry, "Job Lots - So They Say," Scottsbluff Daily Star-Herald, May 2, 1944.
Newspaper clipping with headline that reads, “Worker Ideas Save Time in War Plant.”
"Worker Ideas Save Time in War Plant," Scottsbluff Daily Star-Herald, March 5, 1944. 
Newspaper clipping with headline that reads, “Although Deaf, Five Civilian Fighters Work to Turn Out Needed Ammunition.” A photograph of four people accompanies the article. There are two men in the back row, and a man and woman in the front row.
"Although Deaf, Five Civilian Fighters Work to Turn Out Needed Ammunition," Powder Keg (Hastings, NE), February 2, 1945. 
Newspaper clipping with headline that reads, “Vocational Training Paying Dividends.” Three photographs are also in the clipping: one of a woman, one of a man, and an image of the Goodwill Industry’s building.
"Vocational Training Paying Dividends," Lincoln Sunday Journal and Star, December 3, 1944. 

Despite the national praise and recognition people with disabilities received, these widespread employment opportunities changed as World War II ended. In many places, people with disabilities were among some of the first people laid off as veterans, especially those without disabilities, returned home. 

Not all employers fired their employees who had disabilities after the war ended, though. The Depot's Personnel Division still needed just as many employees at the end of the war as they did at the beginning. The leadership also seemed pleased with the work these employees did. This led to opportunities of employment at the Depot for people like Hubert John and Vesper Jackson in the post-war era. 

A man stands in a kitchen with a paintbrush and a paint can in his hands. He holds the paintbrush with his right hand up to a doorframe and looks at the camera.
Hubert John was a painter at the Depot during the 1950s and 1960s, 1963. Cheyenne County Historical Society, Sioux Army Depot Collection.

After World War II, the number of individuals with disabilities employed at the Depot increased dramatically due to federal assistance. 

Shortly after the end of World War II, President Harry Truman demonstrated the federal government's desire to assist in advocating for the hiring of people with physical disabilities with the establishment of "National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week" on September 21, 1945.[8] This proclamation was the result of years of dedication and work done by the AFPH. Although society had a long way to go in providing equal employment opportunities for people with disabilities, these efforts were a step in the right direction. 

The Depot received national recognition several times for the contributions of its employees with physical disabilities in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1951, the Depot was given an award of merit from President Truman for the leadership's policies related to hiring people with disabilities. Over 139 individuals with disabilities worked at the Depot, employed in positions that best matched their abilities. 

The front page of the Sidney Telegraph from October 12, 1951, shows two articles about the Depot's employment of people with physical disabilities. 

By 1952, the Depot had 400 individuals with disabilities on staff. With over 2,000 people employed by the end of October 1952, this means that roughly 20% of the employees at the Depot had physcial disabilities. The reason for such growth stemmed from the leadership's appreciation of the vital role that people with disabilities played in accomplishing the Depot's missions.

Conclusion

The Depot's leadership counted people with disabilities as highly-valued employees during World War II because of the need they filled during the war, their abilities, and the recognition the Depot received in the post-war era for their employment. 


Visit the Fort Sidney Museum and Post Commander's Home to view the Sioux Army Depot exhibit and learn more about this history!

Endnotes

* This project uses the recommended person-first language to discuss disability. Historical terms like "handicapped" appear only in quoted material.


[1] Richard K. Scotch, “‘Nothing about Us without Us’: Disability Rights in America,” OAH Magazine of History, 23 no. 3, (July 2009), 17.


[2] America’s Greatest Undeveloped Asset, American Federation of the Physically Handicapped, Incorporated, Fort Worth Trades Assembly Records Collection, Special Collections at the University of the Texas at Arlington Libraries, University of Texas at Arlington, https://library.uta.edu/txdisabilityhistory/doc/20001871.


[3] “Employers Overlooking Handicapped in Search for Men, Sawtell Says,” Scottsbluff Daily Star-Herald, March 24, 1944.


[4] Morris Cafky, “Leon Armstrong Does His Part for War Effort on Home Front,” Scottsbluff Daily Star-Herald, September 22, 1942.


[5] Depot Memorandum No. 14, Army Service Forces, Sioux Ordnance Depot, Sidney, Nebraska, April 13, 1945, SOD Memorandums 1945, Series 2, Memorandums 1942-1949, Ordnance Depots, Sioux Ordnance Depot (Sidney, NE), Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, Record Group 156, National Archives and Records Administration–Central Plains Region (Kansas City).


[6] Depot Memorandum No. 14, Army Service Forces, Sioux Ordnance Depot, Sidney, Nebraska, April 13, 1945, SOD Memorandums 1945, Series 2, Memorandums 1942-1949, Ordnance Depots, Sioux Ordnance Depot (Sidney, NE), Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, Record Group 156, National Archives and Records Administration–Central Plains Region (Kansas City).


[7] “Handicapped Persons Hold Key Positions at Sioux Ordnance Depot,” Soo-Ordville Arrow (Sidney, NE), October 12, 1951, Ordnance Depots, Sioux Ordnance Depot (Sidney, NE), Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, Record Groups 156, National Archives and Records Administration – Central Plains Region (Kansas City).


[8] Harry S. Truman, Proclamation 2664—National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week, 1945, Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/287789. 

Published: January 15, 2025 Last Updated: January 15, 2025

Author: Tatiana Moore Painter, UNK Graduate Student