Alaska Highway. Company H&S, B, E and F.
Born: 14 July 1918, Schenectady, NY. Died: 10 July 2006, North Bend, Oregon. Enlisted: 1941. Discharged: 1946.
He attended Oregon State College and graduated with a degree in electrical engineering. He worked for General Electric until 1941 when he enlisted.
He originally was stationed at Camp Beauregard, Louisiana with the 88th Engineers Battalion, but in mid-April he was sent to Eglin Air Field and the 97th Engineers.
Second Lt. McMillan in Company B was assigned to the segregated 97th Engineer Regiment. They landed at Valdez, Alaska on 29 April 1942. Three feet of snow covered the ground. The 97th Engineers built the northern section of the Alaska Highway.
Lt. McMillan was in Company B from April 1942 to July 1942. Next he was assigned to H&S Company from August 1942 to November 1942. Another move in December 1942 to Company E until June 1943 when he found himself with Company F. In July 1943 he was promoted to 1st Lt.
After the war he returned to work in Seattle and ended with Portland General Electric Company until retirement in 1981. He married Maxine Sutton 1 June 1946. Fred loved the water. He built several boats – 18 and 29 foot sailboat – and the family sailed the Columbia River. They also regularly vacationed on the Rogue River. In 1984, he and Maxine moved to Garrison Lake in Port Orford. He like to row; was a volunteer ambulance driver and belonged to several clubs and organizations in the community.
His father was Fred O. McMillan, a professor of Electrical Engineering at Oregon State College. His mother was Elizabeth B. Denny. Maxine died in 2003. Their daughter Sarah Recken lives in North Bend, Oregon with her husband.
Serial #O-391924