Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

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TJames
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Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

#1

Post by TJames » 12 Jun 2015, 23:15

Good Evening!

I am doing some research on the Finnish Army during the Second World War (1939-40) and wondered if anybody could help in pointing me in the right direction for finding information about Finnish individuals who died in the winter war. I am looking for any information related to Urho Vienonen who was killed, from what i have researched so far there doesn't seem to be much information available on cemeteries and war dead. Could anybody help in pointing me in the right direction??

Many Thanks

TJames

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Re: Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

#2

Post by Mangrove » 13 Jun 2015, 08:13

TJames wrote: I am looking for any information related to Urho Vienonen who was killed, from what i have researched so far there doesn't seem to be much information available on cemeteries and war dead. Could anybody help in pointing me in the right direction??
The National Archives Service’s rather complete database does not contain any records for Urho Vienonen who died during the Winter War. However, there is one Urho Vienonen (b. 2 April 1922) who died on 20 December 1943.

If you know the individual(s) time and place of birth, you may order a copy of his military records through the National Archives Service's website (only in Finnish).


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Re: Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

#3

Post by JTV » 13 Jun 2015, 08:26

TJames wrote:Good Evening!

I am doing some research on the Finnish Army during the Second World War (1939-40) and wondered if anybody could help in pointing me in the right direction for finding information about Finnish individuals who died in the winter war. I am looking for any information related to Urho Vienonen who was killed, from what i have researched so far there doesn't seem to be much information available on cemeteries and war dead. Could anybody help in pointing me in the right direction??
Search engine for Finnish casualities in wars of 1939 - 1945:
http://kronos.narc.fi/menehtyneet/index.php
Just type in last name to next to "sukunimi" and click button "HAE" to find all casualities with that last name.

I did a search with that name and only person whose name fits is Urho Johannes Vienonen, but he dies during Continuation War (June 1941 - September 1944), not Winter War (November 1939 - March 1940). Is this the correct person?
Some of his info translated:
- Employment: General worker
- Military rank: Private
- Unit: 10th Company of Infantry Regiment 35
- Born in: Ypäjä 2nd of April 1922
- Home municipality: Ypäjä
- Died: 20th of December 1943
- Place of death: Seesjärvi
- Buried with funerals in Ypäjä.

Typically Finnish soldiers that had died in World War 2 were returned to their home municipalities and buried there in local cemetary. Hence Finnish (civilian) cemetaries usually have a separate part referred as "Heroes cemetary" (sankarihautausmaa) in which the soldiers were buried.

Photographs taken in Heroes cemetary section of Ypäjä graveyard in 2011:
http://hotarju.kuvat.fi/kuvat/Sankarihautausmaat/Ypäjä/

Jarkko

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Re: Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

#4

Post by TJames » 13 Jun 2015, 13:33

Afternoon!

Thanks very much for the help!! Yes i can agree and say that is probably the man I am looking for as there is only one Urho Vienonen, I have just spoken to my mother-in law about the findings and she said that her uncle Urho also lost his father a few years earlier and again no information is known about him. I went looking through the data-base again and found a Sem Armas Vienonen born 1902 and it seems he could fit in as being Urho's father, on the record it says he was in the "2.KKK/JR 62" i assume it is a detachment from the 62nd Infantry Regiment. Would anybody know what the 2.KKK means??

Many thanks again!

TJames

http://kronos.narc.fi/menehtyneet/index ... raportti=1

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Re: Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

#5

Post by Mangrove » 13 Jun 2015, 14:21

TJames wrote:Would anybody know what the 2.KKK means??
2.KKK/JR 62 = 2nd Machine Gun Company of the 62nd Infantry Regiment.

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Re: Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

#6

Post by TJames » 13 Jun 2015, 18:44

Hi!

Thanks for that! I have a bit of information about the jatkosota conflict, he was in the - 10. Komppania, III Pataljoona, Jalkaväkirykmentti 35, 1. Divisioona - is there any possibility of there being any war diaries from around December 1943 time that could mention what Urho was involved in when he died?

Many Thanks

TJames

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Re: Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

#7

Post by Mangrove » 13 Jun 2015, 23:47

TJames wrote: Is there any possibility of there being any war diaries from around December 1943 time that could mention what Urho was involved in when he died?
The 1943 war diary of 10./JR 35 has either not survived or has been misplaced. However, the diary of III/JR 35 contains the following passage:
20 December 1943. [...] 6 p.m. Own patrol, consisted of 1 NCO and 5 privates, left from "5884" (8./JR 35) and advanced towards direction 5.00. It was ambushed by an enemy patrol. Two men were killed and the NCO and a private were wounded. The private died the following day in the field hospital. The ambush site was situated some 200 meters away from our obstacles. The battle commenced at 6.50 p.m. The russkies also retreated on their own side after the firefight.

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Re: Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

#8

Post by TJames » 14 Jun 2015, 13:59

The 1943 war diary of 10./JR 35 has either not survived or has been misplaced. However, the diary of III/JR 35 contains the following passage:
20 December 1943. [...] 6 p.m. Own patrol, consisted of 1 NCO and 5 privates, left from "5884" (8./JR 35) and advanced towards direction 5.00. It was ambushed by an enemy patrol. Two men were killed and the NCO and a private were wounded. The private died the following day in the field hospital. The ambush site was situated some 200 meters away from our obstacles. The battle commenced at 6.50 p.m. The russkies also retreated on their own side after the firefight.
[/quote]

Morning!

Thanks very much for that! The Finnish data-base is amazing compared to the UK Archives, i can't get anything without having a 3-6 month wait for it to be sent out to me. Think its time to learn some Finnish now i have this new database to play with!!

Thanks

TJames

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Re: Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

#9

Post by TJames » 16 Jun 2015, 14:15

Hi!

Note: I have been doing the research for the 35. Infantry regiment and found them to be in the 1 division (if I'm not wrong) I also found the division war diary but for some reason there was an error when trying to look at it. Is this a problem for anybody else??

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Re: Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

#10

Post by JTV » 16 Jun 2015, 21:01

TJames wrote:Hi!

Note: I have been doing the research for the 35. Infantry regiment and found them to be in the 1 division (if I'm not wrong) I also found the division war diary but for some reason there was an error when trying to look at it. Is this a problem for anybody else??
Did you use this webpage? http://digi.narc.fi/digi/search.ka

If so, it seems to be working ok now, but 2 - 3 days ago it complained about unit number that I included with unit name by giving error message along the line of "no names with less than 3 characters are allowed to be used for search".

Alternative access:
http://digihakemisto.appspot.com/index_ ... t-kokoelma

Jarkko

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Re: Researching Finnish Winter War casualty - Urho Vienonen

#11

Post by TJames » 17 Jun 2015, 10:36

Morning!

Ah yes that was the problem! Seems okay now. I have found the 1. divisioona war diary for the 20th December 1943 and its has some information about the division and 35. regiments actions on that night. Iv'e tried to translate it myself using Google but it just comes out with gibberish, I wondered if there are any more hints or details on the Russian ambush (pages 12-13)

http://digi.narc.fi/digi/view.ka?kuid=4502928

Kiitos!

TJames

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