World War II Vet Still Working at 92
Morris Durr stands in his front yard with the German rifle he brought back from his tour during WWII.
Molly Hogan
Herald Staff
mhogan@harrodsburgherald.com
Fresh out of school at Rosehill in 1943, Morris Durr, then just 18 years old, prepared his first trip out of Mercer County to Alabama and onto the battle-torn Germany.
Durr, in uniform, was stationed overseas for just over a year.
At the height of World War II in 1943, Durr was drafted as a member of the U.S. Army and bussed to Fort McClellan in Alabama for basic training.
Growing up here, Durr and his family had been farmers their whole life. He was a newlywed trying to get his career started. “I wasn’t farming for myself yet but helping my dad out. I hadn’t been married long,” he said.
Durr said the change to military life was difficult at first. “It was hard. It was something I hadn’t been used to. We had to march 6-7 miles a day. One day we had a 20- mile trip.”
“At basic training, we spent a lot of time out in the field to prepare us. Sometimes you had to pitch up tents out in the field at night to get used to it,” he said.
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