Four buildings at the Stephen A. Douglas Armed Forces Reserve Center have been named in honor of men who served at the post.
The memorial honors were named Saturday on the first anniversary of the establishment of the reserve center, formerly Fort Douglas.The soldiers honored were Brig. Gen. H. Lynn Ostler, Maj. Edward C. Watson, Chief Warrant Officer Leopold A. Yost and Brig. Gen. George W. Latimer.
Ostler was born in Salt Lake City in 1903. He was commissioned as a reserve officer in 1932 and then called to active duty during World War II. His military decorations include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, Army Commendation Medal, Order of the Crown of Italy, Mediaille Francaise and European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with five Bronze Stars. He from military service in 1960 while at Fort Douglas and then worked for the Central Intelligence Agency in Denver until he was killed in an automobile accident in 1965.
Watson was born in Salt Lake City in 1912 and enlisted in the Army in 1934, serving a four-year enlistment. He returned to active duty in 1942 and served as a platoon sergeant where he earned the Distinguished Service Cross. He left active duty and joined the Army Reserve in 1947. In his civilian career, Watson was chief security officer for the Federal Reserve Bank in Salt Lake.
Yost was born in 1881 in Bohemia and emigrated to the United States with his parents, where he enlisted in the Army in 1904 and pursued musical training. After several re-enlistments, Yost was appointed to the position of drum major in 1913 after performing two duty tours in the Philippines. He then served on the Mexican border during the campaign against Pancho Villa and later toured Europe as the leader of the 328th Army Band. He was discharged in 1921 and then appointed as a warrant officer, where he was later assigned to Fort Douglas where he was the director of the 38th Infantry band for 18 years.
As a Shriner, Yost was director of the El Kalah Shrine Patrol Band. He retired in 1941 and was recalled to active duty at the Ogden depot in 1942 where he organized and recruited a band. He later moved back to Salt Lake City and died in 1951.
Latimer was born in 1900 near Draper. He was a military cadet at West High School and joined the Utah National Guard in 1926. He was a practicing lawyer until being called to active duty in 1940 and fought in the battles in the Bismark Archipelago, Luzon and southern Philippines. His military decorations include the Asiatic Pacific Theater ribbon with three battle stars, the Bronze Star, Legion of Merit and five overseas service bars.
Latimer served on the Utah Supreme Court from 1946 until he was nominated to serve on the U.S. Court of Military Appeals in 1951. He later re-entered private law practice in Salt Lake and served on the Board of Corrections. He died in 1990.