From NKAA, Notable Kentucky African Americans Database (African American Women Veterans in and from Kentucky)
Military Branch
Women's Army Corps
Active Duty Entered
August 7, 1943
Active Duty Exit
January 6, 1946
Exit Rank
Tech 4
Awards & Decorations
American Theater Campaign Medal
Notes
Sallye B. Brack was born in Hickman, KY, the daughter of David and Emma Williams Brack. The family is enumerated in the 1920 U.S. Census when they lived in Sassafras Ridge, KY. By 1935, Sallye, her brother, and her mother were living in Cairo, IL, according to the 1940 U.S. Census that also showed that Sallye was employed as a maid. Sallye's brother Louis Mitchell was head of the household.
According to her online obituary at Legacy.com, Sallye Beatrice Abel was a graduate of Madam Walker's School of Beauty Culture. She was employed as a beautician when she enlisted in the Army in St. Louis, MO in 1943, according to her record in the National Archives, Access to Archival Databases. She returned to Illinois after her military service where she was employed as a licensed beautician and was very active in social and community organizations and her church.
In 1958 Sallye Brack was the newly elected corresponding secretary of the Henry Warfield Auxiliary of the American Legion in Decatur, IL. In 1962, she was elected the vice president of Tau Alpha Chi Pi Omega Sorority in Decatur. In 1963 she was elected the organization's recorder. Meetings for both the auxiliary and the sorority organizations were often held at her home. She was a longtime member of both organizations, serving in various leadership positions.
In 1964 Sallye B. Brack married Dennis Abel. That same year her mother died. Sallye had annual "In Memoriam" notices placed in the Decatur newspaper. In 1977 Sallye Abel was elected the president of the 19th District of the American Legion Auxiliary of Illinois. Also in 1977, she was one of two residents recognized with a Community Service Award from the Decatur Club of Frontiers International in honor of her service with the Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, Henry Warfield American Legion Auxiliary, Church Women United, Antioch Missionary Baptist Church, and other organizations.
Sallye B. Brack Abel died in Decatur, IL in 2004 and is buried in Camp Butler National Cemetery in Springfield, IL.
Sources: Kentucky Birth Index in Ancestry; Social Security Applications and Claims Index (Ancestry); Social Security Death Index in Ancestry; U. S. Veterans' Gravesites in Ancestry; Sallye Beatrice Abel at Find A Grave; "Mrs. Jefferies heads Warfield Auxiliary," The Decatur Review, 8/1/1958, p. 17; "Alpha Chi Pi Omegas elect Mrs. Hood," Decatur Herald, 1/11/1962, p. 29; "Macon County Deaths: Dennis Abel," Herald & Review, 12/27/1984, p. 5; "Legion Auxiliary officers told," The Decatur Review, 6/14/1977, p. 11; "Frontiers Club honors two residents," The Decatur Review, 9/26/1977, p. 18; and "Obituaries: Sallye Beatrice Abel," Herald & Review, 5/5/2004, p. D3.
According to her online obituary at Legacy.com, Sallye Beatrice Abel was a graduate of Madam Walker's School of Beauty Culture. She was employed as a beautician when she enlisted in the Army in St. Louis, MO in 1943, according to her record in the National Archives, Access to Archival Databases. She returned to Illinois after her military service where she was employed as a licensed beautician and was very active in social and community organizations and her church.
In 1958 Sallye Brack was the newly elected corresponding secretary of the Henry Warfield Auxiliary of the American Legion in Decatur, IL. In 1962, she was elected the vice president of Tau Alpha Chi Pi Omega Sorority in Decatur. In 1963 she was elected the organization's recorder. Meetings for both the auxiliary and the sorority organizations were often held at her home. She was a longtime member of both organizations, serving in various leadership positions.
In 1964 Sallye B. Brack married Dennis Abel. That same year her mother died. Sallye had annual "In Memoriam" notices placed in the Decatur newspaper. In 1977 Sallye Abel was elected the president of the 19th District of the American Legion Auxiliary of Illinois. Also in 1977, she was one of two residents recognized with a Community Service Award from the Decatur Club of Frontiers International in honor of her service with the Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, Henry Warfield American Legion Auxiliary, Church Women United, Antioch Missionary Baptist Church, and other organizations.
Sallye B. Brack Abel died in Decatur, IL in 2004 and is buried in Camp Butler National Cemetery in Springfield, IL.
Sources: Kentucky Birth Index in Ancestry; Social Security Applications and Claims Index (Ancestry); Social Security Death Index in Ancestry; U. S. Veterans' Gravesites in Ancestry; Sallye Beatrice Abel at Find A Grave; "Mrs. Jefferies heads Warfield Auxiliary," The Decatur Review, 8/1/1958, p. 17; "Alpha Chi Pi Omegas elect Mrs. Hood," Decatur Herald, 1/11/1962, p. 29; "Macon County Deaths: Dennis Abel," Herald & Review, 12/27/1984, p. 5; "Legion Auxiliary officers told," The Decatur Review, 6/14/1977, p. 11; "Frontiers Club honors two residents," The Decatur Review, 9/26/1977, p. 18; and "Obituaries: Sallye Beatrice Abel," Herald & Review, 5/5/2004, p. D3.
Kentucky County & Region
Read about Fulton County, Kentucky in Wikipedia.
Kentucky Place (Town or City)
Read about Hickman, Kentucky in Wikipedia.
Read about Sassafras Ridge, Kentucky in Wikipedia.
Outside Kentucky Place Name
Item Relations
Cited in this Entry
| NKAA Source: National Archives, Access to Archival Databases (online) |
| NKAA Source: Ancestry (online) |
| NKAA Source: The Decatur daily review (newspaper) |
| NKAA Source: Herald & review (newspaper) |
| NKAA Source: The Decatur herald (newspaper) |
Related Entries Citing this Entry
| none |
Cite This NKAA Entry:
“Abel, Sallye Beatrice Brack,” Notable Kentucky African Americans Database, accessed July 26, 2024, https://nkaa.uky.edu/nkaa/index.php/items/show/300004544.
Last modified: 2023-05-24 16:55:18