Army Badge
  • Name: Peter "Pete" Nicholas Dimich
  • Location of Birth: Bovey, Minnesota
  • Date of Birth: June 15, 1915
  • Date of Death: April 11, 2009
  • Parents: Nicholas A. Dimich & Manda (Milosovovich) Dimich
  • High School and Class: 1933 Greenway High School, Coleraine, Minnesota
  • College: Itasca Junior College, Coleraine, Minnesota
  • Highest Rank: PFC (Private First Class)
  • Branch: Army
  • Other Branch:
  • Date Sworn In:
  • Place Sworn In:
  • Date of Discharge: November 1945
  • Place of Discharge: Fort Knox, Kentucky
  • Military Awards:

  • Military Highlights:
    WW II Draft Registration Cards – 10/16/1940 – 03/31/1947
    State: Minnesota
    Name: Peter Nicholas Dimich
    Race: White
    Age: 25
    Birth Date: June 15, 1915
    Birth Place: Bovey, Minnesota, USA
    Residence Place: Bovey, Itasca, Minnesota
    Registration Date: October 16, 1940
    Employer: Nick A. Dimich, Bovey, Itasca, Minnesota
    Weight: 180
    Height: 6-2
    Complexion: Light brown
    Eye Color: Brown
    Hair Color: Black
    Next of Kin: Nick A. Dimich, father, Bovey, Itasca, Minnesota

    Newspaper article: Itasca Iron News, Coleraine, Minnesota - 1944 – “Peter Dimich, who has been one of the military police, and as such has traveled to many parts of the world, wrote from France, not only his thanks for the package in general, but more especially for the comb it contained, saying “I sure needed a comb, bad!” Dimich said he hoped to be in Germany soon, and “if I can come home by next Christmas, I shall be happy.” And then he tells of the little children of France, a true story which comes in many of the soldier letters, but which harmonizes ill with other tales of wealth and richness of food and apparel and general good living among certain classes of people in that country. Dimich says: “Every day at mess there are a lot of kids hanging around and whatever is not eaten, they grab for, taking everything; and I have seen some of them even eating out of garbage cans. And there are so many of them! If you want to give something to one, you have to hide it from the rest, or you will have a fight on your hands. It is just an awful sight. I could tell you many things like that, but they might not get by the censor.” And then, after skipping a few lines, there is this: “Do they still have the big tree (Christmas) in main street as they did every year? There isn’t anything over here to remind one that Christmas is just a week off. These packages we get from home are all we know that it must be Christmas. Here, it is just another day … The Germans are tough, and they are fighting to the last man. Every mile we take means a terrible battle.”

    Newspaper article: Itasca Iron News, Coleraine, Minnesota - August 1945 – “Another letter comes from Pfc. Peter Dimich in Bad Tolz, Germany. Pete says he is getting into such a habit of writing the service club to thank them for their remembrances that he is afraid he will still be continuing to correspond with them after the war. The Service Club dollar evidently looked pretty good to Pete for he says of it, “I am keeping that dollar just for a keepsake. I still have your others that were sent to me. They look strange after handling English, French, Belgium, Luxembourg and German money. But no matter how long we will be away, we will never forget good old U.S.A. or its money. My wonderful detail on Gen. Patton’s plane came to a finish. We were replaced by others, so I am not seeing the country as I did then. I used to go to Paris twice a week, London once a month, and all over Germany. We also went on all trips Patton made, and were like his body guards. I wasn’t much of a souvenir hunter, so I didn’t collect many things.”


  • Wars Involved:
    World War II

  • MIA / POW:

  • Civilian Life:
    Peter N. Dimich married Rosemary Robinson in 1943 in Deer River, MN and they made their home in Bovey. He worked in Nick Dimich & Sons family-owned dry goods and grocery store; was a clerk at the Railroad Depot in Bovey; worked for Cleveland Cliffs mines; owned Bovey Fuel Company; and worked as a time clerk at Blandin Paper Co. until his retirement in May 1980. He was a member of the Bovey Volunteer Fire Department and the Bovey Village Band; was Bovey Village Clerk and an assistant Boy Scout master.

    Pete died in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. He is survived by his children, Tom (Judy) Dimich, Robert (Jennie) Dimich, Cynthia Dimich, and Dave (Anne) Dimich; four grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; two nieces; and a nephew. He was preceded in death by his parents; his step-mother, Sava Dimich; his wife, Rosemary; his brothers, Dr. Samuel (Lucille) Dimich and Milan (Helen) Dimich; and a great-grandson.

  • Tribal Affiliation(s):

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