When a new baby is born, there’s great anticipation about the name. Will it be traditional? Unique? Maybe alliterative? Or simply popular? There are so many good-sounding choices.
For Abraham and Minnie Vaupel, the decision was clear. They chose to emphasize the “V” in their last name, Vaupel, by giving each of their children a first name that also began with “V.”
By about 1906, when the Vaupels moved to Deering, North Dakota, they already had eight children, all with “V” names. Around 1915, quite fittingly, the family moved to Valley City, where Abraham and Minnie lived into old age.
In 1941, when Abraham was 80 and Minnie was 74, the family received national attention. World War II was raging in Europe, and Great Britain stood alone against Nazi Germany. The British launched a “V for Victory” campaign in Nazi-occupied Europe, urging people to write “millions of new V’s on walls, doors, and pavements,” as a symbol of hope and eventual freedom.
In September 1941, the Minneapolis Star recognized the Vaupels as having the “world’s number one ‘V’ family,” listing their children:
- Vallie Vaupel
- Virgil Vaupel
- Vera Viola Vaupel
- Verni Vaupel
- Victor Vaupel
- Vilee Vaupel
- Vida Vaupel
- Vance Van Sant Vaupel
All eight children were born in Iowa but grew up mostly in Deering and Valley City. The “V” tradition continued into the next generation. Four grandchildren were named Vance, Verl, Verneice, and Vance Van Sant, Jr. Altogether, the extended family counted 27 “V’s for Victory.”
Sadly, Abraham L. Vaupel died in October 1941. He had been born on this date in 1861, the very day of President Abraham Lincoln’s inauguration. In his honor, his parents named him Abraham Lincoln Vaupel.
As for the “V for Victory” movement, it became world-famous after British Prime Minister Winston Churchill began flashing the defiant two-finger “V” sign in August 1941. The slogan, not “V for Vaupel,” but “V for Victory” — soon became an American motto after the United States entered World War II on December 7, 1941.
Dakota Datebook written by Steve Hoffbeck
Sources:
- “Mr. and Mrs. Abraham Vaupel,” Minneapolis Star, September 28, 1941, p. 71.
- “Wees Wery Woluminous In Vaupel Family Names,” Hope [ND] Pioneer, October 23, 1941, p. 2.
- “Abraham Lincoln Vaupel,” U.S. Find a Grave Index, Ancestry.com, accessed February 15, 2021.
- “Victor Vaupel Conducts Own ‘V’ Campaign,” Statesman Journal [Salem, OR], October 22, 1941, p. 1.
- “V for Vaupel Series Older Than Victory Scheme,” Klamath Falls [OR] News, October 23, 1941, p. 2.
- “Abraham Lincoln Vaupel,” Fargo Forum, October 20, 1941, p. 10.
- “Abraham L. Vaupel,” Britt, Iowa, 1900 U.S. Census; “A.L. Vaupel,” Valley City, ND, 1920 U.S. Census; Ancestry.com, accessed February 1, 2021.
- “British Open ‘V for Victory’ Drive in Nazi-Held Europe,” Grand Forks Herald, July 20, 1941, p. 1; “V for Victory ‘Vlitz’ Raising New Hopes in Occupied Nations,” Minneapolis Tribune, July 21, 1941, p. 2.
- Douglas J. Hall, “Churchilliana: The Leader Commemorated; Winston Churchill’s V-Sign,” Finest Hour, Vol. 158 (Spring 2013), March 7, 2013, International Churchill Society, winstonchurchill.org, accessed February 21, 2026.
