Today in Ohio History: Clarksburg Ohio war veterans

Today in Ohio History: Clarksburg Ohio World War II heavy bomber crew members continue fighting:

September 22, 1943: Ralph Anderson is participating in advanced B-17 training at Dalhart, Texas and preparing to transfer to Scott Field, Illinois in a few days for rotation overseas.

September 22, 1944: Norman Trapp flies his second bombing mission to Kassel, Germany in B-17 42-31879 nicknamed "The Shark." (PHOTO: The Shark behind a 351st Bomb Group crew - not including Trapp)

Today in Ohio World War II history

Today in Ohio Military History:

September 17, 1944: Norman Trapp (pictured center bottom row), pilots his first bombing mission of the war with the 351st Bomb Group over Nijmegan, Holland in B-17 43-37956, in support of Operation Market Garden.

September 17, 1945: Hoyt Graham departs Wright Field to points west, including Los Angeles, on an inspection tour of various aircraft factories in California.

September 17, 1946: Joe Kelly departs the Philippines bound for the United States. Troy Reisinger departs the Pacific bound for the United States.

Today in Ohio WWII history: Clarksburg's Sgt Carl Dinkler moves closer to Brest, Norman Trapp prepares to lead B-17 crew

Today in Clarksburg Ohio World War II history:

August 8, 1942: Corporal Forrest Hicks is based in Panama defending the canal zone and eastern seaboard attached to the 1st Coastal Artillery, Battery K at Fort Sherman.

August 8, 1944: SGT Carl Dinkler, A Company, 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry is attached to the 6th Armored Division to pressure Germans in the Brittany Peninsula and cut off the port city of Brest. The group meets at the village of Landivisiau in preparation for scouting the German defense in the area. Captain Norman Trapp departs the U.S. bound for England to serve as a command pilot of a B-17 Bomber crew with the 351st Bomb Group, 508th Bomb Squadron.

August 8, 1945: PFC Almer Sowers (pictured during the war and in 1984 on his farm outside Clarksburg Ohio) returns to the U.S. from the Philippines and is interned in a hospital in Kentucky, following his service as a light truck driver in the Pacific. Corporal Warren Martin departs Antwerp, Belgium on the U.S.S. Howard A. Kelly liberty ship bound for New York.

August 8, 1946: SSGT John Roseboom is discharged from the U.S. Army following honorable service in the 1st Cavalry Division’s 760th Field Artillery Battalion.

Today in Ohio Military History: Spotlight on Clarksburg Ohio WWII veterans: Trapp flies his 25th B-17 mission

Today in Clarksburg Ohio World War II History, April 17:

April 17, 1942: William Merz departs Melbourne, Australia for repositioning in a "censored" location of the South Pacific.

April 17, 1945: Dale Boyer begins fighting against the Japanese at Okinawa serving with an anti-aircraft artillery group. Jack Ater is in the vicinity of Solingen, Germany when one of the 97th Division's other regiments captures the city. Norman Trapp flies his 25th and final bombing mission on targets over Dresden, Germany in 351st Bomb Group B-17 44-8468.

Today in Clarksburg Ohio WWII history: Haynes experiences Kamikaze attack aboard the USS New York, Trapp flies 24th mission in B-17 The Pink Lady

Today in Clarksburg Ohio World War II History:

April 14, 1943: William Bochard's ship departs the U.S. bound for the Pacific theater.

April 14, 1944: From "Somewhere in New Guinea," Harold Garrison with the Red Arrow 32nd Infantry Division writes home to describe the natives, the heat, and native fruit. Kenneth Ater returns to Fort Benjamin Harrison, following a furlough in Clarksburg, Ohio with his family.

April 14, 1945: Fred Rittenhouse's 777th Tank Battalion, A Company knocks out four German anti-tank guns in Lippendorf, Germany. Norman Trapp flies his 24th bombing mission of World War II on Royan, France in B-17 44-8846 nicknamed "The Pink Lady" which today has been restored and is hangered in Paris, France. A modern day photo of the Pink Lady is above. Robert Haynes experiences a Kamikaze attack while aboard the USS New York as a Japanese Kamikaze aircraft grazes the ship and destroys the ship's spotting plane, knocking it from its catapult.

Clarksburg Ohio World War II heavy bomber crewmembers busy on March 24!

Today in Ohio World War II veteran history:

March 24, 1942: Bob Anderson attends a war benefit at Santa Monica High School, including performances by actors Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, and Philip Dorary.

March 24, 1943: John Martin arrives Clarksburg, Ohio for a ten day furlough from infantry training. Warren Martin arrives Clarksburg, Ohio for a multi-day furlough with parents and his brother John.

March 24, 1944: Jack Morris flies his 11th bombing mission on the St. Dizier airfield near Metz, France, which at the time was being utilized by the German Luftwaffe. Morris attached to the 392nd Bomb Group.

March 24, 1945: Don Adams flies his tenth bombing mission on the Neuberg Airdrome in Neuberg, Germany. Adams attached to the 485th Bomb Group, 83oth Bomb Squadron, flying B-24 Liberators. Lewis Garrison sees brother Dick Garrison for the first time since the beginning of the war while on a furlough. Norman Trapp flies his 21st bombing mission in a B-17, on the Vechte Airfield in B-17 44-8468 (pictured above) attached to the 351st Bomb Group. Roy Hawkins crosses the Rhine River at 0200 hours as part of the 463rd AAA.

Today in Clarksburg Ohio World War II History: Some of Ohio's World War II veterans have active days

Today in Ohio World War II History: A handful of Clarksburg Ohio WWII veterans have active days.

March 14, 1943: Corrine Bochard transfers from Fort Oglethorpe, GA to Commerce, Texas to serve and train with Company A, WAAC Branch 5, Army Administration School. Ralph Anderson departs Clarksburg to return to Amarillo, Texas following his grandmother's funeral. Scott Dinkler receives a promotion to PFC while based at Patterson Field in Dayton, Ohio.

March 14, 1944: Sgt. Bob Anderson (pictured with his ground crew and sitting on the maintenance stand top center), based in Italy with the 37th Fighter Squadron, writes to his mother that he can't believe the news that his brother SSGT Ralph Anderson was Killed-In-Action in fighting over Western Germany on December 1, 1943. Kenneth Ater's troopship docks in the United States.

March 14, 1945: John Templin is stationed at Camp Hood, Texas. Norman Trapp flies his 19th bombing mission on enemy targets located in Lohne piloting B-17 number 44-8098. Roger Bryant departs India to return to the United States.

Clarksburg Ohio World War II veterans active on March 4:

Today in Ohio World War II history. Clarksburg Ohio WWII veterans are very active.

March 4, 1942: William Merz travels in a long convoy of ships down the east coast of the Atlantic seaboard sailing from the U.S. to the Pacific Theater.

March 4, 1943: Following a dead-stick crashlanding in a farm field north of Eglin Field, Florida, Charles Crabb and his crew are assigned a new B-25 and depart Eglin for Greenville, SC arriving safely this time by 9pm. Roger Bryant, attached to the 330th Engineers, arrives India.

March 4, 1944: After flying his 53rd mission, Charles Crabb departs the ETO bound for the United States to eventually serve as an aerial gunnery instructor in South Carolina. Gerald Bethel, aboard the USS Bache, participates in the shelling of Ndrillo and Karunia Islands in the Admiralty Islands.

March 4, 1945: Norman Trapp flies his 18th bombing mission attached to the 351st Bomb Group on Schwabmunchen in B-17 44-8455. (pictured: Norman Trapp front row, center). The following link is an excellent video of 351st Bomb Group B-17's taking off for a mission. Attached is another excellent video with raw footage from a sqaudron of bomber crews being interviewed after a raid. B-17 Crew Interviews

March 4, 1946: Eugene Mace is discharged from the U.S. Navy at Great Lakes Training Center, IL.

Christmas furloughs for some Clarksburg soldiers, Norman Trapp flies 12th bombing mission, Garrison prepares for the ETO

Today in Clarksburg Ohio World War II History:

December 24, 1942: Herschel Bethel visits his mother in Greenland, Ohio while on a ten-day furlough from Camp Van Buren, Arkansas.

December 24, 1943: Hoyt Graham hosts his friend, Lt. Henry Fielder who is also based at Wright Field, at the Graham house in Clarksburg for Christmas. Lewis Garrison’s parents receive word that Lewis is transferred to Alamogordo, NM and attached to the 466th Bomb Group, 787th Bomb Squadron, where the group was preparing for overseas departure. Merrill Hughes receives a furlough from Easton, Pennsylvania to spend a three-day pass with his wife and family in Clarksburg. Tom Eycke returns to Clarksburg to enjoy a holiday furlough from Camp Ellis, Illinois.

December 24, 1944: Allen Anderson returns to Ohio from his base in San Antonio, Texas to enjoy a 14-day furlough with his mother in Chillicothe. Corrine Bochard and Jack Ater return to Clarksburg to enjoy furloughs with their respective parents. Marcus Ater, aboard the USS Denver - returns to Manus. Norman Trapp (photo above - Trapp front row center) flies his 12th bombing mission with the 351st Bomb Group, 508th Bomb Squadron, in B-17 44-8374 and the target is the Biblis Airfield (recon photo through link).

December 24, 1945: Sgt. Dwight Willis returns to the United States following service in China, India and Burma. Robert Boggs departs the European Theater bound for the United States. Tom Eycke is officially discharged from the U.S. Army following service in the Pacific Theater.