The Thirty-Eight
"...WE WERE
YOUNG.
WE HAVE DIED.
REMEMBER US.
...OUR DEATHS ARE NOT
OURS;
THEY ARE YOURS;
THEY WILL MEAN WHAT YOU MAKE THEM...
...WHETHER OUR LIVES
AND OUR DEATHS
WERE FOR PEACE AND A NEW HOPE
OR FOR NOTHING
WE CANNOT SAY;
IT IS YOU WHO MUST
SAY THIS.
...WE LEAVE YOU OUR DEATHS.
GIVE THEM THEIR MEANING.
WE WERE YOUNG...
WE HAVE DIED.
REMEMBER US." 1
| JANE DOLORES
CHAMPLIN
Class 43-W-4 Trainee Born: May 14, 1917 Graduate: Arcadia College St. Louis University Jane entered flight training to become a WASP at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas on February 21, 1943. On the night of June 7, she and her instructor were killed in a BT-15 while on a training flight near Avenger Field. |
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SUSAN PARKER CLARKE Class 44-W-2 Born: 1918 Graduate: High school, Cooperstown Attended: Secretarial school, NY City. Susan entered WASP flight training at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas in September, 1943 and graduated on March 11, 1944. She was then stationed with the 33rdFerrying Group at Fairfax Field, Kansas City, Missouri. She lost her life on July 4, 1944 when the BT-13 she was ferrying crashed near Columbia, South Carolina. |
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| MARJORIE LAVERNE DAVIS Class 44-W-9 Trainee Marjorie learned to fly in Sparks, Nevada, and entered training to become a WASP at Avenger field, Sweetwater, Texas in June, 1944. She was killed on the night of October 16, 1944 while on a cross country training flight in an AT-6 near Walnut, Mississippi.
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KATHERINE ‘KAY’ APPLEGATE DUSSAQ Born: Dayton, Washington Kay entered flight training to become a WASP at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas on August 9, 1943, and graduated on February 11, 1944. Her first duty station was Sioux Falls Army Air Base, Sioux Falls, South Dakota. She was then transferred to Randolph Army Air Base, San Antonio, Texas (HQ/CFTC)), then to Fort Worth, Texas (FTC, Hq.) She was killed when the AT-6 she was flying on an administrative cross-country flight crashed on the night of November 26, 1944 near New Carlisle, Ohio. |
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| MARJORIE DORIS EDWARDS Born: September 28, 1918 Fullerton, California Graduate: Anaheim Union High School and Marjorie entered WASP flight training at She died in the crash of an AT-6 near Childress, Texas, while on a cross-country training flight. |
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While flying an AT-6, she was killed in a
mid-air collision |
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Cornelia reported for duty as a WAFS in October, 1942. She lost her life on March 21, 1943 in a mid-air collision near Abilene, Texas, while on a ferrying mission in a BT-13. Cornelia was the first casualty of an
American woman pilot on active duty.Her death was attributed to the 'pilot error' of a young male pilot flew too close to her
plane...causing a mid-air collision and Cornelia's death. |
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| FRANCES FORTUNE GRIMES Her active duty assignment was to the 5th FG/ATC at Love Field, Dallas, Texas. She was killed shortly after take-off from Otis Field, Massachusetts in an A-24 attack bomber on March 27, 1944. |
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| MARY E. HARTSON Born: January 11, 1917 |
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| MARY HOLMES HOWSON While returning from a
cross-country flight in a PT-19, Mary was killed in a mid-air collision
in the traffic pattern at Avenger Field, on April 16, 1944-- just three
weeks before her scheduled graduation. |
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| EDITH ‘EDY’ CLAYTON KEENE Born: Canton, Montana Graduate: Pomona schools On August 9,1943, Edith arrived at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas to begin training to become a WASP, and graduated on February 11, 1944. She was assigned to Hondo Army Air Field, Hondo, Texas and later transferred to Moore Army Air Base, Mission, Texas. She was killed on April 25, 1944 while on a routine flight in an AT-6 that crashed near Mission. |
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| KATHRYN BARBARA LAWRENCE Born: December 3, 1920 Graduate: High school, Grand Forks University of North Dakota Kathryn entered training to become a WASP at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas on July 10. 1943. She was killed on August 4, 1943, while flying a PT-19 on a routine training flight at Avenger Field. |
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| HAZEL YING LEE Born: August, 1912 Attended: Commerce High School, Portland Hazel entered WASP flight training on February 21, 1943 and graduated from Avenger Field,Sweetwater, Texas on August 7, 1943. She was assigned to the 3rdFerrying Group, Romulus, Michigan. While flying a P-63, she was killed in a mid-air collision on the final approach at Great Falls, Montana, November 23, 1944.
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Born: August 25, 1916 Graduate: Manchester H.S., OK Paula began her training to become a WASP on December 19, 1942 at Houston Municipal Airport, Houston, Texas and graduated at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas on May 28, 1943. She was then stationed at Romulus Army Air Base, Michigan, with the 3rd FG/ATC, as a ferry pilot. She was killed in the crash of a BT-13 near Medford, Oregon on July 7, 1944, while on a ferrying mission. Embeded into Paula's granite tombstone--her precious silver wings Article from the Oregon Aviation Historical Society
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| ALICE E. LOVEJOY Her first assignment was to the 3rdFerrying Group,Romulus, Michigan, later being transferred for pursuit training to Brownsville, Texas. During a training mission near Brownsville on September 13, 1944, she was killed in a mid-air collision in an AT-6. |
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| LEA OLA McDONALD Born: October 12, 1921 Graduate: High school, Lea entered WASP flight training at Houston Municipal Airport, Houston,Texas on January 15, 1943. She graduated at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas on April 5, 1944. After graduation, she was stationed at Biggs Army Air Field, El Paso, Texas, and was killed while flying an A-24 attack bomber on a practice flight on June 21, 1944. |
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| PEGGY WILSON MARTIN Born: Feb 8, 1912 Peggy entered flight training to become a WASP on November 1, 1943 at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas, and graduated on May 23, 1944. She was stationed at Marianna Army Air Base, Marianna, Florida . She was killed while engineering test flying a BT-13 on October 3, 1944. |
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| VIRGINIA C. MOFFATT Born: Los Angeles, California area. Graduate: Fremont High School, Los Angeles Virginia reported to the Houston Municipal Airport, Houston, Texas on December 19, 1942 to begin her flight training to become a WASP, and was in the first class of women to graduate at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas, May 28, 1943. She was then assigned to the 6th Ferrying Group, Long Beach Army Air Base, California. She was killed while flying a BT-15 on a routine flight, 5 October 1943. |
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| BEVERLY JEAN MOSES Born: December 21, 1923, Des Moines, Iowa Graduate: North High School Beverly entered training to become a WASP on December 7, 1943 and graduated on June 27, 1944 at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas. She was stationed at Las Vegas Army Air Field, Nevada. While flying as the co-pilot in an AT-11, she was killed in a crash in the mountains near Las Vegas on July 18, 1944. |
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| DOROTHY MAE ‘DOTTIE’ NICHOLS Graduate: UCLA Dottie reported to the Houston Municipal Airport, Houston, Texas on December 19, 1942 to train to become a WASP. She was a member of the first class to graduate at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas on May 28, 1943. She was assigned to the 6thFerrying Group at Long Beach Army Air Field, California. While ferrying a P-39 from Buffalo, New York, she was killed just aftertake-off outside Bismarck, North Dakota on June 11, 1944. |
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| JEANNE LEWELLEN NORBECK Born: November 14, 1912, Columbus, Indiana Graduate: Columbus High School, Washington State College, Pullman, Washington. Jeanne entered WASP flight training at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas in October, 1943 and graduated on April 15, 1944. She was assigned to Shaw Army Air Base, Sumpter, South Carolina (BT-13 Modification Center), and was killed there on October 16, 1944, while flight testing a BT-13. Jeanne Lewellen Norbeck--more |
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MARGARET
SANFORD OLDENBURG Graduate: University of California Margaret was the first trainee fatality in the WASP program. She began her flight training to become a WASP at Houston Municipal Airport, Houston, Texas on February 21, 1943. She was killed on a routine training flight in a PT-19 on March 7, 1943 at the training base at Houston. |
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| MABEL VIRGINIA RAWLINSON Born: March 19, 1917 Graduate: Western Michigan College of Education, Kalamazoo, Michigan. Mabel reported to Houston Municipal Airport, Houston, Texas on January 15, 1943 to begin her flight training to become a WASP. She graduated from Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas on July 3, 1943. She was then assigned to a tow-target squadron at Camp Davis Army Air Field, North Carolina. She was killed in the crash of an A-24 attack bomber on August 23, 1943. from Mabel's niece |
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| GLEANNA ROBERTS Born: January 11, 1919 Graduate: Sharon Center H.School Gleanna entered training at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas in June, 1944 to become a WASP. On June 20, 1944, she was killed while on a routine training flight in a PT-17 near Lorraine, Texas. |
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| MARIE MICHELL ROBINSON Born: Michigan Graduate: National Park Junior College,Washington, D. C. Marie began her flight training to become a WASP at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas in September, 1943 and graduated on March 11, 1944. She was stationed with the 5thFerrying Group at Love Field, Dallas, Texas, and later transferred to the Bombardier Training School, Victorville, California. On October 2, 1944, Marie was killed when the B-25 she was co-piloting crashed in the mountains near Victorville, California. WASP Elizabeth Magid's "Celestial Flight" -- |
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| BETTIE MAE SCOTT Born: July 26, 1921 Graduate: Arcadia-Duarte High School Bettie Mae entered flight training to become a WASP in October, 1943 at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas and graduated on April 15, 1944. She was stationed at Waco Army Air Field, Waco, Texas, a Basic Flying Training School. She was killed while flight testing aBT-13 on July 8, 1944. |
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| DOROTHY E. SCOTT Born: February 16, 1920 Attended: University of Washington Dorothy entered the WAFS in October, 1942. She wasfirst assigned to the 5thFerrying Division, Love Field, Dallas, Texas and later transferred for pursuit training to Palm Springs Army Air Base, California. While flying with her instructor in an AT-6, she was killed in a mid-air collision on December 3, 1943. |
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| MARGARET JUNE ‘PEGGY’ SEIP Born: June 24, 1916 Graduate: Lawrence College, Appleton, Wisconsin Margaret entered flight training atAvenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas on April 6, 1943 to become a WASP. She, together with her instructor and a fellow class-mate, was killed in the crash of a UC-78 near Big Springs, Texas, August 30, 1943, on a routine training flight. |
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| HELEN JO ANDERSON SEVERSON Born: November 2, 1918 Graduate: South Dakota State University Helen Jo reported to Avenger Field,Sweetwater, Texas on April 6, 1943 to begin her training to become aWASP. She, together with her instructor and a fellow class-mate, was killed on a routine training flight in a UC-78 near Big Springs, Texas, August 30, 1943. |
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| MARIE ETHEL SHARON Born: April 21, 1917 Marie began her training to become a WASP on February 14, 1943 at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas. She graduated from Avenger Field on August 7, 1943. She was then stationed at Long Beach Army Air Base, California and assigned to the 6thFerrying Group. She and her instructor were killed on April 10, 1944 near Tecumseh, Nebraska, while flying a B-25 on a night flying instrument training mission. |
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| EVELYN SHARP Born: October 20, 1919 Everyn entered the WAFS in October, 1942. She was assigned to the 2nd Ferrying Group, New Castle Army Air Base, Wilmington, Delaware. She was killed on April 3, 1944 when an engine on the P-38 she was ferrying failed on take-off at New Cumberland, Pennsylvania (Evelyn was one of the most experienced women pilots in America, with 2,968 hours of flying time when she entered the WAFS.) More on Evelyn Sharp |
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| BETTY PAULINE STINE Born: Fort Worth, Texas Attended: University of Arizona Betty entered training to become a WASP at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas in September, 1943. On February 25, 1944,during her last cross-country flight before graduation, she was killed when she was forced to bail out of her AT-6 over the mountains near Tucson, Arizona. |
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| MARIAN TOEVS Born: Aberdeen, Idaho Graduate: Albion State Normal School Marian began her training to become a WASP at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas on July 10, 1943 and graduated December 17, 1943. She was stationed at a Basic Flying Training School at Lemoore Army Air Base, Lemoore,California. She was killed near San Jose, California, while flying a BT-13 from Lemoore to Fresno, California on February 18, 1944. |
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| GERTRUDE TOMPKINS-SILVER Born: October 16, 1912 Graduate: Private School, Gertrude reported to Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas in June, 1943 to begin her training to become a WASP. She graduated on November 13, 1943. She was stationed at Love Field, Dallas, Texas, with the 5th Ferrying Group. After departing on a ferrying mission from Los Angeles, California in a P-51 for the East Coast, she never arrived, and no traces of her were ever found. (She is the only WASP not accounted for.) |
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MARY ELIZABETH TREBING Born: Dec. 31, 1920 from Mary's brother Bill: "She attended the first four
years of grade-school there and at that time our family moved to Lafayette,
Colorado where she went to grade school. We then moved to Louisville, Colorado and she went to more grade school there. These were tough times
for
the whole nation and in order to find work we moved to
Gowen, Oklahoma in the 30's. She graduated from High School in Hartshorne, Oklahoma in 1941 and from there went on to graduate from Oklahoma A&M
college in Wilburton, Mary reported for WASP training at AvengerField, Sweetwater, Texas on February 21, 1943, and graduated on August 7, 1943. She was stationed at Love Field, Dallas Texas, with the 5thFerrying Group. She was killed on
November 7, 1943, when the PT-19 she was ferrying crashed southeast of
Blanchard, Oklahoma. |
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| MARY LOUISE WEBSTER Born: June 30, 1919 Attended: Central Washington State College Mary Louise went into training to become a WASP at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas in March, 1944 and graduated on October 16, 1944. She was stationed with the 33rdTraining Wing of the AFTS SE at Frederick Army Air Field, Frederick, Oklahoma. She was killed on December 9, 1944, while flying as co-pilot in a UC-78. |
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| BONNIE JEAN ALLOWAY WELZ Born: June 22,1918 Attended: UCLA Bonnie reported for training to become a WASP on Easter Sunday, April 25, 1943 at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas. She graduated and became a WASP on October 9, 1943. Bonnie was sent to Dodge City, Kansas for B-26 training, and was then stationed at Harlingen Army Air Field, Harlingen, Texas, (a B-26 Flexible Gunnery School). She was killed in the crash of a BT-13 near Randado, Texas,while on an administrative flight. |
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| BETTY TAYLOR WOOD Born: March, 1921 Graduate: Sierra Junior College, Betty began her training to become a WASP at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas on February 14, 1943, and graduated at Avenger on August 7, 1943. She was assigned to Camp Davis Army Air Field, Camp Davis, North Carolina, an Anti-Aircraft Artillery School. She was killed in the crash landing of an A-24 attack bomber on September 23, 1943. |
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1. " Young Dead Soldier" by Archibald MacLeish. Reprinted from "Articles of WAR V, A Collection of Poetry About WWII" by Leon Stokesburg. University of Arkansas Press, 1990." The>1. "The Young Dead Soldier" by Archibald MacLeish. Reprinted from "Articles of WAR , A Collection of Poetry About WWII" edited byLeon Stokesburg. University of Arkansas Press, 1990, p. 8.
If you have additional documented information you would like added to any of theseentries, please let us know! If you would like to use information from this page, please credit the website: http://www.wingsacrossamerica.us/wasp/38/38.htmlInformation on these pages was taken from
WASP Class Yearbooks, 43-1 thru 43-3, 44-4
"On Final Approach" by Byrd Granger
"In Memoriam -- researched and written by WASP Dawn Seymour,43-5, Clarice I. Bergemann, 44-2, Jeanette J. Jenkins, 44-1, and Mary Ellen Keil, 44-2. Published by Texas Woman's University Press, 1996.
