James Baxter Dick Jr.
Military ROLL OF HONOUR
Object Number - UPL 60661 - TSGT JAMES B DICK, JR
Shot down 8 April 1944 in B-24 #42-64464. Killed in Action (KIA).
Air Medal, Purple Heart
James Baxter Dick, Junior
Technical Sergeant, United States Army Air Forces
733rd Bombardment Squadron (Heavy),
453rd Bombardment Group (Heavy)
8th U.S. Army Air Force
Service Number 19181027
Killed in Action, April 8, 1944, near Brunswick, Germany.
James was born on December 15, 1923, in Cincinnati, Ohio, the oldest son of James Baxter Dick and Ruth Dick (nee Ehlen). His younger brother, Kenneth E. Baxter was born in California in 1930 when the family resided at 1437 Mount Pleasant Street. Jame’s father worked in the grocery business and his mother was a homemaker. Both parents reported finishing four years of high school education. In 1940, the family lived at 5415 Poplar Boulevard in the El Sereno nieghborhood of Los Angeles. James attended nearby Wilson High School and graduated with the Spring Class of 1942. James' mother died on January 27, 1943.
When he registered for the Selective Service June 30, 1942, he was reported as a student, standing 5’7” with blue eyes and brown hair. James enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps on November 18, 1942 in Los Angeles, California. He served in the 453rd Heavy Bomber Group that was activated in Utah on June 1, 1943 and he was assigned to the 733rd Bomber Squadron as a waist gunner. The unit moved to Pocatello Air Field in Idaho where they trained on B-24 Liberator Heavy Bombers. Training for the group continued in California at March AIr Field in Riverside. The unit deployed to England before Christmas to join the air offensive in the European Theater of Operations in February, 1944. The end of February brought a concentrated bombing campaign on German oil fields, manufacturing, and other strategic targets. Major James M. Stewart joined the group in March 1944 as the Executive Officer. He was a famous movie actor of the era and had already flown twenty bombing missions before joining the squadron.
TSGT Dick was the waist gunner in a crew of ten on his fifteenth bombing mission over Brunswick, Germany on April 8, 1944. The group was met by heavy fighter plane opposition in the vicinity and the aircraft was downed at about 1400. One crewman was able to parachute to safety and was soon captured by the German forces. Enemy reports indicate the aircraft was totally destroyed and nine Army Air Force crew were found dead.
The enemy further reported the air crew was buried with another B-24 crew in the cemetery near Salzwedel, Germany. TSGT Dick today rests with other heroes at the Ardennes American Cemetery in Belgium and he is also memorialized on the Wilson High School WWII List of Honor in his hometown of Los Angeles.
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
![Allen H Bryson, Sol Greenberg and Albert J Gehrt of the 453rd Bomb Group in their underwear after a mission. Handwritten letter enclosed with print: '1 [left] Allen H Bryson- Pilot, 2 [right] Albert H Gehrt- Bombardier, 3 [center] Sol Greenberg- Navigator. Part of the crew of "The Gypsy Queen", 733rd Sqdn. 453rd Bomb Group at Old Buckenham. Taken in long johns, pistol and parachute harness after returning from a mission.'](https://assets.americanairmuseum.com/s3fs-public/styles/teaser_thumb_x2/public/freeman/media-380674.jpg.webp?itok=FeDJ5j6d)
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
- Unit: 453rd Bomb Group 733rd Bomb Squadron
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Born |
|||
|
Other Killed in Action (KIA) |
8 April 1944 |
Revisions
Selective Service Registration
Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II. Editor Maurer Mauer, published 1982. Albert F. Simpson Historical Research Center, Office of Air Force History, USAF.
https://media.defense.gov/2010/Dec/02/2001329899/-1/-1/0/AFD-101202-002.pdf
National Archives WWII Army Enlistments
https://aad.archives.gov/aad/series-description.jsp?s=3360&cat=all&bc=sl
US Census, 1930
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census[database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
US Census 1940
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census[database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
Vital Statistics. The Cincinnati Enquirer; Publication Date: 31 Jan 1943; Publication Place: Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
Burial Site
https://www.abmc.gov/decedent-search/dick%3Djames-3
Grave Marker Picture
https://www.fold3.com/memorial/653608345/james-baxter-dick-jr
Crew Picture
fold3
Works Cited
Selective Service Registration
Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II. Editor Maurer Mauer, published 1982. Albert F. Simpson Historical Research Center, Office of Air Force History, USAF.
https://media.defense.gov/2010/Dec/02/2001329899/-1/-1/0/AFD-101202-002.pdf
National Archives WWII Army Enlistments
https://aad.archives.gov/aad/series-description.jsp?s=3360&cat=all&bc=sl
US Census, 1930
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
US Census 1940
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
Vital Statistics. The Cincinnati Enquirer; Publication Date: 31 Jan 1943; Publication Place: Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
Burial Site
https://www.abmc.gov/decedent-search/dick%3Djames-3
Grave Marker Picture
https://www.fold3.com/memorial/653608345/james-baxter-dick-jr
Works Cited
Selective Service Registration
Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II. Editor Maurer Mauer, published 1982. Albert F. Simpson Historical Research Center, Office of Air Force History, USAF.
https://media.defense.gov/2010/Dec/02/2001329899/-1/-1/0/AFD-101202-002.pdf
National Archives WWII Army Enlistments
https://aad.archives.gov/aad/series-description.jsp?s=3360&cat=all&bc=sl
US Census, 1930
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
US Census 1940
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
Vital Statistics. The Cincinnati Enquirer; Publication Date: 31 Jan 1943; Publication Place: Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
Burial Site
https://www.abmc.gov/decedent-search/dick%3Djames-3
Picture
https://www.fold3.com/memorial/653608345/james-baxter-dick-jr
Selective Service Registration
Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II. Editor Maurer Mauer, published 1982. Albert F. Simpson Historical Research Center, Office of Air Force History, USAF.
https://media.defense.gov/2010/Dec/02/2001329899/-1/-1/0/AFD-101202-002.pdf
National Archives WWII Army Enlistments
https://aad.archives.gov/aad/series-description.jsp?s=3360&cat=all&bc=sl
US Census, 1930
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
US Census 1940
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
Vital Statistics. The Cincinnati Enquirer; Publication Date: 31 Jan 1943; Publication Place: Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
Burial Site
Selective Service Registration
Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II. Editor Maurer Mauer, published 1982. Albert F. Simpson Historical Research Center, Office of Air Force History, USAF.
https://media.defense.gov/2010/Dec/02/2001329899/-1/-1/0/AFD-101202-002.pdf
National Archives WWII Army Enlistments
https://aad.archives.gov/aad/series-description.jsp?s=3360&cat=all&bc=sl
US Census, 1930
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
US Census 1940
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
Vital Statistics. The Cincinnati Enquirer; Publication Date: 31 Jan 1943; Publication Place: Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
Burial Site
Selective Service Registration
Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II. Editor Maurer Mauer, published 1982. Albert F. Simpson Historical Research Center, Office of Air Force History, USAF.
https://media.defense.gov/2010/Dec/02/2001329899/-1/-1/0/AFD-101202-002.pdf
National Archives WWII Army Enlistments
https://aad.archives.gov/aad/series-description.jsp?s=3360&cat=all&bc=sl
US Census, 1930
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
US Census 1940
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
Vital Statistics. The Cincinnati Enquirer; Publication Date: 31 Jan 1943; Publication Place: Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
Burial Site
https://www.abmc.gov/decedent-search/dick%3Djames-3
Picture
https://www.fold3.com/memorial/653608345/james-baxter-dick-jr
Selective Service Registration
Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II. Editor Maurer Mauer, published 1982. Albert F. Simpson Historical Research Center, Office of Air Force History, USAF.
https://media.defense.gov/2010/Dec/02/2001329899/-1/-1/0/AFD-101202-002.pdf
National Archives WWII Army Enlistments
https://aad.archives.gov/aad/series-description.jsp?s=3360&cat=all&bc=sl
US Census, 1930
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
US Census 1940
Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
Vital Statistics. The Cincinnati Enquirer; Publication Date: 31 Jan 1943; Publication Place: Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
Burial Site
https://www.abmc.gov/decedent-search/dick%3Djames-3
Added S/N per MACR 3923 at Fold3.com. Source: https://www.fold3.com/image/29635870
Copied "Summary biography" from a Duplicate person as part of a merge operation of dup people so the dup person can be deleted.
Removed the "Possible DUPLICATE" flag in the Nickname field and then removed the duplicate person.
Flagged as a "Possible DUPLICATE" in the Nickname field so an Admin can check out this person.
MACR 3923 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database
