George Housten Simpson
MilitaryFamily Archives
SSGT George H. Simpson served in the Army Air Force during WWII.
Mr. Simpson was from South Charleston, WV, where he grew up on a dairy farm. While he was in 5th grade, he met Kathryn Erskine, who would remain his sweetheart throughout his life. He played football at South Charleston High School, where a local newspaper reporter noted that his play at halfback had the "feathery touch of a concrete pile driver." Upon graduation, George and Kathryn were married in 1941 and had their first child, a daughter named Georgianna, in 1942. Mr. Simpson enlisted in 1943. After training, he served as a tail gunner in the 342nd BS of the 97th BG, 15th AF. Mr. Simpson completed 59 missions in 35 sorties during his time stationed at Amendola, Italy from late 1944 through 1945.
After being honorably discharged in May of 1945, Mr. Simpson returned to his home in West Virginia. He went on to work for over 42 years as a Chemical Operator at Union Carbide in South Charleston, WV. Upon retirement, Mr. Simpson spent a lot of his time travelling the United States and Canada with his wife in their RV. Together, they visited all but 2 states in the contiguous United States. Mr. Simpson and his wife Kathryn had been married married for 72 years at the time of her passing in 2013. Mr. Simpson passed away in November of 2016.
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Aircraft
Places
- Site type: Airfield
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
South Charleston, WV | 25 April 1921 | |
Enlisted |
Huntington, WV | 13 November 1943 | |
Died |
St. Albans, WV | 2 November 2016 |