Ellsworth Harry Shields
Military
"Iowans of the Mighty Eighth", Chapter 22 "Biographies", by Charles D Taylor.
Object Number - UPL 33186 - First Lieutenant Ellsworth H. Shields, Bombardier, 458th Bomb Group
Assigned to 752BS, 458BG, 8AF USAAF. 35 x combat missions. ETD
He also flew on 9 gasoline drops in support of Patton's 3rd Army during the Battle of the Bulge. Before leaving on any mission he would go to the base chapel and pray; it bothered him that because of cloud cover their bombs would often hit the wrong targets. On the mission of January 26 1945 with three wounded men on board and being severely damaged by flak their plane started going down but - fortunately- the pilot managed to land in a 'snowy cornfield' behind Allied lines northeast of Paris. Ellsworth was only 20 years old when he completed his tour. He returned to college graduating for the University of Wisconsin then working in Life Insurance for some 41 years.
Awards: AM, WWII Victory, EAME.
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
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 25th Bomb Group 458th Bomb Group 653rd Bomb Squadron 752nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-771615
- Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Co-Pilot / Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 458th Bomb Group 752nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 32802729
- Highest Rank: Sergeant
- Role/Job: Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 458th Bomb Group 752nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-773314
- Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Bombardier
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 458th Bomb Group 752nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 36762332
- Highest Rank: Sergeant
- Role/Job: Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 458th Bomb Group 752nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 06919132
- Highest Rank: Technical Sergeant
- Role/Job: Flight Engineer
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
- Nicknames: Lucky 1
- Unit: 458th Bomb Group 752nd Bomb Squadron
Places
- Site type: Airfield
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Born |
Antigo, Wisconsin | 9 November 1924 | Son of Harry and Esther Shields |
|
Enlisted |
Fort Sheridan, IL | 23 April 1943 | Fort Sheridan, Illinois |
|
Other Discharged USAAF |
7 October 1945 | Honourable discharge. | |
|
Died |
23 November 2017 | ||
|
Buried |
Wisconsin Memorial Park Brookfield, Waukesha County, WI | 26 November 2017 | Wisconsin Memorial Park Brookfield, Waukesha County, Wisconsin |
| Waverly, Iowa | |||
|
Based |
Horsham St Faith | Assigned to 752BS, 458BG, 8AF USAAF. |
Revisions
Biographical detail taken from "8TH AF NEWS" June 2018
Merged with duplicate entry to include details from:
- the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia;
- Page 406 in the book 2ND AIR DIVISIONby Turner Publishing Company, 1998 edition (D790.A2S45).
Further details from:
- "Iowans of the Mighty Eighth", Chapter 22 "Biographies", by Charles D Taylor.
458bg.com / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia
