Lacy Claude Gilliam

Military
media-20301.png UPL 20301 Lacy C. Gilliam - England - 28 April 1945

Added photo, cropped from the Heichel crew one

Object Number - UPL 20301 - Lacy C. Gilliam - England - 28 April 1945

Enlisting in the Air Corps in August 1943, Lacy Gilliam trained as a gunner and was sent overseas and assigned to the 491st Bomb Group / 854th Bomb Squadron in England. He was on board B-24 "Belle Ringer" # 42-51195 when it crash-landed in Belgium on return from the 14 March 1945 mission to bomb the marshalling yards at Gütersloh, Germany.

Connections

See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.

Units served with

A Pathfinder B-24 Liberator (V2-P+, serial number 42-51691) of the 491st Bomb Group. Handwritten caption on reverse: '491 BG supplying troops at Arnhem, Sept 1944.'
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 491st Bomb Group
  • Service Numbers: 10105080 and O2022747
  • Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Co-Pilot
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 491st Bomb Group 854th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 35847379
  • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Gunner
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 491st Bomb Group 854th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 32966605 and O-944688
  • Highest Rank: Flight Officer
  • Role/Job: Navigator
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 491st Bomb Group
  • Service Numbers: 13084865 and 2061944
  • Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Pilot
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 491st Bomb Group 854th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 31379109
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Flight Engineer / Top Turret Gunner

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
  • Nicknames: Belle Ringer
  • Unit: 491st Bomb Group 493rd Bomb Group 852nd Bomb Squadron

Missions

  • Date: 14 March 1945
  • Official Description:

Places

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

Texas, United States 1 February 1925 the son of Adam and Florence Gilliam

Enlisted

Miami Beach, Florida, United States 5 August 1943 as a Private in the Air Corps

Other

Survived crash-landing

near Florée, Belgium 14 March 1945 of B-24 # 42-51195 in Belgium

Died

Hondo, Medina County, Texas, United States 24 September 1953
Medina County, Texas, United States

Buried

Hondo Cemetery, Hondo, Medina County, Texas, United States

Revisions

Date
ContributorED-BB
Changes
Sources

Identified Lacy Gilliam in UPL 20286

Date
ContributorED-BB
Changes
Sources

Corrected first name : It's Lacy instead of Leroy...
NARA WWII Enlistments records
1940 US Census
http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth39868/m1/30/
Personal search on Lacy Gilliam (contacts with family)

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / Unit history

Lacy Claude Gilliam: Gallery (9 items)