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Urie Henry Zook

Military

Urie H. Zook was born in Belleville, Pennsylvania, USA to an Amish family. Despite the Amish disposition on non-violence, Urie voluntarily enlisted for combat in the United States Army Air Force.

He became a ball turret gunner for a B-17 Flying Fortress and successfully completed his first tour of duty, despite statistics suggesting he would be lucky to complete a handful of missions.

He then re-enlisted for a second tour of duty before being shot down over Germany. Allegedly, Urie survived the crash of his B-17 only to be captured by the Nazis behind enemy lines. He died during a bombing by Allied forces while on a train with POWs, assumed to be heading toward a concentration camp.

Service

Units served with

  • 398th Bomb Group

    398th Bomb Group

    Group
    The 398th Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses from Nuthampstead, Hertfordshire on strategic bombing raids over Germany. The Group switched focus in the days before D-Day, when they targeted enemy positions on the Cherbourg peninsula. When the Allies...

  • 600th Bomb Squadron

    600th Bomb Squadron

    Squadron

Aircraft

  • 43-39128 “Beatty's 8-Balls”

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Lincoln 9/12/45; Dow Fd 17/12/44; Assigned 600BS/398BG [N8-M] Nuthampstead 13/2/45; (4m) Missing in Action Wittenberg, Ger 22/2/45 with Hubert Beatty, Co-pilot: Jim Honaker, Navigator: Jim Luna (3 Killed in Action); Bombardier: Urie Zook,...

Events

Event Location Date
Born Belleville, Pennsylvania, USA 19 October 1922

Urie H. Zook was born in Belleville, PA on October 19, 1922 to Amish parents.
Died Germany 10 March 1945
Nationality
American
Nickname
Bigfoot
Service numbers
13068900
Highest rank
Staff Sergeant
Role/job
Bombardier
Awards
Not yet known

Revisions

Date Contributor Update
18 March 2022 21:23:08 jmoore43 Changes to events
Sources

Added Died event per Find-a-grave Memorial ID 51982018.
SOURCE: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/51982018/urie-henry-zook
Date Contributor Update
18 March 2022 21:19:05 jmoore43 Changes to middlename and events
Sources

Updated Died event and middle name per Find-a-grave Memorial ID 51982018.
SOURCE: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/51982018/urie-henry-zook
Date Contributor Update
12 March 2020 19:12:34 jmoore43 Changes to service number
Sources

Added S/N from WW2 POW records at the National Archives (NARA).
Date Contributor Update
19 September 2015 22:32:23 zookfamily Changes to nickname
Sources

Please contact zook.christopherd@gmail.com for additional information, if needed.
Date Contributor Update
19 September 2015 22:31:41 zookfamily Changes to biography and events
Sources

I am Urie's grand-nephew, and I've been researching the genealogy of my family for several years. Urie is a proud figure in my family, along with General Samuel Zook who fought for the Union in the American Civil War. The story of how he died has been passed down from my grandparents to my parents and to me. Unfortunately, that means there are few (if any) sources that can corroborate the story online. You can contact the Mennonite History Museum of Belleville, PA for more information or verification, which is where his flight jacket is located on loan from my family, at 717-935-5574.

Please contact me at zook.christopherd@gmail.com if you have any additional questions or want more verification.

Thanks!
Date Contributor Update
27 September 2014 18:26:19 AAM AAM ingest
Sources

MACR 12650 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database

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