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Staff Sergeant
Richard Arnold Killgore
November 16, 1921 - January 29, 1944 |
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*Today it is called the Lorraine American Cemetery and Memorial and it is located approximately 3/4 miles from St. Avold.
**Simmen
Albert Killgore died of injuries he received in an aircraft accident
in England on September 15, 1944. |
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Mr. and Mrs. R. E. Killgore have received a
letter from their son, Richard A. Killgore, stating he has fully
recovered from a spell of pneumonia, also that while he was ill he
received his promotion to first class private. Pfc. Killgore is in
training at Buckley Field, Colo., and his wife recently went to
Denver and is located near the field. Palacios Beacon |
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Mrs. Richard A. Killgore has received word from the War Department officially recording death of her husband, S/Sgt. Richard A. Killgore, missing in action since January 1944, as the following letter states: Dear Mrs. Killgore: Since your husband, Staff Sergeant Richard A. Killgore, 18,191,018, Air Corps, was reported missing in action 29 January 1944, the War Department has entertained the hope that he survived and that information would be received dispelling the uncertainty surrounding his absence. However, as in many cases, the conditions of warfare deny us such information. Public Law 490, 77th Congress, as amended, provides for a review and determination of the status of each person who has been missing in action for twelve months. Accordingly, your husband’s case was reviewed and he was continued in the status of missing in action as of 30 January 1945. The law further provides that a subsequent review shall be made whenever warranted. Upon such subsequent review the making of a finding of death is authorized. All available records and reports concerning the absence of your husband have been carefully investigated and are deemed to warrant a subsequent review of his case. Information in the hands of the War Department indicates that your husband was a crew member of a B-17 (Flying Fortress) bomber which was attacked and shot down by enemy aircraft while on a mission to Frankfurt, Germany. Since no information has been received which would support a presumption of his continued survival the War Department must now terminate your husband’s absence by a presumptive finding of death. Accordingly, an official finding of death has been recorded. The finding does not establish an actual or probable date of death; however, as required by law, it includes a presumptive date of death for the purpose of termination of pay and allowances, settlement of accounts and payment of death gratuities. In the case of your husband this date has been set as 1 October 1945.
I regret the necessity for this message but trust that the
ending of a long period of uncertainty may give at least some small
measure of consolation. An appraisal of the sacrifice made by your
husband in the service of his country compels in us feelings of
humility and respect. May Providence grant a measure of relief from
the anguish and anxiety you have experienced during these many
months.
Mrs. Killgore
has also received word that her husband was posthumously awarded the
Purple Heart.
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Memorial services will b held for Staff Sergeant Richard A. Killgore Sunday, April 21, in the First Baptist Church at 4 p.m. Rev. L. W. Crouch will officiate, assisted by Rev. J. W. Rives and the public is invited to attend the service. Staff Sergeant Killgore was reported missing January 29, 1944, after making a flight over Germany, and in November was officially declared killed in action. A few weeks ago when his parents, Mr. and Mrs. R. E. Killgore, received a letter from the War Department stating that the official German report indicated that the remains of Staff Sergeant Richard A. Killgore were interred in the cemetery of Eckweiler in the district of Kreuzneich, Germany, and when the report is verified by the American Graves Registration Command and remains removed to an established American Cemetery they will be advised.
Palacios Beacon, April, 1945? |
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Mrs. Elsie Kilgore has been informed by the War Department that the body of her husband, S/Sgt. Richard A. Kilgore, is now enroute to the United States and will probably be here within the next six weeks. S/Sgt. Kilgore, who was killed in Germany in January 1944, is a son of Mr. and Mrs. R. E. Kilgore who were informed some months ago that the body of their son, Lt. S. A. Kilgore, had arrived at Fort Worth, where it is being held, by their request, until his brother’s body is here. When double re-burial services will be held with the local VFW Post in charge.
The Palacios Beacon, Thursday, November
18, 1948 |
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S-Sgt. Richard Arnold Killgore who lost his life on a bombing mission to Frankfurt, Germany, January 29, 1944, was 23 years of age. He joined the U.S. Air Corps, Nov. 2, 1942. During his period of training he was stationed at Ellington Field, Buckley Field, Colo.; Rapid City, S.D., Ephrata, Wash.; Redmond, Ore.; and Grand Island, Neb. He was sent overseas to England where he was a Waist gunner on a B-17 Flying Fortress, making bombing raids over Europe. The plane was shot down January 29, 1944, and for 19 months he was listed as missing. His body was first laid to rest in Germany and later transferred to the American Military Cemetery in St. Avold, France. He was awarded the Purple Heart. He was survived by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. R. E. Killgore, his wife, Elsie and one son, Charles Richard. Also surviving were one brother, Eugene E. of the U. S. Navy, a sister, Mrs. Frances Vest of Grand Prairie. Second Lieutenant Simeon Albert Killgore lost his life due to an aircraft accident, the effects from which he died in a hospital in England, September 15, 1944. He was 24 years of age. He is survived by his parents, a sister, Frances, and a brother, Eugene.
A graduate from the
Palacios schools in 1939, he was an outstanding athlete in football
and track especially. He was employed at Camp Hulen where he
volunteered for the air corps in 1941. Since the United States was
then not in active war, he transferred to the Royal Canadian Air
Force and received his wings in Canada and became a flight officer.
In the meantime America entered the war and he transferred into the
U. S. Air Force. Within a short time he received his commission as
Second Lieutenant and served with the 31st Air Transport Group,
attached to the 326th Ferry Squadron. |
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Funeral services for Eunice E. Killgore, 81, of Dallas, were held May 2 at the Palacios Funeral Home with the Rev. J. R. Gwin officiating. Interment was in Palacios Cemetery. Mrs. Killgore died April 29 in Dallas. Born in Alabama on April 6, 1900, she had lived 53 years in Palacios and the last three in Dallas. She is survived by one daughter, Francis Sutterfield of Dallas; three sisters, Bessie Ross of Palacios, Leona Killgore of Palacios, and Bertha Nelson of Lafayette, La.; numerous nieces and nephews, five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. Palacios Beacon,
Thursday, May 6, 1981 |
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Mr. Killgore, who died suddenly Friday, September 16, was a long time resident of Palacios. He was born in Alabama August 10, 1899. He was a son of the late Mr. and Mrs. S. A. Killgore. Mr. Killgore is survived by his widow, Mrs. Eunice Killgore, one daughter, Mrs. Joe E. Vest, Dallas, and one son, Eugene, who is stationed with the navy at Pearl Harbor. Other survivors include three sisters, Mrs. Viola Williams, Mrs. Ozie Knight and Mrs. Alice Parish, all of Alabama, and four brothers, W. V. Killgore, Palacios, A. B. Killgore, of Florida, Sims Killgore and W. I. Killgore, both of Alabama. Burial was in Palacios Cemetery. Palacios Beacon,
Thursday, September 22, 1955 |
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Staff Sergeant Richard Arnold Killgore, U.S. Army Air Forces
[November 16, 1921-January 29, 1944] was born to Richard E. Killgore
[August 10, 1899 - September 16, 1955] and Eunice Esten (Wright)
Killgore [April 6, 1900 - April 29, 1981] at Palacios, Matagorda
County, Texas. He attended Palacios schools. At the time of his
death he was assigned to 401st Bombardment Group, 615th
Bomb Squadron, 8th Air Force stationed at RAF Deenethorpe
near Corby, Northamptonshire, England. On January 29, 1944 his
squadron departed on a bombing mission to Frankfurt, Germany. He
was serving as a ball turret gunner on a B-17 (tail # 42-40067). As
the group approached Frankfurt they were attacked by German fighter
aircraft. Richard
Reburial rites for
S-Sgt. Richard Arnold Killgore and 2nd Lt. Simeon Albert Killgore,
brothers of Palacios, will be held in Palacios, Thursday at 3:30
p.m. The services will be held from the First Baptist Church in
Palacios with the Rev. L. W. Couch and the Rev. Rayford Harris
officiating.
Funeral services were held
for Mr. Richard E. Killgore, 56, at the First Baptist Church
Wednesday, September 21, with Rev. Rayford Harris officiating.
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Copyright 2006 -
Present by Carol Sue Gibbs |
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| Created Jan. 30, 2006 |
Updated October 27, 2019 |