In Memory of Thomas Davis II

WWII Airforce pilot and gunman killed in active duty overseas by the Huns.

My great uncle, and grandson of Lewis Davis and Mary Jane Collins of Buchtel, Ohio.

God Bless Him and May he rest in Peace.

Athens Messenger February 19, 1945
Buchtel Airman Is Slain By Huns After Bailing Out

Murdered Staff Sgt. Thomas J. Davis of Buchtel reported killed in action last Aug. 4, it is now revealed was murdered by Germans in the North Sea area. The Red Cross reports that Davis and fellow fliers were slain by the Huns after they had bailed out of a B-17 after their bomber had developed engine trouble.

Thomas Davis and Fellow Fliers Killed Last Summer
Nelsonville- Mrs. Juanita Davis, 39 1/2 E. Franklin St. Nelsonville, has been informed by the National Red Cross that her husband, Staff Sgt. Thomas J. Davis son of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Davis of Buchtel was murdered after capture by the Germans along the North Sea.

Sergeant Davis, tail gunner on a B-17 was reported killed in action over Continental Europe on Aug. 4, in a war Department telegram received by his family last December. He previously had been reported missing in action.

The Red Cross communication to Mrs. Davis states that he was slain after capture by the Germans along with seven fellow crewmen after they had bailed out somewhere on the North Sea shore when their bomber developed engine trouble. The family had suspected that perhaps the men had been lost at sea.

However the Red Cross reports that all eight of the crew were shot and killed and their bodies were later found by the allied forces. Many direct hits were scored by bombs from Sergeant Davis' plane the Red Cross stated.

Mrs. Davis said Sunday that she had not as yet directly received the Red Cross communication which she understood had been sent to the home of her parents at Newark, where she formerly lived. She expected the letter today.

Sergeant Davis was inducted into the Armed Forces from Athens County Selective Service Board No. 2, on Oct. 26, 1942. He was a graduate of Buchtel High School Class of 1936. Besides his wife and parents he leaves two young sons, Thomas Jr., three years old and Fred Hughes, four and one half months old; also five sisters, Mrs. Regina Evans, Nelsonville, Mrs. Donald Tippett (Josephine), Buchtel; Mrs. Louise Smith, Mrs. Ruth Rose, Mrs. Audrey Mitchell, Logan; and a half brother, Belford Burgess, Akron.

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