Col Bill Reed of Marion Killed in Action
Lt Col William Norman Reed 127 of Marion Iowa top ace of the 14th Air Force was killed on a mission near Bastogne The death was not immediately explained He led a fighter group known as Al s Assassins succeeding Col T Alan Bennett Reed shared credit with Col David L Hill for enemy planes downed in China theater His posthumous tally will rise with credited victories yet to be counted Reed Iowa s leading war ace and a popular war bonds salesman returned home in 1942 to receive honors and support war efforts He served with the Flying Tigers and later commanded a fighter squadron under Gen Claire Chennault before his return to action in China He was killed two days before Dec 22 according to army reports.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
14Th Air Force
China
William Norman Reed
Marion
Iowa
Reed
Col
T. Alan Bennett
David L. “Tex” Hill
Hill
United States
Col. Reed
Army Air Forces
The
Flying Tigers
Claire L. Chennault
Hawkeye
United States Treasury Department
Denver
Cedar Rapids
Millville
N. J
Chennault
United States 14Th Air Force
Bill
China Front
David L.hill
Yanks Mark New Year Over Tokyo in 1944 Wrap
American airmen celebrate New Year over Tokyo as 1944 ends with heavy air raids on Japan. Allied forces report vast enemy destruction, including thousands of planes and ships, while U S and Philippine theater actions continue in Leyte Mindoro and Iwo Jima campaigns.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Tokyo
Japan
Pacific
Nippon
Mindoro
Philippines
United States
Douglas MacArthur
Manila
Leyte
Western Pacific
Iwo Jima
Midway
Saipan
Bonin and
Volcano
Kurile Islands
Honshu
Toyo
Nagoya
Yokohama
Yokosuka Naval Station
New Year Reflections on War Resolve and World Minds
In a December column, Harry Boyd urges patience over date setting for Germany?s surrender and stresses steady war effort toward a finish. He cautions against overconfidence, calls for clear, grounded thinking, and warns against grandiose judgments about postwar politics.
Missing over Italy Sgt Ralph Ballou a Cedar Rapids airman
Wounded Purple Heart recipient Tech Sergeant Ralph G Ballou 23 nose gunner with the 15th Air Force Liberator has been missing over Italy since December 9 according to a war department message to his parents in Cedar Rapids Iowa He last wrote December 8 saying he would be home soon He served since May 1942 after joining in 1942 and previously worked for Witwer Grocer His wife Lorraine lives at 825 Fifth Avenue SE His brother Staff Sergeant Donald Ballou a B 17 gunner is stationed in England.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Cedar Rapids News— Tech
Ralph G. Ballou
15Th Air Force
Italy
War Department
E. O. Ballou
C Avenue NW
Bailou
Witwer Grocer Company
Lorraine
Fifth Avenue SE
Donald T. Ballou
Tragedy on Utah Causeway Claims 50 Lives in Train Crash
A fog shrouded collision on a Great Salt Lake causeway left about 50 dead and 60 injured when a Southern Pacific mail express and a slow passenger train rammed together. The 18 car passenger unit from Chicago to San Francisco was rear-ended by the second section, killing engineer James McDonald and injuring many others including servicemen returning home. Federal investigators found no sabotage.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Ogden
Utah
Southern Pacific Mail
Pacific Limited
Chicago
San Francisco
Great Salt Lake
D Perazzo
James McDonald
M. E. Hardman
McDonald
John F. Moran
Eastern Security District
Ninth Service Command
Hardman
Sinto
West Coast
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Robert E. Wieland
Lakeview
Glenn E. Youmans
Kensett
A. G. Ferris
Cherokee
Sparks
Nev
Leroy Porter
Peggy
Mary
Ferris
Hitler Breaks Silence Declares Unyielding War Will End in 1946
London dispatch reports Adolf Hitler, in a radio speech, vows to destroy defeatists and fight on until victory. He describes the war as a merciless struggle for existence, claiming Germany will never capitulate and asserting foes seek to enslave Europe and erode German culture.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
Adolf Hitler
Germany
Hitler
Louis P. Lochner
Associated Press
Berlin
Lochner
Reich
Europe
Joseph N. Marsh May Be Winner Of Baby Derby
A 7 pound 13 ounce boy, Joseph Neal Marsh, born at Mercy hospital to Mr and Mrs Thomas Marsh, 224 Fourth Street NW, noon Monday appeared to win the Gazette sponsored 1945 baby derby with a four hour margin over two New Year’s day births. Parents have 12 hours to report a home birth to The Gazette. Other New Year’s day births were a daughter to Fred Harran and wife at Mercy and a daughter to Frank Haster and wife at St Luke’s.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Joseph Neal Marsh
Gazette
Mercy
St. Luke's Hospitals
Thomas Marsh
Fourth Street NW
Mercy Hospital
The
Marsh
Cedar Rapids
Fred Harran
Twelfth Street NE
Frank Haster
C Avenue NW
Cold snap grips Cedar Rapids area with 15 below forecast
The Cedar Rapids forecast calls for mostly clear skies and continued extreme cold with diminishing winds tonight. Temperatures may plunge to 15 below, with northern Iowa expected to see the same, while Dubuque posted the warmest reading of 34 degrees.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Cedar Rapids
Mercury
Iowa
Ames
Waterloo
Fort Dodge
Sioux City
Spencer
Atlantic
Dubuque
Yanks in Italy Retake Sites Lost to Nazis
American Fifth Army forces regained ground along the Serchio valley, recapturing all Nazi gains on both river banks. The 92nd Division pushed from Barga through snow toward Sommacolonia, while positions south of Bologna remained held amid heavy artillery fire. Allied air forces conducted 1370 sorties across the Po valley and northward fronts as eight Allied planes were reported missing.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Bastogne
101St Airborne Division
von Rundstedt
Wiltz
Saarlautern
Saarland
Supreme Headquarters
Rochefort
Bulge
Third Army
Arlon
Roer
Duren
Grosmenil
Roermond
Meuse
France
Saar
Maginot
Bitche
Bannstein
Nouthe
Rome
INS
Serchio
92Nd
Barga
Sommacolonia
Gallicano
Bologna
Senio
Monte del Cassino
Monte Cavalero
Italy
78 Nazi Planes Downed Sunday in Allied Air Blitz
The United States Eighth Air Force struck the western front and Germany for the tenth day running. A force of 1,300 Fortresses and Liberators, supported by 700 Mustangs and Thunderbolts, fought over rail hubs and Berlin, where Mosquitoes led a large bombing. A total of 78 German planes were destroyed Sunday with U.S. losses of 35 bombers and 10 fighters. Some pilots reportedly landed in friendly territory.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
INS
United States
Eighth Air Force
Germany
R.A
Berlin
Keitel Replaces Kesselring as Italy Commander
Paris radio reported Marshal Wilhelm Keitel has replaced Marshal Albert Kesselring who was said killed while commanding German troops in Italy.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
Paris
Wilhelm Keitel
Albert Kesselring
Germany
Italy
Also Mentioned on This Page
Bill Reed
George S. Patton
Chenogne
Letrebois
Ardennes Salient
Patton
Third
Reisdorf
Sure River
Diekirch
St. Hubert
Moircy
Remagne
Navy
ST. Pat's
St. Patrick's High School
Merle Little
Francis J. Little
Brothers and Marines
B Avenue
Clair J. Doyle
Marine
Nineteenth Street
S. E. Dodge
Seventh Street
Charles G. Chapman
Eleventh Street
Harry Boyd
Poland
Balkan States
India
Britain
Russia
Ralph Ballou
Sgt
Ballou
Today's Index
Marquis Childsen
Erveeevesewedd Deaths
von Reich
Joseph N. Marsh
Cedar Rapids News
Kesselring
Marshal Keitel
This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!