from author and historian Jim Ignasher
Northampton, Mass. C-54 Crash Memorial
Located at Florence Road and Old Wilson Road, Northampton, Mass.
To learn more about this accident, go to the Massachusetts military aviation accidents section of this website.
Photos taken May 3, 2018.
Click on images to enlarge.
Memorial at the crash site.
Established 1999.
Wolf Hill Memorial – Georgiaville, Rhode Island
On August 5, 1943, three servicemen were killed when their Lockheed RB-34 aircraft crashed and burned on Wolf Hill in Gerogiaville, R.I. (For more information, see “Georgiaville, RI – August 5, 1943” under “Rhode Island Military Aviation Accidents” on this website. )
Two memorials were constructed to honor the men who lost their lives. The first was erected in Deerfield Park, in the Greenville section of Smithfield, Rhode Island. The second was erected at the crash site on Wolf Hill in the Georgiaville section of Smithfield.
Memorial in Smithfield, R.I. dedicated to the three men who died in a military plane crash, August 5, 1943
Memorial to three servicemen killed in a plane crash Aug. 5, 1943, Deerfield Park, Smithfield, R.I.
Monument honoring three servicemen killed in a military plane crash August 5, 1943 on Wolf Hill in Smithfield R.I.
Granite tablet located on Wolf Hill, Smithfield, R.I.
Mount Holyoke, Massachusetts – May 27, 1944
On May 27, 1944, a B-24 J left Westover Field and struck the side of Mt. Holyoke. All ten crewmen aboard were killed. In may of 1989 a memorial was dedicated to honor those who lost their lives.
For more information see an article written by Stan Freeman titled, “Lost Airmen Get Final Tribute” – The Sunday Republican, May 28, 1989.
www.chromos-historical.org/mtholyoke/1989monument.html
Mount Holyoke, Massachusetts, B-24 Memorial.
Back Side of Mt. Holyoke B-24 Memorial. Photo Taken 2007
Chester M. Spooner Memorial Building – North Central Airport
Smithfield, Rhode Island
Chester M. Spooner Memorial Building, North Central State Airport, Smithfield, R.I. (Photo taken 2007)
Chester M. Spooner was a native of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, and former publisher of the (Pawtucket) Evening Times, who was very influential in helping to make North Central Airport a reality.
For more information about North Central Airport, see “Forgotten Tales Of North Central Airport” under Articles on this website.
On May 18, 1944, a B-24 Liberator crashed in Uxbridge, Massachusetts, killing all crewmen aboard. A memorial now exists on a two-acre parcel of land in the middle of a housing development where the bomber crashed. For more information, see “The Uxbridge Bomber Crash” under “Aviation Accidents -Massachusetts – Military Accidents” on the website.
Uxbridge Bomber Memorial Site – August, 2012
Memorial to those who lost their lives in the Uxbridge Bomber Crash – May 18, 1944.
Memorial to those who lost their lives in the Uxbridge Bomber Crash – May 18, 1944.
Marlborough, Mass. – Dedicated to the memory of USAF Captain Robert W. Touchette.
Memorial to three servicemen killed in a plane crash Aug. 5, 1943, Deerfield Park, Smithfield, R.I.
Sign for Charlestown Aux. Landing Field in Charlestown, Rhode Island
Memorial to those who lost their lives in the service of their country at Charlestown (RI) Aux. Landing Field
Monument honoring three servicemen killed in a military plane crash August 5, 1943 on Wolf Hill in Smithfield R.I.
Site of the Wolf Hill military plane crash, August 5, 1943, Smithfield, R.I.
Quonset Air Museum Memorial to Lt. Jg. Kenneth Bruce McQuady
Description of accident that killed Lt. McQuady
Atlantic Ocean – December 12, 1943
B-24 Liberator
U.S. Air Force Photo
On December 12, 1943, a B-24 Liberator (42-7225) took off from Westover Field in Chicopee, Massachusetts, for a nighttime high altitude navigational and gunnery training flight over the Atlantic Ocean. The aircraft was never seen again.
The air crew was assigned to the 758th Bombardment Squadron, 459th Bomb Group.
The lost crewmen were listed as follows:
(Pilot) Lt. William P. Masters
(Co-Pilot) Lt. R. R. Hansen (First name unknown)
(Gunner) Sgt. Cecil H. Conklin
(Gunner) Sgt. Anthony L. Greco
(Gunner) Sgt. Dean G. McCaffrey
(Radio Operator) Sgt. Bernard G. Stoeckley
(Gunner) Sgt. Anson G. Wiseman
(Flight Engineer) Sgt. Stanley E. Zajac
A bronze memorial plaque at the New England Air Museum honoring the lost crew of a B-24 Liberator (42-7225)
A memorial to these men can be seen at the New England Air Museum in Winsor Locks, Connecticut.
Click on image to enlarge.
Source: 459th bombardment Group website
Lt. Jg. Kenneth B. McQuady Memorial
Quonset Air Museum
Lt. Jg. McQuady was killed on March 2, 1945, when his F6F Hellcat crashed on takeoff from Charlestown Auxiliary Air Field in Charlestown, Rhode Island. The propeller from his Hellcat was donated to the Quonset Air Museum in his memory.
Quonset Air Museum Memorial to Lt. Jg. Kenneth Bruce McQuady
Description of accident that killed Lt. McQuady
Charlestown Auxiliary Naval Airfield Memorial
Charlestown, Rhode Island
Charlestown Naval Auxiliary Field began operations in September of 1943. Ensign George H. W. Bush trained there in 1944. The field was decommissioned January 30, 1974, and is today known as Ninigret Park.
During its years of operation, 62 airmen lost their lives in accidents at the field. At the bottom of this page are some links relating to the names on the memorial.
Click on images to enlarge.
Memorial to the 62 men who lost their lives at Charlestown Auxiliary Field, Charlestown, R.I.
Names of those on the memorial.
CLICK TO ENLARGE
Sign for Charlestown Auxiliary Landing Field
Charlestown, R.I.
Links to some of the names on the memorial that tell their story:
Ensign William Haley Brown – September 14, 1943
Ensign Thomas James Schmidt – September 27, 1943
Ensign Curtis Leroy Johnson – December 23, 1943
Ensign James G. Canning – February 16, 1944
Ensign Herbert Leslie Woods – March 16, 1944
Ensign Edward R. Sladek – April 1, 1944
Ensign Stephen Luther Smith – April 17, 1944
Lieut. Robert Charles Stimson – April 17, 1944
Ensign James P. Gannon – May 14, 1944
Ensign Gerald Vivian Brosteaux – July 13, 1944
Ensign Arthur Joseph Stockus – September 12, 1944
Ensign Robert L. Skinner – September 22, 1944
Ensign George Kenneth Kraus – October 19, 1944
Ensign Merle H. Longnecker – October 19, 1944
Ensign Norman F. Day – October 26, 1944
Ensign Maynard F. Lednum – December 3, 1944
Ensign Robert I. Lane – December 18, 1944
Lt. (Jg.) Bruce S. Little – January 4, 1945
Ensign John Malcolm Roe – February 1, 1945
Ensign Robert L. Herrin – February 1, 1945
Ensign Jack R. Gross – February 3, 1945
Ensign Pierce H. Beach – February 10, 1945
Ensign Thomas William McSteen – February 25, 1945
Lt. (Jg.) William E. Stakely – March 9, 1945
Lt. (Jg.) Howard G. Boren – March 9, 1945
Lt. (Jg.) Kenneth B. McQuady – March 2, 1945
Ensign Vincent A. Frankwitz – April 3, 1945
Ensign Joseph F. Koll – May 8, 1945
Lieutenant David W. Allen – May 29, 1945
Ensign George R. Miller – May 31, 1945
Ensign John J. Zayak – June 3, 1945
Lt. (Jg.) George A. MacBride – June 29, 1945
Lieutenant J. A. Guice – October 11, 1945
Ensign Shannon R. Caulk – November 3, 1945
Ensign James F. Wagner – November 3, 1945
Ensign Kenneth W. Barnes – December 13, 1945
AOM3/C Charles O. Henninger – December 13, 1945
Prinster-Hogg Park
Scituate, Rhode Island
A View of Prinster-Hogg Park, Scituate, R.I.
On February 21, 1982, Pilgrim Airlines Flight 458 took off from New York’s La Guardia Airport bound for Boston carrying several passengers and a crew of two; the pilot, Thomas N. Prinster, and co-pilot, Lyle W. Hogg. As the plane was passing over Rhode Island a fire erupted in the cockpit due to a malfunction with the alcohol-fed de-icing system. As flames burned their clothing away, and smoke choked their lungs, Prinster and Hogg remained at the controls and successfully brought the plane down for a crash landing on the frozen Scituate Reservoir. Though badly burned themselves, they assisted the passengers from the burning wreckage and led them to safety at the shore. One passenger was lost, but the outcome could have ben far worse.
Prinster-Hogg Park, Scituate R.I.
Large Engraved Rock
Today a memorial to the incident can be found in Prinster-Hogg park located at the intersections of Routes 102, 14, and Rockland Road, (Known locally as “Crazy Corners”.) in Scituate, Rhode Island.
For a more detailed account of the accident refer to the book, “Rhode Island Disasters – Tales of Tragedy By Air, Sea And Rail.” by Jim Ignasher, published through The History Press. (2010)
Prinster-Hogg Park, Scituate, Rhode Island.
Engraved Memorial
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