James A Shaw

Lt James A Shaw, KIA  321st Bomb Group, 447th Bomb Squadron, B-25's in the Mediterranean Theatre out of N. Africa and Italy.   Combat Missions as a B-25 Pilot, from August 1943, having completed about 10 Combat Missions before this CRASH out of Italy on 4 Oct. 1943.

Shaw, James Allen, 2Lt., Pilot, Enlistment Service # 14066807 Officer’s Service # : O-797192 
KILLED IN ACTION on 04 October 1943~Crashed on Take-Off for Bombing 
Mission. Crash Due to Faulty, Smoking Engine~Died Of Wounds Received in Crash. 
Died in Flight, En Route to Hospital in Catania, Sicily.

****************   National WWII Memorial, Washington, D.C.
Registry~NARA~War Department Files   Honoree Hometown Service Source
James A. Shaw FL U.S. Army Air Forces ABMC Cemeteries
James A. Shaw ID: O-797192   Entered the Service From: Florida
Rank: Second Lieutenant    Service: U.S. Army Air Forces, 447th Bomber Squadron, 321st Bomber Group,   Medium   Died: Monday, October 04, 1943   Buried at: Sicily-Rome American Cemetery   Location: Nettuno, Italy   Plot: C Row: 7 Grave: 25
Awards: Air Medal, Purple Heart. *****************************************

Born James Allen Shaw in 1923 (One census says 1925) in Tenn. to James H and Katharine R Shaw, who had their 1st child a son Lacy R and then daughter Blanche R and last James A Shaw.  In 1930, the family was living in Florida.  James was living at 6113 3rd Avenue South, Ft Lauderdale, Fla at enlistment. 

Barbara Ennis Connolly, 321st Bomb Group historian and my Dad/T/Sgt Edward C Ennis was in that ship but survived with head injuries and broken ribs, etc and was returned to duty about a month later, having spent 3 weeks in an English Hospital in North Africa.

  PRINCESSBARBI_B25@msn.com  319th and 321st Bomb Group Historian in the 57th Bomb Wing and Historical Researcher for all of WWII.

Lt James Shaw was only in the War Theatre for a short time, arriving sometime in August, 1943 in North Africa to a forward base that the B-25 Mitchell Medium Bombers were stationed.  He had about 10 Combat Missions before the fateful day when the 321st BG flew in and landed on the mainland of Italy (FIRST!) late 3 Oct.'43.  The service crew members and the Combat Crews serviced their own ships , fueling from 5 gallon containers of gas....  through the night in the steady rain for an early morning Mission, the 1st of the Air-Offensive/ Balkans (Airdrome at Ethusius, Greece) on 4 Oct. 1943.  Lt. Hamilton Brinkley got about 50 feet off the ground, a long yellow stream seen coming from his engine and the ship crashed a few miles North of the Grotagglie Airdrome...  Having only seconds to prepare themselves, they crashed in an olive grove, loosing one wing and coming to a stop against a stone wall.   The stop was so abrupt that Lt Shaw's Co-Pilot's seat moorings broke and he hit the instrument panel, he was removed and taken towards the hospital but died on the way there.  God Bless our Brave Men, my Dad/T/Sgt Edward C Ennis was also aboard but the rest survived the crash with injuries and later were returned to duty.  Barbi Ennis Connolly, 321st Bomb Group Historian PRINCESSBARBI_B25@msn.com

James A. Shaw Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army Air Forces Service # O-797192 447th Bomber Squadron, 321st Bomber Group, Medium Entered the Service from: Florida
Died: 4-Oct-43
Buried at: Plot C Row 7 Grave 25
Sicily-Rome American Cemetery
Nettuno, Italy Awards: Air Medal, Purple Heart

National WWII Memorial, Washington, D.C.    Registry~NARA~War Department Files
Honoree Hometown Service Source    James A. Shaw Pinellas County, FL U.S. Army National Archives   2 LT James A. Shaw ID: 0-797192   Branch of Service: U.S. Army
Hometown: Pinellas County, FL    Status: DOW

Florida State Census, 1867-1945   Name: James A. Shaw  CENSUS Year, 1935
Age: 10 Gender: Male Race: White   Birth Place: Tennessee   Est. Birth Year: abt 1925
Relationship to Head: Son  Mother's Name: Adele M.   Census Year: 1935
Locality: Precinct 28   County: Pinellas   Page: 6 Line: 31 Archive Series #: S5, Roll 24
Household Members: Name Age   Adele M. Gleeson 33
Lanky Shaw 12
George F. Gleeson 7
James A. Shaw 10
Vera Morlan 35

Lt Shaw; (Oct. 2012)

   I found Lt Shaw, Wm. T Williams, Charles O Brown, Jr...... all at Bastia (CORSICA) along with others listed from all of the 57th Bomb Wing on Corsica and therefore moved over to Nettuno in April, 1945. (and some from N. Africa like from the 12th BG). This list is in the Journal of the "Men of the 57th" from 1990 (still Vet written).

BARBI ENNIS CONNOLLY   321st Bomb Group Historian PRINCESSBARBI_B25@msn.com

2Lt James A. Shaw
2Lt James A. Shaw was copilot on board of a B-25 that crashed into Sicily. Lt Shaw was seriously wounded and rushed to a hospital in Cataina, Sicily. He died of his wounds on 4 October 1943. Lt Shaw was buried in the temporary American GELA Cemetery in grave H-92-1097. After the war Lt Shaw found his last resting place in grave C-7-25 of the Sicily Rome Cemetery in Nettuno, Italy.
Over 1,200 men and women were buried in the GELA Cemetery between July 1943 and 1947.
thank you,  Jan Bos    Nijmegen, Holland   (Find-a-Grave - on Oct 13, 2012 5:39 AM)