Wayne W. Wicks was born on March 10, 1913 in the town of Friday Harbor, San Juan County, Washington to Frederick Daniel Wicks and Edna Alice Wicks, nee Newton. Wayne had five brothers: Winston, Alden, Donald, Lindley, and Leander Wicks. The family lived in the towns of Cosmopolis and Aberdeen in Grays Harbor County, Washington, where Fred was a millwright at a sawmill. Wayne’s father died in March 1936. His mother married Chester McQuiston in May 1936.

Wayne Wicks married Barbara Jane Hartshorn on March 28, 1936 in Aberdeen. The couple had one daughter, Susan Wicks. In 1940, they lived in Aberdeen, where Wayne worked as a salesclerk at a dry goods and hardware store. Wayne registered for the draft on October 16, 1940. He was 27 years old, 5’7” tall, and weighed 140 pounds. He had brown hair, hazel eyes, and a dark complexion. His employer was Sears, Roebuck, and Company.

Sergeant Wicks served with the 613th Bomb Squadron, 401st Bomb Group. The 613th was stationed at RAF Deenethorpe in Northamptonshire, England. According to Missing Air Crew Report #5307, Wicks was the radio operator and gunner aboard B-17 Flying Fortress #42-102580. On May 28, 1944, the crew was assigned a bombing mission of Dessau, Germany. Dessau was the site of aircraft manufacturing for the German Luftwaffe and chemical plants that produced Cyclone-B used in Nazi concentration camps. As the aircraft neared Dessau, it was hit by flak in the radio compartment which caused a fire and explosion. Surviving crew members believed that Wicks was killed instantly.

Sergeant Wayne Wicks was killed in action three miles west of Dessau, Sachsen-Anhalt, Germany. His is buried in the Netherlands American Cemetery and Memorial, Margraten, Limburg, Netherlands. He was posthumously awarded the Air Medal and the Purple Heart.

Wayne’s brothers also served in World War II. Alden was a merchant marine engineer. Lindley and Leander were in the Navy. Donald was medically discharged from the Navy in 1944. Winston worked in the shipyards.

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project

(see www.storiesbehindthestars.org). This is a national effort of volunteers to

write the stories of all 421,000+ of the US WWII fallen saved on Together We

Served and Fold3. Can you help write these stories? These stories will be

accessible via smartphone app at any war memorial or cemetery.

If you noticed anything erroneous in this profile or have

additional information to contribute to it, please contact me at

clock902@aol.com.

SBTSProject/Washington/King County

Sources:

Missing Air Crew Reports (MACRs), WWII, 1942-1947, https://www.fold3.com/image/28634604/42

The News Tribune, Tacoma, Washington, 20 Sep 1944, Wed ·Page 12, https://www.newspapers.com/image/733756996?utm_source=fold3.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=Fold3&_gl=1*747bti*_ga*MTc4MzU0Njg5OS4xNjQ5ODg0OTQw*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*MTcwMzEyNTM4OC43NzYuMS4xNzAzMTI2NzIwLjQ4LjAuMA..

Findagrave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56305227/wayne-wesley-wicks

WWII Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946, https://www.fold3.com/record/90847737/wayne-w-wicks-us-wwii-army-enlistment-records-1938-1946

American Battle Monuments Commission, 1914-1950, https://www.fold3.com/record/529881854/wayne-w-wicks-us-american-battle-monuments-commission-1914-1950

WWII Army and Army Air Force Casualty List, 1946, https://www.fold3.com/image/310763534?rec=299424190

WWII Hospital Admission Card Files, 1942-1954, https://www.fold3.com/record/706638521/wicks-wayne-w-us-wwii-hospital-admission-card-files-1942-1954

1920 United States Federal Census, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/111338242:6061?_gl=1*n8zf8*_ga*MTc4MzU0Njg5OS4xNjQ5ODg0OTQw*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*MTcwMzEyNTM4OC43NzYuMS4xNzAzMTI2ODYxLjQ4LjAuMA..

1930 United States Federal Census, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/111675951:6224?tid=&pid=&queryId=55076233-0599-407b-abb6-4b305a01c78c&_phsrc=uCD1908&_phstart=successSource&_gl=1*coje6i*_ga*MTc4MzU0Njg5OS4xNjQ5ODg0OTQw*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*MTcwMzEyNTM4OC43NzYuMS4xNzAzMTI2ODYxLjQ4LjAuMA..

1940 United States Federal Census, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/67440870:2442?_gl=1*coje6i*_ga*MTc4MzU0Njg5OS4xNjQ5ODg0OTQw*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*MTcwMzEyNTM4OC43NzYuMS4xNzAzMTI2ODYxLjQ4LjAuMA..

Air Museum in Britain, https://www.americanairmuseum.com/archive/person/wayne-wesley-wicks

Washington, U.S., Birth Records, 1907-1920, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/507722:6493?_gl=1*1eixa0t*_ga*MTc4MzU0Njg5OS4xNjQ5ODg0OTQw*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*MTcwMzEyNTM4OC43NzYuMS4xNzAzMTI2OTIwLjYwLjAuMA..

Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854-2013, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/4401471:2378?_gl=1*1eixa0t*_ga*MTc4MzU0Njg5OS4xNjQ5ODg0OTQw*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*MTcwMzEyNTM4OC43NzYuMS4xNzAzMTI2OTIwLjYwLjAuMA..

World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/37242697:2238?_gl=1*1eixa0t*_ga*MTc4MzU0Njg5OS4xNjQ5ODg0OTQw*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*MTcwMzEyNTM4OC43NzYuMS4xNzAzMTI2OTIwLjYwLjAuMA..

Wayne W Wicks