1st Lt Joe Stanley McSpadden
Osaka

Sanadayama Military Cemetery

Executed While a Prisoner of War
of the
Japanese Government

21 October 2024

 
 
Yokohama Trial T-328
497th Bomb Group (VH), 871st Bomb Squadron
AIRCRAFT COMMANDER
AIRCRAFT SERIAL NUMBER
NICKNAME
Mc SPADDEN
44-69899

 

source: Judy McSpadden Indest

Joe Stanley McSpadden
6 August 1921 - 15 August 1945

A Tribute to Lt McSpadden can be found at

Scott Muselin's 497th Bomb Group
Virtual Cemetery
at
Find A Grave

 

The assistance of the following is appreciated:

Judy McSpadden Indest,
daughter of Joe and Mary McSpadden,
has provided details not found in
official records

Roy Wall
National Archives, St Louis, Missouri

Army Air Force Collection

Scott Muselin
Jim Bowman
Al Schutte
John Lehnen
Joe Swann

POW Research Network Japan

Randy Watkins,
author of
You Are Not Forgotten

Registrars Office
Daniel Baker College
Brownwood, Texas

BACK TO TOP

BROWNWOOD, TEXAS
LT McSPADDEN'S HOME TOWN

BROWN COUNTY, TEXAS

BROWNWOOD AND FORT WORTH - DALLAS

source : Google Maps

BACK TO TOP

1st Lt McSpadden's parents were Percy Stanley McSpadden and Emma Becknell McSpadden.

His father served in the US Navy in World War I from 2 February - 22 November 1918.
They were married in Rockwall, Texas ( in the vicinity of Dallas ) in September 1920.

At the time Lt McSpadden was born, they had moved to Brownwood, Texas.
This town is 170-180 miles southwest of Dallas ( see above map ).

Lt McSpadden was born in Brownwood and from available information,
lived in the town until his enlistment in the US Army Air Corp on 7 April 1942.

Prior to his enlistment, he attended Daniel Baker College, Brownwood,
from the Fall of 1938 to the Spring semester in 1941.
He was majoring in Chemistry.

In 1943, he married Mary Helen Lockhart.
Her parents were living in Rising Star, Texas ( map at top left side ) .

Their daughter Judy McSpadden was born in March March 1945.

Within the
Introduction Section.

are photographs provided by Judy McSpadden Indest
and a few newspaper clippings.




Lt McSpadden's crew was formed at
Clovis Army Air Field in September 1944.
They were a Replacement Crew.

Following training at Clovis, they were transferred to
Kearney Army Air Field in February 1945.

From there they flew their B-29 to Saipan via
Mather AAF ( Sacramento, California ),
Honolulu,
and Kwajalein.

The crew arrived at Saipan 5 March 1945 and were assigned to the
497th Bomb Group, 871st Bomb Squadron.

Lt McSpadden was scheduled to fly 10 missions.
One aborted at some point after takeoff.

On 5 May 1945 Lt McSpadden was flying A Square 56 on
the mission to the Hiro Naval Aircraft Factory .
Enemy Aircraft ( EA ) attacked their B-29 and it crashed roughly
50 miles South East of Osaka.

Four of the 11 man crew survived the crash and
were later executed by the Japanese while Prisoners of War in the Osaka area.

Details of the above can be found in the

McSpadden Crew
and
73rd Bomb Wing Mission #65
Sections


Within the following sections :

Recovery, Identification, Case History 328, and Yokohama Trial T328

are different descriptions of Lt McSpadden's cause of death.

Below is Lt McSpadden's List of Stations followed by
his Draft Registration card and Enlistment Record

BACK TO TOP

LIST OF STATIONS

source : Roy Wall
Individual Flight Records
National Archives, St Louis

1942 ( Date of arrival unknown )
9TH AAF FTD ( Flight Training Detachment )
Fort Stockton, Texas
Civilian Flying School

10 March 1943 - 22 June 1943
Pecos Army Air Field
Completed Basic Flying Training

22 June 1943 - 31 August 1943
Marfa Army Air Field
Student Pilot
Rated Pilot 30 August 1943
Promoted to 2nd Lt

Transferred to Hobbs Army Air Field
Arrival Date unknown
September - October 1943

15 November 1943
Yuma Army Air Field

28 July 1944
Lincoln Army Air Field

14 September 1944
Clovis Army Air Field

17 February 1945
Kearney Army Air Field

26 February 1945
Transfer to Aerial Port of Embarkation
Mather Army Air Field

1 March 1945
Transfer to APO 237 ( Saipan )

15 March 1945
Arrive Saipan
Assigned to 497th Bomb Group, 871st Bomb Squadron

BACK TO TOP

DRAFT REGISTRATION CARD
FRONT

source : Ancestry.com

BACK TO TOP

DRAFT REGISTRATION CARD
BACK

source : Ancestry.com

BACK TO TOP

ENLISTMENT RECORD
PAGE 1

source : National Archives Online Database

BACK TO TOP

ENLISTMENT RECORD
PAGE 2

source : National Archives Online Database

BACK TO TOP