Howard Russell Woleslagle's parents were
Howard Briton Woleslagle ( 3 April 1898 - 22 January 1988 )
and
Pearl Leona Brown Woleslagle ( 27 October 1901 - 17 January 1990 ).
According to the US Census,
from 1920 through 1950 his father worked at the
Westinghouse Air Brake Plant in Wilmerding ( see below map ).
They lived in Wall and Wilmerding which are located
about 15 miles southeast of Pittsburg.
SSgt Woleslagle was born on 4 July 1924 in
East McKeesport, Pennsylvania.
He attended Westinghouse Memorial High School,
graduating in
1942.
__________
Additional information including
maps, newspaper articles, and the yearbook
are in the
Introduction
_______________
On 18 September 1942 he enlisted in
the Army at Pittsburg, Pennsylvania.
His status was in the Reserves.
Six months later, in March 1943, he was called to active duty.
In 1944 he would eventually be assigned to
the Lt James Newell Crew as Left Gunner.
His list of stations follows the map at the bottom of this page.
_____________________
His first assignment was at the
Nashville Classification Center in March 1943.
Two months later he was at
Keesler Field, Biloxi, Mississippi, for basic training.
This was follwed by transferr to
Seymour Johnson AAF, in North Carolina.
He was with the 793rd Technical School Squadron
from May through November 1943.
This school provided the foundation for
general aircraft mechanics for fighters and bombers.
A gap in information is from
November 1943 through February 1944 while he was at
Chanute AAF, Illinois.
There is nothing to indicate what he was training for at the above
bases.
The latter part of his gunnery training would have taken place
at Lowry AAF, Colorado, during February and March 1944.
________________________
In April 1944 he was assigned to
Clovis AAF, New Mexico.
This is where the 499th Bomb Group was established in
late December 1943 or early January 1944.
He may have been assigned to the Lt James Newell Crew there.
In the middle of April 1944 the 499th Bomb Group was
transferred to Smoky Hill Army Air Field ( SHAAF ), Salina, Kansas.
In early October 1944 he married
Alpha Lee Girod who was living in Wichita at the time.
The initial Flight Echelon of the 499th Bomb Group
departed Kansas for Saipan in October 1944.
The Newell Crew was a Replacement Crew and
did not depart Kansas until early December 1944.
They arrived on Saipan 19 December 1944
and flew their first mission on the 24th.
Additional information is in the
Crew
and
Mission
sections .
_________________
Capt Newell flew 32 or 33 Missions.
His B-29 was lost during the 26 June 1945 Mission to Osaka.
Documents state the last transmission was 125 miles from Osaka.
Based on maps in the
Crew
and
Mission
sections,
the distance was more like 50-55 miles.
Nine of the crew survived the crash at Mount Seirei.
Following their capture, they were taken to the
Kempei Tai Central District Headquarters in Osaka.
SSgt Woleslagle was executed at the
Firing Range within Osaka Castle
on 15 August 1945.
Details are in Recovery
section.
He is buried at the
National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific,
Honolulu.
Details are in the
Coming
Home
section.
BACK TO TOP
