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William G. Walker Jr. collection, Date accessioned: 2003-03-07, bulk 1941-1944

 

Summary

Creator:
Walker, William G., Jr., 1920-2017
Extent:
1 folders 1 folder
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

[Title of Item], [Date of Item], [Box and Folder number], William G. Walker Jr. collection, Special Collections & Archives, Florida State University Libraries, Tallahassee, Florida. https://purl.lib.fsu.edu/fa/02-03-1944

Background

Scope and content:

This collection relates to Colonel William G. Walker Jr., and his service in the Army and Army Air Force during World War II in the European/Pacific Theater of Operation. The collection consists of a manuscript he wrote for his grandchildren describes his experiences in the during the war years and includes some photos of himself and aircrafts. He shares a timeline of his time in World War II, starting with his enlistment and training as a pilot shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He also includes certain anecdotes of missions he carried out in Newfoundland and the Owi islands, including naming the specific aircrafts he used.

Biographical / historical:

William G. Walker Jr. was born on May 30, 1920 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He served in the Pacific Theater at New Guinea, the Owi and Angaur Islands, the Philippines, Gander, and Newfoundland. Walker Jr. graduated high school in 1938 and joined the National Guard, 121st Engineer Regiment in Washington D.C. He enlisted in the U.S. Army on July 1, 1939 and was sent to Fort Williams, Maine as a private in the 5th Infantry. He was soon promoted to Corporal in the 66th Infantry. On June 23, 1940, he reported to Parks Air 5 College in St. Louis as an Aviation Cadet, where he graduated as a 2nd Lieutenant for the U.S. Army Air Corps Reserve. After the December 7, 1941 attack he relocated to the 2nd Bombardment Group, 96th Squadron. He led rescue efforts for recovery of 30 or more seamen on rafts off the coast of Norfolk, Virginia. On June 18, 1942 he transferred to the 20th Anti-Submarine Squadron at Gander, Newfoundland, where he flew B17E aircraft. Walker Jr. married Helen Gloria Hyssong on March 18, 1944. Eventually, Walker Jr. was shipped to the Pacific Theater, where he served in the Air Force in New Guinea and the Philippines. He also later served in the Korean and Vietnam War. Walker Jr. passed away on March 3, 2017 and is buried in Arlington National Cemetary in Washington, D.C.

Acquisition information:
This collection was gifted by William G Walker Jr.
Custodial history:

Transferred from the Institute on World War II and the Human Experience to FSU Libraries Special Collections & Archives in July 2022.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

This collection is open to all researchers.

Terms of access:

All requests for permission to quote, publish, broadcast or otherwise reproduce from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Associate Dean for Special Collections & Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Florida State University Libraries as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher.

Preferred citation:

[Title of Item], [Date of Item], [Box and Folder number], William G. Walker Jr. collection, Special Collections & Archives, Florida State University Libraries, Tallahassee, Florida. https://purl.lib.fsu.edu/fa/02-03-1944

Location of this collection:
116 Honors Way
Tallahassee
FL
32306-2047
USA