Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery: Airmen Stories

By Carmelo Turdo

Jefferson Barracks was founded in 1826 as a military base strategically located on the Mississippi River south of St. Louis to succeed and replace Fort Bellefontaine. By the 1840s, it had become the largest military base in the U.S. and served as a training and hospital facility for the the U.S. Army during the Civil War. In 1866, Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery was established in part to cope with the enormous casualties incurred on both sides during the conflict. Following deactivation of the base, it was expanded again in 1947 as the number of internments increased substantially following World War II. Buried in the cemetery are soldiers, veterans and their family members from around Missouri along with foreign POWs, victims of disease epidemics, mass casualty graves and 3255 of those who remain "Unknown."  

Our first look at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery below attempts to capture just a portion of the hallowed ground that stretches as far as the eye can see. The first known burial at the base was for Elizabeth Ann Lash, the infant child of an officer stationed at Jefferson Barracks, who passed away in 1827. Veterans of the Indian Wars, Spanish American War and the Civil War are also laid to rest in the "Old Section." 

Aviation began to produce its own casualties of war en masse during World War II. The young aviators of the U.S. Army Air Corps, later the U.S. Army Air Forces and the U.S. Air Force, and those of the other services displayed heroism on a daily basis in the skies over Europe and in the South Pacific. Here we include just a few examples of the airmen who are interred at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery.

A crew from the 450th Bomb Group, 723rd Bomb Squadron, is memorialized by a single slab marker. The group's B-24 Liberators flew missions to targets in Europe and the Baltics from January 1944 to April 1945, contributing greatly to the defeat of Germany. Major William A. Miller's 10-man crew was lost on a mission from their base in Italy to the Aero Engine Works, Steyr, Austria on February 23, 1944.

The Missing Air Crew Report document and photo of Major William A. Miller shown below are posted on the excellent 450th Bomb Group Memorial Association Official Website. 

Another B-24 Liberator crew is interred together, this one from the 98th Bomb Group and commanded by 1Lt. Donald Pucket on a mission to the Ploiesti Oil Fields in Romania on July 9, 1944. Following a harrowing attack on this vital strategic target, Pucket's bomber was hit and severely damaged. He ordered his crew to bail out, but three were unable to exit the plane. Lieutenant Pucket attempted to land rather than abandon his crewmates, though all remaining aboard were killed in the ensuing crash. He was awarded the Medal of Honor, posthumously, June 23, 1945. Photo of Lt. Pucket is posted on the Congressional Medal of Honor Society website.

A B-26 Marauder bomber crew, commanded by 1Lt. William D. Collins, was shot down by anti-aircraft fire on December 23, 1944 over St. Vith, Belgium while on a mission to knock out a railroad bridge in Eller, Germany. Bank Nite Betty took a direct hit and broke in two before crashing, with the loss of all aboard. Crew photo is posted on the American Air Museum In Britain website.

Another crew is buried together in a grave marked with a large flat stone. A B-29 Superfortress bomber from the 307th Bomb Wing, commanded by 1Lt. Charles B. Weeks, collided with another B-29 off Okinawa, Japan on a training flight February 1, 1952. The other aircraft returned to land safely. 

Our final featured airman at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery is U.S. Air Force 1Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie. He graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1970 and served in Vietnam flying the A-37B Dragonfly attack jet. 1Lt. Blassie was shot down on May 11, 1972 near An Loc, South Vietnam. His remains were later recovered, and classified as probable for Michael Blassie. However, the identity of the remains were later called into question, and this uncertainty led to his internment as the representative of the Vietnam Veterans in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery in 1984. Michael Blassie's sister, Pat, led the effort to reopen the case and use new DNA technology to identify Unknown "X-26." In 1998, the remains of Michael Blassie were released to his family for burial at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery.