George Browning Wilbur, III

Adapted from "Bass River Notebook"

George Browning Wilbur, III, a 23 year old from South Dennis, was killed in action over Japan on February 10, 1945 while serving in the Army Air Force.

He was born Iowa in 1922, but moved to South Dennis with his parents in 1923. His dad was Dr. George Wilbur, a noted psychoanalyst, his mother was Mahalia Joy (Paxton) Wilbur.

He graduated from the Yarmouth High School in 1940 where he gave the valedictory address: “Political problems of American Youth.” From there he went to Harvard, where he evidently majored in anthropology and became the captain of the fencing team (that's a picture of him with the team on the left). He graduated in the Harvard class of 1944.

In February 1945 he was a sergeant in the Army Air Force, a member of the 505th Bombardment Group, and a crewmember of the B-29, Deaner Boy. Wilbur was Central Fire Control gunner, playing a key role in coordinating the defensive fire of the B-29’s guns. His plane was based on the island of Tinian.

On February 10, the 505th got 21 planes airborne for an attack on the Nakajima Aircraft Factory at Ota in Japan. Casualties were heavy in this attack. Of the 21 planes that became airborne, eight were lost, although some of the air crews were saved.

Deaner Boy and another plane called Slick’s Chick collided in the air during the attack and this was when Wilbur was lost. My current understanding is that a Japanese fighter rammed Slick’s Chick, which then collided with Deaner Boy.

Wilbur is remembered on two memorials in South Dennis, and on one at Arlington, on the wall in the Harvard Memorial Church, and on the war monuments in DennisporI and on the USS Massachusetts in Fall River.

In 2013, he, and the other members of the crews of the Deaner Boy and Slick’s Chick, were remembered with a monument in the town of Akizuma, in Japan. The monument was erected at the instigation of Japanese who remembered the mid-air collision. It reads: “We wish to commemorate the 23 brave souls and offer a wish for world peace and friendship between Japan and America.” A fuller story, with pictures, is here: http://www.mvariety.com/cnmi/cnmi-news/local/54728-23-wwii-american... . I think this is a remarkable tribute.

http://bangshift.com/general-news/videos/watch-b-29-get-nose-art-ad...

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=deaner+boy&view=detail&mid=14E...