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name
ASHMORE, Rayford - Date of
birth
5 September 1924 -
Age
20 - Place of
birth
Scottsboro, Jackson County, Alabama -
Hometown
Scottsboro, Jackson County, Alabama
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
34813336 -
Rank
Staff Sergeant -
Function
Tail Gunner -
Unit
816th Bombardment Squadron,
483rd Bombardment Group, Heavy
-
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
25 April 1945 - Place of
death
Near Amstetten, Austria
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Epinal - Tablets of the Missing
Immediate family
-
Members
Robert L. Ashmore (father)
Margaret D. (Mitchell) Ashmore (mother)
Anna M. Ashmore (sister)
Robert W. Ashmore (brother)
McKinney D. Ashmore (brother)
Loraine Ashmore (sister)
Florence Ashmore (sister)
Lena Ashmore (sister)
Wilson Ashmore (brother)
Conn Ashmore (brother)
Glyn Ashmore (brother)
Ruby L. Ashmore (sister)
Plane data
- Serial
number
44-6327 -
Data
Type: B-17G
Destination: Linz, Austria
Mission: Bombin of the marshalling and freight yards
MACR: 14060
More information
S/Sgt Rayford Ashmore worked on a farm before he enlisted at Fort McClellan, Alabama on 30 July 1943.1st Lt Edward J. Beller:
"Ship 44-6327 was flying on our right in the box. I observed him in this position just before bombs away. The next time I saw the ship, it was passing about 3,000 feet below us with its right wing on fire. He passed almost to the target area, and six chutes were seen leaving the plane. After this, the ship appeared under control, although still on fire, and was heading toward the Russian lines. The ship then exploded, and pieces of it spread all over the terrain. No other chutes were observed."
S/Sgt Ashmore was still in the airplane when it exploded. His remains were never recovered.
Source of information: Peter Schouteten, www.abmc.gov, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov - WWII Enlistment Record, www.ancestry.com - U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men / From Adam to Ashmore, www.fold3.com, www.findagrave.com - Jamie BamaFann
Photo source: www.findagrave.com - Have Paws will travel / Annette Bradford