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name
BURGHARDT, Joseph John - Date of
birth
27 September 1915 -
Age
29 - Place of
birth
Chicago, Cook County, Illinois -
Hometown
Wheaton, DuPage County, Illinois
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
16069588 -
Rank
Staff Sergeant -
Function
Tail Gunner -
Unit
350th Bombardment Squadron,
100th Bombardment Group, Heavy
-
Awards
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
6 October 1944 - Place of
death
Ring Strasse 51-6, Finkenkrug, Germany
10 km west of Spandau, Germany
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Ardennes
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| D | 7 | 41 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Arthur J. Burghardt (father)
Jane Burghardt (mother)
Mary A. Burghardt (sister)
George T. Burghardt(brother)
William F. Burghardt (brother)
Richard E. Burghardt (brother)
Patricia J. Burghardt (sister)
Lavon M. Burghardt (wife)
Plane data
- Serial
number
43-37882 -
Data
Type: B-17G
Nickname: Happy Go Lucky
Destination: Berlin, Germany
Mission: Bombing of the industrial area
MACR: 9509
More information
Joseph Burghardt was a clerk before he volunteered for the Army of the united States in Chicago, Illinois on 2 April 1942.The aircraft received a direct flak burst between engines 2 and 1. The wing burst into flame and it peeled off, spinning and burning. No parachutes were seen.
The bomb load detonated some time after the crash and killed a German woman who was attempting to assist the crew. One crewmembers was taken prisoner. Eight bodies were recovered as unknow and buried in the communal cemetery of Falkensee, Germany.
In August 1947 four crew members were positively identified and returned to the USA. At the request of next of kin the unidentified were buried in Ardennes in two adjoining graves. There is a gravestone between the two crosses with the names of the buried crewmen. Joseph J. Burghardt and John T. Carmichael are buried in separate graves.
Source of information: Peter Schouteten, Raf Dyckmans, Carla Mans, www.100thbg.com, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov, http://www.mcadams.org/fpdb/100thcasualty.asp, www.ancestry.com - U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men
Photo source: Peter Schouteten