Remembering Arlington's World War II Fallen Heroes

A Gold Star Family is one that has lost an immediate family member in the line of duty of military service. Arlington lost 55 young men during World War II. The map below shows where these men lost their lives.

Col. Kearby's military legacy is that of a skillful and courageous flying ace. During World War II, he pioneered air combat tactics for the P-47 Thunderbolt. Under his leadership, the 348th Fighter Squadron became one of the most lethal air combat groups in the Pacific Theater, the area of military activity in the Pacific Ocean and the countries bordering it.

In a single day of air combat operations over New Guinea in October 1943, Col. Kearby set a record for the number of downed enemy aircraft. In a ceremony at his headquarters, General Douglas MacArthur personally presented the Medal of Honor to Col. Kearby.

Six months later on March 5, 1944, Col. Kearby was shot down over New Guinea. After the war, his remains and the wreckage of his plane were found. Col. Kearby was buried with full military honors at Hillcrest Cemetery in Dallas in 1949.

At the time of his death, he was one the most decorated flyers of the war and a Top Gun in the Pacific Theater. In addition to the Medal of Honor, Kearby received two Silver Stars, four Distinguished Flying Crosses, five Air Medals and a Purple Heart.

Mr. Coke, born on Aug. 6, 1923, joined the U.S. Navy in January 1941 during his senior year at Arlington High School. He was among 429 servicemen killed on Dec. 7, 1941, when the USS Oklahoma capsized after being hit by Japanese torpedoes during the attack on Pearl Harbor.

On July 7, 1944 what would become known as the Port Chicago Disaster, the deadliest stateside explosion during the war occurred at the Port Chicago Naval Munitions base located in the north east area of the San Francisco Bay. Over 320 men were killed in the explosion and another 390 were injured. One of those men was Arlington native Ross D. Hunt who resided at 105 S. Collins Street in Arlington. This event would later become a key turning point in the desegregation of the United States Navy,