 |
| Gunner's Mate Second Class William Adair served on the SS James Hawkins. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/77004087/william-benjamin-adair |
William Benjamin Adair, Jr. never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.
He was born on July 23, 1920 in Oregon. His mother, Mabel Clair Dunlap, was also born in Oregon. His father, William “Ben” Adair was born in Texas. His father worked as a police patrolman. William had two brothers, Robert D and Lyle D, and two sisters, Margaret A and Helen L. By 1940, William graduated from Benson Polytechnic High School in Portland, Oregon. At the time of his draft registration, he worked for Burnwell Administrators.
William enlisted in the US Navy in March 1942, and became a gunner’s mate second class. He married Ruth Elizabeth Hansen on Sept. 22, 1942 in Stevenson, Skamania County, Washington. She was a nurse at St Vincent’s Hospital in Portland, Oregon.
Adair served as a Navy armed guard aboard the merchant marine ship James Hawkins, which was anchored off the coast of Iran on July 27, 1943. German U-boats regularly targeted merchant marine ships, making guards necessary and service dangerous. There was a fire on board of unknown origin and William died of burns. He was buried in allied-protected territory in Iran. He was awarded the Purple Heart posthumously.
He was reburied in 1949 at Lincoln Memorial Park in Portland, Oregon. His widow enlisted as a navy nurse and remarried in 1946.
The entire Adair family represents a legacy of public service. William’s grandfather, John William Benjamin Adair, died in Texas in 1886 as a deputy sheriff while recapturing escaped prisoners. He left a pregnant wife and two children, and William’s father was born after his grandfather’s death. William’s father served as a police patrolman in Portland, Oregon. Both of his brothers also served in the US Navy during the war. Both of his brothers-in-law served in the navy and army, and his sister Helen L Johnson enlisted in the US Navy WAVES in 1944. His widow, Ruth Adair, enlisted in the Navy Nursing Corps after his death. His nephew, US Marine Sgt William Michael Adair, son of Lyle Adair, would later give his life in the Vietnam conflict in 1970.
Thank you, William Benjamin Adair, Jr for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for William.
_____
This profile was written by Marilyn N. Clark. "I have a long-standing interest in World War 2. My grandfather and numerous great-uncles served in that conflict. I have a BA in history from the University of Utah and have a lot of experience with volunteer genealogical research. It’s an honor to find and share information about these heroes that made such great sacrifices. Many thanks to Don for organizing this effort to share their stories.”
Last year on this date I profiled antisubmarine B-24 pilot John Dale. You can read about John here.
On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!
I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.
Please consider joining the public Facebook group to increase the exposure of this project. Go to: WW2 Fallen 100
🤲🏻🙌🏼🙏🏻💜💚💙💗☮
ReplyDelete