Boyd, William Jean

1921 - 2017  (96 years)

• Name	Boyd, William Jean
  Birth	25 Apr 1921	Cisne, Wayne County, Illinois
  Gender	Male
  Reference Number	BOYD.W002
  _FGRAVE	184590127
  Military Service	World War II, Corporal, 8th 'Black Sheep' Fighter Squadron, 49th Fighter Group, United States Army Air Forces  [1]
  	Entered active service as a draftee on September 5, 1942 at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri. Selected for The Army Air Forces, completed basic training and qualified in the Military Occupational Specialty of Surgical Technician (861). Departed the Continental U.S. on June 8, 1944 bound for The Asiatic-Pacific Theater of Operations. Assigned to and served with the 8th 'Black Sheep' Fighter Squadron, 49th Fighter Group in The Western Pacific, Luzon, Southern Philippines, China Air Offensive and The Air Offensive-Japan Campaigns. Wounded in action during this period of duty. Earned The Purple Heart Medal, Good Conduct Medal, American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with silver battle star, WWII Victory Medal and The Philippine Liberation Medal with 1 bronze battle star. Honorably discharged as a Corporal on December 16, 1945 at The Separation Center, Jefferson Barracks, Missouri. (This information has been posted on the National World War II Memorial's Registry of Remembrances website by Robert Medley Gatewood. It is entered here with his permission.) Source: http://www.wwiimemorial.com/Registry/plaque.aspx?honoreeID=2049994
  		United States of America Flag, 48 Stars (1912-1959) In 1912, two stars were added to the United States flag, representing Arizona and New Mexico, bringing the total number of stars to 48. They were arranged in six rows of eight stars each. American fighting men would fight under this flag during four wars: World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the beginning of the Vietnam War. (In 1959,…
  		William Jean Boyd
  		United States Army Air Forces
  		United States Army Air Forces
  		Corporal, United States Army and United States Army Air Forces (Sep 1942-Aug 1948)
  		United States Army Enlisted Rank Insignia
  		World War II (1939-1945)
  		Brochure, World War II Memorial, Flora, Illinois, Nov 11, 2007 On Veterans' Day, 2005, the city of Flora, Illinois dedicated a memorial to all known Clay County, Illinois World War II Veterans. Located on the south side of the city library, this is a copy of the brochure honoring that event. This 2007 brochure adds a matrix for locating the memorial brick that was laid in honor of each veteran. …
  		World War II Honoree, Boyd, William J. (1921-2017)
  Death	28 Oct 2017	Flora Gardens Care Center, Flora, Clay County, Illinois
  Burial	Unknown
  Person ID	I40519	Carl Wayne Gray Research
  Last Modified	19 Jul 2023

  
  

  Father	Boyd, Arthur Otto,   b. 8 Jul 1886, Cisne, Wayne County, Illinois d. Jul 1958 (Age 72 years)
  Mother	Hill, Elsie Marie,   b. 1898, Flora, Clay County, Illinois d. 1952 (Age 54 years)
  Marriage	16 Dec 1912	Cisne, Wayne County, Illinois   [2]
  Age at Marriage	He was 26 years and 5 months - She was ~ 15 years.
  Family ID	F13605	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Landreth, Virgie Aileen,   b. 1934   d. 1989 (Age 55 years)
  Family ID	F18446	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 25 Apr 1921 - Cisne, Wayne County, Illinois Death - 28 Oct 2017 - Flora Gardens Care Center, Flora, Clay County, Illinois  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Notes

  William J. Boyd, age 96, of Flora, Illinois, passed away Saturday, October 28, 2017, at Flora Gardens Care Center in Flora. William was born April 25, 1921, in Cisne, the son of Otto and Marie (Hill) Boyd. He married Virgie Aileen Landreth in St. Louis, Missouri. She preceded him in death on April 17, 1989. William was a recipient of the Purple Heart during his service to the country as an Army Air Force medic during World War II, and was present during the Japanese surrender. He operated a radiator shop for many years, advertising it as the “Best place in town to take a leak.” He could fix almost anything, and enjoyed the process of tinkering and repairing things to help others. He had been a member of the Flora American Legion, Flora VFW, and Flora Moose, and a past member of the Eagles. He is survived by his children: Sandra (Nile) Stoltz of Springfield, William G. Boyd of Olney, Cheryl (Donald) Dulaney of Flora, Cathy Jo Boyd of Phoenix, Arizona, and Kelly (Jeff) Hatcher of Cisne. He is also survived by 10 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren, 4 great-great-grandchildren, and a number of nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; wife; a son: Jeffrey David Boyd; an infant daughter: Shellie Ray in 1969; a grandson: Brad Staley; two brothers: Jim and Volney Boyd; and two sisters: Lyndel Oliver and Iva Roberts. A memorial service for William Boyd will be 7 p.m. Monday, November 6, 2017, at Frank & Bright Funeral Home, Flora, with visitation from 6-7 p.m. Military Honors will be presented at the beginning of the service. Memorial donations may be given to the local D.A.V.

  
  

• Sources

  [S13447] World War II Honoree, William J. Boyd, (https://wwiiregistry.abmc.gov/honoree-plaque/?honoree_id=2049994) (Reliability: 2). [S14542] https://www.findagrave.com, Obituary, Boyd, Elsie Marie, (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/32811313/elsie-marie-boyd), none. (Reliability: 2).