At the time this memorial was created there was little data to be found on how or where he died. Then came a slew of folks who helped gather a lot of data which might otherwise have been lost to the ages...
Find A Grave contributor Margaret sent in this: 'Today, I received a small family prayer book and the obit for Lt. Beardsley which was tucked inside with a few others. Lt. Beardsley was a close friend of my mother's family'. Her mom, now 102, could not recall many details of his death. What the obit said was: Suddenly, on Monday, November 22, 1943, at Cockran Field, Macon Ga., Lt. Thomas D. Beardsley, beloved son of Charlotte A. Beardsley of Berwyn, Maryland.
Like many military bases when the war ended in 1945, Cochran shut down and its records of what happened there went to parts unknown. What is known is that the National Archives shows Lt. Beardsley as DNB - Death Non-battle. Cochran Field was but one of several airbases in Macon and the immediate vicinity during WW II. During the war Cochran Field was a USAAF training base - all aspects of flight. There were several 'auxiliary' airfields in nearby localities and towns which supported the operations of Cochran Field.
The Genealogical & Historical Room of the Washington Memorial Library in Macon, Ga. researched his death and found a short article the day after he died in the Macon Telegraph newspaper. He died while on a routine training flight when the plane crashed near Gunn Field, not far from Perry, a short flight from Macon and an auxiliary base of Cochran Field. With him was Cadet Frank Trainer. The Houston county library branch, on Gunn Rd. in Centerville, Ga. provided some info on the distances between the many bases all around there during WW II. And Wikipedia has some detailed information on Cochran Field and it's many outlying airfields in the region during the war.
After the war ended, the base ultimately became the city airport of Macon, though it's outside the city limits, it is in Bibb county. It has had several names over the years and today it is known as Middle Georgia Regional Airport.
When doing research - go to the library. Ask a librarian. They know stuff. And support your local library.
Contributor - Fred Sanford
-----
See also You will find out more about him on my webpage for World War II death's in Prince George's County, Maryland located here :
http://www.russpickett.com/history/mdprince.htm
Find A Grave contributor Margaret sent in this: 'Today, I received a small family prayer book and the obit for Lt. Beardsley which was tucked inside with a few others. Lt. Beardsley was a close friend of my mother's family'. Her mom, now 102, could not recall many details of his death. What the obit said was: Suddenly, on Monday, November 22, 1943, at Cockran Field, Macon Ga., Lt. Thomas D. Beardsley, beloved son of Charlotte A. Beardsley of Berwyn, Maryland.
Like many military bases when the war ended in 1945, Cochran shut down and its records of what happened there went to parts unknown. What is known is that the National Archives shows Lt. Beardsley as DNB - Death Non-battle. Cochran Field was but one of several airbases in Macon and the immediate vicinity during WW II. During the war Cochran Field was a USAAF training base - all aspects of flight. There were several 'auxiliary' airfields in nearby localities and towns which supported the operations of Cochran Field.
The Genealogical & Historical Room of the Washington Memorial Library in Macon, Ga. researched his death and found a short article the day after he died in the Macon Telegraph newspaper. He died while on a routine training flight when the plane crashed near Gunn Field, not far from Perry, a short flight from Macon and an auxiliary base of Cochran Field. With him was Cadet Frank Trainer. The Houston county library branch, on Gunn Rd. in Centerville, Ga. provided some info on the distances between the many bases all around there during WW II. And Wikipedia has some detailed information on Cochran Field and it's many outlying airfields in the region during the war.
After the war ended, the base ultimately became the city airport of Macon, though it's outside the city limits, it is in Bibb county. It has had several names over the years and today it is known as Middle Georgia Regional Airport.
When doing research - go to the library. Ask a librarian. They know stuff. And support your local library.
Contributor - Fred Sanford
-----
See also You will find out more about him on my webpage for World War II death's in Prince George's County, Maryland located here :
http://www.russpickett.com/history/mdprince.htm
At the time this memorial was created there was little data to be found on how or where he died. Then came a slew of folks who helped gather a lot of data which might otherwise have been lost to the ages...
Find A Grave contributor Margaret sent in this: 'Today, I received a small family prayer book and the obit for Lt. Beardsley which was tucked inside with a few others. Lt. Beardsley was a close friend of my mother's family'. Her mom, now 102, could not recall many details of his death. What the obit said was: Suddenly, on Monday, November 22, 1943, at Cockran Field, Macon Ga., Lt. Thomas D. Beardsley, beloved son of Charlotte A. Beardsley of Berwyn, Maryland.
Like many military bases when the war ended in 1945, Cochran shut down and its records of what happened there went to parts unknown. What is known is that the National Archives shows Lt. Beardsley as DNB - Death Non-battle. Cochran Field was but one of several airbases in Macon and the immediate vicinity during WW II. During the war Cochran Field was a USAAF training base - all aspects of flight. There were several 'auxiliary' airfields in nearby localities and towns which supported the operations of Cochran Field.
The Genealogical & Historical Room of the Washington Memorial Library in Macon, Ga. researched his death and found a short article the day after he died in the Macon Telegraph newspaper. He died while on a routine training flight when the plane crashed near Gunn Field, not far from Perry, a short flight from Macon and an auxiliary base of Cochran Field. With him was Cadet Frank Trainer. The Houston county library branch, on Gunn Rd. in Centerville, Ga. provided some info on the distances between the many bases all around there during WW II. And Wikipedia has some detailed information on Cochran Field and it's many outlying airfields in the region during the war.
After the war ended, the base ultimately became the city airport of Macon, though it's outside the city limits, it is in Bibb county. It has had several names over the years and today it is known as Middle Georgia Regional Airport.
When doing research - go to the library. Ask a librarian. They know stuff. And support your local library.
Contributor - Fred Sanford
-----
See also You will find out more about him on my webpage for World War II death's in Prince George's County, Maryland located here :
http://www.russpickett.com/history/mdprince.htm
Find A Grave contributor Margaret sent in this: 'Today, I received a small family prayer book and the obit for Lt. Beardsley which was tucked inside with a few others. Lt. Beardsley was a close friend of my mother's family'. Her mom, now 102, could not recall many details of his death. What the obit said was: Suddenly, on Monday, November 22, 1943, at Cockran Field, Macon Ga., Lt. Thomas D. Beardsley, beloved son of Charlotte A. Beardsley of Berwyn, Maryland.
Like many military bases when the war ended in 1945, Cochran shut down and its records of what happened there went to parts unknown. What is known is that the National Archives shows Lt. Beardsley as DNB - Death Non-battle. Cochran Field was but one of several airbases in Macon and the immediate vicinity during WW II. During the war Cochran Field was a USAAF training base - all aspects of flight. There were several 'auxiliary' airfields in nearby localities and towns which supported the operations of Cochran Field.
The Genealogical & Historical Room of the Washington Memorial Library in Macon, Ga. researched his death and found a short article the day after he died in the Macon Telegraph newspaper. He died while on a routine training flight when the plane crashed near Gunn Field, not far from Perry, a short flight from Macon and an auxiliary base of Cochran Field. With him was Cadet Frank Trainer. The Houston county library branch, on Gunn Rd. in Centerville, Ga. provided some info on the distances between the many bases all around there during WW II. And Wikipedia has some detailed information on Cochran Field and it's many outlying airfields in the region during the war.
After the war ended, the base ultimately became the city airport of Macon, though it's outside the city limits, it is in Bibb county. It has had several names over the years and today it is known as Middle Georgia Regional Airport.
When doing research - go to the library. Ask a librarian. They know stuff. And support your local library.
Contributor - Fred Sanford
-----
See also You will find out more about him on my webpage for World War II death's in Prince George's County, Maryland located here :
http://www.russpickett.com/history/mdprince.htm
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