Miles was born 27 Feb 1915 in Mount Vernon, MO, the sixth child of Jim Orr and Jettie Cochran. He lived in the Odd Fellows Home (Liberty, MO) for 9 years, then joined brothers Tommy and Harold on the Mount Vernon High School football team, where he was also president of the high school class. He moved to Washington in the mid-1930s, where he lived with Marguerite and Clarence Harlowe (his sister and her husband). He worked for the General Accounting Office for six years, and then moved to Florida. He says he was a step ahead of the IRS.
Miles was in the Army Air Corps during World War II. He volunteered in Florida (with Tommy) and first went overseas to North Africa where he was an engineer on a bomber. When General Frank Andrews succeeded Eisenhower as commander of the European Theater he needed to put together a new plane crew, as General Eisenhower took his crew with him when he became Supreme Allied Commander. Someone told General Andrews that "Miles Orr was the best engineer he could get," and Miles was reassigned to General Andrews' Command. In that position he flew with the general to most of the European capitals after the war. He spoke almost none of his experiences until just before he died, in part because the time in North Africa was so difficult. He often recounted the story of an unknown Swiss citizen who took the time to return a camera that an unknown GI (Miles) left on a train in Switzerland when Miles was there with the general. Miles rose to the rank of master sergeant.
Employers included Singer Sewing Company and Harlowe Typography. He was a graduate of Bliss Electrical School in Montgomery County, MD (later Montgomery College).
Miles met his wife, Rita Rooney, in Washington during World War II. She lived with his sister Florence, and knew Marguerite and his mother Jettie, who had come to Washington to run a rooming housing so that she would have the chance to see her sons during the war. Miles and Rita married on June 19, 1946 in her hometown of Seneca, KS. Their children are Elaine, Dan, Wayne, Diane & Grant. Miles wrote poetry, short stories and novels, and loved to play golf--especially with brother Tommy and brother-in-law Curt Jackson.
Miles developed a lung disease (pulmonary fibrosis) which made him short of breath but did not totally disable him until he was in his late seventies, probably the result of using carbon tetrachloride to clean airplane engines in WWII. He died 7 July 1994 in the home of his children, Elaine and Dan, in Takoma Park, MD. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
Miles was in the Army Air Corps during World War II. He volunteered in Florida (with Tommy) and first went overseas to North Africa where he was an engineer on a bomber. When General Frank Andrews succeeded Eisenhower as commander of the European Theater he needed to put together a new plane crew, as General Eisenhower took his crew with him when he became Supreme Allied Commander. Someone told General Andrews that "Miles Orr was the best engineer he could get," and Miles was reassigned to General Andrews' Command. In that position he flew with the general to most of the European capitals after the war. He spoke almost none of his experiences until just before he died, in part because the time in North Africa was so difficult. He often recounted the story of an unknown Swiss citizen who took the time to return a camera that an unknown GI (Miles) left on a train in Switzerland when Miles was there with the general. Miles rose to the rank of master sergeant.
Employers included Singer Sewing Company and Harlowe Typography. He was a graduate of Bliss Electrical School in Montgomery County, MD (later Montgomery College).
Miles met his wife, Rita Rooney, in Washington during World War II. She lived with his sister Florence, and knew Marguerite and his mother Jettie, who had come to Washington to run a rooming housing so that she would have the chance to see her sons during the war. Miles and Rita married on June 19, 1946 in her hometown of Seneca, KS. Their children are Elaine, Dan, Wayne, Diane & Grant. Miles wrote poetry, short stories and novels, and loved to play golf--especially with brother Tommy and brother-in-law Curt Jackson.
Miles developed a lung disease (pulmonary fibrosis) which made him short of breath but did not totally disable him until he was in his late seventies, probably the result of using carbon tetrachloride to clean airplane engines in WWII. He died 7 July 1994 in the home of his children, Elaine and Dan, in Takoma Park, MD. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
Miles was born 27 Feb 1915 in Mount Vernon, MO, the sixth child of Jim Orr and Jettie Cochran. He lived in the Odd Fellows Home (Liberty, MO) for 9 years, then joined brothers Tommy and Harold on the Mount Vernon High School football team, where he was also president of the high school class. He moved to Washington in the mid-1930s, where he lived with Marguerite and Clarence Harlowe (his sister and her husband). He worked for the General Accounting Office for six years, and then moved to Florida. He says he was a step ahead of the IRS.
Miles was in the Army Air Corps during World War II. He volunteered in Florida (with Tommy) and first went overseas to North Africa where he was an engineer on a bomber. When General Frank Andrews succeeded Eisenhower as commander of the European Theater he needed to put together a new plane crew, as General Eisenhower took his crew with him when he became Supreme Allied Commander. Someone told General Andrews that "Miles Orr was the best engineer he could get," and Miles was reassigned to General Andrews' Command. In that position he flew with the general to most of the European capitals after the war. He spoke almost none of his experiences until just before he died, in part because the time in North Africa was so difficult. He often recounted the story of an unknown Swiss citizen who took the time to return a camera that an unknown GI (Miles) left on a train in Switzerland when Miles was there with the general. Miles rose to the rank of master sergeant.
Employers included Singer Sewing Company and Harlowe Typography. He was a graduate of Bliss Electrical School in Montgomery County, MD (later Montgomery College).
Miles met his wife, Rita Rooney, in Washington during World War II. She lived with his sister Florence, and knew Marguerite and his mother Jettie, who had come to Washington to run a rooming housing so that she would have the chance to see her sons during the war. Miles and Rita married on June 19, 1946 in her hometown of Seneca, KS. Their children are Elaine, Dan, Wayne, Diane & Grant. Miles wrote poetry, short stories and novels, and loved to play golf--especially with brother Tommy and brother-in-law Curt Jackson.
Miles developed a lung disease (pulmonary fibrosis) which made him short of breath but did not totally disable him until he was in his late seventies, probably the result of using carbon tetrachloride to clean airplane engines in WWII. He died 7 July 1994 in the home of his children, Elaine and Dan, in Takoma Park, MD. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
Miles was in the Army Air Corps during World War II. He volunteered in Florida (with Tommy) and first went overseas to North Africa where he was an engineer on a bomber. When General Frank Andrews succeeded Eisenhower as commander of the European Theater he needed to put together a new plane crew, as General Eisenhower took his crew with him when he became Supreme Allied Commander. Someone told General Andrews that "Miles Orr was the best engineer he could get," and Miles was reassigned to General Andrews' Command. In that position he flew with the general to most of the European capitals after the war. He spoke almost none of his experiences until just before he died, in part because the time in North Africa was so difficult. He often recounted the story of an unknown Swiss citizen who took the time to return a camera that an unknown GI (Miles) left on a train in Switzerland when Miles was there with the general. Miles rose to the rank of master sergeant.
Employers included Singer Sewing Company and Harlowe Typography. He was a graduate of Bliss Electrical School in Montgomery County, MD (later Montgomery College).
Miles met his wife, Rita Rooney, in Washington during World War II. She lived with his sister Florence, and knew Marguerite and his mother Jettie, who had come to Washington to run a rooming housing so that she would have the chance to see her sons during the war. Miles and Rita married on June 19, 1946 in her hometown of Seneca, KS. Their children are Elaine, Dan, Wayne, Diane & Grant. Miles wrote poetry, short stories and novels, and loved to play golf--especially with brother Tommy and brother-in-law Curt Jackson.
Miles developed a lung disease (pulmonary fibrosis) which made him short of breath but did not totally disable him until he was in his late seventies, probably the result of using carbon tetrachloride to clean airplane engines in WWII. He died 7 July 1994 in the home of his children, Elaine and Dan, in Takoma Park, MD. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
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