James Thomas Fitz-Gerald, Jr.

James Thomas Fitz-Gerald, Jr. (HM151X)

Location: South Pittsburg, TN 37380 Marion County
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Country: United States of America
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N 35° 0.751', W 85° 42.367'

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Inscription

Captain, USAF

— 1920-1948 —

(side 1)
Born July 13, 1920 in South Pittsburg, James "Jim" Thomas Fitz-Gerald, Jr. was appointed to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, in 1940. Interested in aviation since childhood, he graduated in the first class of "Wings of West Point". Assigned in April 1944 to the Eighth Air Force in England, he was taken prisoner in August after his plane was shot down over Germany during his twenty-eighth combat mission. He was a POW in Stalag Luft III Prison until liberated in April 1945.
Continued

(side 2)
After World War II, Fitz-Gerlad, a U.S. Air Force Captain and decorated veteran, was assigned jet-propelled aircraft development at Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio. Transferred to California's Muroc Air Base, Fitz-Gerald piloted Bell's "XS-1" rocket plane to Mach 1.1 in his first attempt on February 24, 1948, to become the second man to break the sound barrier. Fitz-Gerald died on September 20, 1948, from injuries sustained in a September 9 plane crash in Van Nuys, California. He is buried at West Point.
Details
HM NumberHM151X
Tags
, ,
Marker Number2B 31
Year Placed2006
Placed ByTennessee Historical Commission
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Friday, September 12th, 2014 at 9:17pm PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)16S E 618054 N 3875196
Decimal Degrees35.01251667, -85.70611667
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 35° 0.751', W 85° 42.367'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds35° 0' 45.06" N, 85° 42' 22.02" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)931, 423, 865
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 303 Elm Ave, South Pittsburg TN 37380, US
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