Sgt J.P. Washington - USAAF

[Henk Welting]

A fellow air war historian has access to an "A/Z US Dead List" and on pos. nr. 7347 the name of:
Sgt James P. WASHINGTON - 3838794 - KiA 20-12-1943 - "from a Fortress" - buried Garnisonsfriedhof Wesermünde-Geestemünde, N.Germany.
The problem is that this servicenumber and name can't be traced on any USAAF KiA/MiA-List.
Any help very welcome.
Regards,
Henk.

[edwest]

Are there any other details or clues available?



Ed

[RSwank]

James P Washington, 38387594 (note serial number) from Caddo Parish, LA, born in 1924, enlisted in Shreveport, LA on 22 Jan 43. He is listed in the NARA ADD enlistment records on the archives.gov website.
However, he is not listed on the list of deaths from the same county (parish) on the WWII Army/AF Casualties list.

[dp_burke]

What is the 'A/Z list', what is its exact title?

On ancestry.com this name and serial number is not on the Rosters of WW2 Dead collection, have checked the two pages of WASHINGTON surnames.

Also checked Fold3.com somewhat.

[RSwank]

Is an A/Z list just an alphabetical list from A to Z, in this case a German generated list? Given that we have a James P Washington with what appears to be the corrected serial number and it "appears" he did not die in WWII, I wonder if we are looking at a cast of "mistaken identity". Many planes were lost on 20 Dec and many men were killed. I wonder if one of them was wearing a jacket from James P Washington and when his body was found he was so identified and buried by the Germans under that name. After the war, things get sorted out and corrected. Just a thought.

[dp_burke]

I was goign to say that I find very few post war references to a James P Washington in Shreveport LA after the war but I see a matching name now on one Ancestry.com database of a Jame P Washington born 1924 living in Shreveport post war.

That said, there are about 20 men matching the name (no middle initial) on the 1930 census in Shreveport so the above might not be our man.