Veterans Voice: Relatives of RI Aviation Hall of Fame honorees sought

Since 2003, the Rhode Island Aviation Hall of Fame has been recognizing the state’s aviation heroes. The group has honored those with Rhode Island connections who have made contributions in a number of ways; pilots, inventors, aeronautical engineers, airline execs, manufacturers — even an aviation artist.

(Wearing one of my other hats, I head up that organization.)

As you might imagine, war heroes make up a large number of those honorees. Rhode Islanders began serving their country in the air as far back as the Civil War when the Allen brothers answered Lincoln’s call and flew observation balloons for the Union Army. This tradition continued during two World Wars, as well as in Korea and Vietnam. Many others distinguished themselves in Iraq or Afghanistan, and in the numerous other conflicts such as Panama, Grenada and Kosovo.

Over the years, RIAHOF has identified a number of those war heroes whose gallantry and/or military aviation service fully merits recognition by the Hall of Fame. Recognition of a number of these veterans has been deferred because no living relatives were identified to accept the awards. Each year, RIAHOF hopes that advances in internet research tools will allow them to track down more families.

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COVID forced the cancellation of 2020 and 2021 events

Sadly, the pandemic forced RIAHOF to cancel their its induction dinner/honors ceremony in both 2020 and 2021. Leadership decided those classes would be drawn from the ranks of candidates without known relatives. RIAHOF identified about 15 individuals who fit that description.

While space does not allow publication of the entire group, here is the information and family data we have on five honorees. Perhaps this will provide leads to living descendants.

LCDR Weldon Lee Hamilton (1906-1943)

A Central Falls resident and 1928 graduate of the Naval Academy, Lieutenant Hamilton was awarded two Navy Crosses within the first six months of WWII. For his second award, he planted a 1,000-pound bomb on the flight deck of a Japanese carrier during the Battle of the Coral Sea while serving as CO of VB-2, the dive bombing squadron aboard USS Lexington. After promotion to LCDR and assuming command of Air Group Eleven, he participated in a greater number of attacks than any other pilot in his command during the period April-June 1943. Weldon was lost "in an accident near Tontouta Noumea, on 8 June 1943, while a passenger in a transport plane." He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross posthumously for his heroism and extraordinary achievement.

Family notes: Although he and his wife Inez had no children, Hamilton was one of four siblings. His older sister Carrie Goodman lived in East Providence for many years and had four sons. Widowed, she outlived two other husbands (DeGrenia and Dansereau) before dying in North Attleboro in 1992. Efforts to track her grandchildren continue.

William H. Helme (1827-1864?)

Helme, a Providence dentist, was an early aeronaut, active in ballooning from the late 1850s through the Civil War. In 1860, he went aloft over Providence with renowned photographer William Black, and they took what were the very first aerial photographs in the United States. Four days after Lincoln issued the call for troops in April 1861, Helme joined the first RI Volunteers, and along with James Allen, delivered balloons to the Union Army in Washington for observation purposes.

On June 9, they made the American military’s first trial captive balloon ascent. They can be considered the first military aviators in the U.S. After returning to Rhode Island, he assisted in the formation of a company (later a regiment) of heavy artillery in 1863, manned entirely by Black soldiers. This regiment was deployed to Louisiana in early 1864. Helme apparently joined them there in some non-military capacity, which seems to have led to his strange and untimely death.

Family notes: RIAHOF has been unable to find any relatives who lived beyond the early 1900s.

BG Bruce Johnson, USAF (Ret) (1896-1985)

Johnson was born in Binghamton, New York, and moved to Warwick after he retired from the Air Force, living in Rhode Island for the last 35 years of his life. As a pursuit flying instructor during WWI, he flew with James H. "Jimmy" Doolittle, the noted flier and air pioneer. They developed a lifelong friendship, and Johnson was Doolittle's deputy and headquarters commandant in the 8th Air Force in England, the 12th Air Force in Africa and the 15th Air Force in Italy. He was involved in the invasions of Africa, Italy and France. He also supervised the relocation of the 8th Air Force to Okinawa in 1945.

He retired in 1951 and went to work in Washington as Deputy Special Assistant to the Chief Of Staff – Reserve Forces. In the 1960s, he wrote a book titled, "The Man with Two Hats," chronicling his military exploits alongside his friend of a half century, the legendary Doolittle, who wrote the foreword. In civilian life, Mr. Johnson was president of Bruce Aiders Inc., a wholesale medical supplies distributing firm in Providence.

Family notes: He married Ruth Hains of Newton, Massachusetts in 1922. They had three sons and a daughter: Bruce Johnson, who died in Virginia in 2012; Robert who died in Connecticut in 2011; and Evans B. Johnson who was living in Warwick at the time of his father’s death in 1985. RIAHOF traced Evans to Florida as late as 2019, but has been unable to locate him since. RIAHOF has also been unable to track the descendants of his daughter, Ruth Ann Bennett.

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Wilfred A Mack (1896 -1980)

Born January 1896, in Pawtucket, Mack was one of the first two volunteers to sign up for the Aeronautical Unit of the R.I. Naval Militia in 1915, thus becoming one of this state’s very first military aviators. Perhaps more importantly, he wrote an oral history about the birth of this unit and early flying on Narragansett Bay. He left the Naval Militia because “the winds canceled flying all the time,” and enlisted in the Army Air Service. The outbreak of WWI eliminated pilot training for Army enlisted men, and he became a sergeant mechanic serving with the 41st Aero Squadron in France.

After the war, he reenlisted to stay in Europe and served with the last aviation unit active in Germany during the occupation. He later transferred to Army Ordnance, becoming First Sergeant of the 60th Ordnance Company, managing one of the largest ammunition salvage operations of the war. He returned to the U.S. and by 1926 he was living in Newark, New Jersey. According to his obituary, he worked in Morristown for the National Oil Products Company (later NOPCO Chemical) for 30 years, retiring in 1964. His WWI memoirs appeared in an issue of the Cross and Cockade, the publication of the Society of WWI Aero Historians.

Family notes: He married his first wife Sarah in 1924. They had two daughters in 1926 and 1930. When he died in Forked River, New Jersey in 1980 his obituary listed his second wife, Veronica Jakubowsky; two daughters (Geraldine Liles of Pensacola and Frances Masino of Fairfield, New Jersey); eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Russell Falconer Stearns (1896-1938)

Stearns was one of the very few Rhode Islanders to serve with the famed Lafayette Flying Corps during WWI. Born in Pawtucket in 1896 into a successful textile manufacturing family, he was educated at the Moses Brown School before entering the University of Virginia. In January 1917 Stearns left to join the American Ambulance Service. Following two months of service at the front, he enlisted in the French Flying Service. After six months of training, he earned his wings and flew as an enlisted pilot with Escadrille SPA 150, Group de Combat 16.

Unfortunately, Stearns hated flying from the beginning. Still, he fought his demons and flew a number of successful combat patrols and escorted bombers over the Alsace/Lorraine sector. In March 1918, Steams transferred to the U.S. Marines Reserve Flying Corps. He joined the 1st Marine Aviation Force, but the same mental health issues which dogged him in France rendered him unfit for duty. He received an honorable discharge after suffering a nervous breakdown. Following the war his mental state deteriorated. His sister, Margaret Stearns, devoted her life to taking Russell throughout Europe trying to find a cure. When their father died in 1935, he and Margaret inherited the family fortune. Steams was unable to care for himself and was institutionalized. He died in a mental hospital in Aiken, South Carolina on January 10, 1938 at age 42.

Family notes: His sister Margaret lived until 1977. For many years there was an active Margaret Stearns Trust in Rhode Island, for the benefit of Arnolds Mills Community House. When she died, her obit said her only survivors were two cousins, Betty Flather of Providence and Howard B. Stearns of New York City. RIAHOF has had no luck tracking them further.

Volunteer help welcomed

If you have an interest in internet sleuthing and genealogical research, RIAHOF would welcome your volunteer help. The group is always on the lookout for nominations of other potential honorees, as well as contributions to an endowment so that they might continue this work. Please email info@riahof.org, or visit the website at www.riahof.org.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Service Members/Veterans sought for “Learn to Weld Training Program” at The Steel Yard, 27 Sims Ave, Providence 02909. This is a one-week-long program running from August 29 to September 2; Applications started July 17. Attendees will learn foundational welding & employable soft skills through an artistic curriculum. Participants will receive a $250 stipend and a Certificate of Completion. There is NO COST for you to apply or attend the training. To apply, email workforce@thesteelyard.org

FREE Summer Writing Workshop for vets will be offered by the Providence Clemente Veterans Initiative (PCVI). Starting August 7, USMC veteran Lucas Pralle will teach this class on Zoom on Sunday nights from 6-8 p.m. It will run through September 11, skipping Labor Day Weekend. To apply, contact Dr. Mark Santow, director of PCVI, by email at pvdclementevets@gmail.com.

The Providence Vet Center’s Dungeons and Dragons Campaign currently has two open slots for interested participants. This group meets on the first and third Wednesday of the month from 5 to 8 p.m. No experience is required, but you do need access to a computer with an internet connection as this group is conducted virtually. Vet Center eligibility is required. Contact Justyn.Charon@va.gov or call (401) 739-0167.

Ocean Therapy available free to veterans through October 16. One-on-one sessions, as well as an 8-week program, are available. Break Through Waves combines yoga, mindfulness, and breathing exercises with surf therapy or stand-up paddle boarding. The one- to two-hour session is free and is specifically designed for those who have experienced trauma or who have been diagnosed with PTSD.

Surfing Program takes place at Easton’s Beach (First Beach), 175 Memorial Blvd., Newport. Stand Up Paddle Boarding — West Island Corner of Goulart Memorial Drive and Alder Street, Fairhaven, Massachusetts. For details or to sign up visit   www.breakthroughwaves.com

This programming is made available through the Providence Vet Center

Learn Archery in North Kingstown every Monday, 4-8:30 p.m; Narragansett Bow Hunters, 1531 Ten Rod Rd., North Kingstown are offering an opportunity to learn archery at no charge. Everything you need will be provided (bows, arrows, arm guards, targets, finger tabs, and instruction). This is strictly target shooting — no hunting, or desire to hunt, is required. The range is indoors so this event is rain or shine. No RSVP needed. For further information call (401) 295-7228 or visit www.narragansettbowhunters.org

CALENDAR

Saturday, August 27, 8 a.m.: The Providence Vet Center’s Scuba Diving Group event will take place at Fort Wetherill in Jamestown. To sign up please contact Paul Santilli or Chris Morse by phone at (401) 739-0167 or via email to Paul.Santilli@va.gov / Christopher.Morse@va.gov

Thursday, September 15, 4:30 - 7:30 p.m.; Learn to Surf Cast for Free. At Scarborough Beach, Providence Vet Center is teaming up with the Narragansett Surf Casters to offer a class to 15 service members/veterans. All the equipment you need to learn to catch fish from shore, along with instruction, will be provided by members of Narragansett Surf Casters. Please sign up with Justyn Charon by phone at (401) 739-0167 or via email at Justyn.Charon@va.gov.

Saturday, September 17, 9 a.m.-2 p.m.: RI National Guard Resource Fair, Camp Fogarty, East Greenwich. Resources and Connections to help Service Members and Families.

To report the outcome of a previous activity, or to add a future event to our calendar, please email the details (including a contact name and phone number/email address) to veteranscolumn@projo.com

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Veterans Voice: Relatives of RI Aviation Hall of Fame honorees sought