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Remember...William Joseph Frank
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William Joseph Frank was born August 12, 1918, at Smithers, Fayette County, West Virginia, to Italian immigrants Francisco Saverio DeFranco and Sarafina LoPetrone Martini DeFranco. As was the case with many newly-minted Americans, Francisco and Sarafina anglicized both their given names and surnames in order to fit into their new communities but making it difficult to track their lives through census listings. In some instances, the father is referred to as "Frank Frank"! And in 1940, when she was head of household, the mother declared herself to be Sarafina Martin Frank (and later Sarah). Within one generation, it appears that the offspring used several variations of the surname. William's siblings included Salvatore DeFranco (Samuel), Dominick R. Frank, John DeFrank (Giovanni), Rosa Frank (Rose), Anthony R. Frank (Antony), Joseph Frank, Mary Elizabeth Frank, and Pete Frank. (Family information obtained from 1930 and 1940 Federal Census data, as well as the Carmencita Frank Family Tree and Jill's Family Tree on Ancestry.com. Additional information from William's Find A Grave page.)
Despite being from a large, immigrant, coal-mining family, William Joseph Frank managed to obtain a college education. The 1940 Federal Census listing notes he had completed his third year of college, but it's likely he graduated that year, as he registered for the draft on October 16 and stated he was a graduate student at Colorado State College of Education. On February 3, 1943, William married Lillian Elizabeth DeCicco in Florida. Their family would eventually grow to include two children. By the time of the 1950 census, he indicated he was an industrial arts teacher at a junior high school in Charleston.
| Having survived World War II, being married with children, and teaching in the state's capital, it would seem that William Joseph Frank was living the American dream. But the Korean War loomed, and he was serving with the 123rd Maintenance Squadron, 123rd Fighter-Bomber Wing. Stationed at Godman Air Force Base in Kentucky, the unit was awaiting deployment to Korea when William became a victim of the plane crash near the Kanawha [Charleston] Airport on April 8, 1951. The 123rd was headed for Charleston to attend the funeral of Major Woodford Sutherland, who had been killed in an airplane accident in Florida three days previous. |  |
Much has been written locally about the crash and its aftermath—the Charleston Gazette and Daily Mail offered timely coverage of the event and its aftermath, and other newspapers around the state followed suit. In a practice no longer familiar, newspapers often published an "extra," which allowed for frequent updates on breaking news. The following account, however, is excerpted from the actual accident report:
After reporting over the Charleston Radio Range at 5000 feet on an IFR flight from Godman Air Force Base, Kentucky to Charleston, West Virginia, the pilot was cleared by Charleston Approach Control to descent to 3500 feet, pending approach clearance. . . . [The pilot then indicated a turn procedure.] The procedure turn report was the last radio contact with the aircraft.The C-47 crashed into a hill approximately 1150 feet high located 4.6 miles from the approach end of runway 23 at Kanawha County Airport and 1.07 miles West Northwest of the Outer Marker beacon. Both wings of the aircraft were sheared off on impact by trees. The fuselage came to rest approximately 125 yards from the point of impact and was almost completely consumed by the fire which apparently was instantaneous with collision. . . .
One of the two survivors of the crash was a rated pilot riding as passenger who succumbed to burn injuries within less than 24 hours. The other survivor lived for approximately one week after the crash. The statements of the survivors indicate that they were positioned further aft in the plane than any of the other passengers and it is worthy of note that one of the survivors stated that to the best of his knowledge all the rest of the passengers who suffered fatal injuries had their safety belts fastened. . . .
[Here the report provides numerous technical details regarding the approach pattern and describes the condition of the aircraft on impact, concluding that the damage made the cause of the crash difficulty to determine.]
The report continues:
The fact that both survivors reported seeing the airport a short time before the crash lends credence to the belief that the pilot misread the altimeter and was actually flying at 1300 feet indicated when he reported being at 2300 outbound over the inner locator at 1132C. This altitude would put the aircraft below the 1000 foot overcast and above the 500 foot broken ceiling which would enable the passengers to get a glimpse of the airport through the broken cloud layer.The time lapse of only 2 minutes from the position over the inner located outbound until the procedure report further suggests the actions of this pilot in setting up his approach were distinctly hurried. One wrist watch found in the wreckage was stopped at 1136C, so the time of the accident is assumed as between 1135C and 1136.
While the failure of the ILS equipment might be considered as conducive to the accident, the pilot was aware of the malfunction and planned to make his approach independently of this system. It does not appear therefore that this failure should be considered as a direct cause factor. (Report of AF Aircraft Accident, West Virginia State Archives.)
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While most families held individual private services for their lost loved ones, the entire community rallied to their support when a joint service for all was held at the Charleston Municipal Auditorium on April 10. Local newspapers reported that more than 4,000 attended the joint memorial service, with standing room only for more than 500. First Lieutenant William Joseph Frank was buried in Montgomery Memorial Park at London in Kanawha County. Lillian Elizabeth Frank remarried and took the surname Sclavi. |
Article prepared by Patricia Richards McClure, who gratefully acknowledges the assistance of Syd Edwards, historian who has extensively written about the C-47 crash
August 2024
West Virginia Archives and History welcomes any additional information that can be provided about these veterans, including photographs, family names, letters and other relevant personal history.
