Roy May Jr. was born on 13 August 1921, in LaSalle, Illinois, the eldest son of Roy and Charlotte “Lottie” (Baker) May. A year later his brother Robert was born. In 1924, when Roy was three years old, the family suffered the loss of a full-term stillborn child, William, who never came home.
In 1930 when Roy was eight years old, the May family lived in a home they rented at 542 Eighth Street in LaSalle. Roy’s father worked as the proprietor of a jewelry shop.
By 1940, Roy Sr. had left the jewelry business and taken a job at Westclox, the local clock factory. The family had also moved to a home they purchased at 176 East Walnut Street in Oglesby. Roy Jr., then eighteen and having graduated from LaSalle-Peru Township High School the year before, was attending college.
Then came 7 December 1941, and the country was soon involved in war.
Roy registered for the draft on 16 February 1942. He was 20 years old, 5 feet 7 inches tall, 135 pounds, with blonde hair and gray eyes, and was working at Westclox. He had married Mary Jane Hughes at some point between 1940 and the date of his registration—the young couple were living in Oglesby on East Walnut street near his parents. Later that summer, Roy’s younger brother Robert also registered for the draft.
On 9 December 1942, Roy enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps in Chicago and was assigned service number 16138277. He was promoted to First Lieutenant and assigned to the 825th Bombardment Squadron of the 484th Bombardment Group (Heavy), serving as a bombardier in a B-24 aircraft. He was issued a new service number: O-723996.
On 25 April 1945, 1st LT Roy May Jr. was flying as a bombardier in the nose of a B-24 near Linz, Austria. At 12:33 in the afternoon, the plane was hit by enemy fire. According to his Individual Deceased Personnel File (IDPF), the aircraft took a direct hit from flak in the midsection. “The tail section came off and then other parts of the plane began breaking apart as it fell.” One parachute was seen.
1st LT Roy May Jr. and most of his crew were reported missing in action. It was later confirmed that Roy had been killed in action that day in Austria. He had been seen in the nose of the plane where fire had broken out.
Roy was buried first in a civilian cemetery—the Old Wegscheid Cemetery in St. Martin, Austria, near where he fell. In July 1946, his remains were moved to the St. Avold-Metz American Cemetery, 23 miles east of Metz, France.
After Roy’s death, his widow Mary Jane postponed remarrying so that she could retain her standing as next of kin because that status gave her the right to request that Roy’s remains be returned home to the Illinois Valley. She wanted their daughter to be able to visit her father’s grave when she was older. In 1948, Mary Jane finalized that request, and in 1949, 1st LT Roy May Jr. was laid to rest at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in LaSalle, Illinois.
Mary Jane did eventually remarry. Her second husband was Eugene Hoffert. She passed away in 2001. Because of her determination, their daughter grew up with a place to go, a grave in Illinois soil, where she could visit the father she never really knew.
1st LT Roy May Jr. received the Air Medal, and was posthumously eligible for the American Campaign Medal, WW2 Victory Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal.
First Lieutenant Roy May Jr., 825th Bombardment Squadron, 484th Bombardment Group (Heavy), United States Army Air Corps. Born 13 August 1921, LaSalle, Illinois. Killed in action 25 April 1945, near Linz, Austria. Laid to rest at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, LaSalle, Illinois, 1949.
You can also access this story at the following sites:
Fold3 Memorial: https://www.fold3.com/memorial/664330946/roy-may-jr#stories
Sources:
- 1930 U.S. Census, Roy May, Ancestry.
- 1940 U.S. Census, Roy May, Ancestry.
- “Certificate of Stillbirth,” State of Illinois, William May, 1924, FamilySearch.
- “U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900-2016,” LaSalle-Peru Township High School, 1939, p. 84, Roy May, Ancestry.
- “U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947,” Roy May, Jr., Ancestry.
- “Illinois, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1940-1945,” Robert Ralph May, FamilySearch.
- “United States, World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946”, Roy M. May Jr., FamilySearch.
- Missing Air Crew Report #13994, Serial No. 44-50762, 1945, Fold3.
- “Twelfth Case of Polio Noted in LaSalle Co.” The Times, Streator, Ill., 30 August 1947, p. 2, col. 2, Newspapers.com.
- “U.S., Headstone Applications for Military Veterans, 1861-1985,” Roy M. May, Ancestry.
- Individual Deceased Personnel File (IDPF), 1st. LT Roy May Jr, National Archives.
- Air Medal Decoration, Roy M. May, National Archives.
- https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/202725878/mary-jane-hoffert
- https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/158638212/robert-r.-may
- https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/78016935/roy-m-may
