Iowa
Old Press
Council Bluffs Nonpareil
Council Bluffs, Pottawattamie co., Iowa
Thursday, June 21, 1945
Survives Explosion of Plane, Nazi Prisons – Is Back
Home - 16 Months a Prisoner
S. Sgt. Robert O. Sparks, 21-year-old tail gunner on a
Liberator bomber shot down over Germany in Dec. of 1943, is back
home and visiting his grandmother Mrs. J[ames] I. Diemer of
Oakland. His parents, Mr. and Mrs. R. O. Sparks live in Lincoln,
Neb.
Sgt. Sparks' plane was shot down over Osnabruk, Germany, Dec. 23,
1943. The bomber exploded in midair after an attack by enemy
fighters. Three members of the crew were killed instantly, but
Sparks and five others were blown clear of the plane. He fell
some distance before he became conscious enough to pull the
ripcord of his parachute.
A hip wound caused by shell fragment in the attack kept Sgt.
Sparks in a prison hospital for several months. The
"fatal" mission was Sparks' nineteenth over Nazi
territory. He had previously been a crew member on the Liberator
"Boomerang" in an historic raid over Ploesti air field
in Romania. Among his decorations are the air medal with two oak
leaf clusters, distinguished flying cross, purple heart, unit
presidential citation and ETO campaign ribbon. Following a 60-day
furlough with relatives, Sgt. Sparks will report to Miami, Fla.,
for reassignment.
Tupper-Nicholson Vows Solemnized
CARSON-The marriage of Miss Eloise Nicholson daughter of
Mr. and Mrs. Lee Nicholson of Carson to Pvt. Keith D. Tupper son
of Mr. and Mrs. Harry J. Tupper of Woodbine took place Sunday at
the home of the bride’s parents. The Rev. O. C. Huff of the
Oakland Congregational church performed the ceremony. The bride
is a Carson high school graduate of 1941 while the bridegroom
finished at Oakland high in 1942.
[transcribed by L.D., December 2014]