MSGT John Edward Cunningham (WWII)


MSGT John Edward Cunningham was born June 3, 1918 in Mannington, WV to Charles and Carrie (Humphrey) Cunningham.  John was the oldest of 7 kids, 5 boys and 2 girls. The family moved around a bit, living and working as farmers in Mannington during the 1920 census, unemployed in Wyatt (Harrison County) during the 1930 census, before finally settling in Baxter where Charles, John, and his brother Paul worked at a department store (1940 census).

John entered the draft on October 16, 1940, working at the time for a merchant at 219 Madison Street in Fairmont. He listed himself as 5'11" and 140 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes. Under identifying features, it says that he had gray streaks in his hair.

He enlisted in the Army at Fort Hayes in Columbus, Ohio on March 19, 1942. At the time he was listed single with no dependents, but on August 11, 1943 John married Mary Margaret (Curry) McElroy. Reverend Jennings H. Fast officiated the wedding in Rowlesburg (Preston County), WV. Mary had lost her first husband, Richard Wilt McElroy, to heart failure on November 3, 1942. 

Operation Varsity

John was part of the 194th Glider Infantry Regiment, 17th Airborne. Soldiers were deposited in enemy territory by way of glider. On the date of his death, John, along with many other soldiers, were fighting through Operation Varsity, in an attempt to gain control of the Rhine River.

A short description of Operation Varsity from the U.S. Army Airborne & Special Operations Museum:

"The main goal of this operation was to seize and hold the high ground five miles north of Wesel, Germany, and to facilitate the ground action and establish a bridgehead. The soldiers would then hold the territory until the advancing units of the British 21st Army Group joined them, allowing them to advance to northern Germany. Operation Varsity would involve more than 16,000 paratroopers and several thousand aircraft, making it the largest Airborne operation in history to be conducted on a single day and in one location. It was also the only large-scale Airborne operation conducted on German soil, and the first, and only, combat jump for the 17th Airborne Division." 

Missing in Action

On the day of Operation Varsity, John was on board a Waco CG-4A Glider, serial number 45-6158, when it went missing near Wesel, Germany. The memos and the twenty-two page paperwork regarding their crash were declassified in 1973.

On board the glider were:

Tech Sergeant Paul Voight gave a statement saying "When I last saw glider flown by flight officers Lawley and Anderson it was in normal flight approaching the [landing zone] area. I have no further knowledge concerning missing in action status of personnel."

A memo from April 16th, 1945, changed MSGT John Edward Cunningham's status from MIA to KIA, and PFC Robert A. Easter's status from MIA to RMB. Robert had survived, but was hospitalized with bullet wound(s) to the shoulder.

A May 5, 1945 memo included the following
     "Further investigation by this headquarters reveals that the body of Master Sergeant John E. Cunningham, 35290260, and the bodies of one unidentified Air Corps officer and one unidentified enlisted man were removed from temporary graves near the wreckage of a burned glider at coordinates 245476, Essen Sheet 1/100,000."

On May 7, 1945, Lawley and Burch were added to the list of those killed in action. By then, Easter had returned to duty, and Schillinger had been found to be alive. Flight Office Levi Franklin Anderson was later reclassified to killed in action.

Burial and Honors:

Master Sergeant John Edward Cunningham was buried at the Netherlands American Cemetery. He received the Purple Heart for his service and is honored on the "Marion County Veterans Killed in Action" Memorial at Veterans Square in Fairmont, WV. There is also a memorial for the 17th Airborne Division in Wesel, Germany, dedicated in 2022.

Survivors:

Wife and daughter:
John was survived by his family, including his wife Mary and daughter Frances. At the time of John's death, Mary was living in Fairview. She married Lawrence McElroy in 1958 and lived until 1993, when she died at the age of 72. Frances (Cunningham) Warner graduated from Rivesville High School and grew up to be a long time city council woman for the city of Fairmont.

Brothers:
John's brother, Daniel, also fought in WWII, but was later killed in action during the Korean War.

Sources and more information:


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