MTSGT Edward Payson McCray (WWII)

Remembering MTSGT Edward Payson McCray (Fairmont/Norwood)

October 7, 1912 - September 16, 1944

----

Master Technical Sergeant Edward Payson McCray was born in Fairmont, West Virginia on October 7, 1912, the son of Charles and Lulu (McGinnis). Charles was a mail carrier, and a farmer, in the Winfield District (Rt 3, 1910-1920 Census).

Lulu filed for divorce in Michigan on July 28, 1926, after 31 years of marriage. It was finalized on January 13, 1927, and she married Charles Morley shortly thereafter. Edward lived with his mother and stepfather, also a farmer, in Benton, Ohio (1930 Census). 

College, First Military Service, and Marriage:


Edward graduated from East Fairmont High School in 1930, and attended Fairmont State College (now Fairmont State University) in 1931 and 1932. 

Edward initially entered the service on December 2, 1933, beginning with an Aviation Maintenance Squadron in Quantico.

On March 28, 1937, he married Margery Ethel Thompson (a doctor's assistant) in Monongalia County. At the time of his marriage in 1937 to Margery, he listed his occupation as "seaman." CPL Edward P. McCray was honorably discharged from the Aviation Maintenance Squadron on December 2, 1937, at which point he enlisted as a Sergeant in the Marine Aviation Unit in Norfolk. 

Edward and Margery's only child, Larry Edward McCrary (1939-2015) was born in 1939. Their family lived on Mound Avenue in the Norwood neighborhood of Fairmont, while Edward worked as a truck driver (1940 Census). A June 1940 muster call listed Edward as a member of the 5th Marine Reserve.

WWII Military Service:


Edward entered the draft on February 25, 1941. At the time, he was working at Owens-Illinois. Edward was 5'9" and 145 lbs with brown hair and dark brown eyes.

He re-joined the United States Marine Corps on February 24, 1942. Muster call records show him being a part of the Headquarters Squadron as a Navy Mail Clerk (April 1942, October 1942, April 1943 Muster Calls). 

Edward, now a Master Technical Sergeant, became part of Marine Bombing Squadron 443, known as the "Wildcats." January and July 1944 Muster Calls list him as a "Bombardier Navigator."

Missing in Action:

MTSGT Edward Payson McCray was serving as a crew member on board PBJ-1D Mitchell BN 35086 when it was shot down over in Kavieng, New Ireland (Papua New Guinea) on September 16, 1944. 

From the website Pacific Wrecks: "On September 16, 1944 at 10:30pm took off from Emirau Airfield piloted by 1st Lt Benjamin G. Kinnick on a night harassment mission over Kavieng. At 10:58pm lost radio contact with local fighter controller. Over the target, shot down by anti-aircraft fire over Kavieng. At 11:57pm this aircraft faded off radar roughly one mile southeast of North Cape on the northwestern tip of New Ireland. When this bomber failed to return it was officially listed as Missing In Action (MIA)."

On January 26, 1946, their entire crew was officially declared dead and posthumously awarded the Purple Heart (PacificWrecks).

On board the PBJ-1D Mitchell were:

Legacy and Survivors:

Edward was survived by his mom, dad, older brother, step-father, and three step-sisters. He was preceded in death by one step-sister and a brother who died before Edward was born (1896-1898). Edward's brother, CPL Carl Anson McCray (1898-2001) served in the U.S. Army during WWI. Edward's son, Larry Edward "Mac" McCray, also served in the U.S. Navy for 6 years, aboard the U.S.S. Bushnell and the U.S.S. Great Sitkin.

Edward, who received a purple heart for his service, is honored on the "Marion County Veterans Killed in Action" Memorial at Veterans Square in Fairmont, WV, and at the  West Virginia Veterans Memorial in Charleston, WV. As his remains were never recovered, he is also honored on the Tablets of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines.

On January 17, 2024, House Concurrent Resolution 40 was introduced to the WV Legislature by Delegates Mallow, DeVault, Longanacre, Smith, Jeffries, Howell, Kelly, Cooper, and Jennings. The resolution was for the Reuben Run Bridge to be renamed the "USMC MSG Edward P. & MP Carl A. McCray Memorial Bridge." It passed the Senate on February 28, 2024, but it's not clear when the Memorial Sign was added.

Sources and More Information:







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