Gerald Lawrence Darr (1917-1943)

Gerald "Jerry" Darr was born in 1917 in Burnside, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Cherry Tree High School and entered the College in the class of 1940. An outstanding athlete who later entered the College Sports Hall of Fame, he excelled on several teams. He was co-captain in football as a running back, but was renowned for his performances as a hurdler who was never defeated in either the high or low hurdles during his entire four years at Dickinson. He was also a member of Beta Theta Pi fraternity and a four year participant in the German Club. He graduated with a bachelor of philosophy degree in June, 1940.

Darr married his classmate, Marion Englander, of Carlisle, on August 17, 1942, eight months after enlisting in the Army Air Corps. He trained in Alabama, Florida, and Mississippi; he received his wings and a commission as second lieutenant in July, 1942. After bomber training, he was assigned to combat duty in the Solomon Islands area of the South Pacific flying B-24 Liberator bombers. He flew numerous combat missions, and despite struggles with malaria, Darr rose to the rank of aircraft commander.

On November 14, 1943, his Liberator disappeared over the island of Bougainville, most probably after being hit by enemy fire. No wreckage was sighted during subsequent searches and Darr, along with his crew, was posted as missing. Two years later, the War Department officially listed Gerald Darr as "killed in action."

More information about other Dickinson war casualties can be found through the online project "In Remembrance" (see link for related entries below).