TSgt James W. Gorrell

Spotting "James W Gorrell" on the memorial plaque at St. Charles Borromeo in Drexel Hill forced me to question if he was a relative. It was a family name and he was from the parish that served my family for generations in Drexel Hill and Clifton Heights. It turns out he is my "first cousin 1x removed". We're connected because my great grandfather and his father were brothers. After reading first hand accounts about his role fighting to free Europe from the grip of facism, I couldn't be more proud of the connection.

James was an only child born on March 26, 1924 to Edward Gorrell and Regina Townsend Gorrell. Sadly, he lost his father in 1938 and his mother in 1941 (James was 17). James continued to live in Clifton Heights after the death of his parents with Mr. & Mrs. Harry Duke, his uncle and aunt at 17 E. Baltimore Ave (maybe the remains are hidden behind a current storefront). He graduated from Clifton Height High School in 1942. We have a picture from his yearbook and a few editorial notes that reflect the profile of a quiet kid.

On October 24, 1942 James Gorrell enlisted at age 18. He couldn't have possibly envisioned the drama and sacrifice that he would face fighting numerous battles over Europe in a B-24H Liberator.

MISSION & SACRIFICE OVER AUSTRIA
At 10:35 in the morning on May 24,1944 a B-24H Liberator dubbed the "Shamrock" was on a bombing mission over Wiener Neustadt, Austria when it dropped ten five-hundred-pound bombs on a Nazi aircraft factory. This day would transform the future of each member of the ten-man crew.

Most of the Shamrock crew had been together since training in Arizona (Davis–Monthan Air Force Base) during the summer of 1943. They eventually trained for bombing missions from a base in Bruning, Nebraska with bombing runs over North and South Dakota targets. Once they graduated in October they began to migrate south with their B-24. After several stops they crossed the Atlantic during a 14 hour flight from Belem, Brazil to Dakar, Senegal. From Africa they made their way to Grottaglie, Italy. That was the base launched from for the attack on Wiener Neustadt.

By May 24, 1944 the crew were veterans of 30+ missions. In just a few months they had completed bombing missions over Yugoslavia, Romania, Italy (Anzio beach!) and Austria. Many of their missions involved manufacturing, fuel and railroad targets, but each brought extreme danger from flak and fighter aircraft.

They were an accomplished crew who earned a Presidential Citation for their success over Bucharest on a previous mission. They were credited with taking out twelve German fighters as they fought their way to and from various targets over numerous missions. Several had come in three previous missions over Wiener Neustadt.

The May 24, 1944 mission was their 13th mission in the Shamrock, and thirteen proved to be a tragically unlucky number. The crew and the aircraft did not return to their home base in Grottaglie, Italy. Four of the ten members of the crew onboard made the supreme sacrifice that morning while the rest went on to become POWs in Nazi camps. Technical Sergeant James Walter Gorrell, age 20, who served as the flight engineer, was killed in action. Jim, as he was known, was operating the upper gun turret on the "flight deck" behind pilot George W. Foote, co-pilot Quentin P. Madigan, and ball gunner Harry Lain who also perished. It appears George Foote went down with the plane while working to save his men. Like Jim Gorrell, Quentin Madigan appears to have died instantly when the craft was hit with flack. Harry Lain's clothes were ablaze from the same hit and he did not survive an attempt to parachute to safety.

Fortunately, six members of the crew did survive the flax hit and the ensuing death spiral of the plane. Albert J. Yano (radio operator and left gunner), Walter G. Gates (right gunner), Alexander "Rob" Nelson (navigator), Audrey Salyer (nose gunner who usually flew with another crew ,but was onboard when Harold Skidmore was grounded), Ellwood Farmer (tail gunner), and John J. Murphy (bombardier who was on his 50th mission and slated to return home) were able to parachute out of the plane before it crashed. Each of them had their own saga ahead after they were captured deep in enemy territory.

Crew of the Shamrock: George W Foote (Pilot); Quentin P Madigan (Co-Pilot); Alexander Robert "Bob" Nelson (Navigator); John J Murphy (Ball Gunner/Bombadier); James W Gorrell (Flight Engineer/Top Gunner) (back row 2nd from Right) Albert J Yano (Radio Operator/Waist Gunner) (back row 2nd from left); Harry E Lain (Ball Gunner); Harold M Skidmore (Nose Gunner); Ellwood Farmer (Tail Gunner); [Not shown: Walter Gates (waist gunner). Note that the plane in the background likely pre-dates the Shamrock.

ONBOARD THE SHAMROCK'S FINAL MISSION
We know that the Shamrock was the only plane downed on this mission of the 449th Bomber Group ("The Flying Horseman") and the 716th Squadron ("The Toppers"). There are official military records and mission details that tell the story of what happened that day as witnessed by those who safely made it back to base.

However, nothing can compare to first-hand accounts from those onboard the Shamrock. Alexander "Bob" Nelson shared his story in, "They Say There Was a War". Albert J. Yano, shared his recollections in 2004. He was there when James W. Gorrell paid the supreme sacrifice and he recounted the final moments (and so much more) in a recording. I've excerpted parts of the transcript that focus on the engagement that took down the Shamrock and its crew on:

"I'll tell you a little instance that had happened at the same target that I was shot down which is Wiener Neustadt, which is the German high command -- where the high command had living quarters and also they trained officers and also made airplane parts. I don't know if it was ball bearings or what they were, but they were making airplane parts there and it was a very highly protected target. And the name of it was Wiener Neustadt, and it's about 35, 40 miles south of Vienna. We had gone to this -- well, I'd gone there a couple times before, but this third mission, I think it was, when I went back there, we had -- we were just approaching the target. In fact, I think we were -- no, we weren't quite. We were just coming out of the target and the fighters were still on us."

"...the flak got pretty heavy and we dropped our bombs. And the last thing I heard on the interphone was, "bombs away." And then the next thing I heard was, bomb bay doors close. Bam. That's when they hit us. They must have hit us twice, I figure, I think in the right wing because from what I understand the top gunner (Note: This would be James Gorrell) and the pilot -- co-pilot did not move once we were hit. In other words, I don't know if they were killed instantly. Of course, the intercom went out. So here we are in the back of the plane. We don't know what's going on outside of the fact that the plane is burning all over, you know. The right wing is burning, and pretty soon the left wing is burning and was shooting flames all the way back beyond the windows.

And this other waist gunner and myself, we didn't know what to do. We thought maybe we'd -- it's been known that planes -- sometimes guys jump and the plane will go back, so it's kind of a tricky situation there. So we waited just a little bit too long, and the plane went into a spin. You get a B-24 in a spin, and there's nothing on God's earth that will straighten that sucker out again. Centrifugal force had him. He was trying to get out the waist window which he couldn't do because of the centrifugal force. I was pinned against the fuselage looking out at the ground at the escape hatch right there or camera hatch or whatever they call it, you know. And I could see that. And I'm just right stuck against the fuselage because of the centrifugal force of the plane twisting. And I could see the ground turning. The ground was really turning, and I knew the ground wasn't turning, that we were in that spin.

So I was kind of trapped there for a while, and this other waist gunner was, too. And all of a sudden that right wing where they had hit us came off. The wing came off. When that wing came off, the plane lurched to the right. That's when I went out, and he followed me right out. That's the only thing that saved us. If that wing stayed on, we would have never gotten out. I'd never have gotten out of that plane. The pilot, the co-pilot -- George Foote was the pilot. Madigan was -- Madigan -- Quentin P. Madigan was the co-pilot. George Foote was the pilot. And Lane and -- Gorrell was the engineer, and Lane was the ball gunner. All four went down with the plane. The only thing, I didn't see the plane hit the ground, but I saw -- almost immediately saw the smoke and fire coming from where it hit the ground, you know."

Albert's 2004 recollection aligns with postwar recollections from members of the crew that were documented. They confirm what we know about James Gorrell, but they also shed light on what happened to others. One of the more telling reports is pictured below.

ABOUT THE SHAMROCK CREW

Research thus far shows the crew coming from different parts of the country (Pennsylvania, New York, Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Massachusetts), with backgrounds that didn't include flight experience. It might be that Albert Yano's words, military photos, and one wedding picture tell us something of the personality and bond of the crew. Albert relates that, "We weren't what you could say a popular crew, and consequently we flew what's called tail end Charlie. We were always in the tail end position. And if you're in the tail end position, you do a lot of fighting with fighters." From that we can take they were brave young men. Maybe they were so good at their job that they had the toughest one...or maybe someone held a grudge.

He also spoke very humbly of his service and frankly about the youth of the crew and their circumstances. "Like I say, everybody says to us, well, we were kind of heroes, but we weren't heroes. We were a bunch of scared kids. We had a job to do and we did it, and that's the truth. And anybody can say that he wasn't scared when he was flying has got to be crazy..."

I can't say what sort of bonds they formed with each other, but I am taken by a picture of them at a wedding (possibly that of Quentin and Gloria Madigan or George and Mary Foote). Note that James W. Gorrell is in the back row, second from the right in the picture below. In this picture he has a mark on his head as do two others. That mark was placed there by someone to denote the men who died over Wiener Neustadt, Austria on May 24, 1944. For certain some of the survivors stayed connected for decades to come according to Albert Yano (standing next to James W. Gorrell in the wedding photo).

This picture is thought to come from the B-24H Liberator dubbed the Shamrock by its crew. The logo and spirt certainly match the crew. Several of the crew had Irish heritage, including James Gorrell.

MEMORIAL

Initially James W. Gorrell was buried in a "community cemetery" at Katzelsdorf, Austria. Today his body is at rest in the Lorraine American Cemetery alongside comrades at Saint-Avold, Departement de la Moselle, Lorraine, France. Back in Pennsylvania his sacrifice is remembered at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Drexel Hill.