Lucky Bag Yearbook

From the 1960 Lucky Bag:

THOMAS WILLIAM TAYLOR

Tom, the third of his family to attend the Academy, was a 1955 graduate of Collingswood High School in New Jersey after which he attended Bullis Preparatory School for a year. He was known throughout the Second Battalion as a vocalist of merit during his plebe year, due to the fact that he had tremendous difficulty in mastering “Row Row Your Boat.” He was fated to live with two Chicagoans for four years and was ‘often forced to defend his state and the East coast in general. Tom, when not playing halfback for the battalion team or pumping in points for the company basketball team, could usually be found in his office flat on his back. Besides his sporting activities he found time to be an active member in the Newman and Photo Clubs.

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He was also on the staff of The LOG Splinter.

Loss

Thomas was lost on September 26, 1937 when the A-1 Skyraider he was piloting crashed near Fallon, Nevada during a training event.

Obituary

From USNA ‘60 Memorial Site¹:

DECEASED - February 19, 1963
Lieutenant JG, USN
Service Selection: Navy Air

Tom married his fiance, a nurse, Marianne Gregory of Haddonfield, NJ on the Saturday after graduation. Tom Paulson, Arnie Dupont, Tom’s former roommate, Jim Duffy, and Willie Kee were ushers and groomsmen. Tom and Marianne then took up residence in Pensacola with so many others of us. Tom was really pleased to get his pick of aircraft types which was the venerable “SPAD”, the A-1 Skyraider. After completing advanced flight training and the RAG squadron, Tom reported to VA-165 flying from USS Oriskany (CV 34). After an extended Westpac deployment, the squadron returned home in late 1962. In February they went to NAS Fallon Nevada for weapons delivery work. Early on the morning of 19 February 1963, Tom was flying a low angle loft bomb delivery mission. Something went wrong and Tom’s plane crashed. It is presumed that Tom died instantly. There were no witnesses at the crash site. Two of Tom’s squadron mates escorted Tom’s remains home to Collingswood, NJ. They and Jim Duffy served as honor guards at Tom’s wake and as pallbearers at the funeral. Tom was interred with military honors at the National Cemetery in Beverly, Pennsylvania. Tom and Marianne had one son, Tommy. Marianne later (1965) married a very nice man named Jack Gormley and the family resided in the Philadelphia area. Tom’s friends have tried to locate Marianne and Tommy, but have been unable to re-establish contact. Tom’s brothers: Joe, COL, USA (Ret) and Jack, USNA ‘57, LCOL, USAF (Ret) have also tried to locate Marianne.

Tom’s family and friends purchased a chair in the Navy Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in his memory. It is going on 27 years now since Tom left us, but the memory of his happy-go-lucky smile helps soften the sadness we continue to feel over his early death. Jim Duffy, 7th Co 30th Year Book

Tom is buried in New Jersey.

Photographs

From his 1955 high school yearbook

Related Articles

Warren Blanke, Jr. ‘60 also wrote for The Log Splinter.

References