Theodore “Ted” James Schmidt, Jr.

Their Story

            Theodore “Ted” James Schmidt, Jr. was born on June 29, 1924, in Galesburg, Illinois, to Theodore and Doris Golden Schmidt. He graduated from Galesburg High School and began attending Knox College in Illinois in 1943.^[1] He also worked at the family business, Schmidt Beauty Supplies.^[2] Schmidt’s education at Knox College was cut short when he was called to serve in the U.S. Army Air Corps. He married Dorothy “Jane” Soper on January 23, 1944, and then was deployed to fight the fascism of Nazi Germany in World War II.^[3]

            Schmidt flew 35 flight missions over France and Germany with the 446th Bombardment Group in World War II.^[4] The 446th was activated in Arizona in 1943, taking a roundabout route to England via Florida, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Africa, and then north to Marrakesh. They arrived at their base of operations in Bungay, England, in November 1943. Because of being based there, they were known as the “Bungay Buckaroos”. From there, the 446th commenced their mission to fly across the English Channel to strike at the Nazis on the European continent:

The 446th was organized as part of the Second Air Division, to fly B-24 Liberators from eastern England against occupied France, the Lowlands and Germany… Its first mission was to Bremen, Germany, on 16 December 1943. From that day, through the spring of 1945, it flew 273 missions. It was also the group that led the Second Air Division on the first heavy bomber missions on D-Day, 6 June 1944. Two of the bombardment squadrons, the 706 BS and the 708 BS, flew more than 60 consecutive missions without loss.^[5]

Schmidt was with the 446th at least throughout the summer and fall of 1944.^[6] For his valor and distinction as a pilot during his 35 successful missions, he was awarded the Air Medal with three Oak Leaf Clusters and the Distinguished Flying Cross.^[7] The 446th served in Europe until the surrender of the Nazis in May of 1945. After this, they were relocated to the U.S. to be deployed to fight the Japanese Empire in the Pacific.

The surrender of the Japanese after the U.S. dropped the nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki occurred before the 446th was deployed to the Pacific, so Schmidt was spared having to participate in another theater of war.^[8]

            After the war, Schmidt returned to Illinois with his wife Jane. The couple raised a daughter and a son, Susan, and Steven. Schmidt finished his education at Knox College in 1948, and then continued to work in his family’s business as the owner of Payless Beauty Supply from 1948 to 1979. In his free time, he liked to golf and play the organ. He was also involved in his local Masonic chapter and reached the rank of 32nd Degree Mason.

Schmidt passed away on December 6, 2015, at Heartland Health Care Center in Moline, Illinois. He was survived by his wife, children, three grandsons, two foster grandsons, and 15 great-grandchildren.^[9] He leaves behind a legacy of valor for flying over the embattled skies of Europe in World War II.

^[1] “Theodore Schmidt in the U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900-1999,” Ancestry, 2010.

^[2] “Theodore James Schmidt in the U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947,” Ancestry, 2011.

^[3] “Theodore J. Schmidt Jr.,” Find a Grave, December 7, 2015.

^[4] “Theodore J. Schmidt Jr.,” Find a Grave, December 7, 2015; “Theodore Schmidt,” 8th Air Force (Army Air Corps Library and Museum, Inc.), accessed August 16, 2022.

^[5] “446th Bombardment Group at Bungay,” American Library (Second Air), accessed August 16, 2022.

^[6] “Theodore Schmidt,” 8th Air Force (Army Air Corps Library and Museum, Inc.), accessed August 16, 2022.

^[7] “Theodore J. Schmidt Jr.,” Find a Grave, December 7, 2015,..

^[8] “446th Bombardment Group at Bungay,” American Library (Second Air), accessed August 16, 2022.

^[9] “Theodore J. Schmidt Jr.,” Find a Grave, December 7, 2015.