1943 was a tragic year for former ECTC students serving in the military: of the 24 who would sacrifice their lives during WWII, 10 died that year. Among those lost was William Stoard “Bill” Sledge, a double graduate from the ECTC with a bachelor’s degree in grammar grade instruction, earned in 1937, and then a master’s degree completed in 1940. At ECTC, Sledge’s sacrifice was recognized successively, along with others who had died in service to their country, as the school sought to both grieve and honor those fallen.
Sledge was born in Louisburg, N.C., the second son of Walter E. and Nannie Lillian Sledge. On June 19, 1941, well before Pearl Harbor, he enlisted in the Naval Reserve and then received his wings and commission as an ensign. Sledge went on to be promoted to the rank of lieutenant, junior grade. A year after enlisting, Sledge, while residing in Jacksonville, Florida as a cadet aviator in the U. S. Navy, married Virginia B. Entrekin of Upper Montclair, New Jersey. Sledge’s wife, incidentally, was a graduate of Duke University and at the time of her marriage to Sledge, was working on a master’s degree at New York School of Social Work. Sledge graduated from the Naval Air Station at Jacksonville, Florida, the same month he married, in June 1942.
As war in the Pacific intensified, Sledge was stationed at the Naval Air Station, Whidby Island, Washington. He and his wife lived in the Mt. Vernon area, just north of Whidby. On May 14, 1943, just a month prior to the second anniversary of his enlistment, Sledge was reported missing on a routine operational flight from Puget Sound Naval Air Station. Remains later discovered in the Mt. Olympus area led Navy investigators to conclude that the plane Sledge and four others were flying had crashed and that all were lost. Sledge and Ensign Byron L. Lough of Oakland, California were the two officers on board the flight along with three enlisted men.
Sledge’s widow returned to her home in New Jersey. The War Department subsequently provided her with, as requested, a flat granite marker for Sledge’s grave in the East Ridgelawn Cemetery, Delawanna, New Jersey.
In May of 1944, the Teco Echo reported that an “impressive memorial service” had been held on campus “in memory of the five alumni of ECTC who, during the past year, … [had] given their lives in the service of our country.” A photo of Sledge was included in the 1945 Tecoan’s “Those Killed In The Armed Forces” feature, and later, in 1953, he was listed as one of the 24 alumni to whom ECC’s new gymnasium, Memorial Gymnasium (now, Christenbury) was dedicated. With others who fell while in the armed forces during WWII, Sledge took East Carolina’s motto of service to a new and yet tragic level.
Sources:
- “Announcement.” Montclair Times. January 6, 1942. P. 9.
- “Engagements Announced: Sledge-Entrekin.” News and Observer. January 4, 1942. P. 19.
- “In Memorium: Cornwell Speaker For Dedication Ceremonies Of Memorial Health and Physical Ed Building.” East Carolinian. January 9, 1953. P. 1. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/38311
- McInnis, Sarah. “Memorial Service Held To Honor War Dead.” Teco Echo. May 26, 1944. P. 1. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/37940
- “Missing.” News and Observer. May 29, 1943. P. 3.
- “Mount Vernon Ensign Among Plane Victims.” Bellingham Herald (Bellingham, Washington). May 26, 1943. P. 8.
- “Those Killed In The Armed Services.” Tecoan. 1945. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/15350
- “William S. Sledge.” Tecoan. 1937. P. 62. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/15342
Related Materials
William Stoard “Bill” Sledge. Image Source: East Carolina Yearbooks, Tecoan 1937. UA50-01. University Archives, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC.
William Stoard “Bill” Sledge. Image Source: News & Observer, May 29, 1943. P. 3.
Citation Information
Author: John A. Tucker, PhD
Date of Publication: 5/5/2022