World War II Artifacts from the Day’s Pay B-17 Bomber Stolen from Richland High School
Stacey Palevsky of the Tri-City Herald reported on Tuesday, July 12th, 2005 that:
One-of-a-kind World War II artifacts (a flight jacket and goggles) from the Day’s Pay B-17 bomber were stolen from Richland High School during the weekend.
“This is much more than just memorabilia,” said Richland police Capt. Mike Cobb. “This is not something that can be replaced. It’s definitely one-of-a-kind.”
The leather flight jacket is brown with the name “Captain Wineiger” stitched on the front. On the back is a painting of the Day’s Pay and a B-24 bomber named “Shoo Shoo Baby.”
Day’s Pay dates back to 1944, when more than 50,000 workers from the Hanford Engineering Works Project donated a full day’s pay, collecting nearly $300,000 to buy a B-17 bomber to give to the Army Air Force. They nicknamed it “Day’s Pay” during a dedication ceremony at Hanford Airport on July 23, 1944.
Capt. Arlys Wineiger’s jacket and radioman Allen Cohen’s headgear were donated to Richland High in 1998.
Anyone with information about the stolen jacket or flight headgear is asked to contact Qualheim at 942-2519 or the Richland Police Department at 628-0333. Cobb said anyone who sees someone wearing the jacket should call 911.
I have never understood what prompts people to do such things. It cannot be the money - like stealing stereos from cars? I mean the things cost $100 to buy new - and are pretty much worthless when ripped out of a dash. And then it costs $500 to fix the car to replace a $100 stereo.
For more information about the Day’s Pay check out my Day’s Pay GeoCache
What I can’t figure out is why one-of-a-kind, irreplacable historical artifacts would be stored in a government high school with seemingly no special protection or safeguards. You know, as opposed to storing them in, say, a museum.
But maybe it’s just me…
Comment by Matt Winckler — July 12, 2005 @ 9:55 pm
I am terribly saddened to have just found this article almost two years after the fact, but wanted to write that my father, 2nd Lt. Seymour Deutsch proudly served during WWII as a navigator on Day’s Pay in 1944 along with Capt. Arlys Wineiger and Allen Cohen. I have pictures of them standing in front of the plane. The regular combat crew of DAY’S PAY, in addition to Pilot Wieinger, was: 1st Lt. Robert M Neal, 25, co-pilot,Junction, Texas; 2nd Lt. Seymour Deutsch, 23, navigator,Brooklyn, N.Y.; 2nd Lt Frank E. McCann, 22, bombardier,Newark, N.J.; T/Sgt. Rudolph E. Krack, 22, engineer and gunner, Garfield, N.J.; T/Sgt. Allen N. Cohen, 23, radio operator and gunner, Philadelphia, Pa.; S.Sgt Charles A.Purcell, 23, ball turret gunner, Laurinsburg, N. Car.;S.Sgt. Edwin A. Stewart, 22, waist gunner, Pensacola,Fla.; S/Sgt. Chester W. Piergies, 22, tail gunner,Lorain, Ohio.
Has there ever been a lead to what happened? Were the items ever found and returned to either the school or their famalies? It surprised me to hear that also on Capt Wineiger’s jackets was a picture of a B-24 name Shoo Shoo Baby. I don’t know if it’s the exact plane, but my father flew that as well. (Day’s Pay was a B-17) I hope in the two years since this was published that they were returned to their proper owners.
Thank you for allowing me to comment. This is very near and dear to my heart.
Comment by Robin Deutsch — February 24, 2007 @ 9:36 pm
I am Captain Arlyss D Wineinger’s granddaughter. My father, husband and I visited the Richland High School this summer to view the Day’s Pay display and only when my father called to set up a viewing of the mural and artifacts did we find out that the flight jacket had been stolen. When we arrived at the school we met with the assistant of the man who had put together the artifact display, the actual person was out of town at meetings. We found out talking to his assistant that this was not even the first time that the jacket had been stolen. It had been stolen on previous time by a student who was caught walking down the street with it on.
This time however it has not yet been recovered.
The school is under construction and has been for a few years and the school has suspicions that is was a construction worker that had seen the items on display. Monday morning the school was found to be unlocked and the items missing. The only increase in security after the first theft, as I understood, was to put “hex locking screws?” that you can pick up at any hardware store.
My grandmother donated the jacket to the school when they dedicated the mural so they had no legal reason to tell us it had been stolen.
We were told that they school has plans that if the artifacts are ever found that the items will either be donated to a museum closeby that has a large permanent display of Hanford, A-Bomb and Day’s Pay History or to the families.
I truly hope who ever stole these items will be caught but after all this time I truly doubt it.
Comment by Trudy Reha — September 11, 2008 @ 5:58 pm