2nd Lt. Thaddeus Isiah “Billy”Hawkins, Jr.

Our Hometown Heroes

Thaddeus Isiah “Billy”Hawkins, Jr.

Awarded Distinguished Flying Cross

For rather obvious reasons Thaddeus Isiah Hawkins, Jr. wasn’t known by his given name. He went by Billy apparently because his father was local physician Dr. Bill Hawkins. His mother, Marjorie Young Hawkins, and his younger brother, Richard, lived at 372 East College Street. Billy was born in 1918.

When Billy graduated from Griffin High School he went to work at Griffin Grocery Company and married the former Laura Bunton Peek. They had no children.

Billy was drafted into the U.S. Army shortly after World War II broke out. He volunteered to serve in the U.S. Army-Air Corps. And became a 2nd Lt. navigator on B24 Bombers.

While stationed in England, Billy was assigned to the 93rd Bomber Squadron which was engaged in bombing raids over Germany. Returning from one of those missions, Billy’s plane was shot down over France killing him on April 16, 1943. A French family recovered Billy’s body from the wreckage and buried him in a nearby grave to keep it from being discovered by the Germans. As the Allied forced fought their way across Europe, France was liberated and the family that buried Billy made sure American forces recovered the body to be given a proper burial.

Thaddeus Isiah Hawkins, Jr. is buried in the Brittany American Cemetery and Memorial in St. James Manche, France. For his bravery in combat, he was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters and the Purple Heart medals by his grateful country.

Although Hawkins did not come home alive, a community now honors the World War II, Hometown Hero. Navigator Hawkins will be honored with an individual plaque to be installed in Historic Downtown Griffin. The plaque is proudly sponsored by his friend, Dan Duncan.