Request Material





Ben T. Banks, Jr. papers

Ben T. Banks, Jr. papers

Descriptive Summary

Title: Ben T. Banks, Jr. papers
Creator: Banks, Benjamin T., 1921-
Inclusive Dates: 1942-2001
Bulk Dates: 1942-1945
Language(s): English
Extent: 1.25 Linear Feet 3 boxes
Collection Number: ms3748
Repository: Hargrett Library

Collection Description

Historical Note

Ben T. Banks, Jr. (b. 1921) and his family were native to Monroe in Forsyth County, Georgia. He graduated from Goizueta Business School at Emory in 1942. In the fall of 1942, he joined the war effort and was trained as a navigator and bombardier. From 1944 to 1945, Banks flew over Germany on bombing missions, of which he took meticulous record. During the war, he wrote his family in Georgia frequently, especially his young sisters, Lucy and Mary. Banks married in 1949. He had a daughter in 1954 named Marigene. The family eventually moved to Covington, Georgia.

For much of his service, he remained with the same pilot, John Lippincott, but after the war ended, the two never saw each other again. In 2001, his daughter Marigene found Lippincott and reunited the two.

Scope and Content

The collection focuses entirely on Ben T. Banks, Jr.'s experiences in World War II. These include letters to his family, particularly his sister Lucy. Also included is Banks' bombing mission record, which he kept in a notebook, a number of photographs of Banks and his bombing crew during the war, and several war records, including an official commendation for his service during the Battle of the Bulge, as well as an interview with him on DVD, and Banks' flight and bombardier training materials.


Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Ben T. Banks, Jr. papers, ms3748, Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Libraries, the University of Georgia Library.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Marigene Banks, daughter of Ben T. Banks, Jr., in July 2012.


Related Materials and Subjects

Subject Terms

Bombardiers -- Correspondence.
Flight training -- United States.
World War, 1939-1945 -- Campaigns -- Germany.
World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal narratives.
World War, 1939-1945 -- Photography.
World War, 1939-1945 -- Veterans.

Series Descriptions and Folder Listing

 
boxfolder
11Original notebook recording bombing missions in Germany
 
11DVD copy of Banks' notebook recording bombing missions
 
11Printed color copy of Banks' notebook recording bombing missions
 
12Book - Dear Sir by Juliet Lowell
 
13Photograph - Crew (including Banks and Lippincott) with Douglas A-26
 
14Photograph - Ben Banks (navigator), John Lippincott (pilot), and Unidentified (gunner)
 
15Photographs - Aerial images of bomb damage
 
16Photograph - Ben Banks on bicycle in Ireland , 1944
 
17Photographs - Crew (including Banks as Navigator, Lippincott as Pilot, Litsinger as Co-Pilot, and 3 Unidentified)
 
18Letter from Marigene Banks to accompany the collection
 
18Poem - "Ode to a Bombardier"
 
19Combat record, commendation, and certificate, 1945
 
19Letter from Ben Banks to John Lippincott regarding Battle of the Bulge, 2000
 
110DVD - Interview with Ben T. Banks, Jr., 2007 Februrary
 
111Typescript - War letters, records, photographs, and timeline of Ben Banks (includes photos of Banks and Lippincott's 2001 reunion), 1942-2001, 1942-1945
 
112Typescript - War letters to Banks' sister Lucy, 1942-1945
 
113Typescript - War letters to Banks' sister Mary and his father, 1942-1945
 
114Original - War letters , 1942 October-December
 
115Original - War letters, 1943 January-April
 
boxfolder
21Original - War letters, 1943 May-December
 
22Original - War letters, 1944
 
23Original - War letters, 1945
 
boxfolder
31Photograph - Flight 6, Class 43-I - Dorr Field, 1943
 
32Flight Training School notebooks - Dorr Field, 1943
 
33Pilot Log - Dorr Field, 1943
 
34Cadet's Handbook - Dorr Field, 1943
 
35USAAF Gunnery School - Tyndall Field, 1943
 
36Bomber training - Lake Charles Army Air Field
 
37San Angelo Bombardier School, 1944
 
38Newspaper article regarding Banks receiving Flying Cross, 1945
 
39Insignia, pins
 
310Printed material