John Lewis Poythress

Staff Sergeant John L. Poythress died in the crash of an army bomber plane on June 3, 1942 near Mobile, Alabama in a training exercise during World War II.  He was 24 years old.

John L. Poythress was born on November 14, 1917 in Vance County, North Carolina, the son of George Clinton Poythress and Lucy Elizabeth Blanks Poythress.  He was reared in the Oxford Orphanage and was employed as a printer before enlisting in the Army Air Corps.

SSgt Poythress enlisted in Army Air Corps on May 27, 1941. On June 3, 1942, he was serving as Staff Sergeant, Radio Operator on a bomber during a training exercise near Mobile, Alabama when the plane crashed killing SSgt Poythress and several other members of the plane’s crew.

Staff Sergeant John L. Poythress is buried in the Gillburg United Methodist Church Cemetery, Gillburg, Vance County, North Carolina. 

Last edited: 8 June 2026