Harold Jasper Stone was born at Cramerton, Gaston County, North Carolina on January 17, 1923. He was one of at least five children of Lee Roy Jasper Stone (4 May 1892 15 Mar 1971) and Emma (Gardner) Stone (31 Aug 1899 Feb 1981), who were born in North Carolina. His parents married about 1913. In 1940 the family lived at 180 Center Street in Cramerton, North Carolina, and his father worked in a textile mill.
He graduated from Cramerton High School in 1941, and completed two years of college at Appalachian State Teachers College in Boone, Watauga County, North Carolina. He was married when he enlisted in the U.S. Army at Camp Croft, South Carolina on March 25, 1943. His wife was Ruth Pauline 'Polly' (Castle) Stone (later Martin) (30 May 1925 29 Jan 2009), from Blowing Rock, North Carolina, who also attended Appalachian State Teachers College. They had a daughter, Donna.
He completed Army Air Forces radio operator training at Scott Field, Illinois, and aerial gunnery training at Yuma, Arizona. He was then assigned as radio operator on the heavy bomber crew of Lt Daniel C. Smoke Jr. The crew completed B-17 heavy bomber training at either Gulfport or Biloxi, Mississippi, and was sent to Hunter Field, Savannah, Georgia, where they were assigned a new B-17 for the deployment to England. They were assigned to the 838th Bomb Squadron of the 487th Bomb Group at Army Air Forces Station 137 near Lavenham, Suffolk, England. They arrived at Station 137 by February 26, 1945, and became part of the 8th U.S. Army Air Force in Europe.
On March 19, 1945, the 487th Bomb Group dispatched thirty aircraft to bomb a communications center at Zwickau, Germany. The Smoke crew flew B-17G 43-38038 on this mission. Because of poor weather over England, the Group assembled into formation over A-71, the Allied airfield near Clastres in northeastern France. Sgt Stone and his eight crewmates were killed in action when their aircraft collided with Lt John R. Virgin's B-17G 43-37969 'Beverly Jean' during formation assembly. All of Lt Virgin's crew bailed out and survived, but none of Lt Smoke's crew was able to bail out. Sgt Stone and his crewmates perished in the subsequent crash of their aircraft near Couvron, France.
The dead were buried initially at the temporary U.S. Military Cemetery Champigneul #1 near Chalons-sur-Marne, France. (Chalons-sur-Marne was renamed Chβlons-en-Champagne in 1998.) Sgt Stone's remains were returned to the United States and reinterred at Salisbury National Cemetery, North Carolina on March 19, 1948.
B-17G 43-38038 crew:
Smoke Jr, Daniel C 2/Lt Pilot KIA
Pendarvis, George H F/O Copilot KIA
Olsen, Gunnar K F/O Navigator KIA
Strong, John H 2/Lt Bombardier KIA
White Jr, John Sgt Engineer KIA
Stone, Harold J Sgt Radio Operator KIA
Sala, David W Sgt Ball Turret Gunner KIA
Koepsell, Elmer E Sgt Waist Gunner KIA
Burres, Richard E Sgt Tail Gunner KIA
Source of information: Paul M. Webber, www.findagrave.com