By Amelia Tarallo
Hometown Weekly Staff
There is hope amongst all military members’ families that their loved ones return home unharmed. Unfortunately, that it is not always the case. Like many men, Joseph Finneran joined the army on December 18th, 1941, following the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Just over a year later, 1st Lt Joseph Finneran was shot down over Romania at the age of 22.
1st Lt Joseph Finneran served with the 345th Bombardment Squadron, in the 98th Bombardment Group, Ninth Bomber Command. During his training, he was taught to work on the B-24D "Liberator" Aircraft. He had completed 25 missions before he was killed in action; his final mission was crucial to the effort to win the war.
Operation Tidal Wave was a strategic mission planned as a way to prevent the Axis powers from accessing petroleum fuel sources. On August 1, 1943, 1st Lt Finneran and his crew members made their way toward the Ploiesti Oil Refinery. During the mission, 1st Lt Finneran's B-24D aircraft, nicknamed "Old Baldy," crashed into an enemy bunker.
In a letter, General Henry H. Arnold underscored the important work of the American Army during the mission, and the importance of the mission to the war effort on whole: "The destruction of these oil wells will be far reaching in its effect upon the German ability to carry on their operations,” he wrote. “In fact, it might well be the ‘straw that broke the camel's back’ and cause the dislocation of the German war Effort. The dogged determination to reach and destroy each of those vital installations; and an utter disregard for personal safety, characterized the action of officers and men of your striking force and evokes my profound admiration."
According to an article published on October 18, 2019, from the Defense POW/MIA Accounting, of the Americans killed alongside Finneran, only 27 could be identified. Of the ten crew members of "Old Baldy," only four were immediately identified. The others were buried in the Hero Section of the Civilian and Military Cemetery of Bolovan, Romania.
After the war, the American Graves Registration Command was organized to recover the missing remains of Americans killed in action and removed these remains for identification. Finneran's remains, still unidentified at this point, were moved to the American Military Cemetery in Belgium. In 2017, the remains were removed and examined with updated scienctific techniques that helped identify the remains as 1st Lieutenant Finneran.
1st Lieutenant Joseph Finneran was returned to Boston on Friday, November 1. His family was waiting for him, along with news crews and onlookers fascinated by the actions of a selfless soldier who sacrificed his life for this country. He was laid to rest for the final time on November 9.
