Peyton Conway March Jr. (January 1, 1897 – February 13, 1918) was an officer of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

and military aviator.

Early life and education

March was the son of Peyton C. and Josephine Smith ( Cunningham) March and was born at

Fort Monroe Fort Monroe is a former military installation in Hampton, Virginia, at Old Point Comfort, the southern tip of the Virginia Peninsula, United States. It is currently managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth o ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, where his father was stationed. He attended

Lafayette College Lafayette College is a private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 18 ...

Easton, Pennsylvania Easton is a city in and the county seat of Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River and the Delawa ...

, where his grandfather,

Francis March Dr. Francis Andrew March (October 25, 1825 – September 9, 1911) was an American polymath, academic, philologist, and lexicographer. He is considered the principal founder of modern comparative linguistics in Old English. Also known as the "Gr ...

a professor. March was the first to hold the title of "Professor of English Language and Literature" anywhere in the United States or Europe.

Military career

In 1917, March enlisted in the United States Army and was assigned to the Aviation Section of the Signal Corps. He trained in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

and

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

. In 1918, March was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the

Signal Corps A signal corps is a military branch, responsible for military communications (''signals''). Many countries maintain a signal corps, which is typically subordinate to a country's army. Military communication usually consists of radio, telephone, ...

after completing flying tests and gunnery instruction. On February 12, 1918, he was seriously injured in an airplane accident at

Hicks Field Hicks Field (Camp Taliaferro Field #1) is a former World War I military airfield, located north-northwest of Saginaw, Texas. It operated as a training field for the Air Service, United States Army, from 1917 until 1920. It was one of 32 ...

, near

Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...

, and died of his injuries in the base hospital on February 13, age 21.Wire service, "Two Killed Result Of Aircraft Falling - About Forty Aviators At Training Fields Have So Far Met Death", ''San Bernardino News'', San Bernardino, California, Wednesday February 13, 1918, Volume 45, Number 37, page 1. He was buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Honors

The following month, on March 11, 1918, March Field (present day

March Joint Air Reserve Base March Air Reserve Base (March ARB), previously known as March Air Force Base (March AFB), is located in Riverside County, California, between the cities of Riverside, Moreno Valley, and Perris. It is the home to the Air Force Reserve Comm ...

), located ten miles southeast of

Riverside, California Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. As of the 2020 census, the city has a population of 314,998. It is the most populous city in th ...

, was named in his honor.Armed Services Press, ''Welcome to March Air Force Base'' – 1971 Unofficial Guide and Directory, Riverside, California, 1971, page 3.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:March, Peyton C. Jr. 1897 births 1918 deaths Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Lafayette College alumni Military personnel from Austin, Texas United States Army Air Service pilots of World War I United States Army officers United States Army Signal Corps personnel Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1918