George was just a year out of high school when he felt the call to enlist and fight for his country. He left his home in Cleveland Heights, Ohio and disappeared a continent away.

His parents, Esther Felsman Shiffman and William Milton Shiffman made their home in Ohio. They were married in 1917.[i] Before their marriage, both Esther and William lived in Columbus, Ohio, where he registered for the draft for WWI.

On January 28, 2019,[ii] they had their first child, a boy they named Marvin Erwin Shiffman.[iii]

In 1920, the young couple and baby had a rental house on Fulton Street in Franklin, Ohio. Marvin supported the family by working as an electrician for a fertilizer company. In addition, as was common at the time, the family took in two boarders.[iv]

Ester Shiffman was 26 when her next baby boy was born in Ohio. He was born April 8, 1923 and named George Allen Shiffman. Ester was an Ohio native and had attended school through the 8th grade.[v] Her husband, William, was born in New York City. The family was Jewish according to the World War II Jewish Serviceman Cards.[vi]

The family moved to Cleveland Heights, Ohio sometime prior to 1935. William died on Oct 13, 1939 at age 45 in Cleveland, which would have been in the middle of George’s high school years.[vii]

As the war years arrive, 1940 sees George and his mother living on East Boulevard in Cleveland in a rental apartment. His widowed mother is working fulltime as a postal clerk for the water department. She’s making $24 a week to support the two of them.[viii] His brother, Marvin, is 21 and living with his Uncle Joseph and Aunt Doris Shiffman in neighboring Shaker Heights, Ohio and is selling auto insurance.

George is 17 and working on completing four years of high school. In 1940, he’s attending school and working parttime as a shipping clerk in a pottery warehouse.[ix] He graduates from Glenville High School in Cleveland in 1941. In school, he was involved in stage craft, football, and Silver Blades. In the school yearbook, Olympiad 1941, he’s noted as a master electrician, a guard captain and served on the Class Entertainment Committee.[x] George gets a shoutout in the school yearbook for his backstage effects during the production of “Oh Yeah?”

Besides graduation from high school, another big event happened for the Shiffman family in 1941. George’s brother, Marvin, who is an insurance agent, married June Senor on October 29, 1941.[xi]

By 1942, the little family of two had moved into the Belfour Apartments. George, now 19, is working at the Leece-Neville Company on Hamilton Avenue as a skilled inspector. Leece-Neville was an important developer and manufacturer of electrical products. During WWII, the company made electrical starters, generators and regulators for airplanes, trucks, and industrial marine equipment. [xii]

HIS MILITARY STORY

Corporal George A. Shiffman, service number 15354178, served in the Army Air Corp. George was 19 years old when he enlisted on December 1, 1942 at Camp Perry, Lacarne, Ohio.[xiii] He was with the 1202nd Air, Air Force Base Unit with the U.S. Army Air Force.

Around this same time, his brother, Marvin, joins the Navy. He’s on the payroll by January of 1943.[xiv] By 1945, his brother is now Lieutenant Marvin Shiffman and is a member of the staff at the Navy Pre-flight School at Athens, Georgia. He and his family are living in Athens.[xv]

According to his mother, George headed overseas around the end of 1943.[xvi]

HIS LAST DAY

On May 30th, 1945, George was the radio officer of C-47B #44-76406. In the pilot’s seat was First Lieutenant Alfred E. Ellis of Iowa and Flight Officer Robert “Bob” Earle Mulhern as co-pilot.[xvii] Alfred was the “old man” of the crew at age 38. Bob was 23 and George was 22.

The three were about to embark on a normally routine 776- mile[xviii] flight from Accra, British West Africa to Robert’s Field[xix], Liberia. On board were 18 women of the Women’s Army Corp who were being transferred to a new assignment. According to HonorStates.org, the women who were in the 1202nd were older, with an average age of 28, than the usual recruit and were chosen for their “maturity and work experience.”

There were scattered showers that morning but no other weather of note.[xx] The plane took off without incident and was last reported over Takoradi, British West Africa, about 150 miles west of Accra, shortly after departure.[xxi]

Little is known about what transpired aboard the plane that day but several calls of “Mayday,” an emergency procedure used as a voice distress signal, were heard. The distress signal was loud and clear, lasting five minutes.[xxii] A search was conducted by aircraft and surface craft over a wide area of the French Ivory Coast.[xxiii] The search consisted of seven PET’s and British, French, and Native forces, who were informed to search waters and coastline. No sign of the plane was found.

The plane is believed to have crashed into the sea near Takoradi, Ghana.[xxiv] The Chicago Tribune reported the “[xxv]18 WACs were the first ever reported lost overseas.”

George went missing on May 30, 1945 and was declared dead while missing in action off the coast of Ghana, Africa.[xxvi] News of the missing plane made newspapers across America on June 6th, 1945.

His family was notified via telegram. No details were given at that time but a press release from Washington followed with news of the missing plane.

George was 22.

COMMENDATIONS

Purple Heart

World War II Victory Medal

American Campaign Medal

Army Presidential Unit Citation

Army Good Conduct Medal

European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign[xxvii]

MEMORIALS

On June 16, 1945, a memorial service for the missing was held by the WACs’ leadership in Portman Square in London and over 660 WACs attended.[xxviii]

Corporal George A. Shiffman is remembered on the Tablets of the Missing, an American Battle Monument, North Africa American Cemetery in Carthage, Tunisia.

George A. Shiffman is remembered on the Cleveland Heights Veterans Memorial in Cumberland Park in Cleveland, Ohio.[xxix]

Time will not dim the glory of their deeds. – General John J. Pershing

AFTER THE WAR

George’s brother, Marvin E. Shiffman lived to be 93. He was the vice president of Progressive Insurance Co. He named his son George. He had children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.[xxx]

George’s mother, Esther Shiffman remarried to Jack Greenstein. She lived to be 87.

RESEARCH NOTES

· George’s father spelled his name Schiffman. He signed his WWI draft card with Schiffman. At some point, the “c” was dropped. His grave marker reads William Mill Shiffman instead of William Milton Shiffman which appears on his WWI draft registration.[xxxi]

· George’s mother’s name is spelled both Ester and Esther in different records. Her maiden name also appears as both Felsman and Felman in various records.

· The 1930 census was not found so no details of the family from that time appear.

· Findagrave.com incorrectly lists a Pennsylvania couple as George’s parents, a Emanual A. and Mary E. Shiffman.

ABOUT THIS STORY

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project (see www.storiesbehindthestars.org). This is a national effort of volunteers to write the stories of all 400,000+ of the US WWII fallen here on Fold3. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there will be a smart phone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the fallen's name and read his/her story.

[i] https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/166969179/esther-greenstein

[ii] https://www.ancestryinstitution.com/imageviewer/collections/2238/images/44030_08_00181-02084?treeid=&personid=&hintid=&queryId=eb8d903579c6fcb87a02c07359892997&usePUB=true&_phsrc=xxD225&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&pId=200162628

[iii] https://search.ancestryinstitution.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=1876&h=450938&tid=&pid=&queryId=ea84f193a48f92f689896acc52cc5079&usePUB=true&_phsrc=xxD220&_phstart=successSource

[iv]https://www.ancestryinstitution.com/imageviewer/collections/6061/images/4383996_00191?usePUB=true&_phsrc=xxD224&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&pId=33521314

[v] https://www.ancestryinstitution.com/imageviewer/collections/2442/images/m-t0627-03228-00394?usePUB=true&_phsrc=xxD179&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&pId=35839190

[vi] https://www.ancestryinstitution.com/search/?name=george+allen_shiffman&event=_ohio&birth=1923&death=1945_tunisia_5227&gender=m&military=1942_lacarne-ottawa-ohio-usa_52261&mother=Ester_Shiffman&residence=_cuyahoga-ohio-usa_802&residence2=_cleveland+heights-cuyahoga-ohio-usa_50952&_phtarg=xxD182&queryId=9a661d475c3619b394f92660dfea66f7&successSource=Search

[vii] https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/166969179/esther-greenstein

[viii] https://www.ancestryinstitution.com/imageviewer/collections/2442/images/m-t0627-03228-00394?usePUB=true&_phsrc=xxD179&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&pId=35839190

[ix] https://www.ancestryinstitution.com/imageviewer/collections/2442/images/m-t0627-03228-00394?usePUB=true&_phsrc=xxD179&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&pId=35839190

[x] https://www.ancestryinstitution.com/imageviewer/collections/1265/images/43134_b192370-00032?usePUB=true&_phsrc=xxD184&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&pId=328632439

[xi] https://www.ancestryinstitution.com/imageviewer/collections/1876/images/32416_225776-00511?treeid=&personid=&hintid=&queryId=ea84f193a48f92f689896acc52cc5079&usePUB=true&_phsrc=xxD220&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&pId=450938

[xii] https://case.edu/ech/articles/l/leece-neville-co

[xiii] https://search.ancestryinstitution.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=8939&h=1150463&tid=&pid=&queryId=c38b98446743a08d55d89b4d0def5d1f&usePUB=true&_phsrc=xxD142&_phstart=successSource

[xiv] https://www.ancestryinstitution.com/imageviewer/collections/2345/images/40014_1821100517_0583-01192?treeid=&personid=&hintid=&queryId=e7ebce66e009966a9da312190b32cc47&usePUB=true&_phsrc=xxD235&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&pId=5512579

[xv] Atlanta Constitution June 7, 1945.

[xvi] The Cleveland Press June 6, 1945, pg 10

[xviii]https://chicagotribune.newspapers.com/image/?clipping_id=22956270&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjM3MDE5ODM5MSwiaWF0IjoxNjAwNjUzOTMxLCJleHAiOjE2MDA3NDAzMzF9.GGROPxU0pGgcIxOv2cUjLCtQalRy9746RfogyVqiR44

[xix] https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56250251/leona-marie_elizabeth-seyfert

[xx] https://www.abmceducation.org/understandingsacrifice/soldier/rose-puchalla

[xxi]https://chicagotribune.newspapers.com/image/?clipping_id=22956270&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjM3MDE5ODM5MSwiaWF0IjoxNjAwNjUzOTMxLCJleHAiOjE2MDA3NDAzMzF9.GGROPxU0pGgcIxOv2cUjLCtQalRy9746RfogyVqiR44

[xxii] https://www.abmceducation.org/understandingsacrifice/soldier/rose-puchalla

[xxiii] New York Times, June 7, 1945 “18 WACS Missing on African Flight”

[xxiv] https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56250251/leona-marie_elizabeth-seyfert

[xxv]https://chicagotribune.newspapers.com/image/?clipping_id=22956270&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjM3MDE5ODM5MSwiaWF0IjoxNjAwNjUzOTMxLCJleHAiOjE2MDA3NDAzMzF9.GGROPxU0pGgcIxOv2cUjLCtQalRy9746RfogyVqiR44

[xxvi] https://www.honorstates.org/index.php?id=334268

[xxvii][xxvii] https://www.honorstates.org/index.php?id=334821

[xxviii] https://www.facebook.com/notes/mia-recoveries-locating-lost-wwii-servicemen/the-tragic-loss-of-c-47-44-76406-the-wacs-worst-disaster/10150778536912463/

[xxix] Information provided by Cleveland Heights Parks and Recreation Department

[xxx] https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/96075703/marvin-e.-shiffman

[xxxi] https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/189934097/william-mill-shiffman

George Shiffman- Glenville High School Yearbook 1941.jpg

George A. Shiffman - Tampa_Bay_Times_Thu__Jun_7__1945_.jpg

1945 WAC Memorial Service for WACS Missing in Action.jfif

George A Shiffman