Captain John Thogerson
Born in Peoria, Illinois, he spent much of his early life abroad in Panama and Colombia, where his father worked as a civil engineer.
Captain John Thogerson was born in Peoria, Illinois on March 8th, 1916. Due to the fact that his father worked as a civil engineer for the government, Captain Thogerson spent much of his early life abroad in South America, living in Panama and Columbia. At the age of 14, he returned to the states, attending the Western Military Academy in Alton, Illinois. There he played football for the “C” team, but had a below average season, scoring a total of 20 points in 1931, going 1-7.
He found more athletic success later, becoming a member of the “B” teams of basketball and football. He also was the vice president of the Phi Delta fraternity. Captain Thogerson entered the military following his time at the academy. Graduating in 1934, he moved down to Texas, enlisting in the US Army Air Corps (the precursor to the USAF), becoming a Flying Cadet, or a pilot-in-training.
Upon becoming a pilot, Captain Thogerson flew a Curtis P-40B for the US Army Air Corps, seeing combat in the Pacific. In the Pacific, he was eventually stationed in Australia, where in 1943, he married his wife, Phyllis Thogerson, who is buried in the same plot. He spent almost 30 years in service (being discharged and reenlisting once), being honorably discharged on June 4th 1971. Captain Thogerson passed away the next year, on March 10th, 1972, and he now rests at the American Legion Cemetery, in Tampa, Florida.