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While on a routine flight from his Marine fighter base at Green Cove, Jacksonville, Florida, Lt. Walter J. Waite, 21, was killed when his Corsair plane crashed at 12:45 p.m. February 25, 1945. A Cherry native, he was the namesake of his grandfather, who was awarded the Carnegie Medal for his heroism during the Cherry Mine disaster. Walter was a graduate of Hall Township High School with the Class of 1941. He was a member of the basketball team both at Hall and also at LaSalle-Peru-Oglesby Junior College. He entered service in naval aviation February 12, 1943, and trained at Northwestern University, Chicago; University of Iowa; Pensacola, Florida; and Green Cove Springs, Florida. He was commissioned in the Naval Air Corps in April 1944 at Pensacola, Florida and was then transferred to the Marines as a Corsair fighter pilot and instructor at Jacksonville.
Born: May 6, 1923
Entered Service: February 12, 1943
Died: February 25, 1945
Walter Waite was named after his grandfather who was awarded a Carnegie Medal for his heroic acts during the Cherry mine disaster. A copy of this can be seen at the Cherry Mine Museum in Cherry, IL.
According to a personal interview with Walter’s nephew, Byron Waite, on September 10, 2025, Walter’s parents were notified about their son's death on February 25, 1945, as the family was leaving to get ice cream. The mail carrier personally delivered the telegram but could not meet the eyes of the soon-to-be grieving family as she delivered the news that Walter’s plane had crashed that foggy morning. Walter was training pilots to perform diving maneuvers, but due to the weather and low visibility, crashed his plane. Walter loved being a pilot and all things fast. He thoroughly enjoyed flying the Corsair.
Byron Waite explained that his father, Walter’s much younger brother, was only 8 years old at the time of the crash.
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