James Robert Bonner was born February 8, 1919 in Rochester, NY to Harry V. Bonner (1881-1957) and Bessie O. Laney (1883-1978). His parents were married on August 15, 1906 in Altmar, NY. His dad was from Orwell, NY and his mom from Wilmingon, Illinois. He was the fifth of their six children which included Albert (1908-1992), Harry (1910-1984), Rachel (1913-2005), Katherine (1916-2005) and younger brother Charles (1924-1951). His father was a Presbyterian minister and his mom a homemaker. In 1920 the family lived on Culver Road in Irondequoit, NY. By 1930 the family had moved to West Main St. in McGrawville (McGraw), NY.

James attended schools in McGraw leaving McGraw High School after his junior year when his family moved to Utica. He finished high school at the Utica Free Academy, graduating in 1937. While there he played basketball. He entered Hamilton College in Clinton, NY with the class of 1942. He remained at Hamilton one year, the following autumn he entered Syracuse University where he was a member of Psi Upsilon. James left Syracuse in his sophomore year to enter the service in January 1941. After serving with Cavalry Troop G, New York National Guard at Ft. McClellan, Georgia, he entered officer candidate school at Fort Benning and was commissioned second lieutenant in August 1942. His service number was O-1289852

Forever Promise Project. This service member is buried at the Netherlands American Cemetery, where every grave has been “adopted” by the Dutch since 1945. To learn more about the grave adoption program and be placed in contact with the Dutch adopter of your loved one’s grave, please visit the Forever Promise Project https://www.foreverpromise.org/

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project. This is a national effort of volunteers to write the stories of all 421,000+ of the US WWII fallen on Together We Served and Fold3.

(Please see - http://www.storiesbehindthestars.org).

Can you help us write these stories? Together We Served and Fold3/Find A Grave have smartphone apps that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery and read these stories of WWII fallen.

If you noticed anything erroneous in this profile or have additional information to contribute, please contact Jim Greenberg at jim.greenberg@oneonta.edu.

SBTSProject/New York/Oneida

Sources

American Battle Monuments Commission; Arlington, VA; Cemetery Records

Ancestry.com. New York, U.S., World War II Enlisted Men Cards, 1940-1945 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.

Blue Infantrymen The Combat History of the Third Battalion 310th Infantry Regiment Seventy-Eighth "Lightning" Division. http://www.leisuregalleries.com/sahlinblueinfantrymendoc.html

"Capt. Bonner is Killed in Nazi Action", Geneva Daily Times, Geneva, NY, May 8, 1945, pg. 10.

Cenotaph Entry: Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/148306477/james_robert-bonner: accessed April 7, 2026), memorial page for Capt James Robert Bonner (8 Feb 1919–6 Apr 1945), Find a Grave Memorial ID 148306477, citing Evergreen Cemetery, Orwell, Oswego County, New York, USA; Maintained by Susan McKinney Raymond (contributor 47022961).

Margraten Entry: Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56296931/james_robert-bonner: accessed April 10, 2026), memorial page for CPT James Robert Bonner (8 Feb 1919–6 Apr 1945), Find a Grave Memorial ID 56296931, citing Netherlands American Cemetery and Memorial, Margraten, Eijsden-Margraten Municipality, Limburg, Netherlands; Maintained by MAJ Jimmy Cotton (contributor 48803557).

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/148306480/harry_vary-bonner: accessed April 9, 2026), memorial page for Rev Harry Vary Bonner (28 Aug 1881–15 Jan 1957), Find a Grave Memorial ID 148306480, citing Evergreen Cemetery, Orwell, Oswego County, New York, USA; Maintained by Susan McKinney Raymond (contributor 47022961).

"Miss Cahill Is Bride of Lt. Bonner", Utica Observer-Dispatch, Utica, NY, June 13, 1943, Section B, pg. 1.

National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For New York State, 10/16/1940 - 03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147

National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Fiche_960; Record Group 64: Records of the National Archives and Records Administration; Series: Army General Orders; NAID: 467259368

New York State Department of Health; Albany, NY, USA; New York State Marriage Index

Presbyterian Historical Society; Philadelphia, PA, USA; US, Presbyterian Church Records, 1701-1907; Book Title: Register 1865-1974; Accession Number: V Mi46 Ut328wr

"U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012"; School Name: Utica Free Academy; Year: 1937

"U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012"; School Name: Syracuse University; Year: 1941

Vary-Becker, Kathy, Capt. James robert Bonner Bio, October 2, 2015, Public Member Stories, Ancestry.com

"Word of James Bonner's Death Is Received Here", Cortland Standard, Cortland, NY, April 24, 1943, pg. 10.

Year: 1920; Census Place: Irondequoit, Monroe, New York; Roll: T625_1119; Page: 4A; Enumeration District: 19

Year: 1930; Census Place: McGrawville, Cortland, New York; Page: 1A; Enumeration District: 0015; FHL microfilm: 2341153

Year: 1940; Census Place: Utica, Oneida, New York; Roll: m-t0627-02861; Page: 5B; Enumeration District: 67-53

Supporting Documents