Joseph J. Speranzi was born on March 4, 1922 in Oneonta, NY to Julius Speranzi(1881-1970) and Mary D. Molinari (1892-1967). His parents were married in Oneonta on August 15, 1918. The 1940 U.S. Census recorded that both his parents were from Italy and his father was a watchman for the D&H railroad which had a major hub in Oneonta, NY. He had three brothers, Anthony, Andrew, and Thomas J. and two sisters Carolyn and Ann Marie. They all lived on Brookside Ave. in Oneonta, NY. 

Joe was well known and popular growing up. He delivered newspapers as a young man and was considered by many as "happy go-lucky." He graduated from Oneonta High School and worked at Bagnardi Shoe, a place all the locals knew well. People were not surprised when war came and he immediately enlisted. He entered the Army Air Corps on August 6, 1940 in Albany, NY. He was trained at Mitchell Field and slowly but surely got promoted.

He was assigned to the 16th Observation Squadron (part of the 12th Air Force) which was stationed at Pope Field, NC, then Lawson Field, GA, Daniel Field, GA, and Greensboro, NC. He married Doris Alma Allen on July 29, 1942 in Charlotte, N.C. while he was stationed at Greensboro.

After the Attack on Pearl Harbor the squadron was reassigned to antisubmarine duties along the southeast coast in late 1941, early 1942. It deployed to the European Theater of Operations, where it was attached to the Royal Air Force reconnaissance school at RAF Wattisham, England in late 1942. While in England, the air echelon received modern Lockheed P-38 long-range photo-reconnaissance aircraft and joined the ground personnel in French Morocco shortly after the Operation Torch invasion in November 1942. 

The 12th Air Force historical documents record that on Monday, November 9, 1942 "XII Air Support Command arrives from the US; HQ 68th Observation Group and the 16th and 122d Observation Squadron arrive at Casablanca and Fedala respectively from the US with A-20s and P-39s."

According to U.S. World War II Hospital Admission Card File records and his IDPF S/Sgt. Speranzi drowned on November 9, 1942.  He was the first native born Oneontan to be killed in the war and was buried in the Fedala Christian Cemetery four days later (November 13, 1942) in Grave 71, Row 4, Plot 1. In 1949, per his family's wishes, he was permanently interred in the U.S. Military Cemetery in Tunis, Plot A, Row 9, Grave 14. He was posthomously awarded the Purple Heart. 

If you notice anything erroneous in this profile or have additional information to contribute to it, please contact Jim Greenberg at nez13820@gmail.com. 

Sources

16th Reconnaissance Squadron, American Air Museum in Britian, accessed at https://www.americanairmuseum.com/archive/unit/16th-reconnaissance-squadron accessed on July 23, 2023. 

16th Electronic Warfare Squadron, Wikipedia entry, accessed July 23, 2023 at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/16th_Electronic_Warfare_Squadron

16th Electronic Warfare Squadron (ACC), accessed at https://www.afhra.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/3014320/16-electronic-warfare-squadron-acc/, January 17, 2023.

Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56250502/joseph-j-speranzi, accessed January 17, 2023.

"Made First Sergeant", The Oneonta Herald, Oneonta, NY, April 23, 1942.

National Archives at College Park; College Park, Maryland, USA;Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, 1938-1946; NAID:1263923; Record Group Title:Records of the National Archives and Records Administration, 1789-ca. 2007; Record Group:64; Box Number:00761; Reel:69

National Archives and Records Administration;Hospital Admission Card Files, ca. 1970 - ca. 1970; NAI: 570973; Record Group Number:Records of the Office of the Surgeon General (Army), 1775-1994; Record Group Title:112

Moore, Edwin, Oneonta Goldstar Registery, Oneonta Historical Society, Main St, Oneonta, NY

"Oneontan Takes Southern Bride", The Oneonta Herald, Oneonta, NY, August 27, 1942.

"Sgt. Speranzi, Meets Death in War Zone", The Oneonta Herald, Oneonta, NY, December 17, 1942.

"War Department Honors Soldier Killed in Battle", The Oneonta Herald, Oneonta, NY, February 11, 1943.

Year:1940; Census Place:Oneonta, Otsego, New York; Roll:m-t0627-02717; Page:4B; Enumeration District:39-34

Supporting Files