Edgewood in San Antonio in Bexar County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
Wilber B. Miller
Team Leader / Maintenance Personnel
— 1900–1994 —
Photographed By Richard E. Miller, 1995
1. Wilber B. Miller Marker
Note the misspelling of Wilber's first name on the marker—uncorrected since 1995.
In 1941, the War Department announced the creation of the 99th Pursuit Squadron, the first all-African American combat unit in the Army Air Forces. This unit trained at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. Fifty African-American Kelly workers (49 men and 1 woman) left Texas to serve as mechanics and support personnel for the Tuskegee Flying School. Team leader for this “49+1” group from Kelly was Wilber Miller. The spirit and dedication of these trailblazers is a continuing legacy and a reminder of the heritage of service to our nation shared by all of Kelly’s African-American personnel.
Erected 1995 by Kelly Heritage Foundation.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Air & Space • War, World II. A significant historical year for this entry is 1941.
Location. 29° 23.512′ N, 98° 33.471′ W. Marker is in San Antonio, Texas, in Bexar County. It is in Edgewood. Marker can be reached from So. General McMullen Drive, half a mile south of U.S. 90. It is at the Kelly Air Force Base Veteran’s Monument in Memorial Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: San Antonio TX 78222, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. B-58 Hustler (approx. 0.6 miles away); Dedicated to Brigadier General Harold E. (Hal) Confer
this page online
More about this marker. Marker is beneath the bust of Wilber B. Miller, one of fourteen notable civilians and servicemembers so commemorated in the “ring of honor” at the Kelly Air Force Base Veteran’s Monument in Memorial Park, just inside what was once the main entrance to the Kelly Air Force Base, an area now known as “Port San Antonio.”
Also see . . .
1. Wilber Britt Miller. Find A Grave website entry (Submitted on September 26, 2022, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)
2. “Kelly Forever” the Kelly AFB Veteran’s Monument. (Submitted on February 20, 2008, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland.)
Additional commentary.
1.
A San Antonio native, Wilber Miller
Photographed By Richard E. Miller, 1995
2. Wilber Miller's bust at the Kelly Veteran's Monument. Sculpted by Emilio Torres.
He eagerly demonstrated his diverse talents and aptitudes at every opportunity and was ready at the start of World War II when he was promoted and called upon to select the first African American candidates for the expanded (but still racially segregated) employment opportunities that were suddenly created. He was subsequently tasked with choosing and leading those who would be sent to Tuskegee, Alabama where the country’s “Black Air Force” was taking shape. Ably assisted by his friend and fellow Duncan employee Ollie Watson, Miller and his team of 49 men and one young woman (Ms. Virginia Porter) received advanced training under White instructors as they established the new air depot at Tuskegee Army Air Field and provided ongoing maintenance support for the primary phase training aircraft used by the now legendary “Tuskegee Airmen.”
In 1944 Miller was re-called to San Antonio where (not surprisingly) stresses were developing within the greatly expanded and newly diverse civilian work force (Anglo-, Latino- and Afro-American)
Photographed By U.S. Air Force, circa 1969
3. Wilber Miller
A member of Kelly’s multi-ethnic Morale Committee, he also chaired a separate Negro Morale Committee organizing a popular recreation program (dances, barbecues, ballgames, etc.) while personally mediating a constant flow of angry complaints regarding racial discrimination. Though criticized at times by some militants in the community for enforcing the principle that candidates for the choicest positions have the highest qualifications, he could boast that Blacks were soon employed in every phase of work at Kelly.
In 1946 he received an Award of Merit from the Commanding General of Kelly Air Force Base for his wartime contributions, and by the time of his retirement in 1970 he had accumulated over twenty citations for outstanding service.
— Submitted February 24, 2008, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland.
Additional keywords. Kelly AFB Veteran’s Monument; Kelly AFB Veteran’s Memorial Park; Ollie Watson; Virginia Porter; Navy messmen; 25th Infantry.
Photographed By Richard E. Miller, August 8, 2010
4. Wilber B. Miller
- grave marker, Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery, San Antonio, Texas.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 2, 2023. It was originally submitted on February 20, 2008, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. This page has been viewed 2,989 times since then and 36 times this year. Last updated on September 10, 2012, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. Photos: 1. submitted on February 20, 2008, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. 2, 3. submitted on February 24, 2008, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. 4. submitted on May 15, 2011, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. • Craig Swain was the editor who published this page.
