Background
Douglas Warren Norris, born in Hamilton, Ontario, December 26, 1916, attended Port Huron Junior College and graduated in 1937.
He took his preliminary flight training at Gross Ile, Naval Base in June, 1938. Here he was appointed an Aviation Cadet in
the Naval Reserve on November 23, 1938. From there he was transferred to Pensacola, Florida for further training. He was promoted
to Ensign on October 23, 1939, and then transferred to San Diego, California, where he spent two months. His squadron flew
to Honolulu on December 31, 1939, and it was his squadron that was the first to fly the Pacific (previous squadrons were transferred
by carrier). He spent eight months at Pearl Harbor, during which time he was selected as an outstanding officer to take a
cruise on a ship to the South Seas. On his return from the cruise, he was transferred to the Philippines. He was stationed
at the Cavite Naval Base, and was there when war broke out. He was on patrol duty at the time, and did not get back to the
base. It was there he lost all of his personal effects. From there he went to Java, and then to Australia, New Zealand, and
arrived at the United States on March 31, 1942. His next duty was in Corpus Christi, Texas, where he became an instructor
of advanced aviation students.
On September 3, 1942, Lieutenant Douglas Norris lost his life during a routine night flight.
Extent
.5 Cubic Feet
This is a two box collection with dimensions 15 x 10 1⁄2 x 2 1⁄2 inches and 18 1⁄4 x 13 x 3 inches. In the collection there
is an oversized scrapbook, an officer yearbook, newspaper clippings, correspondence, a transcript, a pocket notebook, and
a few photographs. The collection contains information regarding the life and death of Douglas Norris.