Paul E. Havener (March 23, 1923–October 8, 1992)

by Ronald Scott Mitchell and Abigail Padfield

Early Life

Paul E. Havener was born on March 23, 1923, in Picher, Oklahoma, to Marie Slaight and Santford E. Havener. About a year after Paul was born, Santford Havener died in Ottawa County, OK. Santford Havener was 33 years old. ¹ By 1930, Paul Havener, his older brother Elwood, and his mother Marie moved to Cumberland, Maine. According to the 1930 Census, seen here, his mother remarried to Walter G. Sanborn. ² Sanborn was a carpenter, but like many during the Great Depression, he was unemployed. ³ Walter and Marie had seven children together. ⁴ Paul Havener received a grammar school education and eventually became a welder and flame cutter before World War II began. ⁵

Military Service

In February 1943, shortly before his twentieth birthday, Havener enlisted into the US Army Air Corp in Portland, ME.⁶ He started as a Private. By 1945, he reached the rank of Corporal. ⁷ He trained as a tail gunner. ⁸ World War II tail gunners or rear gunners were crewman on a military aircraft whose main responsibility was defense of the aircraft from attacking enemy fighters from the tail or rear of the plane. The rear is a blind spot for pilots and the most vulnerable area for attacking fighters. ⁹

While in the Army Air Corp, Havener met Esther Caroline Brown. They married on June 23, 1945 in Oakland, ME, shortly before he was discharged in September 1945. ¹⁰ She was a member of the Woman’s Army Corp (WACs), serving from March 1943 to August 1943. ¹¹

Post Service

The Haveners had three children: two sons Paul C. Havener, Jr. and Dennis J. Havener, and one daughter, Sandra E. Havener. ¹² During the years after WWII, the Haveners moved several times. They lived in Portland, ME; New London, Connecticut; Big Pine Key, Florida; and finally Ocala, FL. ¹³ Paul Havener worked as a welder and, by 1960, he was a welding supervisor at Electric Boat Company as the US City Directory for New London, CT shows. ¹⁴

Like many Northerners trying to escape the cold New England winters, the Haveners settled in sunny Florida. The Haveners lived in Big Pine Key, FL, and Ocala, FL. ¹⁵ When Paul moved to Ocala, FL, he became an active member of the Ma Barker’s Club. ¹⁶ This club is a volunteer group helping raise money for the upkeep on the Marion County home where the infamous Ma Barker and one of her sons were gunned down by the FBI. Ma Barker was a notorious gangster in the 1930s. She gained a reputation as a ruthless crime matriarch who controlled and organized her sons' crimes. FBI director J. Edgar Hoover described her as "the most vicious, dangerous, and resourceful criminal brain of the last decade.” Barker and her son, Fred, rented the house as a getaway in 1935. It is the house where FBI agents finally caught up to the duo, and after a shootout on January 16, 1935, Ma and Fred were found dead in an upstairs bedroom. ¹⁷

Paul E. Havener passed away at 69 years of age on October 8, 1992. He is buried in Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, FL. ¹⁸ His wife, three children, eight grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren survived him. ¹⁹

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