Edwin Clay Bagby (March 12, 1927–April 10, 1996)

By Emonique Williams

Early Life

Photo of Edwin Clay Bagby

Edwin Clay Bagby was born in Savannah, Georgia, on March 12, 1927, and died on April 10, 1996, in Miami, Florida.1 He was the son of Wesley M. Bagby and Essie Loven. He had four siblings, Sibyl, Wesley Jr., Joe, and Frank. He served in the Army from November 8, 1950 to November 7, 1952, during the Korean War.2

Although born in Savannah, Georgia, Edwin Bagby probably spent most of his childhood in North Carolina. His father, Wesley M. Bagby, was a high school history teacher and principal. He made a modest salary of $1,800 in 1940, which translates to nearly $31,000 in 2017.3

Edwin Bagby and his siblings were greatly influenced by their parents being educators. His older brother, Wesley Bagby Jr. continued his education at University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill for his Bachelor and Master Degrees after World War II. He also received his PhD from Columbia University in the 1950s.4 He became a renowned professor of history, focusing on American history, foreign relations, and social issues.5

At age five, Edward experienced the death of his mother, who died of carcinoma of the liver.6 It is likely that this had a lasting impact on Edwin’s childhood. After his mother's death, Bagby probably relied heavily on his siblings, Wesley Bagby Jr. and Sibyl Bagby for support. His oldest brother, being a successful academic and a World War II veteran, likely impacted Edwin Bagby’s life in positive ways at a young age despite this tragedy. Edwin Bagby experienced further tragedy when his half brother, son of Wesley M. Bagby Sr. and Paunee Bagby, died at age eight in 1944. Paunne married Wesley Sr. after the death of Wesley’s first wife, Essie.

Military Service

In addition to being scholars, much of the Bagby family served in the military. Edwin’s oldest brother Wesley Jr. registered first for the draft on June 30, 1942, and would go on to serve during World War II.7 Sibyl, Edwin’s oldest sister, enlisted on July 31, 1943 in the Inactive Reserve of the Women’s Army Corp.8 Just as his two siblings probably influenced him as a child, Edwin followed in their footsteps as an adult. He left the private Methodist liberal arts college that he attended at the time, Brevard College in North Carolina, and enlisted in the Army on November 8, 1950.9

Draft Card for Edwin Clay Bagby

Serving during the Korean War, his actions throughout the war remain unknown. Records that contain such details may have been destroyed in the 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, Missouri, though he completed his service as a corporal. With the documents that illustrate the service record of Bagby likely unrecoverable due to the fire, so too are the records of thousands of US Army veterans discharged between November 1, 1912 and January 1, 1960.10

Beyond Military Service

During Edwin Bagby’s military service, a number of family events took place. On June 23, 1951, his father, Wesley M. Bagby, died in North Carolina.11 Although tragedy had struck the Bagby family yet again, there were also some happier events that occurred shortly thereafter. A few months after the death of his father, Edwin Bagby’s first daughter, Linda Leigh Bagby, was born on October 7 at Fort Benning, Georgia.12

Edwin Bagby concluded his service in the Army on November 7, 1952, and lived in Miami, Florida, where he would spend the majority his life.13 He had a son on December 4, 1961 named Charles Clay Bagby.14 Five years later, on June 30, 1966, he witnessed the birth of his second son James Edwin Bagby.15

Unfortunately, Edwin Bagby was struck by a series of tragedies once again, late in his life. On August 1, 1987, his son died in Avery, North Carolina at the age of twenty-one.16 Just a month and a half later, his daughter died.17

Edwin Bagby continued to live in Miami, Florida, until his death on April 10, 1996. He was memorialized at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida. Although tried by many tragic events in his life, Edwin Clay Bagby persevered.

Endnotes

1 “U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Edwin Clay Bagby.

2 “U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Edwin Clay Bagby.

3 “1940 United States Federal Census,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Wesley M. Bagby.

4 “University Community to Rembmer History Professor Bagby at memorial service,” WVUToday, Octoer 14, 2002, database WVUToday Archive (http://wvutoday-archive.wvu.edu/n/2002/10/14/430.html : accessed April 19, 2017).

5Ibid.

6 “North Carolina, Death Certificates, 1909-1976,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Edwin Clay Bagby.”

7 “U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Wesley Marvin Bagby.

8 "U.S., World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Sibyl M. Bagby.

9 “U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Edwin Clay Bagby.

10 U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. “Veteran Records Destroyed by Fire in 1973.” Web. Accessed on April 19, 2017 from http://www.benefits.va.gov/COMPENSATION/NPRC1973Fire.asp.

11 “Wesley Micajah Bagby, Jr,” database, FindAGrave (http://findagrave.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Wesley Micajah Bagby, Jr.

12 “U.S., Social Security Application and Claims Index, 1936-2007,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Linda Leigh Bagby.

13 “U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Edwin Clay Bagby.

14 U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Charles Clay Bagby.

15 “North Carolina, Death Indexes, 1908-2004,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for James Edwin Bagby.

16 Ibid.

17 “U.S., Social Security Application and Claims Index, 1936-2007,” database, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed April 19, 2017), entry for Linda Leigh Bagby.

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