Bob Nieman
| Date and Place of Birth: | April 25, 1919 Pittsburgh, PA |
| Date and Place of Death: | August 23, 1944 nr. Muroc Army Air Field, CA |
| Baseball Experience: | Minor League |
| Position: | Shortstop |
| Rank: | Corporal |
| Military Unit: | 421st Base Unit, USAAF |
| Area Served: | European Theater of Operations and United States |
Robert F. Nieman was born on April 25, 1919 in the Northside district of
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The son of Lawrence and Mary Nieman, and a
graduate of Oliver High School, he played semi-pro baseball with the
Bellevue club of the Allegheny County League from 1935 to 1940 (Bellevue
were league champions in 1940).
In 1941, Bellevue joined the Greater Pittsburgh League and was counting
on the contributions of their hard-hitting, 180-pound shortstop, Bob
Nieman, but professional baseball had their eyes on the 22-year-old. In
April 1941, Nieman signed with the Akron Yankees, a New York Yankees
farm team in the Class C Middle-Atlantic League.
The Akron club was strong, with a line-up that featured future major
leaguers Gus Niarhos, Joe Buzas, Monk Dubiel, Joe Lutz, Joe Murray and
Ed Sauer. Whether Nieman would have been able to hold his own against
these players we will never know because on May 15, 1941, military service
beckoned before he had an opportunity to play a game.
Nieman spent 11 months in England with the U.S. Army’s Medical Corps
before returning to the United States in July 1943 to enter service with
the Army Air Force. In June 1944, he graduated from the flexible gunnery
school at Laredo Army Airfield, Texas, and was assigned to the 421st Base Unit at Muroc Army
Air Field (now Edwards Air Force Base) in southern California, for
combat flight training as an aerial gunner.
At around 9pm on Wednesday, August 23, 1944, Corporal Nieman was aboard
a Consolidated B-24D Liberator bomber that lifted off the runway at
Muroc to give both its pilots some instrument flying time and to
practice dropping bombs. Piloted by Lieutenant John L. Graves, and
co-pilot Flight Officer James L. Redd, the B-24D flew without incident
for the first couple of hours, but around 10.55pm the crew had problems
with number three engine and were forced to shut it down. This, however,
didn’t stop it from catching fire and Lt. Graves gave the order to
abandon ship. A short time later there was an enormous explosion and the
flame-engulfed right wing of the bomber was ripped off.
As the bomber spiralled to the ground, and amid unimaginable terror, the
crew struggled to escape. Of the ten airmen onboard that night, five
remained trapped in the falling wreckage, and died upon impact with the
desert below.
Bob Nieman, along with Lt. Graves, Flight Officer Clifton C. Watts, Cpl.
Bernard D. Fogel and Pfc. James W. Flitcroft all lost their lives that
night.
Bob Nieman’s body was returned to Pittsburgh, where a Requiem High Mass
was held at St. Cyril of Alexandria Church on September 1, 1944.
|
Team |
League |
Class |
G |
AB |
R |
H |
2B |
3B |
HR |
RBI |
AVG |
|
| 1941 | Akron | Mid-Atlantic | C | Signed but did not play | ||||||||
A B-24 at Muroc Army Air Field
Thanks to Ray Nemec for confirming that Bob Nieman had signed with Akron in 1941. Some of the information relating to the crash of the B-24D was obtained from Don R. Jordan’s website at www.donrjordan.com. Thanks also to Astrid van Erp, for help with photos for this biography.
Date Added February 4, 2012 Updated July 30, 2017
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