An American hero, Cornelius Winfred (Winnie) Kobler was born 3/9/1917 on his parents farm about 2-3 miles Southwest of Penokee, Kansas.
B-29 Superfortress
On May 26, 1945, Captain Cornelius W. Kobler and the crew of his B-29 bomber, gave the ultimate sacrifice to their country. Just weeks prior, on May 14, 1945, he had survived a harrowing B-29 combat orientation flight that had to ditch in the Pacific.
“My first dad (Winnie) died on a B29 bomb run over Tokyo in May of 1945. He was the aircraft commander. His last words were, ‘bail out’, but the only crew member to do so was Harry Slater, then a wing burned off and they crashed with no other survivors. I referred to my ‘first’ dad because the man that raised me from 3 years old, Al, was my dad also.” – Kenneth (Kobler) Lummus
Additional details of the Kobler crew can be found on the 39th Bomb Group website.
Winnie married Buenola (Nola) Ruth Mahan in Wakeeney, Kansas on Aug 21, 1941 and had one child, Kenneth (Kobler) Lummus.
Winfred was Captain and center on the Fort Hays State football team his senior year, in fall 1941. He was also the stand out pitcher on the baseball team and already had major league team scouts talking to him. He would probably have signed with the Saint Louis Cardinals after graduating if WWII hadn’t intervened.
Fort Hays State college allowed him early graduation the Spring of 1942 to join the Army Air Corp as a cadet in the pilot training program.
Photos
Winnie and Nola Kobler about 1940
Winfred & Herb Kobler about 1939-40
Winnie Kobler, Ft. Hays State 1941 Team Captain & Center
Winfred Kobler Ft. Hays State 1942
Nola, Winnie & Kenneth about 1943
Captain Cornelius Winfred Kobler
Winfred,Buenola & Kenny Kobler
Capt Cornelius Winfred Kobler
Capt C. W. Kolber w/ his son Kenneth just before shipping out to the Pacific in 1945
Cornelius Winfred Kobler WWII Enlistment Record
Additional information about Winnie and Nola Kobler would be very much appreciated. Please send life history, stories and photos using the Contact page or you can Register and post information yourself.
Cornelius Winfred Kobler was born 9 Mar 1917 on his parents farm about 2-3 miles Southwest of Penokee Kamsas. I didn’t know that Buenola had used the nickname ‘Nola’- at least not while we lived in Kansas. The records I have show Winfred married Buenola Ruth Mahan at Wakeeney, Kansas Aug 21 1941.
Ray, thanks so much for the additional information! I updated those dates and text as you specified. Also updated Nola to Buenola as her full name and Nola as her nickname, having seen Ken Lummus refer to her as Nola.