Joseph Edward Farrell was born to Albert (Allie) Thomas Farrell and Viola Margaret Farrell (Bier), and grew up in Brown County, Minnesota in the town of Sleepy Eye at 400 North Fifth Street, on the corner of Fifth and Rice. (North Fifth is now called North First Street).

While attending the University of Minnesota, he moved to Minneapolis with his Great-Uncle Frank and Great-Aunt Emma Hathaway (Raschka) -Viola's Aunt who lived near the school staying on their enclosed front porch.

After completing 2 years of college, he rented a room from Albert and Lena Gag (pronounced Gog) at 204 State Street in New Ulm. He took a job with the WPA Office in New Ulm City, Minnesota doing clerical work. (This information is also noted in the 1940 U.S. Census for Brown County, Minnesota.)

He volunteered and was initially turned down for the Army Air Corps due to eyesight. When this requirement was later relaxed, due to the dramatic increase in need for qualified candidates, he was accepted and enlisted in Minneapolis on May 28, 1942.

WWII Army Air Corps Co-Pilot and Pilot
Training Commands:
-Basic Training & Pre-Flight: Santa Ana Army Air Base, Army Air Corps Training Command, Santa Ana, California (1942)
-Primary Pilot Training School: Yuma Army Air Field, Army Air Corps Flying Training Command, Yuma, Arizona
-Basic Flight Training: Pecos Army Air Field, Pecos, Texas
-Advanced Pilot Training, Multi-engine: Thunderbird Field / Army Air Corps Training Command Glendale, Arizona (Received Wings and 2nd Lt.)
-Kellogg Army Air Field, Battle Creek, Michigan

At a USO dance while stationed in Battle Creek, he met Mildred Anna Jettner and on November 28, 1943 they were married in St. Paul, Ramsey County, Minnesota at the home of Joe's Uncle Edward Towey and Aunt Alice M. Towey (Farrell).

Primary Assignment:
European Theater of Operations, U.S.A. (ETOUSA),
9th United States Army Air Force (USAAF),
394th Bombardment Group,
584th Bombardment Squadron

First Location: USAAF Station 161 - RAF Boreham Airfield, near Chelmsford in Essex, England (22 FEB 1944)
Second Location: USAAF Station 455 - RAF Holmsley South, Hampshire, England (29 JULY 1944)
Third Location: Tour-en-Bessin Airfield (Advanced Landing Ground A-13), Normandy, France (28 AUG 1944)
Fourth Location: Orléans-Bricy Airfield (A50c), Orléans, France (25 SEPT 1944)
Fifth Location: Cambrai-Niergnies Airfield (Advanced Landing Ground A-74), Cambrai, France (6 OCT 1944)

He made 67 Missions with no loss of plane.
He flew B-26 Martin Marauder twin engined medium bombers while in theater. The three which he flew the most were:
Pretty Polly (Serial Number: 42-96226 H9-S)=22 missions
Faith-Prelude to Victory (Serial Number: 42-96026 K5-B)=11 missions
and
Ish-Tak-Ha-Ba (Serial Number: 42-96071 5W-Y/K5-Q?)=8 missions

Significant Missions:
Mission 5-4-44 : Ault gun positions
Mission 5-12-44 : Wimereaux/Boulogne
Mission 5-28-44 : Mantes/Gassicourt RR Bridge
Mission 6-6-44: (D-Day Invasion) Concrete Bunkers & Machine Gun Nests on the Beaches of Normandy

Plane Type: B-26 Martin Marauder
Plane Name: Ishtakhaba (Chief Sleepy Eye)
Serial Number: 42-96071
CRL 01-09-45 after hitting telephone pole (101st plane mission)
Bomber Squadron:584BS Code: K5Q
Pilot: 1st Lt. Manville H. Fryman (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/194982553/manville-hickman-fryman)
Crew Chief: S/Sgt. Paul E. Fast (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/44808705/paul-e-fast)
Other Crew:
1st Lt. James J. Chapman - Bombardier/Navigator
1st Lt. Richard (Dick) M. Brown - Pilot (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/232701798/richard-madson-brown)

Rotation back to the United States
Spence Army Airfield, Army Air Forces Advanced Flying School, Moultrie, Georgia
Separation - Honorable Discharge

He then returned to 400 North Fifth Street in Sleepy Eye, Minnesota to his wife to begin a family. He was soon afterward hired to pilot for Northwest Orient Airlines (just after his war buddy from the 584th and lifelong friend Richard (Dick) Brown had been hired.) He flew for them for 35 years until their mandatory age-out, and then moved over to fly for Lux Air from where he finally retired.

Obituary St. Petersburg Times

* * * * *
FARRELL -- Joseph E Sr., 84 Safety
Harbor, FL, died January 2, 2005 at
St. Mark Village, Palm Harbor, FL.
Born in Sleepy Eye, MN, he lived in
both Bloomington and Woodbury,
MN. He served in World War II as a
pilot with the 394th Bomb Group,
584th Squadron and was a pilot
with Northwest Airlines for 35
years. He was a member of the
Northwest Pilots Association and
the local VFW. He was Catholic; a
member of Espiritu Santo Catholic
Church, Safety Harbor.
Survivors include his wife: Barbara
G; four daughters: Margaret M.
Farrell and Diane M. Moore, both of
Palm Harbor; Bridget A. Hoschette,
Inver Grove Heights, MN; Mary K.
Peterson, Minneapolis, MN; a step-
daughter, Erin P. Murphy, Decatur,
GA; three sons; Timothy J. Farrell,
Shorewood, MN; Brian E. Farrell,
Elko, NV; Joseph E. Farrell Jr, Palm
Harbor; two step-sons, Ian W.
Pierce, N. Redington Beach; Kelly
E. Griffin, West Linn, OR; one
brother; John P. Farrell, Enid, OK;
five grandchildren and five great
grandchildren.
A memorial gathering for friends
and family will be held at Sylvan
Abbey Funeral Home, 2853 Sunset
Point Road, Clearwater, on Friday,
January 7th from 5:00-7:00 p.m.
with an additional service to be
held in Minneapolis, MN at a future
date. In grateful thanks for their
care and comfort, the family re-
quests that in lieu of flowers, dona-
tions be made to: Hospice of the
Florida Suncoast, 300 East Bay
Drive, Largo, FL 33770, or the Par-
kinson's Resarch Foundation, 710
W. 168th Street, New York, N.Y.,
10032.
Sylvan Abbey Funeral Home
and Memorial Park,
Clearwater, FL. (7272) 796-1992
* * * * *