Igo, Harry

Harry Igo is a retired agricultural business man from Plainview, Texas. He was president of the Plainsman Fertilizer Company, a division of the W. R. Grace and Company, for a number of years. Mr. Igo is known for his participation in World War II as an Army Air Force pilot. He was a captain when in July 26, 1945, he and his crew flew the C-54 cargo plane with a special cargo on board from Kirtland Air Force Base (Albuquerque, New Mexico) to Hamilton Field, California. From there, another crew flew the parts to Tinian, Guam. The special items were parts necessary to complete the assembly of the first atomic bomb to be dropped on Hiroshima, Japan on August 6, 1945. At that time, Mr. Igo and his crew had no idea what their cargo was until years later when The National Archives revealed its true identity. Harry Igo had become a part of history when the actions he carried forth as a transporter served to end the second world war.

From the guide to the Harry Igo Papers, S476. 1., 1934-1994 and undated, (Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library, Texas Tech University)