Kenneth Johnson Kirk, Jr. was born January 1, 1920 in Saint Johnsbury, Vermont, the son of Kenneth J. and Gertrude M. Kirk. He grew up in Barre, Vermont, graduating from Spaulding High School in 1937. He enlisted in the Marine Air Corps in the fall of 1940 and received his training as a fighter pilot at Pensacola, Florida. He was deployed as a lieutenant in the Pacific Theater in June, 1942. By the end of the war he had reached the rank of Major. After the war he worked as a test pilot for Lockheed Martin, while remaining in the Marine Corps Reserve with the rank of Colonel. He eventually went into the real estate buisiness in Seattle Washington. He married Susan Wadden in 1945.
From the description of Kenneth J. Kirk, Jr. World War II scrapbook, 1941-1961 1942-1944. (Vermont Historical Society). WorldCat record id: 82137900
