Kendrick Robertson Bragg Jr. ’49

Ken died Oct. 13, 1999, in Durham, N.C., of leukemia. He was 81. As he was married when he came to Princeton and lived off campus, he was not too well known by members of the class. Even so, he was the class legend. In Feb. 1943, as a B-17 pilot, his plane was rammed by a Messerschmitt fighter over Africa. Somehow he flew the plane back to its base even though the tail was wobbling as if made of rubber. He then made a perfect landing. When Boeing engineers tried to examine the plane the next day, the tail fell off as they entered it. From this episode came the WWII ballad "Coming in on a Wing and a Prayer."

Ken's degree was in architecture. He practiced in his field in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands for 30 years. He was director of project design for the public works department in St. Thomas.

He is survived by his wife, Aura Ferrer Bragg, a daughter, Carol Luise Thomas, and a brother, Vernon C. Bragg. The class extends its deepest sympathy to them.

The Class of 1949