Walter Dumont Latham Jr (1919 - 1937)

Born 11 Oct 1919 in Goose Creek, Harris, Texas, United States

Died 18 Mar 1937 at age 17 in New London, Rusk, Texas, United States

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Biography

17 year old Walter and his 15 year old brother Homer, were killed in the New London school explosion. Son of Walter & Mollie.

The New London School explosion occurred on March 18, 1937, when a natural gas leak caused an explosion, destroying the London School of New London, Texas, a community in Rusk County previously known as "London". The disaster killed more than 295 students and teachers. As of 2017, the event is the third deadliest disaster in the history of Texas, after the 1900 Galveston hurricane and the 1947 Texas City disaster.

London School did not publish a yearbook in 1937, instead substituting a memorial book that recognized all of the students and teachers who had died during the disaster.

Sources

• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/15169877

• 1930 US census

• Texas, Birth Certificates, 1903-1932

• Texas, Birth Index, 1903-1997

• Texas, Death Certificates, 1903-1982

• Texas, Death Index, 1903-2000

• https://www.findagrave.com/virtual-cemetery/367568?page=3#sr-13698618

• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_London_School_explosion

• http://nlsd.net/Cenotaph.htm

• https://www.thestoryoftexas.com/discover/artifacts/1936-london-school-yearbook

• https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/L15V-C97