Thomas Erie "Buddy" Dubuisson, Pensacola High Class of 1942 was the son of Benjamin A. & Mary E. Dubuisson and brother of Gloria of the Class of 1941. Prior to graduation, Tommy quit school and married a fellow classmate nicknamed "Pete." His second wife was Helen Virginia Davis, also of the Class of 1942 and they were married about one month before he left for the military.
He enlisted on November 24, 1943 and after basic training he was assigned to a B-24 Liberator bomber with the 727th Bomber Squadron of the 451st Heavy Bomber Group with the 15th Air Force. He was promoted to Sergeant and began flying bombing missions as a gunner during the Italian campaign. Sadly, his wife received a telegram from the War Department at her home at 2000 East Maxwell Street on the 21st of November. The telegram stated that Tommy was missing in action over Italy as of November 4, 1944. His body was later recovered from the crash site and hastily buried in a temporary gravesite. After the war he was exhumed and buried in the American military cemetery in Florence, Italy. The Dubuisson family was already an institution long before Tommy's death in Italy.
Their ancestry can be traced back to France followed by their immigration to New Orleans. A son, Theodule who settled amongst the French population in the community of Slidell, Louisiana. Theodule fell in love with Miss Annie Eugenia Sellier and they were married in the great crescent city shortly afterwards. Three children were born from this union, that of Louis A., Jules Eugene, and Mark Alphonse Dubuisson. When the boys reached manhood they migrated to Pensacola around 1881. One thing led to another resulting in Jules and Mark forming a company called J. E. Dubuisson & Company at 220 East Wright Street. Thus, the Dubuisson family and their company became a well-known icon in the Pensacola area for decades afterwards.
Sgt. Thomas Erie "Buddy" Dubuisson, 757th Bomber Squadron,
B-24 Gunner, KIA, November 4, 1944 shot down over Italy
