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Corporal Colin Alexander Maultsby, Jr.

  • Unit: 773rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Gun Battalion, Company C
  • Date of Birth: May 9, 1930
  • Entered the Military: June 18, 1951
  • Date of Death: January 10, 2015
  • Hometown: Raleigh, North Carolina
  • Award(s): Korean Service Medal (with 2 bronze stars), United Nations Service Medal
  • Cemetery: Section 10, Row 355. Raleigh National Cemetery, Raleigh, North Carolina
Contributed by Paul Gauthier
2017–2018

Before the War

Colin Alexander Maultsby, Jr. was born in Bennettsville, South Carolina on May 9, 1930. He was the oldest of three boys. Colin’s father, a truck driver, died of an aortic aneurysm on May 4, 1936, and his mother, unable to raise the children on her own, released the boys to the care of the Raleigh Methodist Orphanage. 

Colin, age seven was too old for admission by the orphanage’s standards and he was returned to the care of his grandmother. Not wanting to have the three brothers separated, Mrs. Maultsby convinced the orphanage to re-admit Colin. He lived and attended school there until he graduated from the orphanage high school in 1950.  

Colin worked as a milkman for the Melville Dairy in Raleigh, and married Jeannette Cole on April 21, 1951. Shortly afterwards, he received his draft notice and entered the U.S. Army on June 5, 1951.

Dickie, Charlie & Colin Maultsby, c. 1937. Courtesy of the Maultsby Family.
Dickie, Charlie & Colin Maultsby with their grandmother, Mrs. Mamie Maultsby, c. 1939. Courtesy of the Maultsby Family.

Military Experience

In October 1951, Maultsby arrived in Korea with the 773rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Gun Battalion and was assigned to provide cover for the K55 Airfield outside of Osan, Korea (now Osan Air Base.) This was the only base in Korea entirely constructed by Aviation Engineer units of the nascent U.S. Air Force. 

The 773rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Gun Battalion never came under direct assault by enemy ground troops, but they did face enemy counter-battery fire. When that happened, they took refuge in local caves. The caves offered dubious protection, since they also were used to store the battery’s ammunition. Maultsby’s duties with the 773rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Gun Battalion included maintenance and crewing of the battery’s guns. He was promoted to corporal on January 17, 1953 and departed Korea along with his unit on April 30, 1953.

Collage of photographs of Maultsby’s experience in Korea, 1951–1953. Courtesy of the Maultsby Family.
Maultsby (second from right) and his gun crew in Korea, 1952–1953. Courtesy of the Maultsby Family.
773rd 90mm Anti-aircraft artillery gun in Korea, 1952–1953. Courtesy of the Maultsby Family.

Veteran Experience

Maultsby returned to Raleigh after being separated from active duty but remained in the U.S. Army Reserve for five years. Taking advantage of his G.I. Bill benefits, he  attended Appalachian State University for a short time, but determined that academic life was not for him. He returned to Raleigh and became an insurance adjuster. 

From 1971 to 1975, Maultsby was the director of the La Vernia Boys Ranch in La Vernia, Texas, a ranch for troubled boys. He returned to Raleigh and had many occupations, including courier for the pharmaceutical industry and various positions with the railroad, fulfilling a childhood dream and hobby interest. 

He was active in coaching local boys softball leagues. He and his wife, Jeanette, had four sons, Greg, Danny, David, and Colin. Jeanette, his wife of forty years, passed away in 1990. Maultsby became very interested in veterans affairs and served as the local VFW Post Commander.

Colin A. Maultsby, Jr., c. 1960. Haynes Studio. Courtesy of the Maultsby Family.
The Maultsby family, c. 1968. Courtesy of the Maultsby Family.
Colin and Jeannette Maultsby, c. 1970. Courtesy of the Maultsby Family.

Commemoration

Colin Maultsby, Jr. passed away on January 10, 2015. He leaves a legacy of four sons, six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Colin Maultsby and his four sons, 2014. Courtesy of the Maultsby Family.
Colin Maultsby’s grave at Raleigh National Cemetery in Raleigh, North Carolina, August 31, 2018. Courtesy of Paul Gauthier.
Jeanette Maultsby’s grave at Raleigh National Cemetery in Raleigh, North Carolina, August 31, 2018. Courtesy of Paul Gauthier.

Bibliography

“Colin A. Maultsby.” National Cemetery Administration. Accessed March 19, 2018. https://www.va.gov/oca/index.asp.

Colin A. Maultsby. South Carolina Death Records, 1821-1965. Digital Images http://ancestry.com.

Colin A. Maultsby, Jr., DD-214, Department of the Army, RG 319, National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.

“Colin A. Maultsby, Jr. Obituary.” Legacy.com. Last modified 2018. Accessed March 21, 2018. https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/colin/maultsby-obituary?pid=173829748.

Colin A. Maultsby, Jr. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995. Digital Images http://ancestry.com.

Colin A. Maultsby, Jr. Wake County, NC Marriage Records, 1711-2011. Digital Images http://ancestry.com.

Griffin, William. The Methodist Orphanage/Methodist Home for Children. New Hill, NC: Author, 2011.

Maultsby Family Photographs. 1936-2014. Courtesy of the Maultsby Family.