Lieutenant Wilmer E Ragsdale USN

Wilmer E Ragsdale was born January 13, 1911 to W.E. and Mary Lula Ragsdale. He was their only child, as his mother died shortly after his birth. He was raised by his father and stepmother in Artesia NM and graduated from Artesia HS. He enrolled and attended NMAMC for one year in 1928-29. He then left to attend the University of Oklahoma where he received his degree in Electrical Engineering. He moved to Chicago and worked for the National Broadcast Corporation (NBC) for three years, then moving to St Louis MO where he worked for Cutler Hammer for three years before entering the US Navy in 1942. He was commissioned and assigned to Special Project Unit “CAST” housed at Squantom NAS in Quincy, Massachusetts. This secret unit was operating out of MIT developing airborne radar. The “CAST” unit was responsible for the airborne testing of the units being developed prior to their deployment into the combat theater. Lt Ragsdale was a qualified pilot upon entry into the Navy and was used as a test pilot as part of the assignment to the unit. His experience led to his designation as the Navy’s Chief Radio Test Engineer.