Maitland developer, WWII pilot Clayton dies at age 96

Wilson Malcolm Clayton had a hand in building much of Maitland — but only after he piloted an L-4 Piper Cub airplane behind enemy lines in the Battle of the Bulge.

Clayton, known to family and friends as Malcolm, died July 27 in Orlando. He was 96. The retired U.S. Army captain ran Clayton’s Realty for more than six decades, most of them alongside his cousin Charlie Clayton, said Ken Clayton, Malcolm’s son.

Under their leadership, the company built more than 5,000 homes and about 60 subdivisions, including English Estates, Dommerich and Lake Colony.

“They built most of Maitland,” said Ken Clayton, a real-estate attorney. “It’s a real rags-toriches type of story.”

For much of their lives, Malcolm and Charlie were together. They grew up together in Live Oak, went to the University of Florida and then entered the U.S. Army together.

During the war, both Claytons were liaison pilots who helped artillery units properly target enemies.

“They were over enemy lines a number of times,” Ken Clayton said. “The whole deal was, you didn’t want to get hit because there was nothing on that plane that would stop a bullet.”

Malcom left the Army in 1945 and moved to Orlando with Charlie where they started their real-estate business in 1947. Charlie died in 2009. Besides homes, the cousins also built several schools, shopping centers and office parks.

Ken Clayton said his father had a knack for identifying valuable properties near expressways and built up much of the area surrounding the Lee Road interchange at Interstate 4.

He is survived by Mary Damon, his wife of 69 years, and six children. His funeral is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday at First Presbyterian Church in Orlando.

“He was a very kind man, a great father and a great leader,” Ken Clayton said. “He was always a strong man of faith and always a generous man.”