WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL - PFC Harold D. Bowman

 

Private First Class 

Harold D. Bowman

Insignia of the 8th Army
Motto: Patriae Fidelitas
Loyalty to Country

Born on October 18, 1925, in Richland County, Ohio, to Howard Dewey and Vera Ethel (Miller) Bowman, Harold went to school through his freshman year. He had older siblings, Ruth and Ralph, who were radio musicians in the 1930s, Ralph on guitar and Ruth on violin. Eventually Ralph enlisted and served in the WW II Army.

Harold filled out his draft registration in Richland County on October 19, 1943. At the time, he was employed at Mansfield Tire. A couple months later, on December 10, 1943, he enlisted in the U.S. Army Ground Forces, Co G,

121st Infantry Regiment, 8th Army Infantry Division in Columbus, Ohio.

 In November 1944, his regiment participated in a heavy battle in Huertgen Forest, Germany. They were assisted by tanks, and despite a wicked German counterattack, they secured the forest by November 28.

Members of the 8th Army

PFC Bowman and his regiment continued marching into northern Germany, crossing the Roer River on February 23, 1945. The 121st regiment captured Binsfeld and then continued to cross the Erft Canal on March 1.  It took over for the 1st Division there, maintaining positions along the Rhine River at Rodenkirchen on March 7, 1945. They continued movement across the river and cleared its portion of the Sieg River line with the capture of Siegen. It was during this movement that PFC Bowman was killed on April 5, 1945, at Netphen, Kreis Seigen-Wittgenstein, Nordrhine, Westfalen, Germany.

He was first reported as missing in action on April 21, 1945, but later that was corrected.

He was buried temporarily in Germany but returned home in 1948. The Mansfield-News-Journal reported on November 17, 1948:

"Bodies of 10 War Dead On Way Home to Mansfield Area

Reported Killed in Action was Pfc Harold D. Bowman, 19, son of Mr. and Mrs. Howard Bowman, RFD 1, Mansfield.

Formerly reported Missing in Action in Germany on April 5, Bowman's death was confirmed in the official dispatch received at his home. Overseas since November,1944, Bowman was serving with the 121st Infantry Division of the Ninth Army (8th). He entered service in December 1943, trained at Fort McClelland, Arizona and Camp Shelby, Michigan. He also attended Madison H.S.  One brother, Pfc Ralph Bowman, is now stationed at Camp Howzetl with the infantry."

PFC Bowman's body, along with others, were returned
from Europe on the transport, the Carroll Victory.

The Mansfield News-Journal, Wednesday, December 15, 1948:

"BOWMAN

PFC. Harold D., 20, of RFD Lucas, O., was killed in action in Germany, April 5, 1945. Funeral services will be held at the Wappner Funeral Home Friday at 3:00 p.m. in charge of Rev. B. F. Hagelbarger. Military services will be held at the grave in the I.O.O.F. (Odd Fellows) cemetery in Lucas, Ohio, in charge of the McVey Post American Legion.

The body will arrive Thursday evening at the Wappner Funeral Home where friends may call"

In December 1948, Harold's father ordered this bronze marker for him.

No photo could be found of Private Bowman. If you have a photo and can email it to us, it will be added to this blog post.

Secondly, his connection to Defiance is somewhat of a mystery. He appeared in the Defiance Crescent-News on the casualty list for the county. The online record of his Purple Heart award is also labeled Defiance County. Perhaps he lived and worked here before enlisting? If someone knows the answer to this, please let us know.

Dianne Kline, Researcher

WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL - S2C Robert Lee Huffman

 

Seaman Second Class

Robert Lee Huffman

Robert Lee Huffman

On his 18th birthday in 1943, Robert enlisted in the Navy. Born on March 24, 1925, to Andrew Herbert and Bessie (Uran) Huffman, Robert attended school until 6th grade in the Evansport school.

He had two brothers, James and Herbert; his only sister, Florence, died in 1933.  Robert's father was a lumber dealer and he ran a sawmill where Robert worked after he left school.

On his draft registration, he described himself as having red hair, blue eyes, a ruddy complexion and wearing glasses.

Robert enlisted in the Navy Reserves on July 17, 1943. In September 1943, he trained at the Great Lakes Training Center in Chicago and then in San Francisco.

It was November 1943 before he set out to sea and joined the offensive in the Philippines.

Seaman Huffman was wounded in action in March 1944, and he returned to duty before heading out to Leyte in the Philippines. Assigned to the destroyer, Drayton, on December 12, 1943, It was October 1944 before the ship set off for a five-day trip for patrol and escort duties in the Leyte Gulf.

On December 5, the Drayton was hit by a suicide Japanese bomber in a twin engine bomber. It was a near miss, yet two of the crew were killed on the ship and seven were wounded. An hour later, the Drayton was hit by strafing planes and then later by twelve enemy fighters. One crashed into them, killing six and wounding twelve. Fires occurred onboard and the ship needed immediate help and repairs. The ship sailed unassisted to Manus.  

Seaman Robert Huffman was one of the men killed during this attack.

He was first buried in the Leyte Island Cemetery, but later his body was returned to the United States and his family.

The Crescent-News, August 14, 1948

He was reinterred in the Evansport Cemetery. His obituary appeared in the Crescent-News on September 8, 1948 on page 1:

Evansport Cemetery

Robert Carpenter, Researcher

WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL - PFC Russel Frederick Beiswenger

 

PFC Russel Frederick Beiswenger

After he graduated from Defiance High School, Russel took a job at the Kettenring Golf Club, as a grounds keeper and then as a pro golfer from 1932 - 1943. His parents, Frank N. and Minnie (Ott) Beiswenger had a large family of seven children. 

On April 15, 1939, Russel married Alice E. Carpenter. He was 25 and she was 23. The newlyweds moved into a rented house on State Route 18 in Richland Township and were enumerated there in the 1940 census. He gave his occupation as clerk-manager, while Alice worked as a cook.

He had registered for the draft in 1940.

In May 1943, Russel found himself on a Greyhound bus headed for Camp Perry where he would be inducted into the Army.  His assignment was to Company K, 273rd Infantry, 69th Infantry Division. He took further training at Camp Shelby, Mississippi, and soon found himself in England and then in France.

The Battle of St. Malo

St. Malo was a beautiful, historic town on the Brittany coast of France, known as a resort, but to the Germans and the Americans, its lure was the fine port there. It was the perfect way to get supplies into the troops.  The Germans were there first with a garrison on a small island very near St. Malo. The Americans, French resistors, and the British came to gain control. First, the infantry went through the town to wipe out any German positions there. 

The battle began on August 4, 1944, and PFC Beiswenger was killed in action on August 8th. It was September 2nd before the German garrison could be overcome with great loss of life and destruction. If fact, the port could not be used afterward because it was destroyed so badly.

Crescent-News, August 31, 1944

PFC Beiswenger was first laid to rest in the Brittany American Cemetery in St. James, France, but was returned home in 1948 to rest at Riverside Cemetery in Defiance.

The Crescent- News reported on July 9, 1948: 

His siblings were Glenn W., Earl George, Marjorie (Westrick), Dorothy (Mekus), Franklin Harry, and Donald Lewis Beiswenger.

Riverside Cemetery

Dianne Kline, Researcher

WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL - 2nd Lt Charles Lowell Stuckman

 

2nd Lieutenant Charles Lowell Stuckman

Born in Hicksville, Defiance County, on February 17, 1922, Charles was the son of Tellis Stuckman and Vera A. (Pollock) Stuckman. A 1940 graduate of Hicksville High School, he went by the name of "Lowell," in those days, and he was quite active in many different activities.

On April 20, 1942, Charles enlisted into the Army Air Force at Baer Field, Fort Wayne, Indiana, and then he was sent to Nashville for training. Further training occurred at Maxwell Field, Alabama where he stayed until February 1943. He was assigned to the 67th Flying Training Detachment at Union City, Tennessee, and then at Courtland, Alabama, until May 1943. On November 10, 1943, he was sent to Lincoln, Nebraska, and further assigned to the 790th Bomb Squadron, then to the 67th Bomb Group at Wendover Field, a unit that was preparing to go overseas.

Charles flew the ferry route to England, Trinidad, Brazil, Morocco and Wales and then to the 467th base at Rackheath, Norfolk, England. 

His first mission on his B-24 Liberator was on April 10, 1944, to Bourges, France. 

His second and last mission on April 11, 1944, was to Oschersleben,, Germany. Coming home from the mission and flying low over England, the B-24's control cables snapped, and the bomber crashed near Stalham, England, where he perished.

Charles had reached the rank of 2nd Lieutenant and was awarded

the Purple Heart.

 

                                        Liberator B-24, four engine bomber, widely used in WW II

On August 23, 1943, Charles married Betty Blythe Altman when he was 21, who was left a widow with no children. Her name was mentioned in some obituaries, but not the one below.

The Sherwood Chronicle - July 22, 1948, page 1: 

"RITES TO BE HELD FRIDAY FOR LT. CHARLES STUCKMAN

Private services will be conducted tomorrow (Friday) afternoon from the Perkins and Reeb Funeral Home in Hicksville, for Lt. Charles L. Stuckman, son of Mr. and Mrs. Tellis Stuckman, who was killed in a plane crash on April 11, 1944, over England following a mission over Germany 

The remains arrived in Hicksville yesterday.

Rev. Donald Mumma will preside at the rites, with public graveside ceremonies to be performed by the American Legion and VFW posts.

Lt. Stuckman was the grandson of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Stuckman of near Sherwood, and Mr. and Mrs. Charles Pollock, Ney.  Other survivors in addition to the parents include a twin brother, Loren, and two sisters, Mrs. Marjorie Griffith and Mrs. Gerald McCartney, all of Hicksville."

Graveside rites were held at the Forest Home Cemetery in HIcksville.

Mary Williams, Researcher

WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL - Sgt. Robert H. Maugel

 

Sergeant Robert Harold Maugel

Born in the Farmer area in Defiance County on February 22, 1919, Robert grew up with his parents, Donald W. and Esther D. (Cook) Maugel and his three siblings: Edwin Earl, Marvin D. and Doris Jane.

Robert graduated from Farmer High School in 1941 and went to work at the Handle Factory in Bryan, registering for the draft on June 30, 1942. He enlisted into the Army on February 18, 1943, at Toledo. 

He trained at Camp Perry; Camp Swift, Texas; Shreveport, Louisiana; and San Luis Obispo in California. He took a furlough back home to marry Kuba Karnes from Edgerton on June 26, 1944.

The Edgerton Earth, June 29, 1944

In August, 1944, Kuba Maugel traveled to California with her friend, Miss Rosemary Cape, to visit her husband who was then at San Luis Obispo. 

Robert, who was promoted to Sergeant posthumously, was a part of the 60th Infantry Regiment of the 9th Infantry Division, "Old Reliable."  In early December, he wrote home to his parents that he was on the battlefield for five days and when writing, had been sent back for a five-day rest. They were in Camp Elsenborn, Belgium, from November 14, 1944, as a place for training in the forest and rough terrain, along with road marches for conditioning. The unit was getting ready to pave the way into Germany.

"The training got them into the right spirit. Early December, the feeling of the 2nd Battalion, 39th Infantry Regiment was fresh, rested, over-strength and high in morale."

The 60th Infantry Regiment was marched through Belgium with the intent to penetrate the German border. They were involved in the Battle of Hurtgen Forest, a battle that saw the loss of 55,000 total American casualties, as compared to 28,000 German.

The Hurtgenwald was a rough, wooded and hilly terrain; it was difficult to get supplies in and the use of vehicles was restricted because of the narrow, muddy roads. The Germans had the forest ready with many defensive measures - mines, pillboxes, traps and bunkers. The Americans called it the "Green Hell" or "The Death Machine." Cold, rain, snow, along with frostbite, trenchfoot, and bodies everywhere created an unbelievable environment for our soldiers.

The heat of the battle was December 10-12, 1944, right before the Battle of the Bulge which started Dec. 16. Our American commanders decided to send in one army division at a time, which ate up U.S. soldiers quickly. It was criticized as an unwise approach that cost us many men. Sgt. Maugel was in the midst of this when he was hit by a machine gun bullet in the thorax. His hospital admission record stated that he was brought to the hospital with this wound where he died.

First Robert was listed as Missing in Action near Dickrich, Luxembourg, but later he was confirmed as Killed in Action in Belgium. In the January 10, 1945, Crescent-News:

"ROBERT MAUGEL FALLS IN BATTLE

Farmer Township Corporal 54th Victim of War from County

Farmer, Jan. 10 - Corp. Robert H. Maugel, son of Mr. and Mrs. Donald Maugel, has been killed in battle in Belgium, according to word received by his parents, two miles northwest of Farmer.

Corp Maugel, the 54th war victim from Defiance county, previously had been listed as missing in action. No details of his death were contained in the War Department telegram.

Corp. Maugel was employed in Bryan at the time of his induction and was sent to service through the Bryan draft board. He had been overseas for several months.

He leaves his wife, the former Kuba Karnes of Edgerton; his parents; two brothers, Edwin in the Navy somewhere in the Pacific, and Marvin, at home; a sister, June, at home and a grandmother, Mrs. Laura Maugel, Farmer.

Memorial services are to be held from St. Patrick Catholic church in Edgerton, Thursday morning."

Sergeant Robert Maugel was interred in Henri-Chappelle, Arrondisement de Verners, Liege, Belgium.  A memorial marker was also placed in Farmer Cemetery.

Farmer Cemetery

Dan Hasch, Researcher

Sidenote:  His brother, Ed Maugel, was serving on the USS Haynesworth in the Pacific.

WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL - 1st Lt. Edward Carl Winkle

 

First Lieutenant

Edward Carl Winkle

Edward C. Winkle

   Known as "Red" to his friends and family,    Edward  Winkle was the son of Moses and Mary Ellen  (Rayle) Winkle (died 1939). Born June 7, 1918, in  Belmore (near Leipsic), Putnam County, Ohio, he was a graduate of Leipsic High School and Tiffin Business College.

By the time of his draft registration at age 22,  he lived at 223 Jackson Avenue, Defiance, where he worked at the City Loan and Guaranty Company on Clinton Street.  With gray eyes and red hair, he was about 5'8" tall and 150 pounds.

He enlisted in the Army on February 4, 1942, at Camp Perry near Port Clinton, trained at Fort McClellan, Alabama, Fort Benning, Georgia and Camp Shelby, Mississippi.

In June of 1942, Corporal Edward Winkle and his brother were both home on furlough when they had a frightening auto accident as reported in the Findlay Republican Courier on June 25, 1942:

"WINKLE BROTHERS HURT ON FURLOUGH

Corporals Wilbur and Edward Winkle in Defiance Hospital After Wreck

Continental, June 24 - 

Corp. Wilbur Dale Winkle of Ft. Jackson, S.C. and Corp. Edward Winkle of Fort McClellan, Ala. were injured when the car in which they were occupants with Mr. and Mrs. L. H. Myer, and Miss Hazel Moog, of Leipsic, went out of control on state route 15 south of Rice at 8 o'clock Wednesday evening."

The Winkle brothers were taken to Defiance Hospital in the R.A. Walls and Sons ambulance. Edward was reported as unconscious on admittance to the hospital. Extent of their injuries has not been determined.

Other members of the group escaped with cuts and bruises. The car was extensively damaged. No cause was given for loss of control.

Wilbur and (Edward) Winkle, both corporals with the armed forces, were spending a furlough at the Moses Winkle home near Leipsic. They were granted permission by the commanding officers to spend their furlough home together."

Apparently, Edward recovered and went back into his training, while on another furlough, he married Hazel Moog of Ney on September 9, 1943. She was the daughter of Port and Margaret (Walsh) Moog. They married in the Bethel Evangelical Church in Leipsic with the bride's sister, Iris Donze, of Ney, as maid of honor. Hazel was a graduate of Ney High School and was employed at the Automatic Screw Company. By September 22, after a 15 day leave, he went back to Fort Benning, Georgia, with his bride accompanying him. (Crescent-News, September 16, 1943.)

Insignia for the 79th Infantry Division
The Cross of Lorraine

Insignia for the 314th Regiment,
Falcon with 3 fleur-de-lis 
Motto: Fortitude and Courage

          

On June 2, 1944, Lt. Winkle landed overseas in as part of the 314th Infantry Regiment, 79th Infantry Division. They went into France, chasing the German enemy back and liberating some of the towns along the way.  In July, they liberated Cherbourg and went on to liberate Paris after which the Germans were in full retreat.

The 314th in the foxholes

On October 1st, 1944, the day 1st Lt. Edward Winkle was killed in action, the 79th division was advancing through a forest in France on roads that had to be constructed as they went, all under fire and in knee-deep mud, as stated in the division's history: 

"One rainy, miserable day we got a call to clear a minefield. The first 100 yards of so-called road were clear. Then we came to a knocked-out jeep, two dead medics, victims of a Regal mine. Bouncing Bettys (5 mines together full of schrapnel) were all around. We started clearing the quagmire - and somebody stepped on a Betty. There were five casualties in the space of seconds. The rest of us gave them first aid and carried them out on makeshift litters."(The 313th, 314th, and 315th regiments were involved.) We cannot be sure this was the incident that caused Lt. Winkle's death, but it is a likely choice.

A Bouncing Betty

The Defiance Crescent-News reported on October 23, 1944:

"LT E. C. WINKLE KILLED IN ACTION

Former City Loan Employee Leaves Wife, Sister in Defiance

1st Lt. Edward C. (Red) Winkle, 26, former employee of the City Loan and Guaranty Co. here, was killed in action in France Oct. 1, according to a telegram received Saturday by his wife, the former Hazel Moog, of Ney.

Lieut. Winkle, a native of Belmore, joined the City Loan staff here June 10, 1939. He was inducted Feb. 4, 1942, and received his training at Fort Benning, Ga., Fort McClellan, Ala., and Camp Shelby, Hattiesburg, Miss.

He was sent overseas last May, arriving in England June 2. He did not participate in the D-Day invasion, but entered France shortly after. He was in the infantry.

He leaves his wife Hazel, 311 Wayne Ave.; his father, Moses Winkler, Belmore; two brothers, Sgt. Wilbur, somewhere in France, and Orville, Belmore, and five sisters, Mrs. Mildred Fenstermaker, 311 Wayne Ave; Mrs. Lulu Warren, Leipsic; Mrs. Violet Thuman, Belmore; Mrs. Orpha Dillon, Findlay, and Miss Edna, at home."

Lorraine American Cemetery and Memorial Park near St. Avoid, Lorraine, France.

1st Lieutenant Edward "Red" Winkle was buried in France, and a memorial service was held for him at the Bethel Evangelical Church on March 15, 1945. He received a Purple Heart posthumously.

Rhonda Casler, Researcher

Side Note

:

Hazel Moog Winkle remarried to Major Daniel H. Forbes Jr. in March of 1948 in Ney, about three months before he died at the age of 27 while testing an experimental plane called the "Flying Wing." The plane exploded during a flight cut at the Muroe Air Force Base in California on June 5, killing all five crew members. Major Forbes had been in the Army seven years in the Africa, Sicily and the Pacific campaigns. He also studied photography and was a member of Elliot Roosevelt's photographers squadron in Tunisia, Algeria, India and Egypt, and he took the first pictures of Japan from the air. 

YB-49 Flying Wing jet, 1948

When he came back to the United States , he was assigned to the atomic bomb project at Bikini, as a photographer. Several weeks before the crash, he was called to duty with the flight test section, as he was also a pilot.

Forbes Air Force Base was dedicated to him in July 1948; it was located in Topeka, Kansas. His widow and her sister, Mr. and Mrs. Holice Donze of Ney, Mrs. Margaret Moog, Mrs. Ethel Marchel, and Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Meyers of Defiance attended.

Another marriage has not been found conclusively.  Maybe a friend or relative would know.

WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL - S/Sgt. Jennings C. Greuter

 

Staff Sergeant Jennings Closson Greuter

His name is the last one on the monument, out of order alphabetically. Thanks to the work of Wimm and Nadine Jacobs, keepers of Greuter's grave in Belgium, Kent Miller, World War II historian from Hicksville,, and Tanya Brunner of the Defiance County Veterans Office, this lost soldier was found. His name was engraved on the stone in 2011. in 2000 and before the monument was erected, no evidence could be found of a Defiance County connection with Greuter, but later, with more resources available, it became obvious that he was a native son.

Sources name both Paulding County (draft card) and Defiance County as his birthplace on April 5, 1923.

His parents, Elmer and Pearl Greuter, definitely lived in Defiance, at 840 Perry Street, in 1930, when the Federal Census was taken.  Elmer was a truck driver for a poultry farm and Jennings, 7, was the oldest son.  By 1940, they had moved to Jackson Township in Paulding County. Jennings, 17, worked on a farm, and he was surrounded by eight siblings, with the last, Jannett, being three years old.

On June 30, 1942, Jennings filled out his draft registration. Later, in February 1943, he travelled to Toledo to enlist in the U. S. Army Air Force. He was single with a grammar school education, and his skill was as a mechanic, repairing motor vehicles. Pvt. Greuter was assigned to the 338th Bomber Squad, 96th Bomber Group (Heavy), and trained as a tail gunner.

At some point, perhaps on a furlough, he married Alies (Alice) Stark, daughter of Joseph and Grace (Caspers) Stark. She lived in Hicksville while he was away, and gave birth to a son, Lawrence, in November 1944. He was never to meet his father who died May 12, 1944.

The bomber crew, SSgt Jenning Greuter, in the back row at the far right. He is with his
B-17 flight crew, part of the 338th Bomber Squadron of the 96th Bomber Group.

"The flight left Frankfort, Germany, on May 12, 1944 on Greuter's mission. The target that day was the oil refineries at Brux, Czechoslovakia. The 8th Army Air Corp took heavy losses that day to both enemy planes and flak.

Greuter's plane was hit and went into a spin. According to the Missing Air Crew Report #5359, Greuter was last heard from inside the plane when he cried out over the interphone, wondering, 'What has happened?' in the first spin.

He did not make it out of the plane and went down with the aircraft. Six of the men were killed in action; four of the men were captured and served as prisoners of war. (Greuter was KIA.)

Any remains that were recovered were buried in the Community Cemetery at Usingen/Tanus in the southwest corner in a common grave on May 13, 1944. The bodies were later exhumed and put into the American military cemetery in Belgium."

Kent Miller

Because of this Belgian couple, Sgt Jennings Greuter, was honored rightfully in his hometown. As they commented in a Crescent-News article on October 17, 2016:

"The name of Staff Sergeant Jennings C. Greuter listed on the memorial is very important to us. It is a form of recognition for an achievement that has been delivered and should never be forgotten...

This generation gave their lives for our freedom and should never be forgotten" they said. "Passing on this information to future generations is very important to us."

His son, Lawrence (Larry) was able to attend the dedication of his father's name on the monument.

Sgt. Greuter received both the Purple Heart and the Army Air Medal.

Researchers - Robert Carpenter, Kent Miller, and Tanya Brunner

WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL - Private Robert E. Worden

 

Private Robert Elton Worden

Robert Worden's life was spent back and forth across state lines, between Scipio Township, Allen County, Indiana, and Hicksville, Ohio.  He was born to Henry Leroy and Edna Cecelia (Zuber) Worden in Scipio Township on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1921. 

 

He lived on Dixon Avenue in Hicksville village .at the time he applied for his draft card, and he held a job at the Auburn Rubber Company. At the time, he was 5'8" and 125 pounds.

In October 1942, he travelled to Toledo to enlist in the U.S. Army. Robert became part of the 22nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Army Division, 3rd Battalion. After training in Indiana, off he went overseas to England and then the next stop, Normandy.

The hedgerows of Normandy

The attack on Normandy began on June 6, 1944. Private Worden's unit, the 22nd Infantry, assaulted on Utah Beach, landing in small crafts, ready to attack on the 8th.  On July 11, 1944, the Third Battalion was preparing to attack the village of Ozeville/Azeville.

An attempt was made to seize Cresberq and Azeville, but the attack was repulsed with heavy losses in the 1st and 2nd Battalion... The third Battalion was brought inland to attack Azeville. They moved up in preparation to attack, but enemy artillery and mortar fire caused a large number of casualties, and the strength of all five battalions was appreciably reduced. These were the conditions when Private Robert Worden lost his life on July 11, 1944.

"ROBERT WORDEN IS KILLED JULY 11

Hicksville Man Participates in Invasion, Loses Life in Normandy

Hicksville, Aug. 10 - Pvt. Robert E. Worden, 23, was killed in action on July 11 in Normandy as a member of the invasion forces, according to the War Department notification that had been received today by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Harry Worden, Dixon Avenue.

He was the 36th from Defiance County to lose his life in service of his country.

In addition to his parents, Private Worden leaves two brothers, Charles and Calvin Worden, Hicksville; and three sisters, Mrs. Florence Trostell, St. Joe, Ind, Mrs. Rose Betz, Grabill, Ind., and Miss Garnet Worden, at home.

Private Worden was inducted from Defiance Oct 12, 1942, while employed at the Wayne Knitting Mills, Fort Wayne. He went to Camp Atterbury, Ind. and later trained in the 22nd Infantry, 3rd Battalion in Tennessee. He went overseas last January, received further training in England and then participated in the invasion.

He was born in Springfield township, Allen County, Indiana, and came to Hicksville with his parents where he grew to manhood."

Defiance Crescent-News, August 10, 1944, page 1

Pvt. Worden was originally buried in France at Sainte Mere, Eglise Cemetery, and it was 1948 before his body was returned from France. 

He travelled home on the U.S. Army transport, the Greenville Victory, to New York City.  From there he was brought home with a military escort to be buried at Scipio Cemetery in Indiana.

Scipio Cemetery, Indiana

In the Defiance Crescent-News on July 15, 1948, pg. 1:

"PVT WORDEN'S RITES SUNDAY

Hicksville Soldier's Body Will Arrive Friday From Europe

Hicksville, July 15 - The body of Pvt. Robert E. Worden, who lost his life July 11, 1944, while serving in the European Theater will arrive in Hicksville on the B & O Friday at 9:19 a.m.

It will be taken to the Perkins and Reeb funeral home where services will be held Sunday at 2:30 p.m.  Rev Cleo Roth, Ev. Brethren minister, will officiate and gravesite rites will be conducted at Scipio Cemetery by Edward C. Smart post, American Legion and the VFW.

Pvt Worden was awarded the Silver Star posthumously, for gallantry in action.

He was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Worden, 311 Dixon Street. He also leaves two brothers, Charles and Calvin Worden, Hicksville, and three sisters: Mrs. Florence Trostel, Butler, Ind., Mrs. Rose Betts, Harlan, Ind., and Garnet Worden, at home.

He was born December 24, 1921 in Scipio tp., Allen county, Indiana. He was graduated from Harlan high school and then was employed in Auburn and Ft. Wayne.

He was inducted into service Oct. 25, 1942, going to Camp Atterbury. He went overseas in January 1944 and was in England before entering combat service in the continent."

He also received the Purple Heart and the World War II Victory Medal.

Dianne Kline, Researcher