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name
PEARSON, Merlyn William - Date of
birth
17 September 1920 -
Age
24 - Place of
birth
Trail Creek, La Porte County, Indiana -
Hometown
Trail Creek, La Porte County, Indiana
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
35561041 -
Rank
Technician Fifth Grade -
Function
unknown -
Unit
K Company,
3rd Battalion,
120th Infantry Regiment,
30th Infantry Division
-
Awards
Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster,
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Missing in Action - Date of
death
25 December 1944 - Place of
death
Malmedy, Belgium
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Ardennes - Tablets of the Missing
Immediate family
-
Members
George Pearson (father)
Clara Pearson (mother)
More information
T/5 Merlyn W. Pearson graduated from Elston High School and was a foreman.He enlisted in Indianapolis, Indiana on 5 October 1942.
On 23, 24 and 25 December 1944 the city center of Malmédy was bombed repeatedly by the United States Army Air Forces in a series of friendly fire incidents. Approximately 200 civilians were killed in the tragic attacks, while the number of American casualties has never been revealed by the United States Department of Defense. It is estimated that 69 American servicemen lost their lives of which a great number is still listed as missing in action. Merlyn Pearson was one of those casualties of friendly fire.
He is remembered at the Greenwood Cemetery in Michigan City, La Porte County, Indiana.
The picture was taken in high school in 1938.
Source of information: Raf Dyckmans, Terry Hirsch, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov - WWII Enlistment Record, www.ancestry.com - 1940 Census, www.oldhickory30th.com, WWII Draft Card
Photo source: FOHF, Elston High School Yearbook 1938 - courtesy of Kathy McDermott