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name
PIKE, Charles Booth - Date of
birth
14 June 1914 -
Age
30 - Place of
birth
Papillion, Sarpy County, Nebraska -
Hometown
Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-513244 -
Rank
First Lieutenant -
Function
unknown -
Unit
2nd Battalion,
120th Infantry Regiment,
30th Infantry Division
-
Awards
Silver Star,
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
24 March 1945 - Place of
death
In the vicinity of Mehrum-Möllen, south of Wesel, Germany
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| C | 12 | 18 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Charles T. Pike (father)
Lyna S. (Calhoun) Pike (mother)
Alice C. Pike (sister)
Alice W. (Ruth) Pike (wife)
Karen Pike (daughter)
More information
1st Lt Charles B. Pike attended Los Angeles High School and attended the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) here he played football.He was awarded the Silver Star Medal posthumously for actions on 23 February 1945. The citation stated: Lt Pike and four comrades volunteered to take an enemy strongpoint located in a railroad station, despite two platoons not having been able to capture it. Leaving men to cover their advance, they made their way to a position where they knocked out an enemy automatic weapon. Firing and hurling hand grenades, Lt Pike and his comrades rushed the building through a stream of small arms fire and crashed through the doors. Their sudden assault so startled the enemy that their resistance completely collapsed and thirty-three surrendered. Their gallant actions allowed the attack to continue forward.
Source of information: Raf Dyckmans, Astrid van Erp, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.ancestry.com - 1930 Census / Family Trees, www.oldhickory30th.com, www.30thinfantry.org, www.newspapers.com - The San Bernardino County Sun / The Los Angeles Times 11 April 1945
Photo source: www.findagrave.com - Des Philippet, www.findagrave.com - Roberto Guerrero, www.newspapers.com - The Los Angeles Times 11 April 1945