Memorial

More information

Pfc Charles W. Clough enlisted at Camp Dodge, Iowa on 26 January 1943.

He was the oldest son of Charles William and ElDona Pearl Clough and had five younger siblings. The family lived in a small house across from the Methodist Church which was the source of many fond memories. One of the highlights of his life was when he attended "Boy's Town" at Camp Dodge in Des Moines. It was sponsored by the American Legion each summer for students completing their junior year of high school.

After graduating from Whitten Consolidated High School in 1942, Charles worked in a variety of carpentry and farm jobs. The community was recovering from the depression and there was not much opportunity for employment.

After his enlistment he took his basic training at Camp Swift, Texas. He was selected for A.S.T.P. (Army Specialized Training Program) and assigned to Texas A&M and later transferred to the Drexel Institute of Technology, Philadelphia, Pa. Due to the acceleration of the War in Europe the group was to be temporarily sent as infantry replacements to Germany. They were scheduled to continue the program at the duration of the war.

Charles was home in Whitten, Iowa on furlough in August 1944. He sent his family a letter in September that he had arrived safety in England. On 7 December his family received the telegram that Charles had been killed by a German sniper in Mullendorf, Germany on Thanksgiving Day.