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name
SCHMIDT, Frederick A - Date of
birth
27 August 1912 -
Age
32 - Place of
birth
Los Angeles County, California -
Hometown
Los Angeles County, California
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O1059050 -
Rank
First Lieutenant -
Function
Company Commander -
Unit
A Company,
1st Battalion,
347th Infantry Regiment,
87th Infantry Division
-
Awards
Bronze Star,
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
17 February 1945 - Place of
death
Hergersberg, Belgium
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Henri-Chapelle
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| G | 10 | 30 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Arthur A. Schmidt (father)
Marjorie M. (Mosher) Schmidt (mother)
Valerie A. Schmidt (sister)
More information
1st Lt Frederick A. Schmidt graduated from Eagle Rock High School in 1931 and graduated from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1935. He was manager of personnel of the Signal Oil & Gas Co, Los Angeles.He enlisted in Los Angeles, California on 24 July 1942 and was sent overseas in October, 1944.
Lt Schmidt was mortally wounded by enemy automatic fire and a small caliber weapon while leading a patrol. He died while being carried back to the position held by his company.
He was first buried at Temporary American Military Cemetery Foy, Belgium.
He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal. The citation reads in part: For heroic achievement in action on 17 February 1945, when his company was facing the Siegfried Line near Losheim, Germany, First Lieutenant Schmidt, while checking his outposts, discovered an enemy patrol approaching his positions. Despite heavy hostile artillery fire, he quickly organized a squad of his men and moved forward to contact the enemy. While fearlessly advancing ahead of his men, he was mortally wounded by enemy machine gun fire.
Source of information: Peter Schouteten, Terry Hirsch, History Book 87th Infantry Division, www.abmc.gov, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov - WWII Enlistment Record, www.ancestry.com - 1940 Census / Chandler Family Tree, The Shield of Phi Kappa PSI - November 1945
Photo source: www.findagrave.com - Des Philippet, The Shield of Phi Kappa PSI - November 1945, University of California at Los Angeles - 1935