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name
PITTMAN, Gilbert Ray - Date of
birth
9 October 1922 -
Age
22 - Place of
birth
Charleston, Kanawha County, West Virginia -
Hometown
Fayette County, West Virginia
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
35650418 -
Rank
Private -
Function
unknown -
Unit
B Battery,
285th Field Artillery Observation Battalion
-
Awards
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
17 December 1944 - Place of
death
The field next to the N62, near the crossroads "Five Points"
Baugnez, Belgium
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Henri-Chapelle
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| G | 1 | 41 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Wibur Pittman (father)
Shelvie Pittman (mother)
Ralph E. Pittman (brother)
Gladys A. Pittman (sister)
Shirley B. Pittman (sister)
Violet A. Pittman (sister)
Wilber D. Pittman (brother)
Mary E. Pittman (sister)
Helen V. Pittman (sister)
Nila M. Pittman (sister)
More information
Gilbert Pittman enlisted in Huntington, West Virginia on 5 February 1943.He was one of the victims of Malmedy massacre when German SS soldiers of the 1st Panzer Division captured over 100 American soldiers at Baugnez Crossroads outside Malmedy, Belgium, on 17 December 1944 during the Battle of the Bulge and, under orders to take no prisoners, placed them in an open field and then machine gunned them. When the machine guns stopped, the SS went through the field where some victims were still alive and systematically finished them off with pistols at short range leaving 84 soldiers dead when they had finished. Fortunately, when the machine guns first started shooting, a number of soldiers ran and some managed to escape and tell the story of how the Germans had treated the others who had not survived.
His name is mentioned on the monument on the opposite side of the road.
Source of information: Peter Schouteten, Raf Dyckmans, Terry Hirsch, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov, http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/malmedy_massacre.htm
Photo source: Jac Engels