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name
WILSON, Ralph Wesley - Date of
birth
20 June 1925 -
Age
19 - Place of
birth
Wellsville, Columbiana County, Ohio -
Hometown
Wellsville, Columbiana County, Ohio
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
35921210 -
Rank
Private -
Function
Ammunition Handler -
Unit
C Company,
51st Armored Infantry Battalion,
4th Armored Division
-
Awards
Silver Star,
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Died of Wounds - Date of
death
4 January 1945 - Place of
death
In the vicinity of Lutrebois, Belgium
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Luxembourg
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| I | 10 | 4 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Wesley J. Wilson (father)
Ellena (Kenney) Wilson (mother)
Robert J. Wilson (brother)
Sarah C. Wilson (sister)
Morris G. Wilson (brother)
More information
Pvt Ralph W. Wilson attended Wellsville High School when he enlisted in Cleveland, Ohio on 9 November 1943. He was sent overseas in May 1944.Pvt Wilson was awarded the Silver Star Medal postumously. The citation stated: " On 29 December 1944, Pvt Wilson volunteered with two other men to destroy two 20 mm AA guns abandoned by the Germans on a hill south of Bastogne, Belgium. Immediately after the two guns were destroyed, the trio came under heavy machinegun fire and one of the men fell wounded. Pvt Wilson, without regard for his personal safety or the danger involved, went to the aid of the wounded man and removed him out of the line of fire to a place of comparative safety. This area was under direct obeservation of the enemy and still under fire"
At the time of his death his brother Robert served with the Navy in the Pacific and his brother Morris was serving on the European front.
He was initially buried at the Temporary American Military Cemetery of Grand Failly, France.
Source of information: André Koch, www.abmc.gov, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov - WWII Enlistment Record, www.ancestry.com - Headstone and Interment Record / Ryan's Family Tree, AAR 51st AIB August 44 thru May 1945, www.newspapers.com - The Evening Review - 23 January 1945 / 16 April 1945
Photo source: Peter Schouteten, www.newspaperarchive.com - East Liverpool Review - 29 January 1945