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name
DIKOON, Walter - Date of
birth
4 May 1924 -
Age
20 - Place of
birth
Rhode Island -
Hometown
Providence County, Rhode Island
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
11096625 -
Rank
Private -
Function
Scout -
Unit
A Company,
1st Battalion,
508th Parachute Infantry Regiment,
82nd Airborne Division,
1st Platoon
-
Awards
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
21 September 1944 - Place of
death
Keizer Karelplein
Nijmegen, The Netherlands
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| F | 4 | 10 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Andrew Dikoon (father)
Mary (Kuciarski) Dikoon (mother)
John Dikoon (brother)
Olga Dikoon (sister)
Mary Dikoon (wife)
More information
Pvt Walter Dikoon attended Candance Public School.He volunteered for the Army of the United States on 8 October 1942 in Providence, Rhode Island.
Of the incident in which Pvt Dikoon was killed exists two versions. The first version is mentioned in the book "The Sword of St. Michael" of Guy Lofaro, the second version is mentioned in the book "Als sterren van de hemel" of Norbert A. de Groot:
"A Company was accompanied by Geert van Hees, a member of the local resistance movement, who rode his bicycle in front and checked every intersection to see if there was no sign of the enemy. When they arrived at the Keizer Karelplein, van Hees advised to wait while he went to the headquarters of the resistance, which was located at the square. However, they did not see van Hees again because he was taken prisoner by SS soldiers. Because he did not return, Dikoon and his platoon leader Lt Layman carefully went to see what was going on. In the meantime it was already after 8.30 pm. and dark, and when they arrived in the square they heard a sharp "Halt", undeniably in German, followed by a long burst from a Schmeiser submachine gun, which killed Dikoon and wounded Layman."
"The vanguard at this time was again formed by Lt John Foley's platoon, including Jim Bleu. During a post-war reconstruction of Jim Blue he reconstructed the action and when he walked the same route again in the evening, realistically telling the following story: The Dutch guide who had driven ahead shouted from St. Annastraat: "Germans!". This resulted in a firefight and bullets flew around our ears. At that moment I was squatting on the corner of Sloetstraat (behind theater De Vereeniging) and felt a clammy fence. We never saw the brave Dutch guide again.
Our scout Walter Dikoon volunteered to silence that bitch (machine gun nest) if we got him a BAR. Captain Adams was pissed that there was a long debate to give Dikoon a BAR and decided to give him one. Dikoon crept forward with the BAR and disappeared into the darkness. The exciting silence that followed was torn apart by the dry roll of a BAR followed by a shouting: "I've got it! I've got it!" This was the last we heard from Dikoon, because at that moment a second Spandau opened fire and killed Walter. Then we went with the whole platoon against it and shot us over the intersection and the rest of the company followed."
He was first buried at the Temporary American Military Cemetery of Molenhoek, near Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
Source of information: Raf Dyckmans, WWII Memorial, Fold3, Market Garden, www.ancestry.com - Headstone and Interment Record / 1940 Census
Photo source: Find a Grave, www.tracesofwar.com