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MITCHELL, Robert Mazyck - Date of
birth
16 October 1915 -
Age
28 - Place of
birth
Greenville, Greenville County, South Carolina -
Hometown
Greenville, Greenville County, South Carolina
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-1287040 -
Rank
First Lieutenant -
Function
unknown -
Unit
I Company,
3rd Battalion,
508th Parachute Infantry Regiment,
82nd Airborne Division
-
Awards
Soldier's Medal,
Bronze Star,
Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
19 September 1944 - Place of
death
Roadblock at Hotel Spijker
Beek, The Netherlands
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| K | 9 | 7 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Alexander R. Mitchell (father)
Mary M. (Lucas) Mitchell (mother)
Mary Mitchell (halfsister)
Harriett Mitchell (halfsister)
Ann R. Mitchell (halfsister)
Margaret Mitchell (halfsister)
Allston T. Mitchell (halfbrother)
Ellison C. Mitchell (halfbrother)
Hume L. Mitchell (brother)
Lewis S. Mitchell (brother)
Elizabeth T. (Snellings) Mitchell (wife)
Alexander R. Mitchell III (son)
More information
Statement from S/Sgt James C. "Buck" Hutto, 82nd Airborne Division, 508 Parachute Infantry Regiment, 3rd Battalion, Company I:"I lost some of my best friends in Holland. My squad leader and assistant squad leader were killed, along with many others. Lt Mitchell, from Greenville, died almost as soon as we hit the ground in Holland. A horrible death - a bullet hit his white phosphorus grenade that hung on his belt and detonated it. The powder never stops burning. He was covered with it. A slow, terrible death...."
He had won the Bronze Star medal and Soldier's medal for the part he played in helping capture Ste. Mere Eglise, France, the Purple Heart for wounds received in the Normandy invasion and his unit had received a Presidential citation for meritorious service.
1st Lt Robert M. Mitchell was first buried at Temporary American Military Cemetery Molenhoek, The Netherlands on 20 September 1944, Plot A, Row 9, Grave 5.
Source of information: Astrid van Erp, Dr. Alex Mitchell, Ralph Peeters, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.fold3.com, www.marketgarden.com, www.ancestry.com - Family Trees / Headstone and Interment Record, www.newspapers.com - The Greenville News
Photo source: www.marketgarden.com, Gerrie Franken - SOHE