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name
WALKER, Benjamin Pershing - Date of
birth
13 December 1921 -
Age
23 -
Place of birth
Paxton Township, Ford County, Illinois -
Hometown
Ford County, Illinois
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
16077365 -
Rank
Private First Class -
Function
Medical Aidman -
Unit
504th Parachute Infantry Regiment,
82nd Airborne Division,
Medical Detachment
-
Awards
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
2 February 1945 - Place of
death
Near the Wilsam Brook between Neuhof and Frauenkron
Mertesrott Heights, Germany
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Henri-Chapelle
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| D | 11 | 34 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Neva Walker (mother)
Willie Walker (brother)
Velma Walker (sister)
Vernon Walker (brother)
Karie Walker (sister)
More information
Pfc Benjamin P. Walker graduated from Paxton Community High School in 1942 and was a machine operator.He volunteered for the Air Corps of Army of the United States in Chicago, Illinois on 30 March 1942 and was later transferred to the paratroopers.
He was awarded the Silver Star Medal posthumously. The citation cited: For gallantry in action on 2 February 1945 in Germany. During an assault upon a strongly defended enemy position one of the assault squad was seriously wounded, Pfc Walker, an aid-man, with no thought for his personal safety, left his position of comparative safety and rushed forward to the wounded man despite intens machine gun and sniper fire. Disregarding the hail of enemy bullets, he administered first aid in the exposed position. When he attempted to carry the casualty to safety, Pfc Walker was seriously wounded himself. The supreme heroism and high conception of duty displayed by Pfc Walker were a tribute to himself and the Medical Corps.
Source of information: Frank van Lunteren, Peter Schouteten, Terry Hirsch, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov - WWII Enlistment Record, www.newspapers.com - The Pantagraph / The Paxton Record - 11 October 1945, www.ancestry.com - 1930/1940 Census / Headstone and Interment Record, Monty McDaniel
Photo source: Peter Schouteten, Paxton Carnegie Library / Paxton High School Year Book - 1941