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name
BYRNES, William J "Billy" - Date of
birth
1913 -
Age
unknown - Place of
birth
New York -
Hometown
Manhattan, New York County, New York
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
32437657 -
Rank
Staff Sergeant -
Function
unknown -
Unit
HQ & HQ Company,
3rd Battalion,
506th Parachute Infantry Regiment,
101st Airborne Division
-
Awards
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
25 September 1944 - Place of
death
In the vicinity of Koevering-Everse, The Netherlands
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| J | 18 | 7 |
Immediate family
-
Members
John M. Byrnes (brother)
More information
F/Sgt Fred Bahlau had just helped to collect the bodies of five killed men and he wanted to spend a moment alone with them. Therefore he sent his assistant, S/Sgt Byrnes, ahead to a battalion meeting being held in a nearby ditch. A few moments later a rifle shot came from the direction of the meeting. S/Sgt Byrnes had been shot in the chest and killed. During the meeting, Capt Anderson, commander of I Company, had inadvertently kicked over a loaded carbine.He was initially buried at the Temporary American Military Cemetery of Son, The Netherlands.
Source of information: Peter Schouteten, Raf Dyckmans, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov, www.ww2-airborne.us, Mark van den Berkmortel, www.ancestry.com - Headstone and Interment Record / U.S. WWII Hospital Admission Card Files, Deliver us from Darkness - courtesy of Joek Hulsmann
Photo source: Peter Schouteten