PVT William B. “Willie” Gregory
Today we honor and remember PVT William B. Gregory of the 101st Airborne Division, who was killed in The Battle of the Bulge.
On the morning of January 18, 1945, five hundred representative troops from all the divisional units assembled at the square of the battered town Bastogne for a ceremony.
Several Screaming Eagles received the Silver Star Medal, while the mayor of Bastogne presented the city’s flag to the 101st Airborne Division commander, General Maxwell Taylor. General Middleton, the VIII Corps Commander, handed a memorandum receipt to General Taylor for the return of Bastogne. “Condition: Used but serviceable. Kraut disinfected.” (Kraut was a nickname for German soldiers.)
The ceremony was a merry moment for the attendants, but for three WWII Screaming Eagles, there would be no celebration.
On January 18, 1945, SGT Leighton W. Marzlin of Easy Company, 501st PIR; 1LT Lyle C. Fenton of the 506th PIR; and PVT William B. “Willie” Gregory of Easy Company, 327th GIR; all died of wounds sustained earlier during the Battle of the Bulge.
Three more Screaming Eagles had soared to the ultimate height. 🦅
Born in Gregory, Braxton County, West Virginia, on October 12, 1915, PVT Gregory died at the age of 29 on January 18, 1945. He left behind his wife, Reva M. Gregory, his mother, Mrs. Dora Lee (Brown) Gregory, two brothers, and five sisters. His father, James V. Gregory had passed away on May 23, 1942.
PVT William B. Gregory was first buried in the Temporary American Military Cemetery Grand Failly, France, at Section H, Row 4, Grave 89. He now rests eternally at the American War Cemetery Luxembourg, at Plot I, Row 6, Grave 8. PVT Gregory was posthumously awarded a Purple Heart Medal with Oakleaf Cluster.
Lest we forget! 🇺🇸
The sources used for this article are known to the author and available on request.
Let us remember those three troopers ,they deserve not to be forgotten 🫡🇺🇸🫡