Henry Eldridge READ

Source : Frogman

Spouse : Ruby E Reeves

Parents : Henry A & Florence E

Source : F Lavernhe

CEMETERY TEMPORARY of Sainte Mère Eglise #2 N°3586

Story of Cemetery Temporary  

Map of Normandy American Cemetery

Henry E READ is the only son of Henry A and Florence E Williams. 

Married on August 23, 1913, they became parents in June 1914, the family then lived in Cheatham county in TENNESSEE.

Mother Florence died on September 19, 1917, leaving her husband and son alone.

Unfortunately Henry, father suiva, shortly after and in turn passed away in December of the following year.

Henry, then an orphan, was taken away by his maternal grandparents who educated him.  

After 4 years of middle school he left school to work and provide for his family. In early 1940 he worked for the Chrysler Corp at Jefferson Plant in Detroit, MI.

He joined the army in mid-1943 and was sent to Fort Knox in KENTUCKY. He thus integrates the 13th Armored Replacement Battalion, A company in order to supplement the numbers of armoured troops already engaged in the theatres of war.  

He begins on December 16, 1916 the Tank Maintenance Course of Fort Knox to qualify as an armored mechanic and finally in early 1944 he is sent overseas to be assigned to a combat unit. He will thus join company A of the 70th Tank Battalion as T/5, while the unit was stationed in England and preparing for the invasion of the Atlantic Wall.

On June 6, his company was going to support the assault wave on Utah Beach aboard a modified Sherman tank "Duplex Drive" with amphibious skirts to accompany the landing barges. They would continue the fighting until the liberation of Cherbourg at the end of June before descending towards Carentan to start the offensive towards St-Lô. 

On July 12, his tank was going to be destroyed during the fighting to repel the German counter-offensives in the sector, the battalion would be put to rest 3 days later...

Source : Ancestry

Source : archives.gov

 Source : archives.gov