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Carl WILLIAMS
“Cooney”
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Source : Legacy of World War 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NUMBER OF SERVICE | 36070461 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| AGE | 24 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| DATE OF BIRTH | 14 March 1920 Briceville, Anderson, TENNESSEE | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ENLISTMENT STATE | ILLINOIS | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FAMILY | Mother : Reba M. WILLIAMS | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| RANK |
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| FONCTION | Infantry Man - Glider | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| JOB BEFORE ENLISTEMENT |  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| DATE of ENLISTEMENT | 1 July 1941 Harrisburg, Saline, ILLINOIS | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| COMPANY | Company C | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BATTALION | 1st Battalion | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| REGIMENT | 325th Glider Infantry Regiment | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| DIVISION | 82nd Airborne Division | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| DATE OF DEATH | 15 June 1944 |
Source : Dominique Potier | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| STATUS | KIA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PLACE OF DEATH | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| CEMETERY TEMPORARY |
CEMETERY TEMPORARY of Blosville N°3508
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| CEMETERY | NORMANDY AMERICAN CEMETERY of Colleville | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| GRAVE |
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| DECORATION & BADGE |
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| STORY | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Private First Class Carl Williams — C Company, 325th Glider Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, United States Army.
Carl Williams came from Harrisburg, Saline County, Illinois, a southern Illinois community shaped by coal country, farm roads, churches, courthouse streets, and families who knew the names of the young men who left for war.
I could not verify his birth date, parents, or early personal life with strong enough records to include safely. But the remaining military record is clear.
He served as a Private First Class with C Company, 325th Glider Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division.
The 325th was different from the parachute regiments of the 82nd. These men did not jump beneath silk canopies. They rode into battle inside gliders, silent, fragile aircraft with no engines, towed across the sky, and released over enemy territory.
A glider landing was never gentle. The men came in low and fast, vulnerable, carrying weapons, equipment, and the hope that the field below would not be filled with obstacles, enemy fire, or wreckage.
In June 1944, the 82nd Airborne Division went into Normandy as part of the Allied invasion of France.
The 325th Glider Infantry Regiment arrived after the first parachute drops and was committed to the fight inland from Utah Beach. Their mission became part of the struggle around the Merderet River, where bridges, causeways, flooded fields, and German defenses made every movement costly.
The fighting in that sector was brutal. Around La Fière and Cauquigny, American airborne troops fought to hold and expand the bridgehead west of the Merderet.
The 325th helped push into that hard ground during the days after D-Day, joining the battle where the 82nd was trying to secure the routes needed for the advance across the Cotentin Peninsula.
Private First Class Carl Williams died on June 15, 1944. The available records do not give the exact circumstances of his wound or final hours, so his death should not be dressed with imagined details. What can be said truthfully is that he fell during the Normandy campaign, while his regiment was still fighting through the difficult aftermath of the invasion.
He was first buried overseas at Blosville/Carquebut, one of the temporary wartime burial sites used for American dead in France. Today, he rests at Normandy American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer, in Plot C, Row 20, Grave 12.
His medals include the Purple Heart, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, and the World War II Victory Medal.
He was an Illinoisan.
He was a glider infantryman.
He served with the 82nd Airborne in Normandy.
He gave his life in France nine days after D-Day.
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Recensement fédéral des États-Unis de 1930 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source : Ancestry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source : Ancestry |
Harrisburg High School, Harrisburg, ILLINOIS Source : Ancestry | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source : Ancestry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Activated/Activé |
Normandy/Normandie |
| 25 Mar 1942 | Days of Combat/Jour de Combat 422 |
| Casualties/Victimes 9 073 | |
Entered Combat/Entré au combat |
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| 9 Jul 1943 at Sicily | |
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Commanding Generals/Commandants généraux Maj. Gen. Omar Bradley (Mar 42 - Jun 42) |
Campaigns/CampagnesSicily (9 Jul - 17 Aug 43) Normandy (6 Jun 44 - 24 Jul 44) Rhineland (15 Sep 44 - 21 Mar 45) |
CARTE DE CAMPAGNE DU THÉÂTRE MÉDITERRANÉENCAMPAIGN MAP OF THE MEDITERRANEAN THEATER |
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PLAN DE ROUTE DE LA CAMPAGNE - CAMPAIGN ROUTE MAP |
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DIVISION CHRONICLEThe 82d Airborne Division landed at Casablanca, 10 May 1943, and trained. Elements first saw combat in Sicily, when the 505th RCT and part of the 504th dropped behind enemy lines, 9-10 July 1943, at Gela. The remainder of the 504th RCT dropped, 11-12 July 1943, also near Gela, after running friendly naval and ground force fire. Scattered elements formed and fought as ground troops. The elements were flown back to Tunisia for reequipment and returned to Sicily to take off for drop landings on the Salerno beachhead. The 504th Parachute Infantry dropped, 13 September 1943, and the 505th the following night; the 325th landed by boat. These elements bolstered Salerno defenses and fought their way into Naples, 1 October 1943. After a period of occupation duty (and combat for some elements in the Volturno Valley and Anzio beachhead), the Division moved to Ireland, November 1943, and later to England, February 1944, for additional training. Moving in by glider and parachute, troops of the 82d dropped behind enemy lines in Normandy on D-day, 6 June 1944, before ground troops hit the beaches. Cutting off enemy reinforcements, the Division fought its way from Carentan to St. Sauveur-le-Vicomte, fighting 33 days without relief. Relieved on 8 July, it returned to England for refitting. On 17 September, it was dropped at Nijmegen, 50 miles behind enemy lines, and captured the Nijmegen bridge, 20 September, permitting relief of British paratroops by the British 2d Army. After heavy fighting in Holland, the Division was relieved 11 November and rested in France. It was returned to combat, 18 December 1944, to stem the von Rundstedt offensive, blunting the northern salient of the Bulge. It punched through the Siegfried Line in early February 1945, and crossed the Roer, 17 February. Training with new equipment in March, the Division returned to combat, 4 April, patrolling along the Rhine, securing the Koln area, later moving across the Elbe, 30 April, into the Mecklenburg Plain, where, 2 May 1945, the German 21st Army surrendered. |
CHRONIQUE DE DIVISIONLa 82ème division aéroportée a atterri à Casablanca le 10 mai 1943 et s'est entraînée. Les éléments ont d'abord été combattus en Sicile, lorsque le 505ème RCT et une partie du 504ème ont été largués derrière les lignes ennemies, du 9 au 10 juillet 1943, à Gela. Le reste de la 504ème RCT est tombé, du 11 au 12 juillet 1943, également près de Gela, après des tirs amicaux contre des forces navales et terrestres. Des éléments épars se sont formés et se sont battus en tant que troupes au sol. Les éléments ont été rapatriés en Tunisie pour le rééquipement et sont retournés en Sicile pour décoller pour atterrir sur la tête de pont de Salerne. Le 504th Infantry Parachute Infantry est tombé le 13 septembre 1943 et le 505ème le lendemain soir; la 325ème atterrit en bateau. Ces éléments ont renforcé les défenses de Salerno et se sont introduits à Naples, le 1er octobre 1943. Après une période d'occupation (et de combat pour certains éléments dans la vallée de Volturno et la tête de pont d'Anzio), la division s'est installée en Irlande en novembre 1943 , Février 1944, pour une formation supplémentaire. Se déplaçant en planeur et en parachute, les troupes du 82d tombèrent derrière les lignes ennemies en Normandie le 6 juin 1944, avant que les troupes terrestres ne frappent les plages. En coupant les renforts ennemis, la Division se fraya un chemin de Carentan à Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte, combattant 33 jours sans soulagement. Soulagé le 8 juillet, il est retourné en Angleterre pour y être réaménagé. Le 17 septembre, il a été largué à Nimègue, à 50 milles derrière les lignes ennemies, et a capturé le pont de Nimègue, le 20 septembre, permettant ainsi à la 2 e armée britannique de soulager les parachutistes britanniques. Après de violents combats en Hollande, la division est soulagée le 11 novembre et se repose en France. Il fut remis au combat le 18 décembre 1944 pour endiguer l’offensive de von Rundstedt, assourdissant le saillant septentrional des Ardennes. Il a percuté la ligne Siegfried au début de février 1945 et a traversé la Roer le 17 février. S'entraînant avec de nouveaux équipements en mars, la Division est revenue au combat le 4 avril, patrouillant le long du Rhin, sécurisant la région de Koln, traversant ensuite l'Elbe le 30 avril dans la plaine de Mecklenburg où, le 2 mai 1945 s'est rendu. |
| SOURCE INFORMATION & PHOTO | Armydivs.squarespace.com |
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| SOURCE INFORMATION & SOURCE PHOTO | Legacy of World War 2 - Findagrave.com - Abmc.gov - Findagrave.com - Ancestry |
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| EDITORS | Victor, Jean-Philippe, Eric, Henri, Garrett, Clive, Frédéric & Renaud |