Grave markers for Nathaniel R. Hoskot and his wife Ellenor
K. Hoskot in Section: 66, Site:
2928-A-1 of the Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington (Arlington
county), Virginia. Ellenor survived her husband by less than two
months.
Nathaniel, nicknamed "Nat", entered service on 31 August 1940. He was a
graduate of the University of California at Berkeley, Class of '33 and
member of Phi Delta Theta and other honor societies..
Major Hoskot joined the 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment
on 24 June 1943 at
Camp Mackall, North Carolina and was attached to the regimental
headquarters company.
Lt. Colonel Hoskot Hoskot,
still with the 508th,
was assigned as the Liaison Officer between the 82nd and the 101st
Divisions going into
Normandy. Unfortunately he was taken prisoner in France on D-Day and
on June 7 (D+1) he and many other American
prisoners were loaded onto German trucks with canvas covers. The
convoy was heading toward Saint Lo when the trucks ware strafed by
Allied fighter aircraft. As a consequence, 19 prisoners were
killed and about 80 were wounded.
Those who were either
unwounded or only slight injured helped
to bury the dead in a small cemetery next to a nearby church.
Although Lt. Colonel Hoskot was not a chaplain he officiated over each burial.
The survivors were then taken to a POW camp.
Nathanial was released from the Oflag 64 POW camp in 1945 and returned
to active duty. He was sent TDY to Normandy
to help identify those 19 paratroopers as they were disinterred from the church cemetery. He
also wrote to the widows of the men he had helped bury.
Lt. Col Hoskot was awarded the Silver Star
on 6 March 1946, presumably due to his actions during the 7 June 44
strafing incident. He went on to serve in Korea where he earned the Purple Heart.
His military decorations also include the Army Legion of Merit (AM), the
Bronze Star with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster and
the Prisoner of War Medal.
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