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JAMES C. HUTTO

'Country boy'
stepped up to the plate

   My father James C “Buck" Hutto was a country boy from Gaston the only surviving son in a Depression-era family. He would never own many material things But he helped to save the world.
   Before he was my father he was a combat veteran of World War n in the 82nd Airborne Division. His unit, the 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, fought some of the toughest battles of the war They jumped into Normandy on D-Day. They routed German SS troopers, Hitler’s best,' in Nijmegen Holland to capture a bridge over the Waal River. In December 1944 his unit fought and lived in file miserable bitter cold and snow for weeks in order to close fire lines in file Battle of the Bulge near Bastogne Belgium.
   An unpretentious man, he never used his war experiences to proclaim himself a hero; only a few friends and his wife knew of his distinction as a soldier. His children were unaware of the magnitude of his sacrifices and those of his comrades until we were well into middle age
   My father epitomized the decent and hardworking men who came back from that war\. Men whose integrity was based on the combat-forged conviction that they could depend on their buddies for their lives. Men who understood the sacred meaning of doing one’s duty and exceeding that to ensure the success of their mission..
   Even after having saved the world they did not expect the world to owe them a living. Instead they came home anxious to find work and to be responsible family men.
   On this Memorial Day I think my father would want us to remember his wartime accomplishments and those of others as testament to the valor of his many friends left behind in cemeteries all over Europe. Then he would want us to honor them by enjoying and celebrating American hometown life today. After all it meant the world to than.

SHARON MARKS
Gaston [SC]


(courtesy of Jon Dials)

Memorial marker at Antioch Cemetery
Swansea (Lexington County), South Carolina contains a line of engraving that reads "Int. at Gaston First Baptist"


(courtesy of "Geezers")

Grave marker at First Baptist Church Cemetery, Gaston (Lexington County), South Carolina has a small 82d Airborne insignia separating his dates of birth and death. It is also noted that his wife Marjorie followed him in less than two years time.

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James registered for the draft in Gaston, SC on 30 June 1942 and enlisted in the Army at Fort Jackson, Columbia, SC; on 7 December 1942.

James volunteered to become a parachutist and was assigned to Company I, 508th PIR.

Sgt James C. Hutto received the Bronze Service Arrowhead device for his participation in the Normandy assault. He also was awarded the Purple Heart for a wound sustained on  June 29, 1944.

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