Admiral Benson passenger list showing William Kalkreuth
on line 50 |
William T.
Kalkreuth enlisted
n the Army on 13 Jan 1943 and volunteered for parachutist duty.
Following basic training and completion of jump school he was
transferred to the 508th at Camp Mackall, NC where he was assigned to
Company B. He jumped into Normandy on D-Day, 6
June 1944, and was in combat for 33 days until the regiment was
relieved.
William also participated in the Operation
Market-Garden jump on 17 Sept 1944 but had the misfortune of being
captured the following day. He was released to U.S. control from
Stalag 2A Neubrandenburg Mecklenberg 53-13 in 1945.
Pfc
Kalkreuth was among some 5,000 POW's on
board the USS Admiral W. S. Benson (AP-120) when it arrived in New York
City harbor on 12 June 1945,
William died on 6 July 1996 in Canton,
Stark County, OH |
