Home
What's New
Search Engine
Archives
Odyssey
Photo Gallery
Unit History
Unit Honors
TAPS
Voices Of Past
F&F Association
How To Submit

Back Up Next

FRANCE NEWSLINE (6)

[The Times, Munster, IN, Wed., July 5, 1944, Page 13]

Elmhurst Chutist, Knocked Out
   In French Invasion, Becomes Hero

   U.S. HOSPITAL, SOMEWHERE IN ENGLAND --- (INS) --- Cpl William L. Lyles of Elmhurst, Ill, who was knocked unconscious when he dropped into France with his squad [of] paratroopers but recovered sufficiently to cover himself with glory in the ensuing battles, told the story of his unique experience.
   Young Lyles, the son of Lee Lyles, assistant to the president of the Santa Fe railway, is recovering from bullet wounds he received when he led his squad in a daring attack to eliminate snipers from a key French village.
   When he dropped into France on D-Day, the corporal landed on the doorstep of a farmhouse with such force that it knocked him out temporarily.
   "When I came to," Lyles recalled today, "there was a Frenchman pouring cold water over my head to revive me.  Then he brought me a glass of cognac and that really did the trick."
   The Frenchman told Lyles that the road beyond the farm was covered with German machineguns.  It was the road he was supposed to cross in order to contact his battalion command post which was scheduled to be established in that vicinity.

   The Frenchman drew a rough map for the American youth, showing him how to avoid the Nazi machineguns in reaching his destination.
   Lyle [sic] contacted his battalion commander and other members of his unit just in time to join them in blowing up a German-held bridge.
   "Then we made two forced marches across the river and got another bridge which we were supposed to hold while our engineers repaired it," Lyles recalled.  "We held it all right."
   "After that, our unit was designated to attack a village where the Germans were strongly entrenched."
   Lyles and his squad advanced across fields under heavy fire and broke into the center of the village where they met a hail of snipers' bullets.
   Lyles led his squad into one end of the village to clear out the snipers.  They advanced slowly to avoid mines and booby traps.
   Near a small bridge there, Lyles was hit in the left leg by several snipers' bullets and fell.

A second version of this article appeared the same day on page 6 of the Tipton Daily Tribune, Tipton, IN. It reads exactly the same but adds some pertinent closing paragraphs after the point where Lyles fell wounded.

.   He was given first aid by Private Leo McShane of Erie, Pa. and first Lieut. Hoyt Goodale of South Carolina attended to Lyles' wounds immediately.
   The lieutenant used a rifle as an improvised splint.  With the help of Private Joseph Thornton of Atlanta Ga., Goodale and McShane moved Lyles to a roadside ditch.  Then they got a wooden door from a damaged house and used it as a stretcher to carry the corporal to an occupied part of the town where the medical corps gave him additional treatment.  He was taken back to the beachhead and returned to England aboard an LST ship for hospitalization.


 

Copyright and all other rights reserved by the Family and Friends of The 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment Association or by those who are otherwise cited,
For problems or questions regarding this web site, please contact
Jumpmaster.