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PVT Burl William Ailey
Monument

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PVT Burl William Ailey

Birth
Jefferson County, Tennessee, USA
Death
25 Dec 1944 (aged 18)
At Sea
Monument
Colleville-sur-Mer, Departement du Calvados, Basse-Normandie, France Add to Map
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Killed aboard the SS Leopoldville. On Christmas Eve 1944, the Belgium troopship Leopoldville, left the pier at Southampton, England with over 2,000 American soldiers assigned to the 66th Infantry Division and crossed the English Channel to France. Just 5 1/2 miles from its destination, Cherbourg, the Leopoldville was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-486. There were 763 American soldiers killed and the bodies of 493 were never recovered from the Channel’s frigid 48 degree waters.
Killed aboard the SS Leopoldville. On Christmas Eve 1944, the Belgium troopship Leopoldville, left the pier at Southampton, England with over 2,000 American soldiers assigned to the 66th Infantry Division and crossed the English Channel to France. Just 5 1/2 miles from its destination, Cherbourg, the Leopoldville was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-486. There were 763 American soldiers killed and the bodies of 493 were never recovered from the Channel’s frigid 48 degree waters.

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Entered the service from Tennessee.

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  • Maintained by: Frogman
  • Originally Created by: War Graves
  • Added: Aug 8, 2010
  • Find a Grave Memorial ID:
  • Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56641736/burl_william-ailey: accessed ), memorial page for PVT Burl William Ailey (28 Feb 1926–25 Dec 1944), Find a Grave Memorial ID 56641736, citing Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, Colleville-sur-Mer, Departement du Calvados, Basse-Normandie, France; Maintained by Frogman (contributor 47380828).