Chichester Man Reported Dead,
Fought in War II
The body of a Chichester soldier, reported missing in action in France 17 years ago, has been recovered and identified through the painstaking efforts of the German Graves Association and the U. S. Graves Registration. The body of T5 Gerald Grant, then 26, was discovered along with that of another GI in a private cemetery in the little town of Herlisheim, France last fall. However, it was only about a week ago that the Chichester soldier's widow, .Mrs. Nellie Dunham Grant, now of Hunter, was notified by the U. S. War Department that her husband now is listed as officially dead.
Used Dental Charts
His remains and that of T4 Earl M. Snyder, whose address was not given, were identified through dental charts, according to the War Department letter.
The area man was a member of Company A, 43rd .Tank Battalion, 12th Armored Division, and was a crew member of the same tank with then Staff Sgt. Tiber Tomshaw of 187 Henry Street, Kingston, president of the City Board of Fire Commissioners.
Rescue Try Fails
According to Tomshaw, the tank in which he, Grant, Cpl. Robert Mineke and two other men named Cullen and McShane were riding was blown up during an assault near Herlisheim on Jan. 17, 1945. Tomshaw and Mineke were blown from the vehicle which was set afire. Although wounded in the leg, Tomshaw attempted to get to the tank in an effort to save the other three men, but the flames, plus his and Mineke's quick capture by the Nazis prevented rescue efforts. Tomshaw was removed to a German Army hospital where surgeons removed his leg.
The other three men, Grant, Cullen and McShane, were listed as missing in action and it was only by an unceasing check of cemeteries that the bodies were located. Once they were found, it took dental charts to fully identify them.
Chichester Man Reported Dead,
Fought in War II
The body of a Chichester soldier, reported missing in action in France 17 years ago, has been recovered and identified through the painstaking efforts of the German Graves Association and the U. S. Graves Registration. The body of T5 Gerald Grant, then 26, was discovered along with that of another GI in a private cemetery in the little town of Herlisheim, France last fall. However, it was only about a week ago that the Chichester soldier's widow, .Mrs. Nellie Dunham Grant, now of Hunter, was notified by the U. S. War Department that her husband now is listed as officially dead.
Used Dental Charts
His remains and that of T4 Earl M. Snyder, whose address was not given, were identified through dental charts, according to the War Department letter.
The area man was a member of Company A, 43rd .Tank Battalion, 12th Armored Division, and was a crew member of the same tank with then Staff Sgt. Tiber Tomshaw of 187 Henry Street, Kingston, president of the City Board of Fire Commissioners.
Rescue Try Fails
According to Tomshaw, the tank in which he, Grant, Cpl. Robert Mineke and two other men named Cullen and McShane were riding was blown up during an assault near Herlisheim on Jan. 17, 1945. Tomshaw and Mineke were blown from the vehicle which was set afire. Although wounded in the leg, Tomshaw attempted to get to the tank in an effort to save the other three men, but the flames, plus his and Mineke's quick capture by the Nazis prevented rescue efforts. Tomshaw was removed to a German Army hospital where surgeons removed his leg.
The other three men, Grant, Cullen and McShane, were listed as missing in action and it was only by an unceasing check of cemeteries that the bodies were located. Once they were found, it took dental charts to fully identify them.
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