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name
MERRITT, Thomas J - Date of
birth
30 January 1925 -
Age
19 - Place of
birth
Duluth, St. Louis County, Minnesota -
Hometown
Duluth, St. Louis County, Minnesota
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-535417 -
Rank
Second Lieutenant -
Function
Platoon Commander -
Unit
C Company,
1st Battalion,
508th Parachute Infantry Regiment,
82nd Airborne Division
-
Awards
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
11 October 1944 - Place of
death
In the vicinity of Bemmel, the Netherlands
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| G | 3 | 10 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Carleton Merritt (father)
Mae Carroll Merritt (mother)
Sallie Merritt (sister)
Napoleon B. Merritt (grandfather)
More information
2nd Lt Thomas J. Merritt attended Shattuck Military Academy in Faribault, Minnesota and was an avid hockey player.He enlisted following graduation and entered basic training immediately after leaving school. On completion of basic training he was assigned to the Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, Georgia and was commissioned in December 1943 when he was 18. Lt Merritt was sent to England in June 1944 and was trained to become a paratrooper in that country. He didn't participate in the Normandy invasion. He was assigned to the 508th as a replacement platoon commander in C Company.
He was killed north of the Waal River.
He was first buried at the Temporary American Military Cemetery of Molenhoek, the Netherlands on 13 October 1944.
Source of information: Ronald Merritt, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.fold3.com, Basher82, www.findagrave.com
Photo source: www.findagrave.com, 1943 Shattuck Military Academy yearbook - courtesy of Ronald Merritt