Lt. Dan Wilson’s Second Burial, Temporary Cemetery, St. Avold, France

joynealkidney

3 years ago

Temporary Cemetery, St. Avold, France

St. Avold U.S. Military Cemetery, France. War Theatre #12 [France] – CEMETERIES 10X10 Print rec’d 18 October 1946 from The American Battle Monuments Commission, Washington, D.C. Copied 18 Oct 1946. Released, 22 Oct 1946, JIA.

It had been over a year since the end of the war, and at least eight months since Clabe and Leora Wilson had been notified that their son Dan’s grave had been located at Schwanberg, Austria.

More information that the Wilson family never learned about, until my request for Daniel S. Wilson’s 293 (Casualty) File:

August 22, 1946, seven pages of “Report of Investigation Areas Search” were completed for “Unknown X-7341.” This unknown was believed to be Daniel Wilson, but because his identification tags were not with the body, positive identification could not be made. Chief of Police Franz Mueller and Bergermeister Hermann were interviewed for the report.

Unknown X-7341 was also disinterred that day from the Schwanberg cemetery, to be reburied in the new U.S. Military Cemetery at St. Avold, France. By September 9, Unknown X-7341 had been positively identified as Daniel S. Wilson by the following facts:

The laundry mark on the clothing of X-7341 agreed with the initial and last four digits of Lt. Wilson’s military number. [W-0058]
The date and place of death of X-7341 agreed with the Missing Air Craft Report for plane 44-24123 of which Lt. Wilson was the sole occupant.
German Dulag record KSU 2882 indicated that Lt. Wilson was buried in the civilian cemetery from which X-7341 was disinterred.
The cross over the grave from which X-7341 was disinterred was marked “Daniel S. Wilson” and the date of death.
A statement by a civilian that the identification tags for Lt. Wilson were present, enabling the marking of the cross.
Lt. Wilson was the only American buried in the civilian cemetery from which X-7341 was disinterred.
Unknown X-7341 is Reburied in France

On September 9, 1946, at St. Avold, France, at 3:00, in the afternoon, Lt. Daniel S. Wilson, formerly Unknown X-7341, was reburied between Unknown X-7330 and Unknown X-7318. Chaplain H.M. Trebaol conducted the service.

I was heartened by the care that went into the identification of this one casualty of the war, to make sure the remains they buried were indeed those of Daniel S. Wilson. This is part of the manuscript of What Leora Never Knew, including documents and correspondence with men who knew one of the Wilson brothers who were lost during WWII.