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Wright Joseph O.

Name:
Joseph O. Wright
Rank:
Private
Serial Number:
32732324
Unit:
557th Quartermaster Raildhead Company
Date of Death:
1944-04-28
State:
New York
Cemetery:
Cambridge American Cemetery, United Kingdom
Plot:
E
Row:
5
Grave:
45
Decoration:
Purple Heart
Comments:

Joseph O. Wright was born in 1922 in New York. He enlisted in the Army on January 9, 1943 in Buffalo, New York. He was noted as being employed in a machine shop and also as Single, with dependents. He resided in Erie County, New York prior to the war. he served in the U.S. Army during World War II as a Private in the 557th Quartermaster Raildhead Company. He was killed during the Exercise Tiger--one of the large-scale rehearsals for the D-Day invasion of Normandy. This took place in April 1944 in Slapton Sands, Devon in the UK. An Allied naval convoy involved in the exercise was attacked by German submarines, and coordination and communication problems resulted in friendly fire deaths. At least 749 American servicemen were killed. Because of the impending invasion of Normandy, the incident was highly classified and the full story did not come out until years later after the war. He died on April 28, 1944 and is now buried in Cambridge American Cemetery, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
Source of information: www.findagrave.com