James Donald Richter was born on April 20, 1909. He was the son of Wenzel Karel Richter and Annie May Mang Richter. Richter was the artillery liaison officer for the 915th Field Artillery Battery, 359th Infantry Regiment, 90th Infantry Division in January 1945. He was killed by a German Minenwerfer round while crouched at the blown-out window of a farmhouse on the outskirts of the Luxembourg hamlet of Nothum on January 9.

The 90th Division was just commencing an attack against the German 19th Volksgrenadier Division when Maj. Gen. James A. Van Fleet and his entourage arrived at the house to view the attack’s launching. Keen German observers noticed the convoy of jeeps arriving at the farmhouse and quickly zeroed in on it. Colonel Raymond E. Bell, the regimental commander of the 359th Infantry, was standing in a doorway adjacent to the window and narrowly missed being hit by the shell. Richter, unfortunately, was fatally struck by shell fragments flying through the window.

CPT Richter is now buried in the Luxembourg American Cemetery, Luxembourg. He also has a cenotaph located in the Moulton City Cemetery, Moulton, Lavaca county, Texas, USA.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.abmc.gov, warfarehistorynetwork.com