George L. Merritt, Jr. was born on July 20, 1914, in Georgia. He was the son of George L Merritt and Polly Callaway Merritt.

At the time of his death, Major Merritt was serving in the 375th Fighter Squadron, 361st Fighter Group, as a Pilot on the P-51 Mustang #42-106835 during World War II. On June 7, 1944, he took off from Bottisham on an area support mission to the Angers area of France. The flight strafed a convoy of trucks, including a gasoline trailer that was set on fire and was completely burned out, and another truck was badly damaged. He was shot down by fighters from 6th Staffel, 2nd Group Schlageter. He crashed at 1950hrs at Le Chat Pend, on the road from Loudun to Fontevraud-l"Abbaye near Roiffe, 12 miles south of Saumur, France. Major Merritt was initially buried in the Community Cemetery of Roiffe and reinterred in the US Military Cemetery Champigneul at Chalons-sur-Marne on July 15, 1946, before final reinterment in Epinal American Cemetery, Dinozé, France.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.abmc.gov, francecrashes39-45.net