Downs Francis Leo

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Francis Leo Downs is honored on the following 1 monument(s) in our database:

Waal River Crossing Memorial - 82nd Airborne Division

Name:

Francis Leo Downs

Rank:

Private

Serial Number:

33559942

Unit:

504th Parachute Infantry Regiment

Date of Death:

1944-09-20

State:

Maryland

Cemetery:

Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten, Netherlands

Plot:

Row:

Grave:

Decoration:

Purple Heart

Comments:

Francis Leo Downs was born on January 31, 1920, in Leonardtown, St. Mary's County, Maryland. He served in HQ/3, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, as a Private during World War II. He was Killed in action on September 20, 1944, during Operation Market Garden while participating in the Waal River crossing, the heroic crossing that liberated Nijmegen, The Netherlands. He was one of the 49 paratroopers killed during the assault on German positions on the opposite bank. Pvt Downs is now buried in the Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten, Netherlands.