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Re: Seeking where a soldier was killed, WWII
Gayle,
Do you happen to have any additional information unit, or branch of service or place of birth.
Thanks,
Elliot Schneider
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Re: Seeking where a soldier was killed, WWII
1 person found this helpfulGayle, I found a listing for Thomas E Tracey (ASN 3578724) of Hamilton County, OH, as KIA on April 17, 1945. He was in the 180th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Division, and is buried in Lorraine American Cemetery, France. I hope this is of some help. joan
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Re: Seeking where a soldier was killed, WWII
3 people found this helpfulHello Gayle,
Was able to locate some information pertaining to your family member. Hope this information helps, also list his unit information and service number. I would suggest also trying to obtain his service records. Looks like he was awarded the Purple Heart (OLC) this means that he had previously been awarded the PH before.
Thanks,
Elliot Schneider
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Re: Seeking where a soldier was killed, WWII
Jason Atkinson
May 31, 2019 4:40 PM
2 people found this helpfulDear Ms. Keating,
Thank you for posting a follow up to your request on History Hub!
We searched the American Battle Monuments Commission website again and located an entry for a Private First Class Thomas E. Tracey who entered service from Ohio. The information is consistent with that already provided to you by Ms. Stachnik and and Mr. Schneider.
We also searched online and located a 180th Infantry: a regiment of the 45th Infantry Division. In this book PFC Tracey E. Thomas is listed under the heading "These men have given their lives, that others may live". We also located The Story of the 180th Infantry Regiment, published 1947. This book lists Thomas E. Tracey as a member of Company C, 1st Battalion. Both books provide information about the activities of the 180th in April 1945. On April 17th, 1945, the 180th Infantry was, with the rest of the 45th Infantry Division, fighting to capture Nuremberg, Germany. The latter history is more detailed, and provides specific information about the activities of Company C on the April 17th. Additional information may be available in the unit records we mentioned in our previous reply.
This page from the Center for Military History provides a large scale overview of the campaign. This page includes many photographs of the 45th Division, to include the 180th.
We hope this information is helpful.
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Re: Seeking where a soldier was killed, WWII
Jason Atkinson
May 30, 2019 2:39 PM
2 people found this helpfulDear Ms. Keating,
Thank you for posting your request to History Hub!
The information you seek may be contained in his burial case file (later called the Individual Deceased Personnel File or IDPF). Burial case files from 1915-1976 are in the custody of the National Archives at St. Louis, ATTN: RL-SL, P.O. Box 38757, St. Louis, MO 63138-1002. Please contact them regarding access to these records. Their email address is stl.archives@nara.gov. You can also request his Official Military Personnel File using the procedures outlined here.
Once you are able to identify which unit he was assigned to at the time of his death, you can request his unit records from the National Archives at College Park. The Textual Reference Archives II Branch (RDT2) has custody of the Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1917- (Record Group 407) and the Records of U.S. Army Operational, Tactical, and Support Organizations (World War II and Thereafter) (Record Group 338). Military unit files among these records consist mostly of historical reports, after action reports, unit journals, and general orders. While the unit records are unlikely to include detailed narratives about individual casualties they can sometimes provide information about the general location and activities of the unit as a whole at the time of his death. To access these records contact RDT2 via email at archives2reference@nara.gov.We also searched the website of the American Battle Monuments Commission and located information about a soldier by the name of Thomas B. Tracey buried in the Normandy American Cemetery. Without further information we can not know if this is the same soldier you are researching. While the page does not state where he died, it states that he was a member of the 397th Anti Aircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion and that he died on June 6, 1944. On this date the 397th landed on Omaha Beach as part of the D-Day invasion.
We hope this information is helpful. Best of luck with your research!
