World War II Honoree

Richard D. 'Dick' Winters

Branch of Service

U.S. Army

Hometown

Ephrata, Pennsylvania

Honored By

Friends of American Heroes

HE ENLISTED IN THE ARMY ON AUGUST 25, 1941 AND WAS A DECORATED OFFICER. HE COMMANDED COMPANY 'E', 2ND BATTALION, 506TH PARACHUTE INFANTRY REGIMENT, 101ST AIRBORNE DIVISION, DURING WWII. HE PARACHUTED INTO NORMANDY IN THE EARLY HOURS OF D-DAY, AND FOUGHT ACROSS FRANCE, BELGIUM, THE NETHERLANDS, AND EVENTUALLY INTO GERMANY. LATER IN THE WAR, HE ROSE TO COMMAND THE 2ND BATTALION. IN SEPTEMBER HE UNDERWENT BASIC TRAINING AT CAMP CROFT, SOUTH CAROLINA. AFTERWARDS HE REMAINED AT CAMP CROFT TO HELP TRAIN DRAFTEES AND OTHER VOLUNTEERS, WHILE THE REST OF HIS BATTALION WAS DEPLOYED TO PANAMA. IN APRIL 1942 HE WAS SELECTED TO ATTEND OFFICER CANDIDATE SCHOOL AT FORT BENNING, GEORGIA. HE WAS COMMISSIONED AS A SECOND LIEUTENANT AFTER GRADUATION FROM OFFICER CANDIDATE SCHOOL ON JULY 2, 1942. DURING THE COURSE OF HIS OFFICER TRAINING HE DECIDED THAT HE WANTED TO JOIN THE PARACHUTE INFANTRY. AFTER FIVE WEEKS HE RECEIVED ORDERS TO JOIN THE 506TH PARACHUTE INFANTRY REGIMENT AT CAMP TOCCOA IN GEORGIA. HE ARRIVED AT TOCCOA IN MID-AUGUST 1942 AND WAS ASSIGNED TO COMPANY E, 2ND BATTALION, 506TH PARACHUTE INFANTRY REGIMENT. INITIALLY HE SERVED AS A PLATOON LEADER IN CHARGE OF 2ND PLATOON, BUT LATER, IN OCTOBER 1942, HE WAS PROMOTED TO FIRST LIEUTENANT AND BECAME THE ACTING COMPANY EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ALTHOUGH THIS WAS NOT MADE OFFICIAL UNTIL MAY 1943. THE 506TH WAS AN EXPERIMENTAL UNIT, BEING THE FIRST REGIMENT TO UNDERTAKE AIRBORNE TRAINING AS A FORMED UNIT. ON JUNE 10, 1943, THE 506TH WAS OFFICIALLY ATTACHED TO THE 101ST AIRBORNE DIVISION. LATER IN THE YEAR THEY EMBARKED ON THE SAMARIA BOUND FOR ENGLAND, ARRIVING THERE ON SEPTEMBER 15, 1943, AND DISEMBARKING IN LIVERPOOL. THEY THEN PROCEEDED TO ALDBOURNE, IN WILTSHIRE WHERE THEY BEGAN AN INTENSE TRAINING PROGRAM DESIGNED TO MAKE THE REGIMENT READY FOR THE INVASION OF EUROPE THAT WAS PLANNED FOR 1944. AT APPROXIMATELY 1:15 A.M. ON JUNE 6, 1944, THE C-47 SKYTRAIN TRANSPORT THE COMPANY HEADQUARTERS SECTION WAS IN WAS SHOT DOWN BY GERMAN ANTI-AIRCRAFT FIRE, KILLING EVERYONE ON BOARD INCLUDING HIS COMMANDING OFFICER. HE JUMPED THAT NIGHT AND LANDED SAFELY NEAR SAINTE-MÈRE-ÉGLISE. AFTER HAVING LOST HIS WEAPON DURING THE DROP, HE WAS ABLE TO ORIENT HIMSELF, COLLECT SEVERAL PARATROOPERS, INCLUDING MEMBERS OF THE 82ND AIRBORNE, AND PROCEED TOWARD THE UNIT'S ASSIGNED OBJECTIVE NEAR SAINTE-MARIE-DU-MONT. HE BECAME THE ACTING COMMANDING OFFICER OF EASY COMPANY FOR THE DURATION OF THE NORMANDY CAMPAIGN. LATER THAT DAY, HE LED AN ATTACK THAT DESTROYED A BATTERY OF GERMAN 105 MM HOWITZERS WHICH WERE FIRING ONTO THE CAUSEWAYS THAT SERVED AS THE PRINCIPAL EXITS FROM UTAH BEACH. THEY ESTIMATED THAT THE GUNS WERE DEFENDED BY APPROXIMATELY ONE PLATOON OF 50 GERMAN TROOPS, WHILE HE HAD ONLY 13 MEN. THIS ACTION SOUTH OF THE VILLAGE OF LE GRAND-CHEMIN HAS BEEN CALLED THE BRÉCOURT MANOR ASSAULT. IN ADDITION TO DESTROYING THE BATTERY, HE ALSO OBTAINED A MAP DETAILING GERMAN GUN EMPLACEMENTS IN THE UTAH BEACH AREA. ON JULY 1, 1944, HE WAS TOLD THAT HE HAD BEEN PROMOTED TO CAPTAIN. THE NEXT DAY HE WAS PRESENTED WITH THE DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS BY GENERAL OMAR N. BRADLEY, WHO WAS THEN THE COMMANDING OFFICER OF THE FIRST ARMY. IN SEPTEMBER 1944, THE 506TH TOOK PART IN OPERATION MARKET GARDEN, AN AIRBORNE OPERATION IN THE NETHERLANDS. ON OCTOBER 5, 1944, A GERMAN FORCE LAUNCHED AN ATTACK ON THE 2ND BATTALION'S FLANK, AND THREATENED TO BREAK THROUGH THE AMERICAN LINES. FOUR MEN IN ON PATROL WERE WOUNDED, AND THEY REPORTED ENCOUNTERING A LARGE GROUP OF GERMANS AT A CROSSROADS ABOUT 1,300 YARDS TO THE EAST OF THE COMPANY COMMAND POST. REALIZING THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE SITUATION, HE TOOK ONE SQUAD FROM 1ST PLATOON, AND MOVED OFF TOWARD THE CROSSROADS, WHERE A GERMAN MACHINE GUN WAS FIRING TO THE SOUTH, TOWARD BATTALION HEADQUARTERS. HE LED THE SQUAD IN AN ASSAULT ON THE GUN CREW, TAKING THE POSITION, AND TAKING FIRE FROM A GERMAN POSITION OPPOSITE THEM. ESTIMATING THAT THIS POSITION WAS HELD BY AT LEAST A PLATOON, HE CALLED FOR REINFORCEMENTS AND LED THEM IN AN ASSAULT. LATER IT WAS DISCOVERED THERE WERE AT LEAST 300 GERMANS. ON OCTOBER 9, HE BECAME THE BATTALION EXECUTIVE OFFICER. ON DECEMBER 16, 1944, GERMAN FORCES LAUNCHED A COUNTER-OFFENSIVE AGAINST THE WESTERN ALLIES IN BELGIUM. AFTER THE 101ST AIRBORNE WAS MOVED BY TRUCK TO THE BASTOGNE AREA ON DECEMBER 18, HE TOOK PART IN THE DEFENSE OF THE LINE NORTHEAST OF BASTOGNE NEAR THE TOWN OF FOY DURING THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE. THE ENTIRE 101ST AIRBORNE AND ELEMENTS OF THE 10TH ARMORED DIVISION BATTLED ABOUT 15 GERMAN DIVISIONS, SUPPORTED BY HEAVY ARTILLERY AND ARMOR, FOR NEARLY A WEEK BEFORE THE U.S. THIRD ARMY BROKE THROUGH THE GERMAN LINES SURROUNDING BASTOGNE. ON MARCH 8, 1945, FOLLOWING THE 2ND BATTALION'S MOVE TO HAGUENAU, HE WAS PROMOTED TO MAJOR AND SHORTLY AFTERWARD HE WAS MADE ACTING BATTALION COMMANDER OF 2ND BATTALION. IN APRIL, HIS BATTALION CARRIED OUT DEFENSIVE DUTIES ALONG THE RHINE, BEFORE DEPLOYING TO BAVARIA LATER IN THE MONTH. IN EARLY MAY THE 101ST AIRBORNE DIVISION RECEIVED ORDERS TO CAPTURE BERCHTESGADEN. THE 2ND BATTALION SET OUT FROM THALHAM, GERMANY, THROUGH STREAMS OF SURRENDERING GERMAN SOLDIERS, AND LED THE WAY TO THE ALPINE RETREAT, REACHING THE TOWN AT NOON ON MAY 5, 1945. THEY WERE STILL THERE WHEN THE WAR ENDED THREE DAYS LATER ON MAY 8, 1945. HE WAS RECOMMENDED FOR THE MEDAL OF HONOR FOR HIS LEADERSHIP AT BRÉCOURT MANOR, BUT DUE TO THE QUOTA SYSTEM WHICH LIMITED THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE AWARD TO ONLY ONE PER DIVISION, AND SINCE ONE MEDAL OF HONOR HAD ALREADY BEEN AWARDED, THE RECOMMENDATION WAS DOWNGRADED TO THE DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS, THE U.S. ARMY'S SECOND HIGHEST AWARD FOR COMBAT VALOR.