On this day 75 years ago, one community in America lost more boys per capita than any other. Bedford, Va. lost 19 men on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. Today, those men are known as the Bedford Boys.
Bedford sent about 30 of its boys to the 29th Infantry Division when the National Guard’s 116th Infantry Regiment was activated on Feb. 3, 1941. Nineteen of them would make the ultimate sacrifice on June 6, 1944. Two more died during the days following the initial invasion along with two more operating further inland. With 23 total casualties from a community with only a 3,200-person population, Bedford lost a higher proportion of its community than any other.
These are the Bedford Boys:
LESLIE C. ABBOTT JR.WALLACE R. CARTERJOHN D. CLIFTONFRANK P. DRAPER JR.CAPT. TAYLOR N. FELLERSNICK N. GILLASPIEBEDFORD T. HOBACKRAYMOND S. HOBACKCLIFTON G. LEEEARL L. PARKERJACK G. POWERSWELDON A. ROSAZZAJOHN F. REYNOLDSJOHN B. SCHENKRAY O. STEVENSJOHN L. WILKESGORDON H. WHITE JR.ELMERE P. WRIGHTGRANT C. YOPP
To honor the Bedford Boys, Bedford, Va. was selected to represent all communities in the country as the location of the National D-Day Memorial.
PHOTOS: Who knew this small southwest Virginia town was home to this 88-acre D-Day memorial?
