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Co. B, 253d IR, 63d ID WIA dog tags and more


bellasilva
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I posted these a little while back requesting more information on this man, and since then have come across much more information and other items pertaining to him, so I decided to give all of it it's own thread.

 

Private Eugene C. Hair hailed from Somerset, Kentucky, and served with Company B, 253rd Infantry Regiment, 63rd Infantry Division. On April 21, 1945, somewhere in Germany, he was severely wounded in action by German machine gun fire to the back, buttocks, and shoulder. He was evacuated and was on board a Curtiss C-46 ambulance flight on May 6, 1945, which was supposed to make a stop over at RAF Greenham Common when the crew encountered low visibility with clouds to 600 feet upon descent. The aircraft struck a radar antenna and lost its right wing, and upon crashing burst into flames, killing all 30 on board and one person inside of a hut located on Mt. Gibbet.

 

After posting Pvt. Hair's dog tags on the forum, I was contacted by another member who just happened to locate at a flea market the American Battle Monuments Commission shipping container containing correspondence to Pvt. Hair's brother, cousin, and sister regarding his death. This incredible forum member sent me these items because they deserved to be together, and I can never thank him enough. One letter inside, dated 1947 from the War Department, Office of the Quartermaster General, and addressed to Private Hair's sister, Hazel (the next of kin on his dog tags), discussed the atmosphere of the US Military Cemetery in Cambridge, England, where he is buried.

 

Another letter, dated 1976 and original to the shipping container, contained a poster size picture of the Cambridge Cemetery and a black and white photo of Pvt. Hair's grave marker. Aldo included was a guide book to to the Cemetery itself.

 

Private Hair was awarded the Purple Heart and Combat Infantryman Badge. He still rests amongst his comrades in England.

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I decided that a nice way to honor Pvt. Hair's sacrifice was to simply pair the 1947 War Department letter to his sister with one of his dog tags in a frame..

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  • 3 weeks later...

I received Hair's personnel file yesterday and it is pretty brutal. 30 pages survived the fire, and they really bring home the reality of this pair of tags..

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  • 3 weeks later...

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