William F. King was born in Reno, Texas in 1919. He enlisted in the Army from Fort Worth, Texas and was sworn into service on July 3, 1940 at the Induction Center in Dallas. He was assigned to the 2nd Infantry Division as a member of Service Company, 9th Infantry Regiment at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio where the division was stationed in 1940 and 1941.
The division participated in several maneuvers in Texas and Louisiana until November 27, 1942 when they moved to Camp McCoy, Wisconsin for winter training. In September 1943 the 2nd Infantry Division was moved to Camp Shanks, New York and then sailed from the New York Port of Embarkation on October 8th. They arrived in Belfast, Northern Ireland October 17, 1943 and trained for the invasion. The division moved to the port of Bournemouth on the southern coast of England just before D-Day. Bills 9th Infantry was sent across the channel by LST (landing ship, transport) and landed at Omaha Beach on D+1, June 7, 1944, where they were immediately committed to combat.
Over the coming months, Bill participated in the Normandy, Northern France, and Rhineland campaigns, and was awarded the Combat Infantryman’s Badge in August and the Bronze Star Medal in October 1944. He was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds sustained on August 12, 1944 during the fighting for Brest in the Crozon Peninsula of Northern France.
At the end of the war in Europe, Bill was returned to the United States. On June 24, 1945, Technical Sergeant, T-5 William King was discharged at the Separation Center at Fort Sam Houston and returned home to Fort Worth.
After being out of service for only a few months, he reenlisted in the Army Air Force, and then remained on active duty until December 31, 1961 when he retired from the U.S. Air Force. He then was employed with Texas Instruments in Dallas where he worked for a second career. Retired from Texas Instruments August 31, 1984, Bill lived the rest of his life in Crockett, Texas, where he was involved in his church work.
William F. (Bill) King died June 23, 2008, aged 88 years, survived by: his wife, Anna; son, William F. King, Jr., and wife Cecilia; and by two grandsons and two great-grandchildren.
Bill King provided this photo and some biographical material from which this story was prepared shortly before his death in 2008.
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