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Lawrence E. Merold was born on July 24, 1903, in Tower City, Pennsylvania,
to Pat Merold and his second wife, Victoria. His family would later
move to Akron, Ohio, where he would attend the Findley Elementary
School and later North High School, graduating January 1927. Larry
would marry twice, his first marriage ending in divorce, his second
marriage taking place in Mineral Wells, Texas. On March 7, 1941
Lawrence Merold entered military service. He would go on to fight
in WWII, but would not come home alive.
"Died in Africa. Driving through a mine field. Orders were
not to go through it, everyone knew it, but the commanding officer
insisted. So Lawrence did. What else could he do? There were three
others with them. Five altogether. They all survived. Everyone
but Larry. He died driving an officer through a goddamn mine field.
"
* Account from Lawrence Merold's
nephew.
Lawrence E. Merold died in WWII, on active duty, at the age of
39, in Tunisia, North Africa, April 8, 1943. He is buried at Rose
Hill Burial Park, in Akron, Ohio, with his brothers. (Larry was
survived by his wife Wilma, who would never remarry. She died some
time after Larry's passing, in a car accident which also took her
sister's life.)
Lawrence E. Merold: US Army · Warrant Officer Junior Grade
· Service Company, 18th Infantry Regiment, 1st "Big
Red One" Infantry Division · Service # W2117935
* Special thanks to David
Schember, for his generosity.
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