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William Frew Train II 'Bill' |
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Graduate, U.S. Military Academy, Class of 1931 Engagements: • World War II (1941 - 1945)• Korean War (1950 - 1953)• Vietnam War (1960 - 1973) |
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Biography: | ||||
William Frew Train II William Frew Train II was born on 23 January 1908 in Savannah, GA. Orphaned when he was 17, he enlisted in the U.S. Army as a Private in 1926; he retired 41 years later as a 3-star Lieutenant General. In 1927, then-Private Train placed first among Army enlisted men competing for admission to the U.S. Military Academy. He graduated from West Point in 1931 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant. In 1933, Lieutenant Train was second-in-command at Camp Roosevelt, the first Civilian Conservation Corps camp established in the George Washington National Forest in central Virginia. Shortly after the 7 December 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, then-Captain Train was summoned to the War Department General Staff to serve in the newly-built Pentagon to help organize the effort for World War II. Later, Train served in the Italian Campaign in 1943 for several months and then, in October 1944, he joined the 28th Infantry Division fighting on the Siegfried Line. The Siegfried Line was the defensive barrier at the German border to which the German army had retreated in the summer and fall of 1944 after the American and British invasion at Normandy on 6 June 1944. In trying to break through the Siegfried Line in November 1944, the 28th Division was stopped by fierce German resistance during the Battle of Huertgen Forest which, for the U.S., was the bloodiest battle of the war in Europe. After suffering devastating losses, the 28th Division was moved to a quiet sector of the front line in northern Luxemburg and southern Belgium. This put them directly in the path of the massive German surprise attack called the Battle of the Bulge, launched on 16 December 1944. Lieutenant Colonel Train, was Assistant Regimental Commander of the 112th Infantry Regiment of the 28th Division. His Regiment held its position for the first two days of the attack against overwhelming odds and then participated in the defense of St. Vith in southern Belgium, a key road junction. These defensive actions seriously disrupted the northern sector of the German attack, which ground to a halt on 26 December. Two days earlier, on 24 December, LTC Train's Regiment—which had become surrounded by the German forces—was able to safely withdraw to the newly-established American lines with the rest of the St. Vith defenders. LTC Train was awarded a Silver Star medal for his leadership and valor during the battle. In 1950 and 1951, Train served in Korea during the intense fighting of the first year of that war. As Plans Officer for Eighth Army, he was responsible for planning five campaigns, beginning with the breakout from the Pusan Perimeter. Later in his career, Major General Train commanded the 4th Infantry Division from 1960-62 and the Army War College from 1962-64. As a Lieutenant General he commanded Second Army from 1964 until it was inactivated and combined with First Army on 1 January 1966 at Fort Meade, MD. His final command of the newly combined First Army, responsible for all Army forces and facilities in the northeast United States from Virginia to Maine, concluded an active duty career of 41 years in the U.S. Army. LTG Train retired from the Army on 31 May 1967. Medals, Awards and Badges Army Distinguished Service Medal Family Train married Charlotte Gibner and they were married for 70 years. They had three children: Two sons, William F. III and Bruce; and one daughter, Leslie Train. Bill and Charlotte suffered the loss of their first son, Army First Lieutenant William Frew Train III (26 June 1937-16 June 1962) [Honoree Record ID 282274], who was the sixth American advisor killed in South Vietnam. Death and Burial Lieutenant General William Frew Train II died on 27 November 2006 in San Mateo, CA. His cremains were interred next to his son, First Lieutenant William Frew Train III, at the United States Military Academy Post Cemetery in West Point, NY. |
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Honoree ID: 307312 | Created by: MHOH |