WWII · Battle Death Record
William Thomas
Private First Class, U.S. Army · Michigan
Medal of Honor
Personnel File — Core Information
- Name
- William Thomas
- Entered the Service From
- Michigan
- Rank
- Private First Class
- Service
- U.S. Army
- Unit / Regiment
- 149th Infantry Regiment, 38th Infantry Division
- War
- WWII
- Date of Death
- April 22, 1945
- Awards
- Medal of Honor
- Burial / Memorial
- Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, Taguig, Metro Manila, Philippines
- Grave
- Plot F, Row 16, Grave 90
Their story
As an automatic rifleman during fighting in the Zambales Mountains on Luzon, Philippines, on April 22, 1945, Thomas was mortally wounded when an explosion blew off both of his legs below the knees. Refusing medical aid and evacuation, he continued firing at the enemy until his weapon was disabled and then threw his last two grenades, destroying three of the enemy; his fire prevented the repulse of his platoon and assured the capture of the hostile position before he died later that day.
Compiled from American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) and National Archives (NARA) records and public sources.
This record is one of more than 200,000 in our historical archive. Some information may have been corrupted or lost over decades of data conversion. Corrections are welcome — please contact the archive.