Joseph A. Findley was born on July 19, 1923 in Jefferson, West Virginia. He was the son of Winfred Vernon Findley and Lyda Brown Hendricks Findley. He enlisted in the US Army in Richmond, Virginia on September 23, 1942. Joseph served in the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division as a Corporal during World War II.

CPL Findley was a passenger on the C-47A Skytrain Troop Transport #42-100672 "Clay Pigeon" on a paratroop drop mission to Eindhoven, The Netherlands during Operation Market Garden. They carried 18 Paratroopers of the 101st Airborne Division. They were attacked by enemy flak and the plane was on fire before reaching the drop zone. They crash landed 6 miles south-east of Eindhoven Air Field. Six of the paratroop passengers were killed in the incident, including CPL Findley. He is buried now in the Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten, Netherlands.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.abmc.gov, www.honorstates.org