Elmer Charles Benton was born on March 18, 1926 in Indian Lake, New York. He was the son of Milford G. Benton and Lena Bennett Benton. He served in the United States Navy during World War II. Elmer was aboard the USS LST 531 and was killed during the Exercise Tiger--one of the large-scale rehearsals for the D-Day invasion of Normandy. This took place in April 1944 in Slapton Sands, Devon in the UK. An Allied naval convoy involved in the exercise was attacked by German submarines, and coordination and communication problems resulted in friendly fire deaths. At least 749 American servicemen were killed. Because of the impending invasion of Normandy, the incident was highly classified and the full story did not come out until years later after the war. Elmer is now buried in the Cedar River Cemetery, Indian Lake, Hamilton County, New York, USA.