Ernest R. Blanchard was born on September 28, 1913. He was the father of Thomas Joseph Blanchard. Ernest served in Company F, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, as a Private during World War II.
On the night before D-Day, June 6, 1944, American paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division were deployed near Sainte-Mère-Église, France. The town had recently been attacked, and a fire ignited by a stray bomb had drawn German soldiers and villagers into the town square to form a bucket brigade. The area was well-lit due to the fire, and when two planes mistakenly dropped paratroopers directly over the village, they became exposed and easy targets for the Germans.
Among the paratroopers was Pvt Blanchard, whose parachute landed on the church roof and survived. Pvt Blanchard died on September 13, 1983, and is now buried in the Colonel Raymond F. Gates Memorial Cemetery, Rocky Hill, Hartford County, Connecticut, USA.
PRIVATE CITIZENS SUPPORTING AMERICA'S HERITAGE
American
War Memorials Overseas, Inc.
War Memorials Overseas, Inc.
Blanchard Ernest R.
Name:
Ernest R. Blanchard
Rank:
Private First Class
Serial Number:
31196873
Unit:
505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne
Date of Death:
1983-09-13
State:
Connecticut
Cemetery:
Colonel Raymond F. Gates Memorial Cemetery, Rocky Hill, Hartford County, Connecticut, USA
Plot:
Row:
Grave:
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