Burlin Vestal “BV” Wilson was born on March 29, 1924, in Collingsworth County, Texas. He was the son of Ollie Brown Wilson and Eunice Estelle Johnson Wilson. He was married to Vaudell Smith Wilson. He attended public schools in Quail, Texas, before entering military service on February 19, 1943. After training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, he was deployed overseas in July 1944 to the European Theater, where he took part in the Ardennes, Central Europe, and Rhineland campaigns. He served in the United States Army with the 740th Tank Battalion in World War II. Known as the “Daredevil Tankers”, the 740th was a separate battalion that fought from Utah Beach all the way to the Baltic Sea in support of various divisions of the US war effort.

Wilson returned to the United States on January 21, 1946, and was discharged on February 21, 1946. He later became a member of the Reserves. Following his military service, he worked for Phillips 66 Petroleum Company for 37 years before retiring in August 1985 in Pasadena, Texas. He died on October 8, 2007, and is now buried in the Resthaven Memorial Park, Lubbock, Lubbock County, Texas, USA.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com