William Cletus Kearns [1219]

1924-1999

Father: Father William Stanislaus Kearns born  4 AUG 1894   Fonda, Pocahantas, Iowa
died 27 NOV 1957  Fairmont, Martin, Minnesota

Mother: Mary Leone Blencoe [2664] born 1.9.1889 Minnesota died 1982 Martin Minn  

Marriage:

1. 17 Jul 1946 • Sherburn, Martin, Minnesota
2. 8 Aug 1991 • Rochester, Olmsted, Minnesota
   Married at St. Pius X Catholic Church.  divorced 1996

Kin Comments:

Spouse: Comments

1. Evelyn Marie Keck (1925–1988) born 5 MAR 1925  Jay Township, Martin, Minnesota. died DEATH 9 NOV 1988 • Rochester, Olmsted, Minnesota

 

Children:1. Sally Leone Kearns,   b. 3 Sep 1952, Fairmont, Martin MN  2. Maureen M Kearns,   b. 1948, Minnesota  3. Paulette A Kearns,   b. Oct 1949, Minnesota  4. Lisa Kay Kearns – b. 28 Dec 1957, d. 30 Mar 2021

Birth 1924

23 Apr 1924 Minnesota

1930 Census

Fairmont, Martin, Minnesota

William S Kerns 35 Head Oil Salesman
Mary L Kerns 40 Wife
William C Kerns 5 Son

1940 Census

Fairmont, Martin, Minnesota

William S Kearns 45 Head
Leone Kearns 50 Wife
William C Kearns 15 Son

WW2

William C Kearns Technician 5th Grade Driver, Sergeant,  37554541, 645th Tank Destroyer Battalion

Synopsis

William C. Kearns, army serial number 37 554 541, was inducted into active duty with the United States Army on 11 Mar 1943. He served as Technician Fifth Grade in the 645th Tank Destroyer Battalion. His speciality was tank driver, and his number was 2736. He fought in the theatres at Italy Rome-Arno, Southern France, Rhineland, and Central Europe. He was honourably discharged on 1 Jan 1946, at the close of the war. His headstone at Burial says Sergeant and this may have been a promotion after the official record of service was made.

1943

• 18 Mar 1943 • Fort Snelling, Hennepin, Minnesota
  Induction into the United States Army. Note the 645th Tank Destroyer Battalion that William was to later join had one earlier departed for North Africa as part of the 45th Infantry Division of the 5th US Army.
• Given the training that William would receive as a Tank driver and Technician 5th Grade then it’s unlikely he was sent overseas until late 1943 likely missing the 645th TD landing in Italy in September 1943. But most likely joining the Battalion in their drive up the Italian peninsula in late 1943 to February 1944.

1944

Overview of war movements

The 645th TD Battalion was not permanently assigned to a single division. Instead, it was attached to multiple units as needed, including:

• 45th Infantry Division (frequent attachment)
• 1st Airborne Task Force (during Operation Dragoon)
• XV Corps (during the final push into Germany)

Campaign Timeline: 1944–1945

:1944

• “A two-week “breather” in San Lorenzo, Italy ended on January 31, 1944, when the Battalion landed with the 45th Infantry on the Anzio Beachhead. The 645th played a major role in stopping all enemy attempts to drive the Allied Forces into the Tyrrhenian Sea. Without rest, the Battalion spent more than 4 months on the line in its confined beachhead of not more than 100 square miles.”

• 

   

• “May 24, 1944.  Brought the breakout toward Rome in support of the FSSF Troops as well as the 45th Infantry. The capture and liberation of the first of the great European capitals,”

  

• Operation Dragon. The 645th TD seconded to the 1st Airborne Task Force made up of
  517th Parachute Infantry Regiment
  1/551st Parachute Infantry Regiment
  509th Parachute Infantry Battalion
  550th Glider Infantry Battalion
  British 2nd Independent Parachute Brigade (later replaced by the US/Canadian 1st Special Service Force)
  460th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion
  463d Parachute Field Artillery Battalion
  602d Glider Field Artillery Battalion
  645th Tank Destroyer Battalion
  Anti Tank Company, 442d Regimental Combat Team

  

• “June 5th; the beginning of the crack in the fortress that was Europe. After Rome. the Battalion returned to Salerno, where amphibious training was conducted in preparation for landings in southern France.”

  

• “D-Day, August 15, 1944, the 645th landed near Saint Maxime, South France. Together with the 45th Infantry and 7th Army troops, the 645th turned toward Berlin. They pressed north through Alsace, Reims. and over the German border to the outer defences of the Siegfried Line. When their forward movement was hampered by stronger enemy resistance, cold and snow the Battalion wintered in the Vosges Mountains.”

1945

• “In the spring, with the troops of the XV Corps and the 45th
  Infantry, the 645th Battalion attacked. They breached the Siegfried
  Line at Homburg, Germany. The offensive continued across the Rhine
  River at Mainz and through the German cities of Mannheim, Bamberg,
  Harr, and Nurnberg. They crossed the Blue Danube and on May 7. 1945,
  took Munich.”
• 7 May. Capture of Munich (just one day before Germany’s unconditional surrender.)Units Involved: Elements of the U.S. 7th Army, including the 45th Infantry Division and supporting units like the 645th Tank Destroyer Battalion, entered the city after fierce fighting in Bavaria.Strategic Importance: Munich was the birthplace of the Nazi Party and held symbolic and logistical significance. Its fall marked the collapse of Nazi control in southern Germany.Conditions: The city was heavily bombed prior to capture. Allied troops encountered pockets of resistance, but most German forces surrendered or fled.Aftermath: Following the city’s capture, U.S. troops began occupation duties, disarming remaining forces, securing infrastructure, and liberating political prisoners. The Dachau concentration camp, just north of Munich, had been liberated days earlier on 29 April 1945.

  

• Returned to USA by October 1945. The 645th TD was Inactivated on Oct. 30, 1945 at Camp Myles Standish, MA.

1946

• Discharge Date 11 Jan 1946

645TD_A_Co_April_1942_-_Reduced