bigpigeon.us webpage WWII Dead > Roster Records > Roster L, © 2024 by Robert A. Christiansen, last update 13 Feb 2024.
Part 13/24 of Big Pigeon's Pottawattamie Area World War II Dead Roster, 33 "L" names.
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† Landon, Arnold Dale, SN 20-706-405, US Army, Cass Co.
  • b. 6 Jun 1920 Cumberland, Cass Co.; s/o Demas A. Landon & Bessie A. Brown; family moved to Atlantic, Cass Co. iin late 1920s; entered service 10 Feb 1941 from Atlantic; bur. Victoria Cem., Massena, Cass Co.
  • Co. K (Atlantic), 168th Inf. Regt., transferred to Anti-tank Co., 133rd Inf. Regt., both 34th Inf. Div., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 22 May 1944 Anzio Beachhead, Lazio, Italy.
  • The MTO > Italy > Battle of Anzio.

† Lane, Kit Carson, SN 0-463-136, US Army, Audubon Co.
  • b. 10 Jul 1898 Pittsburg, near Keosauqua, Van Buren Co. s/o Frank D. Lane & Libbie J. Hayward; family moved to Audubon, Audubon Co. in 1910s; WWI service with Co. K, 168th Inf.; m. Mary A. Jensen of Audubon 1925; one child; entered service 23 Apr 1942 from Audubon; bur. Maple Grove Cem., Audubon.
  • MP detachment, 1604th Service Unit,  based at Ft. Brady, Sault Ste. Marie, MI; DNB 22 Apr 1943 Station Hospital, Ft. Custer, Battle Creek, MI; cerebral hemorrhage.

† Lang, Richard Waddell, SN 37-481-349, US Army, Cass & Carroll Cos.
  • b. 19 Feb 1925 Atlantic, Cass Co.; s/o Claude Melvin Lang & Myrtle Lela Waddell; entered service 21 Jun 1943 from Atlantic, service credited to Carroll Co.; bur. Atlantic Cem.
  • Co. B, 135th Inf. Regt., 34th Inf. Div., Fifth Army; KIA 8 Feb 1944 near Cassino, Lazio, Italy.
  • First Battle of Monte Cassino - The MTO > Italy > Cassino/The Gustav Line.

† Larsen, Lester M., SN 17-003-312, US Army Air Force, Pott. Co.
  • b. 12 Aug 1921 Iowa; s/o Jacob Larsen & Anna F. Tissack of Co. Bluffs; enlisted 23 Aug 1940 at Ft. Des Moines, Polk Co.
  • 37th Bomb. Sqdn., 17th Bomb. Gp., XII Bomber Cmd., based at Telergma, SW of Constantine, Algeria, North Africa; Martin B-26 Marauder; DNB (sic) 16 Mar 1943 North Africa, aircraft accident; BNR.
  • The MTO > MTO Air War.

† Larson, Darwin Norville, SN 37-435-093, US Army, Montgomery Co.
  • b. 29 Jun 1909 rural Grant, Douglas Twp., Montgomery Co.; s/o Lars O. Larson & Rebecca Mae Irwin (d. 1942); Douglas Twp. resident through 1940; entered service 9 Oct 1942; bur. Luxembourg American Cem., east of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg.
  • 737th Tank Bn., attached to 5th Inf. Div., XII Corps, Third Army; KIA 23 Feb. 1945 approaching Bitburg, Rhineland-Palatine, Germany.
  • The ETO > Siegfried Line, 1945 > XII Corps to Bitburg.

† Larson, Paul Lewis, SN 321-30-06, US Navy, Shelby Co.
  • b. 26 Dec 1920 Irwin, Shelby Co.; s/o Roy L. Larson & Anna W. Paulsen both b. Irwin; entered service 21 Feb 1939 from Irwin; m. Carol/Caryl _____.
  • Submarine USS Tang (SS-306); KIA 25 Oct 1944 in Formosa Strait, west of Formosa; Tang sunk by circular run of its own torpedo; 69 dead, nine survivors; BNR.
  • Naval War with Japan > US Submarine Force.

† Lathrop, Harold Verne, SN 37-737-163, US Army, Sedgwick Co., KS
  • b. Co. Bluffs 25 Sep 1913; s/o Ethal C. Lathrop & Golda S. Scott; m. Anna L. Liming 1939, two children; entered service 17 Mar 1944 at Ft. Leavenworth, KS; bur. Ardennes American Cem., Neupre, Belgium.​
  • 18th Inf. Regt., 1st Inf. Div., V Corps, First Army; FOD/KIA 29 Dec 1944 near Bütgenbach, NE of St. Vith, Belgium.
  • The ETO > Ardennes/The Bulge > The Bulge Contained.

† LaVars, Kenneth Charles, SN 393-32-67, US Navy, Montgomery Co.
  • b. 7 Jun 1915 Pomona, Los Angeles Co., CA; s/o Herald F. LaVars & Ruth Wikoff (div.); mother m. Charles S. Hagermaster 1928 & moved to Villisca, Montgomery Co.; entered service 8 Dec 1939 from Portland, OR.
  • Came on board Escort Carrier USS Salamaua (CVE-96) 26 May 1944; Salamaua assigned to Task Unit 77.4.1 of the Seventh Fleet for the Luzon, Philippines invasion; KIA 13 Jan 1945 South China Sea, 80 miles west of Lingayen Gulf, Luzon; Salamaua was waiting to refuel at sea whe hit by kamikaze carrying two bombs; 19 dead (14 buried at sea five missing), Salamaua survived; BNR.
  • Philippines Liberated > Philippines Naval War.

​Lawson, Herschal Vernon, SN 37-466-733, US Army, Montgomery Co.
  • b. 14 Nov 2020 near Hamburg, Fremont Co. or Auburn, Nemaha Co., NE; s/o Vernon S. Lawson & Peggy E. A. Greenlee; entered service 15 Dec 1942 from Red Oak, Montgomery Co.; bur. Evergreen Cem., Red Oak.
  • Co. A, Supply Bn., 14th Armored Div.; DNB 29 May 1943 Camp Chaffee Hospital, Bloomer, Sebastian Co., AR; vehicle accident with major spinal injuries.

† Lawton, Kenneth Burdette, SN 0-738-191, US Army Air Force, Cass Co.
  • b. 22 May 1921 Lewis, Cass Co.; s/o Joseph W. Lawton & Hazel G. Baxter, both Mills Co. natives; entered service 26 Mar 1942 from Lewis; b. Ft. McPherson Nat'l Cem., Maxwell, Lincoln Co., NE (crew group burial).
  • 822 Bomb. Sqdn., 38th Bomb. Gp., Fifth Air Force; stationed at 17 Mile Drome near Port Moresby, Papua, New Guinea; North American B-25G-5 Mitchell #42-64827 co-pilot with pilot Ralph E. Freek; KIA 16 Jan 1944 near Ulingan Bay, NNW of Madang, Papua, New Guinea; while flying the coastal area searching for Japanese barges, flight was attacked by Japanese fighters, aircraft crashed on shore killing all six crew.
  • Operation Cartwheel - Air Force War with Japan > Fifth Air Force.

† Leach, William Ellsworth, SN 631-07-23, US Navy, Pott. Co.
  • b. ~ 1926 Nebraska: s/o Leslie Ellsworth Leach & Margaret M. Gough; family lived in Co. Bluffs in the late 1930s; enlisted 22 May 1943 from Little Rock, AR ; buried at sea.
  • Destroyer USS Bailey (DD-492); KIA 1 Oct 1944, off Palau Is., east of the Philippines; Bailey strafed by Japanese aircraft, nine dead.
  • Naval War with Japan > Third & Fifth Fleets.

​† Learned, Bradley Eugene, SN 17-047-210, US Army Air Force, Wright Co., MN 
  • b. 28 Mar 1920 Wright Co., MN s/o Abijah E. Learned & Mabel M. Redmond; graduated from Iowa State College 1940; subsequently employed in Canton, IL; entered service from Wright Co. at Ft. Snelling, MN 9 Jan 1942.
  • 508th Bomb Sqdn. 351st Bomb Gp., Eighth Air Force based between Leicester and Cambridge at Polebrook, Northamptonshire, England; Boeing B-17F Flying Fortress #42-29817 ball turret gunner with pilot William C. King; KIA 28 Jun 1943 over the Bay of Biscay after completion of mission over St. Nazaire, France; aircraft lost two engines after Luftwaffe attack, glided into water and exploded; four POW & six KIA.
  • The ETO > ETO Air War > Eighth Air Force.

† Lee, Delbert Donald, SN 17-040-250, US Army, Cass Co.
  • b. 25 Sep 1921 Cumberland, Cass Co.; s/o Delbert J. Lee & Pearl Uhlmann; entered service 26 Jan 1942 from Cumberland; bur. Greenwood Cem., Cumberland.
  • Co. A, 610th Tank Destroyer Bn., attached to 80th Inf. Div., XII Corps, Third Army; KIA 8 Jan 1945 Dahl, SE of Wiltz, Luxembourg.
  • The ETO > Ardennes/The Bulge > The Bulge Eliminated.
  • Notes: Delbert Lee received a posthumous Distinguished Service Cross. Co. A, 610th Tank Destroyer Bn. was supporting the 319th Inf. Regt. at the time. During the 8 January action in Dahl, Day Turner of Co. B, 319th Regt., received a posthumous Congressional Medal of Honor.

† Lee, Raymond Nathan, SN 320-153, US Marine Corps, Pott. Co.
  • b. 16 Dec 1923 Dunlap, Harrison Co.; s/o Robert N. Lee (d. 1936) & Florence E. Parris (d. 1933) who moved to Co Bluffs in early 1930s; entered service 13 Aug 1941 from Co. Bluffs.
  • Co. C, 8th Marine Regt., 2nd Marine Div.; KIA 21 Nov 1943 Betio Is., Tarawa Atoll, Gilbert Is.; BNR.
  • Battle of Tarawa - Central Pacific > Gilbert Islands.

† Lee, Theodore Evans, SN 0-772-418, US Army Air Force, Mills Co. & San Luis Obispo Co., CA
  • b. 24 May 1924 Pacific Jct., Mills Co. s/o Theodore S. Lee & Viva L. Evans; family moved from Glenwood, Mills Co. to California abt 1935; entered service from San Luis Obispo Co., CA; bur. Golden Gate Nat'l Cem., San Bruno, CA.
  • unit unknown; KIA 5 Dec 1944 Noomfoor Is., Dutch New Guinea.
  • Air Force War with Japan > Thirteenth Air Force.

† Leet, John Drexel Sr., SN 37-267-578, US Army, Mills Co.
  • b. 2 Apr 1922 Glenwood, Mills Co.; s/o John T. Leet & Wilda V. Wickersham; m. Evelyn B. Hinton, one child; entered service 26 Oct 1942 from Glenwood; bur. Glenwood Cem.
  • Co. B, 382nd Inf. Regt., 96th Inf. Div., KIA 4 Nov 1944 Bloody Ridge, west of Dagami, Leyte, Philippines.
  • Philippines Liberated > Leyte.

Lein, Robert Eugene - see Duffy, Robert Eugene
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† Lembke, Orlan Palmer, SN 37-121-080, US Army, Pott. Co.
  • b. 25 Mar 1911 rural Griswold, Grove Twp., Pott. Co.; s/o George Lembke & Ethel E. Palmer of Grove Twp.; entered service 20 Apr 1942 from Griswold; bur. Wheeler Grove Cem., rural Carson, Pott. Co.
  • Co. H, 7th Inf. Regt., 3rd Inf. Div., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 16 Oct 1943 Dragoni, north of Caserta, Italy.
  • The MTO > Italy > The Volturno Line.

† Leonard, Stanley William, SN 37-260-819, US Army, Cass Co.
  • b. 14 Jan 1914 Waveland Twp., Pott Co.; s/o Joseph H. Leonard & Susan J. Hartness; entered service 9 Sep 1942 from rural Griswold, Cass Co.; bur. Flint Cem., Waveland Twp.
  • Co. A, 12th Inf. Regt., 4th Inf. Div., First Army; KIA 16 Sep 1944 in the Schnee Eifel, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany ~25 miles east of St. Vith, Belgium.
  • Battle of the Schnee Eifel - The ETO > War of Attrition > V Corps at the West Wall.

† Lesch, Joseph Ferdinand, SN 37-471-901, US Army Air Force, Harrison Co.
  • b. 2 Sep 1922 Defiance, Shelby Co.; s/o Ferdinand H. Lesch & Mary A. Pimple; family moved to rural Dunlap, Harrison Co. bef. 1925; entered service Jan 1943 from Dunlap; bur. Pleasant Hill Cem., Dunlap.
  • 529th Bomb. Sqdn., 380th Bomb. Gp., Fifth Air Force, based at McGuire Field, Mindoro Is., Philippines; Consolidated B-24J Liberator #44-40801 Squaw Peak radio operator with pilot Francis V. See Jr.; KIA 15 Apr 1945 over Formosa on raid to Shinshoshi Airdrome; aircraft exploded in mid-air from anti-aircraft fire or hit by bomb dropped from a higher aircraft; crew of 11, five died.
  • Air Force War with Japan > Fifth Air Force.

† Leu, Robert Carroll, SN 381-47-66, US Navy, Pott. Co.
  • b. 20 Apr 1920 Tabor, Fremont Co.; s/o Arthur Leu & Laura Green of Mills Co., family moved to Co. Bluffs in late 1930s and then to York, NE; in Berkeley, CA 1941; enlisted 22 Jun 1942; bur. Greenwood Cem., York, York Co., NE.
  • Navy Signalman, unit unknown; arrived in Guadalcanal, Solomon Is. Apr 1943 from Noumea, New Caledonia on Attack Transport President Jackson (APA-18); DNB 16 Mar 1944 in fall from radio tower on Solomon Is.
  • WWII Japan > The Pacific Base Areas.

​† Lewis, Harold Joseph, SN 37-698-156, US Army, Cass & Audubon Cos.
  • b. 28 Sep 1914 rural Elliott, Montgomery Co., IA; s/o John W. Lewis & Mary A. Wright; m. Desda R. Winterstein 1934, four children; moved to Exira, Audubon Co. from Cass Co. in early 1940s; entered service 7 Jun 1944 from Exira; service credited to Audubon Co.; bur. Hillside Cem., Elliott.
  • Co. E, 85th Mountain Inf. Regt., 10th Mountain Inf. Div.; KIA 15 Apr 1945 near Castel d’Aiano, 25 miles south of Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy.
  • The MTO > Italy > The Po Valley.
  • Notes: Killed during the Fifth Army breakout from the northern Apennine Mountains into the Po River Valley; Bob Dole, later senator from Kansas, also from the 85th Inf. Regt., was seriously injured the previous day.

† Linder, Gerald Edward, SN O-378126, US Navy, Montgomery Co.
  • b. rural Red Oak, Frankfort Twp., Montgomery Co.; s/o John A. Linder & Maude E. Weilenman; entered service 19 Oct 1937 from Rt. 2, Red Oak.
  • Destroyer USS Kalk (DD-611), Seventh Fleet; KIA 12 Jun 1944 off southern coast of Biak Is., W. of Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea; Kalk hit by Japanese bomb while escorting LSTs from Hollandia, New Guinea to Biak; 30 dead, 40 wounded, Kalk survived; BNR.
  • South & SW Pacific > Western New Guinea.

† Lindsey, William Larkin, SN 37-750-189, US Army, Pott. Co.
  • b. 14 Feb 1921 Oakland, Pott. Co.; s/o Charles A. Lindsey & Sarah Katie Woolcott of Oakland; raised in Oakland; entered service 16 Aug 1944 from Co. Bluffs; bur. Fairview Pioneer Cem., rural Oakland.
  • 275th Inf. Regt., 70th Inf. Div., XXI Corps, Seventh Army; KIA 16 Mar 1945 near Saarbrücken, Saarland, Germany.
  • The ETO > To the Rhine > Operation Undertone.

† Linn, Charles Leroy, SN 17-038-155, US Army Air Force, Pott. Co.
  • b. 14 Jan 1917 Gray, Audubon Co.; s/o Charlie C. Linn & Edith P. Mitchell of Walnut, Pott. Co.; entered service 29 Dec 1941 from Walnut; bur. Layton Twp. Cem., Walnut.
  • 476th Bomb. Sqdn., 335th Bomb. Gp.; based at Barksdale Army Air Field, Shreveport, LA; Martin B-26A Marauder #41-7404 crew member with pilot E. F. Murphy Jr.; DNB 6 Nov 1942 at Lambert Field, St. Louis, MO; aircraft crashed & burned at take-off, all five dead.

† Logan, Robert John, SN 20-743-488, US Army, Pott. Co.
  • b. 26 Sep 1916 Omaha; s/o Merritt D. Logan & Ella M. Richelieu (d. 1941) of Co. Bluffs; entered service 13 Jan 1941 from Rt. 4, Co. Bluffs; bur. Normandy American Cem., Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy France.
  • Troop B, 113th Cavalry Recon. Sqdn., 113th Cavalry Recon. Gp.; DOW 2 Sep 1944, northern France near Tournai, Belgium.
  • The ETO > Liberation > Northern France.

† Longmeyer, Frank Herman Jr., SN 504,952, US Marine Corps, Harrison Co.
  • b. 4 May 1925 rural Missouri Valley, LaGrange Twp., Harrison Co.; s/o Frank H. Longmeyer & Emma H. Balis of LaGrange Twp., Harrison Co.; entered service 24 May 1943 from Rt. 3, Logan, Harrison Co.; b. Rose Hill Cem., Missouri Valley.
  • Weapons Co., 27th Marine Regt., 5th Marine Div.; KIA 12 Mar 1945 Iwo Jima, Japan.
  • Iwo Jima & Okinawa > Battle of Iwo Jima.

† Loustanau, Charles Bernard, SN 321-52-57, US Navy, Carroll Co.
  • b. 29 May 1914 Dedham, Carroll Co.; s/o John E. Loustanau & Katherine M. Theulen; parents div.; ss/o Ernst Johannsen; family moved nearby to rural Gray, Viola Twp, Audubon Co. in 1930s; entered service 26 Nov 1940 from Rt. 1, Gray.
  • Battleship USS Arizona (BB-39); KIA 7 Dec 1941 during Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Oahu, Hawaii Territory; Arizona exploded & sank; 1,177 dead; BNR.
  • Japan Lashes Out > Pearl Harbor.
  • Notes: The sunken Arizona settled in shallow water and remains today as a memorial.

† Lovelady, Lyle Everett, childhood name Lyle E. Miller, SN 20-723-370, US Army, Mills Co. & Douglas Co., NE
  • b. 6 Oct 1907 Malvern, Mills Co.; lived in the John T. Miller (d. 1932) & Loracy McDonald (d. 1921) household in Malvern through 1925, during this time he was known as Lyle E. Miller, unknown whether he was their child or a foster child, unknown whether Lovelady was a birth parent of an assumed name; m. Hattie L. Robinson of Co. Bluffs 1927, div; m. Dorothy E. Goldbeck of Denison, Crawford Co. 1938, two children, div.; m. widower Carol I. (Reasoner) Delashmutt of Mills Co. 1943; entered service 23 Dec 1940 from Omaha, service credited to Douglas Co.; bur. Normandy American Cem., Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France.
  • before induction, served in Nebraska National Guard in Omaha's Co. K, 134th Inf. Regt., 35th Inf. Div.; still serving in 134th Inf. Regt., 35th Inf. Div., V Corps, First Army at time of death; KIA 18 Jul 1944, north of St. Lo, Manche, Normandy, France.
  • The ETO > Normandy Campaign > Normandy, July 1944.
  • Family Note: Lyle Lovelady's mother, Loracy (McDonald) Miller, has numerous descendants from an earlier marriage to John W. Hollins of Mills Co.
 
† Lowman, George Arthur, SN 37-480-834, US Army, Montgomery Co.
  • b. 14 Nov 1924 Red Oak, Montgomery Co.; s/o Roy H. Lowman & Ruth Moore; entered service 5 Jun 1943 from Red Oak; bur. Evergreen Cem., Red Oak.
  • 395th Inf. Regt., 99th Inf. Div., III Corps, First Army; WIA 23 Mar 1945 probably near Niederbreitbach, Rhineland Palatinate, SE of Remagen, Germany; returned to US 12 Apr 1945; DOW 31 May 1945 in McCloskey General Hosp., Temple, TX.
  • The ETO > To The Rhine > Operation Lumberjack.

† Luchsinger, Stanley Dean, SN 37-455-354, US Army, Pott. Co.
  • b. 11 Mar 1921 Minden, Pott. Co.; s/o Jacob Luchsinger (d. 1940) & Lillian Trede (d. 1931) of Minden; bur. Minden Twp. Cem.
  • Co. C, 33rd Armored Inf. Regt., 3rd Armored Div.; KIA 23 Dec 1944 Hotton, 30 miles NW of Bastogne, Belgium.
  • The ETO > Ardennes/The Bulge > The Bulge Grows.

† Lueth, Walter August William, SN 310-93-52, US Navy, Pott. Co.
  • b. 28 Nov 1909 Avoca, Pott. Co.; s/o John C. Lueth & Amelia Tetlewsky of Avoca; entered service 1 Aug 1928 from Avoca.
  • Cruiser USS Juneau (CL-52); KIA 13 Nov 1942 SE of Guadalcanal, Solomon Is.; Juneau torpedoed & sunk by Japanese submarine I-26; 687 dead including the five Sullivan brothers, ten survived; BNR.
  • aftermath of First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal - South & SW Pacific > Solomons Sea War.

† Lutz, Wilbur Leroy, SN 37-485-626, US Army, Harrison Co.
  • b. 25 Dec 1921 Geddes, Charles Mix Co., SD; s/o Edmund L. Lutz & Leona Laporte (d. 1941); family moved to Little Sioux, Harrison Co. in early 1930s; m. Bernadene J. McAdon of Little Sioux 1941; entered service 4 Oct 1943 from Little Sioux; bur. Netherlands American Cem., Margraten, Netherlands.
  • 67th Armored Regt., 2nd Armored Div., XIX Corps, Ninth Army; KIA 3 Mar 1945 near Krefeld, west of Rhine River & NW of Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
  • The ETO > Rhineland, 1945 > Ops Veritable & Grenade.

† Lynch, Archie Dale, SN 37-693-884, US Army, Cass Co.
  • b. 21 Dec 1915 Springview, Keya Paha Co., NE; s/o  Hawley A. Lynch & Lillian M. Prall (d. 1922) ; family moved to Cass Co. bef. 1917; m. Dorothy H. Anker 1937, three children; entered service 31 Mar 1944 from Atlantic; bur. Epinal American Cem., Epinal, Lorraine, France.​​
  • 315th Inf. Regt., 79th Inf. Div., XV Corps, Seventh Army; DOW 24 Oct 1944 near Embermenil, SE of Nancy, Meurthe et Moselle Dept., Lorraine, France, shrapnel wounds.
  • The ETO > War of Attrition > Lorraine/Seventh Army.