Frank L. Widdis

Rank: Private First Class, U.S. Army

Serial: 32756025

Unit: D Company, 135th Infantry Regiment, 34th Infantry Division

Entered service from: New Jersey

Died: September 27, 1944

Awards: Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster

Private First Class Frank L. Widdis was born in Maryland in 1925, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Widdis. His father, a veteran of World War I, worked as a metal roller at a smelting plant. Joseph Widdis died on May 17, 1938, on the job at a smelting plant in Philadelphia. Frank Widdis lived with his grandmother, Mrs. Miriam Cockburn. He grew up in Pennsauken, and in Woodlynne, NJ. He attended Woodrow Wilson High School in Camden and transferred to Collingswood (NJ) High School. Frank Widdis was an active Boy Scout during his youth, and he was the leader of Boy Scout Troop 4 in Camden. He left high school to join the Army on April 6, 1943, and was sent overseas in August of that year.

Private First Class Widdis was wounded in action in Italy on December 8, 1943. He recovered from his injuries and was returned to combat on the Italian front, where he died of wounds received in combat on September 27, 1944, at the age of 19. Frank Widdis was survived by his grandmother, Mrs. Miriam Cockburn, of 208 Powelton Avenue, Woodlynne, and a stepsister, Betty Widdis.