Marshall N. Smith

Private, U.S. Army
32269302
20th Engineer Combat Battalion

Oaklyn, New Jersey
Born: 1920
Died: November 9, 1944
Germany

Buried: Plot D Row 3 Grave 16
Henri-Chapelle American Cemetery
Henri-Chapelle, Belgium

Awards: Purple Heart

Introduction

Private Marshall N. Smith, U.S. Army — Private Marshall N. Smith

Private Marshall N. Smith, of 42 Harding Avenue, Oaklyn, New Jersey, was born in Pennsylvania in 1920. He grew up in Oaklyn, attended Oaklyn Junior High School, and was a 1940 graduate of Collingswood High School, where he was on the track team his senior year. His interests included bowling, ice skating, and traveling. He was a member of Emmanuel Methodist Church.

Marshall Smith was drafted into the Army on June 9, 1942. He received his training at Camp Croft, and was sent overseas almost immediately, leaving the United States as a member of the 1st Battalion, 20th Engineer Combat Regiment on October 26, 1942. He took part in the invasion of North Africa on November 11, 1942, where the 20th Engineer Regiment deployed to Casablanca, French North Africa. There the regiment cleared and secured port facilities, then fortified the hotel where President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill met for the Casablanca Conference. The regiment next executed a motor march over 1,000 miles of desert to join the command of General Omar Bradley. In Tunisia, the regimental commander devised a coded directional marker, the Wavy Arrow, to mark all 20th Engineer equipment. On July 6, 1943, the regiment departed Tunisia with the 3rd Infantry Division and conducted a first-wave assault landing onto the beaches of Sicily.

On November 27, 1943, the 20th Engineer Combat Regiment arrived in Scotland to prepare for D-Day. The unit was reorganized, and 1st Battalion was re-designated the 20th Engineer Combat Battalion. They landed in France on D-Day, June 6, 1944, and fought across Northern France. For its efforts on Omaha Beach, the battalion was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation and the French Croix de Guerre.

Private Marshall N. Smith was wounded in Germany on November 8, 1944. He died of his wounds the following day. He was survived by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Smith; and a sister, Sgt. Florence Smith, a member of the United States Marine Corps, stationed at Cherry Point, North Carolina.