Sergeant Edward Dishman Killed on Western Front

Mr. and Mrs. A. A. Dishman, Strafford, have received word from the War department that their son, S/Sgt Edward Dishman, died on January 30 of wounds received in action on the western front in Europe. He was in the medical corps of the infantry of the First army. 

Sergeant Dishman was one of five brothers in the service, Paul A. Dishman previously died in a hospital in Maryland after taking ill at a port of embarkation. Mayberry is with a headquarters company in Belgium. Lindell was injured on maneuvers when he fell into a 40-foot deep hazard, knocking out all his front teeth and rupturing his entire abdominal wall, spent six months in a hospital and while awaiting overseas orders at a port of embarkation had a nervous breakdown which sent him back to the hospital in Maryland where he remains. Wes spent 18 months in Porto Rico with the field artillery, was transferred to the Air Forces and sent to California for training. Edward, who was 27 years old, graduated from Strafford High school in 1937. He entered the service in April, 1942, trained at Camp Robinson for seven weeks and without a furlough, was sent to Scotland for further training. As a member of the First army, he landed in North Africa on invasion day, went through all the campaigns there and in Italy, taking part in every invasion except Anzio. 

As a medic, he won the Silver Star at Medjes El Bab, Tunisia, in December, 1942, went on later to Sicily for D-Day and was in the outfit which went 28 days without relief. Ernie Pyle told of this outfit in his newspaper column at the time. At the end of the Sicilian campaign he was returned to England for a rest and on D-Day went to France where he remained in combat all the way across France to the Aachen where he was wounded for the first time on October 13, 1944. He was taken to Paris for hospitalization and then on to England and returned to combat on Christmas day.  He was awarded the Purple Heart for his wounds. 

In his last letter written January 14 he said, "We are fighting in snow hip-deep. I have not received any letters or Christmas packages since I was wounded back in October." The Dishmans have three other sons at home. One, George, 18 in August, has been able to secure an agriculture deferment in order that he can help his father, who is disabled, to keep the farm functioning. A second son is a cripple, and the third is under 18. George milks 25 cows a day and does innumerable other things on their 200-acre-farm.  Sergeant Edward Dishman also is survived by four sisters.

Published: Springfield Leader & Press, Springfield, MO, Thursday Evening, February 15, 1945, p. 9, Col. 5-6.