PFC Harry Lesher Zerbe Jr.

PFC Harry Lesher Zerbe Jr. was born 18 Jun 1913 in Reamstown, Pennsylvania. He was the 6th of the 7 children of Henry Jefferson and Mary Rupp (Lesher) Zerbe. Their ancestors had been Mennonite farmers in the surrounding Lancaster county. Harry's father farmed near Ephrata, Pennsylvania. Harry only finished 1-year of high school and was working on a farm full time by the time he was 15. The family did not own their home until about 1935 after Henry left farming to work as a carpenter and it was valued at $1600 in 1940. Harry also left farming and went to work in the shipping department of F & M Hat Company factory in Denver, Pennsylvania.

Harry was drafted in June 1941 and went to Camp Wheeler, Georgia for training. He was discharged in October 1941 and assigned to the Enlisted Men's Reserve Corps. He was recalled in January 1942 and received additional training at Fort George Meade, Maryland, the A. P. Hill Military reservation and at Camp Blanding, Florida. He was probably assigned to K Company 116th Infantry at this time. The regiment was sent to England in September 1942 where they began training for the planned invasion of occupied France. Training was intensive and he was briefly hospitalized with a joint injury due to the long foot marches in which the regiment participated. PFC Zerbe took part in the D-Day landings and fought with the unit until wounded on 16 Jun 1944. Although evacuated to a field hospital he died of his wound(s) that same day. PFC Zerbe was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star. Unfortunately we do not have the citation for that award. 

PFC Zerbe rests forever at the Normandy American Cemetery.