PFC Matthew James Spears

courtesy of David Sifford

PFC Matthew James Spears was born in Devol, Oklahoma supposedly on 20 Sep 1926. He was the 8th of 9 children born to John Wiley and Dora Ophelia (Beard) Spears. His father worked as an auto mechanic in Devol for several years but by 1935 had moved to Levelland, Texas and then to Anton, Texas where Matthew's father worked in road construction. The family paid rent of $6 and month and reported a 1939 income of just $200. Matthew was living in Anton when he registered for the draft on 15 Feb 1943.

Matthew was soon drafted in March 1943 but according to his official birth date he would have been just 16 years old and men of that age were not drafted or knowingly enlisted. His draft card gives his date of birth as 15 Feb 1925 but that would also have made him too young for the draft. In any case, he entered service and after his basic military training was assigned to E Company 289th Infantry, 75th Infantry Division. We don't know why but on 17 Jul 1944 was transferred from the replacement depot to C Company 116th Infantry. PFC Spears fought with C Company as a rifleman until killed in action near Vire, France on 7 Aug 1944.

PFC Spears was repatriated in 1948 and re-interred the City of Lubbock Cemetery in Lubbock, Texas where his family was living at the time and his parents are buried near him. In a newspaper article at the time of his re-interrment, Matthew's family says that he was 22 years old when he died putting his birthday in 1922.