Thursday, October 13, 2016

PVT Harold Rex Fortney

PVT Harold Rex Fortney was born 4 Jun 1916 in New Sharon, Iowa to John Harrison "Henry" and Bessie Grace (Jenkins) Fortney.  Harold had 9 siblings one of whom died at birth. "Henry" was a blacksmith who sometimes worked for "the railroad".  Harold's grandfather, Henry M. Fortney, served as a Corporal in A Company 118th Illinois Infantry during the Civil War after which he migrated to Iowa.

On 25 Jun 1939, Harold married Margaret Bolsem, in 1940 he was working for the railroad and she was a clerk in a grocery.  Together, they had an income of $960 in 1939.  Harold was drafted in March 1944.

On 10 Oct 1944 PVT Fortney was assigned from the replacement depot to A Company 116th Infantry.  On 13 Oct 1944 he was killed in action near Aachen, Germany.  He is buried in the Henri-Chapelle American Cemetery and there is a centotaph in Forest Cemetery in Oskaloosa, Iowa.

Margaret remarried after the war.  So far as we can determine they had no children.

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