PFC William Allison Stedman

courtesy of AudieAnnie

PFC William Allison Stedman was born in Spencer, North Carolina on 7 May 1919. He was the oldest of the 4 children born to Joseph Marion and 2nd wife, Mary Josephine (Singleton) Stedman. His father had 1 son by his first wife. William's father was a very well respected railroad engineer who was given responsibility for the President's Special when it passed over the Southern Railroad's main line. Joseph died in 1929. The family was living in Cary, North Carolina in 1930 with no known means of support. By 1940 his mother had re-married and was living with her husband and William's living siblings on a farm near Howard, Indiana. William was apparently working as a driver in the Lynchburg, Virginia area.

William enlisted in the Virginia Army National Guard's B Company 116th Infantry and was present when the unit was federalized on 3 Feb 1941. PVT Stedman was with the unit when it trained at Fort George Meade, Maryland. He was hospitalized during the Carolina maneuvers with a severe cold. After the maneuvers the regiment went to Camp Blanding, Florida and then was sent to England aboard the Queen Mary. Once in England the 116th Infantry began training for the amphibious assault that was planned as part of the invasion of occupied France. PVT Stedman was again sent to hospital in January 1944, this time for a ganglion cyst. Returned to duty, PFC Stedman was with his unit on 6 Jun 1944 for the amphibious landing on Omaha Beach. He was killed in action on that date by fragments from German artillery fire.

PFC Stedman is buried in the Normandy American Cemetery.