PFC William Ellerson Schools was born 19 Feb 1918 in Richmond, Virginia. He was the oldest of he 2 sons born to Andrew Ellerson and Nellie Douglas (Wingfield) Schooles. His father supported the family as a carpenter for a railroad and as a driver for a grocery and others. By 1940 William had begun work as a delivery boy for Richmond Motor Company earning a reported 1939 income of $572. That same year his father was earning $1700 and paying $20 a month rent at 614 North 23rd Street in Richmond.
William was drafted in February 1942, 1-year after his younger brother. After completing his basic military training he was assigned to B Company 116th Infantry, perhaps before the regiment was sent to England in September 1942. Once in England he trained with the regiment for the amphibious assault that was to take place on the Normandy coast of France. PFC Schools was killed in action on 6 Jun 1944.
We believe that PFC Schools was repatriated and likely buried Forest Lawn Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia but have no proof of his burial location at this time.
William's younger brother, Douglas Carroll Schools, was a member of the 111th Field Artillery and Virginia National Guard in Richmond prior to the war, mobilized on 1 Feb 1941 and also participated in the amphibious assault at Omaha Beach. He survived the war and died of lung cancer in 1982 at the age of 62.
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