CAHILL, John Francis CAHILL Photo 015 My grandfather, John Francis CAHILL served in World War II.  Part of my active research is to learn more about his time in the service.  I have lots of papers and photos, but I don’t know much about his experience.  Here’s what I do know:

  • He was inducted into the Army of the United States on 2 June 1943, and began active duty on 15 June 1943.
  • He was a private first class soldier and belonged to Company C of the 167th Combat Engineers battalion.
  • He was sent overseas on 28 June 1944 and took part in the Europe Theater Operation (ETO) as a bridge builder.
  • He took part in three battle campaigns:  Northern France, Rhineland, and Central Europe.
  • He was honorably discharged on 19 June 1946.
  • He received the following medals:  American Campaign Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal (along with three battle stars), Good Conduct Medal, and the Work War II Victory Medal.

CAHILL, John Francis CAHILL Photo 012

Hopefully one day I will learn more, like what he did between June 1943 and June 1944, while still in the country.  Or more about what it was like for him overseas.  Since he was a bridge builder, that to me implies he was not involved in combat, but I do know that people in his battalion were wounded or killed overseas.  I just want to know more!