Edwin C Leese
Humboldt Standard
Wednesday, January 10, 1945 pg. 1 “Killed in Action: Fighting Germans” 1st Lt. Edwin C. Leese of Eureka was killed in action December 23 in Belgium, according to word just received here by his wife, the former Coral Wooden, who is living here now with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Wooden of 1739 J Street. Lt. Leese was in the First Division, First Army, in Germany until the German break-through forced the Americans back in Belgium, where he was killed. He had charge of a machine gun platoon and had received three Presidential Unit Citations, two for his battalion and one for his infantry. The officer had been overseas 20 months, serving in Africa, Sicily, England, France, Belgium and Germany. His outfit was the first to set foot on French soil on D-Day, first into Germany-proper and first to go through the Siegfried Line. Lt. Leese attended Arcata and Eureka High schools and was employed here in the Bank of Eureka. Surviving are his wife’ his mother, Mrs. Edwin H. Leese, of Eureka; sister and brothers, Mrs. Addaline Farwell of Eureka, Benjamin Leese and George Leese of Redwood City and Howard Leese of Boise, Idaho. |