4Oct1916 – 4Feb1945
Edison Days
Frank graduated with the Class of 1935. He was a 2-time letter winner in basketball.
After high school Frank was quite active in Men’s League basketball.
Military Service
Rank: 1st Sergeant
Branch: United States Army
Unit: Company K – 3rd Battalion -289th Infantry Regiment – 75th Infantry Division
Frank’s number was selected in the March 1941 draft.
He reported to Fort Snelling, Minnesota for induction into the Army on 3Mar1941. It is unknown where he attended basic training or advanced training.
It is likely that he joined the 289th Infantry Regiment – 75th Infantry Division when it was activated on 15Apr1943 at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. After over a year of training, Frank and the rest of the division departed from the New York Port of Embarkation on 14Nov1944 and arrived in England on November 22.
After a short period of training, the division crossed the English Channel and landed at Le Havre and Rouen, France on December 13. The Batlle of the Bulge started 3 days later.
Untested in combat, Frank and the 289th rushed into the line to help stem the German offensive in the Ardennes region near Grandmenil, Belgium. The regiment fought in bitter winter conditions against German forces. The unit helped stabilize the Allied lines and contributed to the eventual reduction of the “Bulge” salient.
Except for a 5-day rest break in the middle of the month, January 1945 was spent fighting the deep snow, freezing temperatures, and pockets of stubborn German resistance. At the end of the month the regiment was relieved by the 291st Infantry, moved back to Renchau barracks for a couple of nights, then into Braunlauf where they were relieved by the 30th Infantry Division.
Next, the entire 75th Division then pulled out of the Ardennes and loaded onto French rail boxcars bound for Luneville, France 170 miles South. The following excepts are from the Ling Company – 289th Infantry Regiment combat history which was written just after the war ended.
Frank and K Company made it back to where they had started the attack that morning and spent the night. The next day, 4Feb1945, Frank and K company got an early start.
Frank was one of the casualties that day when he was killed in action by shrapnel from a German mortar shell.
Frank was buried in a temporary military cemetery near Epinal, France.
On Sunday, 25Mar1945 a mass was held in his honor at St. Mary’s Orthodox Church.
After the war, families of soldiers buried overseas were given the option of having the remains of their loved ones returned to the US or not. Frank’s familty chose to leave his remains in France. The temporary cemetery at Epinal was transformed into a permanent cemetery and memorial and dedicated on 23July1956.
Frank is 1 of 5,252 Americans buried at the Epinal American Cemetery and Memorial.
Frank’s is 1 of 6 names of Edison Heroes engraved on a monument at St. Mary’s Orthodox Cemetery in St. Anthony, Minnesota.
Edison Heroes 