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Harrison C. Summers (July 12, 1918 – August 3, 1983) was a
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...
soldier and a decorated war veteran. He served with the 1st Battalion,
502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment The 502nd Infantry Regiment (502nd IR), previously titled the 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment (502nd PIR), is an infantry regiment of the United States Army. The regiment was established shortly after U.S. entry into World War II, and was as ...
of the
101st Airborne Division The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) ("Screaming Eagles") is a light infantry division of the United States Army that specializes in air assault operations. It can plan, coordinate, and execute multiple battalion-size air assault operati ...
in World War II.


Early life

Summers was born in
Marion County, West Virginia Marion County is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 56,205. Its county seat is Fairmont. The county was named in honor of General Francis Marion (''ca.'' 1732–1795), known to history as ...
, one of six sons to William L. Summers and Florence Swisher.Harrison C. Summers
at
Find a Grave Find a Grave is a website that allows the public to search and add to an online database of cemetery records. It is owned by Ancestry.com. Its stated mission is "to help people from all over the world work together to find, record and present fin ...
.com
Summers worked as a coal miner in
Rivesville, West Virginia Rivesville is a town and former coal town in Marion County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 830 at the 2020 census. Geography Rivesville is located at (39.530276, -80.119063) in the heart of the Fairmont coal field on the n ...
. A highway bridge there is named in his honor.


Military service

On June 6, 1944, Summers landed as part of the first night drop of troops during the
American airborne landings in Normandy The U.S. airborne landings in Normandy were the first U.S. combat operations during Operation Overlord, the invasion of Normandy by the Western Allies on June 6, 1944, during World War II. Around 13,100 American paratroopers of the 82nd and 1 ...
. His unit had captured Saint-Germain-de-Varreville, France, near Exit 4 off
Utah Beach Utah, commonly known as Utah Beach, was the code name for one of the five sectors of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on June 6, 1944 (D-Day), during World War II. The westernmost of the five code-named ...
. Summers and 15 soldiers were ordered by 1st Battalion commander, Lt Col. Patrick Cassidy, to capture a building complex nearby designated "WXYZ" on the field order map. The buildings turned out to be the barracks for 100 or more German soldiers. Summers led the attack, charging inside with his
Thompson submachine gun The Thompson submachine gun (also known as the "Tommy Gun", "Chicago Typewriter", "Chicago Piano", “Trench Sweeper” or "Trench Broom") is a blowback-operated, air-cooled, magazine-fed selective-fire submachine gun, invented by United Sta ...
. He had ordered the others to follow, however only Private William Burt and Private John Camien followed him while the other soldiers stayed behind. He and the two others cleared out the buildings. Five hours later, the position was clear, and Summers killed more than 30 German soldiers. Summers received an honorable discharge on November 30, 1945, as a 1st Lieutenant. Summers was twice nominated for the
Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor ...
for his efforts that day, however was instead awarded the
Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...
. World War II historian
Stephen Ambrose Stephen Edward Ambrose (January 10, 1936 – October 13, 2002) was an American historian, most noted for his biographies of U.S. Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard Nixon. He was a longtime professor of history at the University of New Or ...
described him this way:
Summers is a legend with American paratroopers ..., the Sergeant York of World War II. His story has too much
John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Go ...
/Hollywood in it to be believed, except that more than 10 men saw and reported his exploits.


Death

Summers died of
lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, malignan ...
on August 3, 1983. He was buried in Beverly Hills Memorial Park in
Morgantown, West Virginia Morgantown is a city in and the county seat of Monongalia County, West Virginia, United States, situated along the Monongahela River. The largest city in North-Central West Virginia, Morgantown is best known as the home of West Virginia Universit ...
. After his death, his friends and fellow soldiers tried to get him posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor; however the effort failed.


Dramatizations

*'' Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30'', in which the character Sergeant Matt Baker is modelled on Summers and "WXYZ", as well as Purple Heart Lane/Cole's Charge.


See also

* 502nd Infantry Regiment *
Richard Winters Richard Davis Winters (January 21, 1918January 2, 2011) was an American businessman and decorated war veteran who served as a U.S. Army officer during World War II. He is best known for having commanded Easy Company of the 2nd Battalion, 506 ...
* Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Summers, Harrison C. 1918 births 1983 deaths People from Marion County, West Virginia Deaths from lung cancer United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army officers Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) United States Army soldiers Military personnel from West Virginia