The Grave of Leon Hinds, Band of Brothers
As I was driving around Wise and Jack counties (Texas) earlier this Spring, I chanced upon Burton Springs Cemetery, a lonely but well-kept little graveyard in the middle of rolling prairies. The springs are just outside of the gate.
Inside the gate I found the headstone of Pvt Leon Hinds, who died at the age of 22 near Cherbourg, France on June 23, 1944. A member of the 4th Infantry Division of the 22nd Infantry Regiment, Pvt. Hinds had landed at Utah Beach during the Normandy Invasion of June 6, 1944, at "H plus 75 minutes" (1:15 am). He was fatally wounded during a battle around the Norman village of Azeville.
Leon Hinds was born in 1922 in LeFlore County, Oklahoma and was working on the farm of Bert Miles in Poolville, Parker County, Texas when he signed up to serve in the army in 1941. After his death, the army buried him at Sainte Mère Eglise n°2; today, this village is home to the Aireborne Museum.
His body was repatriated by his father, Frank Hinds of Childress (Hardeman County, Texas), who applied for this this upright marble headstone in 1948.
There is not much information to be found about this young man, who was cut down in his prime in a foreign land. I think it's important to remember him, because his sacrifice — and his family's grief — demands recognition.
--- Please remember the reason for Memorial Day ---
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