PFC Walter Andre Byrum 42185198 KIA

Private First Class Walter Andre Byrum 42185198 US Army KIA. He was born on April 18, 1921, in Bayonne, New Jersey, the son of Walter J Byrum, and Cornelia E. Andre Byrum. He married Helen Passuth in 1943 in New Jersey. He enlisted in the US Army on July 27, 1944 at the age of 23. At the time of his enlistment he was 5 foot 8 inches tall weighed 177 pounds had brown eyes and brown hair.

He entered G Company, 253^rd Infantry Regiment, 63^rd Infantry Division on January 28, 1945 when he was transferred from the 2nd Repl Depot. On April 8, 1945 PFC Byrum earned the Silver Star Medal in the vicinity of Stein, Germany. When G Company was pinned down by heavy machine gun and rifle fire, PFC Byrum continued to advance, finding and killing ten German snipers from the 17th SS Division. He established a position on the flank of his company, he drew fire away from his Commanding Officer and the rest of the advancing unit. So continuous and effective was his fire that the enemy, apparently believing there was a large force on their flank, surrendered in large numbers. After the heavy firing had ceased, PFC Byrum was found dead, his ammunition exhausted. He died on April 8, 1945, at the age of 23, and was buried in Beverly, New Jersey in 1948. 

He was awarded the Silver Star Medal (SSM), Bronze Star Medals  (BSM), the Purple Heart Medal (PHM), The Combat Infantry Badge,  the American Theater of Operations Medal, European African Middle Eastern Theater of operations Medal, and the  World War Two Victory Medal.