Chandler Starr Spoor was born October 17, 1914 in Laurens, NY to Elmer Eugene Spoor (abt.1881-1946) and Sarah Cora Bunn (1886-1917). His mom died when he was only 3 years old. According to U.S. Census records, his dad was a farmer and eventually remarried to Helen Blanche Stanton (1898-1967). Both his parents and his stepmom were from New York. The 1920 U.S. Census recorded that he had an older sister Dorothy (who became Mrs. Ray Nearing and lived in Mr. Vision, NY). By 1930 the U.S. Census recorded Chandler no longer lived with his parents but that he had six younger siblings who were, Sarah, Olive, Elizabeth, Mary, Elmer and Richard all younger. It's likely these siblings were all step-siblings. He graduated from Morris High School in 1933, having moved to Morris in his senior year from nearby Laurens.  While there his nickname was "Twinkle" and he played the role of "Beanie" Jones in the school play Cousin Julia's Jade Ear-Ring.  He was also co-author of the senior class Will. 

He entered the New York National Guard on March 23, 1936 in Mt. Vision, NY. His enlistment papers recorded he completed four years of high school. He appears below in the "Company G" picture taken from the Pictorial History of the 27th Division United States Army 1940-41, available at the NY State Museum. Why he does not enter the service with the rest of Company G when it was federalized on on October 15, 1940, is unknown to the author at the time of this writing.

Instead, records show he registered for the draft in 1939 and recorded on his draft registation card that he was living in Garrattsville, NY. He reported on this same registration card that he was not working and that he was 5'-9" tall and weighed 152 lbs. He had brown eyes and black hair. (A curious anecdote about Chandler appears in a July 1941 local newspapers which reported that he was in a minor auto accident near Oneonta.)  

U.S. Army records indicate he was drafted and entered the service in Utica, NY on January 21, 1943. Because of this uncertainty, where he went to basic training is not clear. What we do know is he was with the 4th Infantry Division and that they received their basic training at Fort Dix, N.J. then participated in battlefield maneuvers in Florida in September of 1943. After this it participated in fall training at Camp Jackson, South Carolina,then in January 1944 moved to the New York Port of Embarkation. The 4th Infantry Division then sailed to England where it arrived January 26, 1944.

According to the History of the 4th Infantry Division, the 8th Infantry Regiment were the first units to land at Utah Beach on D-Day. They then supported the isolated 82nd Airborne Division at Sainte-Mère-Église, and cleared the Cotentin peninsula and took part in the capture of Cherbourg on June 25. S/Sgt. Spoor is killed in action on June 27, 1944 and buried the next day at Ste. Mere-Eglise #2 Cemetery, Ste. Mere-Eglise, France, Grave 37, Row 2, Plot F. Per his mother's wishes, his body is permanently interred in the St. Laurent Cemetery, France, Plot C, Row 13, Grave 19. He is awarded the Purple Heart posthumously.

If you notice anything erroneous in this profile or have additional information to contribute to it, please contact Jim Greenberg at nez13820@gmail.com. 

Sources

American Battle Monuments Commission; Arlington, VA; Cemetery Records

Find a Grave record, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56650305/chandler-starr-spoor, accessed January 15, 2023.

Individual Deceased Personnel File for Chandler S Spoor, National Archives, Washington, D.C.

National 4th Infantry Division Association website, accessed history at https://www.4thinfantry.org/content/division-history, January 14, 2023.

National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; WWII Draft Registration Cards for New York State, 10/16/1940 - 03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147

New York State Archives; Albany, New York; Collection: New York, New York National Guard Service Cards, 1917-1954; Series: B2001; Film Number: 23

Pictorial History of the 27th Division, 1940-41, accessed at the New York State Museum's website: https://museum.dmna.ny.gov/application/files/1616/2342/9204/Pictorial_History_27th_Division_1940-41.pdf, February 2, 2023.

Year: 1920; Census Place: Laurens, Otsego, New York; Roll: T625_1255; Page: 7B; Enumeration District: 197

Year: 1930; Census Place: Laurens, Otsego, New York; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 0014; FHL microfilm: 2341370

Supporting Files