Rome, NY WWII Fallen

Cpl. Edward T. Butler

853rd Engineer Battalion

Edward Thomas Butler was born January 8, 1907 in Rome, Oneida County, New York to Theresa L. Schader (1880-1949) and Edward H. Butler (1880-1941). His parents were married June 15, 1905 in Rome, NY. The 1920 U.S. Census recorded his father being from Ireland and his mother from Germany. His father was a painter. Edward was the oldest of their 5 children. His siblings were William Gerard Butler (18 December 1906-23 June 1974); Raymond Leo Butler (30 July 1910-1 July 1977); Margaret Rosamond “Marjorie” Butler (11 December 1912-23 June 1997); Helen M. Butler Burth (15 July 1914-15 September 2007); and Rosemary T. Butler Golden (20 May 1922-1 December 2003). The family lived at 503 N. Jay St. in Rome.

According to newspaper accounts of his death, Edward was a graduate of St. Mary's School and Rome Free Academy both in Rome, NY. (I couldn't find any entry for him in the RFA Yearbooks). He registered for the draft on October 6, 1940 in Rome, NY. He was 5'-5 1/2" tall and weighed 130 pounds. He had brown eyes and black hair. He married Miss Rose Dailor at St. Mary's Church in Rome on November 9, 1942. She was a graduate of the Geneseo Normal School (SUNY Geneseo). He was employed as a surveyor at the Rome Army Air Field before his entrance into the service. Edward was a member of the Younger Democrats Club and was a candidate for Fifth Ward Alderman in Rome in 1935.

Rose Dailor, 1932

His Draft Registration Card (front)

He was drafted into the Army on January 1, 1943 with service number 32668390 and did his training in the Engineer Battalion of the Air Corps at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri, Dyersburg, Tennesee and Mobile, Alabama before being shipped overseas in October 1943. He was assigned to the 853rd Engineer Battalion, Aviation.

The Battalion boarded HMT Rohna November 23, 1943 Three days later the HMT Rohna was hit by a Henschel Hs-293 radio-controlled missile at the water line and all power was lost. The 853rd were quartered near the impact site and due to the blast, fires, and exploding ammunition accounted for most of the dead. The weather had become difficult, and the sea was producing 15-foot swells. Of the 16 lifeboats only 5 were successfully launched. At 1730 hours, LTC Frolich ordered “Abandon Ship”. The water was very cold, and hypothermia took the lives of many that had successfully escaped the sinking ship. USS Pioneer collected 606 survivors alone. Overall, 1,015 of the 2,000 personnel was lost. Over 100 crewmen also were casualties of the bombing. Cpl. Butler was one of those lost.

CPL Edward Thomas Butler was memorialized in the North African American Cemetery, Carthage, Tunis, Tunisia. The Plot was the Tablets of the Missing and the Memorial . A CENTOPATH was erected in his honor in the Saint Francis Cemetery, Durhamville, Oneida County, New York.

Sources

"Cpl. Edward T. Butler Listed Dead by War Dept.", Daily Sentinel, Rome, NY, May 20, 1944, pg. 2.

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/105318355/raymond_edward-butler: accessed May 14, 2024), memorial page for PFC Raymond Edward Butler (30 Mar 1924–22 Sep 1943), Find a Grave Memorial ID 105318355, citing Woodlawn Cemetery, Syracuse, Onondaga County, New York, USA; Maintained by ?￰ﾝﾒﾓ?￰ﾝﾒﾏ? ?. (contributor 46941322).

"Missing in Action, Daily Sentinel, Rome, NY, December 29, 1943, pg. 2

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

"Rome Man Marris Miss Rose Dailor", Daily Sentinel, Rome, NY, November 9, 1942, pg. 4

Scrapbook of Rome, NY World War II Fallen, Oriskany Museum Collection, Oriskany, NY.

"U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012"; School Name: SUNY at Geneseo; Year: 1929

Year: 1940; Census Place: Rome, Oneida, New York; Roll: m-t0627-02701; Page: 17A; Enumeration District: 33-57