Samuel V. Wilson passes
Liberal Civvy tells us that a legend has passed. 93-year-old Samuel V. Wilson enlisted in the Virginia National Guard at the age of 16 in 1940, lying about his age. He rose through the ranks of the 116th Infantry as a squad leader, platoon sergeant and acting first sergeant until he went to Officer Candidate School becoming Second Lieutenant at the age of 19. He stayed at the Infantry School as an instructor until he volunteered for the precursor of the Ranger Battalions, 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), popularly known as Merrill’s Marauders, and was assigned with them in the India-Burma theater of operations as a captain. After his assignment there, he returned to the US, it was discovered that he’d lied about his age and he was demoted to 2nd Lieutenant.
From the Associated Press;
At the end of the war, he was assigned to the Office of Strategic Services, which was the forerunner of the Central Intelligence Agency, in Southeast Asia. He later worked as a CIA officer in West Berlin and a defense attache at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow during the Cold War.
He retired as a Lieutenant General with two Silver Star Medals and a Bronze Star for valor. He passed on Saturday from his battle against lung cancer.
Category: We Remember
Fair winds and following seas, General.
Rest in peace, Sir.
We owe you more than we could ever repay.
That men like this lived…. RIP sir!
I found the reduction in rank interesting. I always thought age related fraudulent enlistments were cases of no harm, no foul, so to speak. In any event, he done good. Requiem In Pace, Sir.
In reality the “demotion” was an appointment in the Regular Army from Major in the AUS
The kind of an American story that movies should be made about, Instead, we get Harvey Milk.
Inspirational. Demoted for trying to get INTO combat, no less. I see the gilded popinjays are always with us. Shuffling their GD papers, parsing their holy rules and trying to keep good things from happening.
Is the 116th part of the old Stonewall Brigade, seems familiar for some reason.
Bedford Va is the hometown of Co A of the 116th, and the town proportionally had the highest D-Day losses in America. The National D-Day Memorial was located in Bedford to honor their loss.
That tough sob is what makes America great.
May we set the same example for others to follow.
Rest In Peace, Ranger.
19 year old 2LT! Wow, that’s something!
“Let’s see what kind of bad-ass shit I can do before I’m eventually caught!”
Rest in peace, sir!
Interesting military historical point:
Would General Wilson be one of those rare soldiers who earned the Ranger Tab without having to attend the Ranger Course?
Award Eligibility – Ranger Tab
(2) Any person who was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge while serving during World War II as a member of a Ranger Battalion (1st-6th inclusive) or in the 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional) (Merrill’s Marauders).
Seems likely. Per his Wikipedia bio, his only combat assignments appear to have been World War II and Vientam. And he’s pretty sure to have seen combat as a member of Merril’s Marauders during World War II.
FWIW: LTG Wilson’s last assignment was as Director, Defense Intelligence Agency.
Rest in peace, sir.
Yes, just like my Uncle who served with the Marauders and Tab. If you review the lineage of the 2n BN 75 Infantry Regiment (Ranger) you will find the Marauder Unit Crest on the Coin. My Uncle Hugh, served with the Marauders until they were disbanded. Then was assigned to The Nationalist Chinese to fight the Japanese.
Cross the river and rest in the shade of the Trees. I’ll carry your Ruck Sir. Rest In Peace, Sir,
Truly a great man.
RIP General, mission accomplished…
RIP
Rest in peace, LTG Wilson.
Whoa! What an outstanding American!!
Nice catch, LC. Thanks for sharing.
Rest Well Sir
Salute
Phenomenal Career.
An exceptional warrior.
Rest easy, soldier.
NOT A SNOWFLAKE
So many of these truly inspirational men and women live among us and pass in relative obscurity while we are fed a constant diet of celebrities and politicians and told they are somehow worthy of note.
WWII Veterans are almost all gone, Korean Veterans are rapidly dying off and Viet Nam Veterans are aging. How many more more true life stories will fade barely acknowleged into history?
Growing up I knew a lot of WWII Veterans, family, friends dads, etc and I regret not delving deeper into their lives and experiences. Can you imagine
talking to Gen Wilson and capturing some of his story? Even the smaller things usually overlooked by authors would be interesting…i.e., what did his family think?, what was it like to be a teen acting 1SG? Did his lack of a formal education mean anything to him personally or how did he fill that gap?
God I could think of a thousand things to ask him. We all need to make a concerted effort to really talk to our aging out Veterans; even the aged local Korean War former PFC has a story to tell and it would likely be better than any dreck on TV.
+1
Isn’t it amazing, some communist leaning puke in congress, a liar and thief dies and its all over the media what a great guy he was..but a REAL HERO like that, that deserves a ticket tape parade in NYUCK gets nothing! Time to clean out our communist media imho!
We were not blood relations, but General Sam was a member of my extended family and visited with us many times. He and my Dad were great friends, and he served as one of my Dad’s pallbearers. If you want to know more about his story, there is a PDF of a military history that you can find on the internet. A Dr. Partain conducted the interview. Joe Galloway also wrote a nice column about him during the Iraq conflict that gives some back story. He actually received several appointments to West Point, but he took an informal physical and was told that he would be discharged if he took a formal one. He had dysentery, malaria, and several other maladies from his Burma service. He did not attend college, but he was a learned man; a deep reader and thinker with a remarkable ability with languages. The new book about Lansdale talks about him a great deal.
Rest easy General we have it from here. We will meet again in Valhallah!
God rest you well Sir. America is the worse for your passing.
General Wilson and I went through Defense Attache School together; he prior to his Moscow assignment, me prior to assignment to India. I later served with him at DIA for four years and considered it an honor to know him and to serve with him. I most especially remember his intervention to send me on a National Intelligence Estimate mission to Afghanistan, Pakistan and India prior to the Russian invasion of Afghanistan. He was a true warrior/intellectual and he has been a mentor and leader to many in the military and in the civilian sector. Enjoy your next assignment, General Sam. AA-9 DIA 1973-1978