Sergeant Woodrow W. Gravenor (1918–1944)

*Woodrow W. Gravenor (Courtesy of the Delaware Public Archives)*

Hometown	Civilian Occupation
Newark, Delaware	Assistant store manager and film projectionist
Branch	Service Number
U.S. Army	32167367
Theater	Unit
European	Company “L,” 137th Infantry Regiment, 35th Infantry Division
Awards	Campaigns/Battles
Purple Heart, Combat Infantryman Badge	Battle of the Bulge
Military Occupational Specialty	Entered the Service From
745 (rifle noncommissioned officer or assistant squad leader)	Newark, Delaware

Early Life & Family

Woodrow Wilson Gravenor was born on January 4, 1918, on New London Avenue in Newark, Delaware, the son of Sewell Jackson Gravenor (1862–1952) and Florence Evelyn Gravenor (née Payne, 1888–1959). His father was a farmer turned laborer in a fibre mill. Gravenor had four older half-siblings (one of whom may have died young), an older sister, a younger sister, and a younger brother.

When Gravenor was recorded on the census in April 1930, he was living at 106 Wilbur Street with his family. The family apparently was living at 115 North Chapel Street in Newark when Gravenor’s younger sister, Evelyn Gravenor (1920–1933), died of tuberculosis on February 3, 1933. (One of Gravenor’s older half-brothers also died of tuberculosis in 1930.)

Gravenor’s delayed birth certificate stated he attended public school in Newark from 1923–1935. The Newark Post stated that Gravenor went to Newark High School but his enlistment data card indicates that he dropped out after two years. The paper also reported: “Highly popular with the youth of the town, young Gravenor was active in sports and served as a manager for a number of high school teams.”

When he was recorded on the census in April 1940, Gravenor was living with his family at 109 East Cleveland Avenue. His occupation was listed as assistant manager at a “retail novelty store[.]” A January 7, 1949, article in the Wilmington Morning News stated that he “was employed in the A. and P. Store in Newark before entering the service.” By October he was working as a projectionist at the State Theater on East Main Street. The fact that the census stated that Gravenor worked 72 hours during the week of March 24–30, 1940, may support the possibility that he held two jobs at the same time.

When Gravenor registered for the draft on October 16, 1940, he was described as standing five feet, nine inches tall and weighing 147 lbs., with red hair and gray eyes, and a mole on his chin.

Gravenor’s younger brother, Sewell J. Gravenor, Jr. (1921–1990), also served in the U.S. Army during World War II.

*News item about Corporal Gravenor printed in* The Newark Post on June 11, 1942 (Courtesy of The Newark Post)

Military Career

Gravenor was drafted before the U.S. entered World War II. He was inducted into the U.S. Army in Trenton, New Jersey, on August 8, 1941. That same day, he was attached to Company “C,” 1229th Reception Center, Fort Dix, New Jersey. On the afternoon of August 14, 1941, Gravenor was among a group of men transferred to the Infantry Replacement Training Center, Camp Croft, South Carolina. His movements for the next 17 months are unclear.

An article in The Newark Post printed on June 11, 1942, stated: “Familiarly known as ‘Pinky’ to his friends, before being inducted into the army eleven months ago, Corporal Gravenor is now stationed at Camp Sewell, Alabama.” (Oddly, there does not seem to be any record of an installation by that name in Alabama.)

A September 10, 1942, article in the same paper reported: “Corporal Woodrow Gravenor, 6th Bn., Co. D., 2nd Reg., Fort McClellan, Alabama, has returned to camp after a ten-day furlough spent with his parents[.]” If accurate, it would appear that Gravenor was cadre in Company “D,” 6th Training Battalion, 2nd Training Regiment, Branch Immaterial Replacement Training Center, Fort McClellan, Alabama. However, although morning reports exist for other companies in the 6th Training Battalion, and other training battalions did have a Company “D,” no morning reports are known to exist during that time period for a Company “D,” 6th Training Battalion, 2nd Training Regiment.

On January 21, 1943, Corporal Gravenor joined the cadre of Company “C,” 6th Infantry Training Battalion, 2nd Infantry Training Regiment, Infantry Replacement Training Center, Fort McClellan, Alabama. He went on furlough February 7–17, 1943. August 1943 began with tragedy when one of the trainees in Company “C,” Lawrence B. Proft (1925–1943), was killed by lightning in the Morrisville Maneuver Area. Gravenor went on furlough again October 4–14, 1943. He was hospitalized at the Station Hospital, Fort McClellan, Alabama, on December 11, 1943, returning to duty five days later.

Gravenor was promoted to sergeant on February 24, 1944. A morning report recorded that with his promotion, his military occupational specialty (M.O.S.) changed from 653, squad leader, to 651, platoon sergeant. On March 10, 1944, Sergeant Gravenor and another enlisted man were dispatched on a temporary duty assignment to accompany a troop train back from Fort Devens, Massachusetts. They returned to duty on March 16. On March 27, Gravenor was ordered to Fort Thomas, Kentucky, to escort a prisoner back to Fort McClellan. He returned to duty three days later.

On April 27, 1944, Sergeant Gravenor was transferred to the 144th Infantry Regiment at Camp Van Dorn, Mississippi. The following day, he joined Cannon Company, 144th Infantry Regiment, retaining the same M.O.S. that he had held in his training unit. He went on furlough May 11–25, 1944. He went overseas as a replacement sometime during the next seven months, finding himself in a similar position to many of the men he had helped train for so long.

According to a company morning report, Sergeant Gravenor was one of 43 enlisted men who joined Company “L,” 137th Infantry Regiment on December 21, 1944, from the 14th Replacement Battalion. His military occupational specialty (M.O.S.) was listed as 745 (rifleman or rifle noncommissioned officer). Within the context of a rifle company, 745s at the grade of sergeant were typically assistant squad leaders. However, given Gravenor’s lack of combat experience, it is unclear if he was placed directly into that position.

With the Battle of the Bulge underway, Sergeant Gravenor didn’t have very much time to get acquainted with his new unit. The 137th Infantry Regiment departed the vicinity of Metz, France, on December 26, 1944, and entered combat the following day in nearby Belgium.

On December 28, 1944, Sergeant Gravenor was severely wounded by an artillery shell in the vicinity of Livarchamps, Belgium. The 137th Regiment after action report for that date stated:

3rd Bn was pushing northeast toward Livarchamps. At 0620 [hours] the companies began to move into the woods and the 3rd Bn hit Livarchamps at 0715 and sent companies “I” and “K” 500 yards past the town. Co “L” had a strong patrol on the road. At 0845 the 3rd Bn was receiving heavy small arms, rocket and artillery fire from Villers-la Bonne-Eau. Two hours later the fire had increased, and the enemy was delivering machine gun fire and direct fire from self-propelled 88s on the 3rd Bn positions. […] The 3rd Bn launched its attack at 1230 with the mission of getting into Villers-la-Bonne-Eau. […] At 1745 the 3rd Bn, after a bitter battle, was in the town of Villers-la Bonne-Eau.

Sergeant Gravenor was initially treated at the 110th Medical Battalion’s clearing station and transferred to the 16th Field Hospital in France that same day. According to a digitized hospital admission card with Sergeant Gravenor’s service number, he suffered injuries to his chest, leading to a hemothorax. Surgeons performed a thoracotomy to drain the blood from his pleural cavity, but Gravenor died of his wounds on December 29, 1944. He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart Medal and the Combat Infantryman Badge (the latter per General Orders No. 1, Headquarters 137th Infantry, dated January 1, 1945).

After the war, Sergeant Gravenor’s body was returned to the United States. After funeral services at the R. T. Jones Funeral Home in Newark on January 8, 1949, he was buried in the Newark Cemetery nearby.

Sergeant Gravenor’s name is honored at Veterans Memorial Park in New Castle, Delaware, and on a World War II memorial at the Academy Building in Newark, Delaware. It is likely but not confirmed that Gravenor Lane in Newark was named after him.

Notes

Fort McClellan Training Units

Effective January 4, 1943, the Branch Immaterial Training Center, Fort McClellan, Alabama, became the Infantry Replacement Training Center, Fort McClellan, Alabama, and the training units were duly redesignated.

Documents

Click to any document to view a larger copy. All are courtesy of Roberta Russo.

*Company “L,” 137th Infantry Regiment morning report recording that Sergeant Gravenor was seriously wounded in action on December 28, 1944 (National Personnel Records Center)*

Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Roberta Russo (webmaster, 134th Infantry Regiment Website and historian, 35th Infantry Division Association) for the use of records which were vital in telling Sergeant Gravenor’s story. Thanks also go out to the Delaware Public Archives and The Newark Post for their photographs.

Bibliography

“A and D Report, Clearing Station, 110th Medical Battalion, 28 December 1944.” December 28, 1944. 134th Infantry Regiment website. http://www.coulthart.com/134/110ad-44-12-28.pdf

Application for Headstone or Marker for Woodrow W. Gravenor. January 18, 1949. Applications for Headstones, January 1, 1925 – June 30, 1970. Record Group 92, Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General, 1774–1985. National Archives at St. Louis, Missouri. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2375/images/40050_520307095_0381-01423

Census Record for Woodroe [sic] W. Gravenor. April 5, 1930. Fifteenth Census of the United States, 1930. Record Group 29, Records of the Bureau of the Census. National Archives at Washington, D.C. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9R4B-63R

Census Record for Woodrow Gravener [sic]. March 4, 1920. Fourteenth Census of the United States, 1920. Record Group 29, Records of the Bureau of the Census. National Archives at Washington, D.C. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GR6W-8MX

Census Record for Woodrow Gravener [sic]. April 12, 1940. Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Record Group 29, Records of the Bureau of the Census. National Archives at Washington, D.C. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9MR-MRN

Certificate of Death for Evelyn Gravenor. 1933. Delaware Death Records. Bureau of Vital Statistics, Hall of Records, Dover, Delaware. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSM9-L9HR-5

Certificate of Delayed Birth Registration for Woodrow W. Gravenor. Record Group 1500-008-094, Birth Certificates. Delaware Public Archives, Dover, Delaware. August 20, 1947. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-DWL9-CQ8

Combat History of the 137th Infantry Regiment World War II. 134th Infantry Regiment Website. http://www.coulthart.com/134/137chapter-4.htm

Draft Registration Card for Woodrow Wilson Gravenor. October 16, 1940. Draft Registration Cards for Delaware, October 16, 1940 – March 31, 1947. Record Group 147, Records of the Selective Service System. National Archives at St. Louis, Missouri. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSMG-X9X6-R

Enlistment Record for Woodrow W. Gravenor. August 8, 1941. World War II Army Enlistment Records. Record Group 64, Records of the National Archives and Records Administration. National Archives at College Park, Maryland. https://aad.archives.gov/aad/record-detail.jsp?dt=893&mtch=1&cat=all&tf=F&q=32167367&bc=&rpp=10&pg=1&rid=2813961

“General Orders No. 1, Headquarters 137th Infantry, January 1, 1945.” 134th Infantry Regiment Website. http://www.coulthart.com/134/go-137-ir/go-137-45-1.pdf

Gravenor, Florence E. Individual Military Service Record for Woodrow Wilson Gravenor. Undated, c. February 27, 1947. Record Group 1325-003-053, Record of Delawareans Who Died in World War II. Delaware Public Archives, Dover, Delaware. https://cdm16397.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p15323coll6/id/18891/rec/2

Hospital Admission Card for 32167367. U.S. WWII Hospital Admission Card Files, 1942–1954. Record Group 112, Records of the Office of the Surgeon General (Army), 1775–1994. National Archives at College Park, Maryland. https://www.fold3.com/record/704709460-gravenor-woodrow-w

“Military Services For Sgt. Woodrow Gravenor To Be Held Saturday.” The Newark Post, January 6, 1949. https://udspace.udel.edu/bitstream/handle/19716/19178/np_039_41.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

Morning Reports for Cannon Company, 144th Infantry Regiment. April 1944 – May 1944. U.S. Army Morning Reports, c. 1912–1946. Record Group 64, Records of the National Archives and Records Administration. National Archives at St. Louis, Missouri. https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/partners/st-louis/rg-064/85713825-wwii/85713825_1944-04/85713825_1944-04_Roll-0041/85713825_1944-04_Roll-0041-11.pdf, https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/partners/st-louis/rg-064/85713825-wwii/85713825_1944-05/85713825_1944-05_Roll-0137/85713825_1944-05_Roll-0137-06.pdf

Morning Reports for Company “C,” 1229th Reception Center. August 1941. U.S. Army Morning Reports, c. 1912–1946. Record Group 64, Records of the National Archives and Records Administration. National Archives at St. Louis, Missouri. https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/partners/st-louis/rg-064/85713825-wwii/85713825_1940-01-thru-1943-07/85713825_1940-01-thru-1943-07_Roll-2840/85713825_1940-01-thru-1943-07_Roll-2840-06.pdf

Morning Reports for Company “L,” 137th Infantry Regiment, December 1944. U.S. Army Morning Reports, c. 1912–1946. Record Group 64, Records of the National Archives and Records Administration. National Archives at St. Louis, Missouri. 134th Infantry Regiment website. http://www.coulthart.com/134/mr-137-l-company/mr-137-l-1944-12-24.pdf, http://www.coulthart.com/134/mr-137-l-company/mr-137-l-1944-12-28.pdf

“News About Local Boys in Service.” The Newark Post, September 10, 1942. https://udspace.udel.edu/bitstream/handle/19716/18840/np_033_34.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

“Pfc W. W. Gravenor.” Wilmington Morning News, January 7, 1949. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/57402549/woodrow-wilson-gravenor/

“Report After Action Against Enemy covering the period 1–31 December 1944.” Headquarters 137th Infantry, January 1, 1945. 35th Infantry Division Memory website. https://35thinfantrydivision-memory.com/site/view_content.php?lang=en&page=44

“Serving Uncle Sam.” The Newark Post, June 11, 1942. https://udspace.udel.edu/bitstream/handle/19716/18827/np_033_21.pdf

“Table of Organization and Equipment No. 7-17: Infantry Rifle Company.” February 26, 1944. Military Research Service website. http://www.militaryresearch.org/7-17%2026Feb44.pdf

Last updated on December 21, 2024