Ervin L. Krohn was born on January 10, 1924 in Camas, Clark County, Washington to Paul John Krohn and Willa M. Krohn, nee Templer. Ervin had two older siblings, Viola Louise and Clarence C. Krohn. The family lived on a farm in the small community of Skye, north of Camas in Clark County.

Ervin Leslie Krohn registered for the draft on June 30, 1942. He was 18 years old, 5’9” tall, and weighed 170 pounds. He had brown hair, brown eyes, and a ruddy complexion. He lived in Seattle and was working the Boeing Airplane Company. He enlisted in the United States Army on August 18, 1944 in Portland, Oregon. His residence was Clark County, and he was working as a farmhand. He was single, without dependents, and had a high school education.

Private Ervin Krohn served in 60th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division. When he joined the regiment, it was probably embroiled in the bloody battles of the Hurtgen Forest, which lasted from September through December 1944. The 60th fought in the snow and bitter cold of the Battle of the Bulge that winter, then went on to capture the Roer Dam. The 60th then moved south to cross the Rhine at Remagen. When they reached the Rhine, the Allies were surprised to find that the Germans had failed to blow up the Ludendorff bridge. The enemy used every weapon in their arsenal, trying to destroy the bridge and prevent the Allies from advancing into the German interior.

Private Ervin Krohn was killed in action on March 22, 1945, one of the last days of the Battle of Remagen. He is buried in the Netherlands American Cemetery and Memorial, Margraten, Limburg, Netherlands, (Plot A, Row 3, Grave 1). He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart.

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project (see www.storiesbehindthestars.org). This is a national effort of volunteers to write the stories of all 400,000+ of the US WWII fallen here on Fold3. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there will be a smart phone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the fallen's name and read his/her story.

SBTSProject/Washington/Clark

Sources:

American Battle Monuments Commission, https://www.fold3.com/record/529871910/ervin-l-krohn-american-battle-monuments-commission

WWII Army Enlistment Records, https://www.fold3.com/record/90957371/ervin-l-krohn-wwii-army-enlistment-records

U.S. WWII Hospital Admission Card Files, 1942-1954, https://www.fold3.com/record/703277067/krohn-ervin-l-us-wwii-hospital-admission-card-files-1942-1954

Findagrave.com, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56300729/ervin-l-krohn

1930 United States Federal Census, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/111582551:6224?tid=&pid=&queryId=59e9747bd97d11d844462666451ca15c&_phsrc=xOR57282&_phstart=successSource

1940 United States Federal Census, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/63775312:2442

Headstone and Interment Records for U.S., Military Cemeteries on Foreign Soil, 1942-1949, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/35722:9170?tid=&pid=&queryId=e7fbaee957312b5502134c7875bfcf6b&_phsrc=xOR57283&_phstart=successSource

World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/37040474:2238?tid=&pid=&queryId=59e9747bd97d11d844462666451ca15c&_phsrc=xOR57281&_phstart=successSource

Ervin L Krohn