Captain Herbert Eidson McKenzie, born in Alabama in 1913, was the son of James Guy McKenzie and Carrie (Eidson) McKenzie of Bainbridge, Decatur County, Georgia. Bainbridge is in extreme SW Georgia 40 miles NW of Tallahassee, FL. He left a wife, Gretchen (Miller) and daughter he’d never seen in Mobile, Alabama.

In the 1920 census 6-year-old Herbert is living with his parents and siblings Guy 9, Stuart 5, and Margaret 2, at 202 Washington Street in Bainbridge. His father is the manager of a lumber company.

In the 1930 census 17-year-old Herbert is living with his parents and siblings Guy 19, Stuart 15, Margaret 12, and Thomas 3, at 605 E Shotwell in Bainbridge. His father is the manager of a lumber dealer.

Herbert graduated from Auburn University in 1936 with a degree in Education.

In the 1940 census 27-year-old Herbert is in the 36th Field Artillery at Fort Bragg, NC.

Herbert married Gretchen Miller in Mobile, AL 20 Apr 1942. A daughter was born after Herbert deployed to Europe.

On 27 Aug 1944 the 93rd FA was placed in support of Task Force Butler and marched the next day to the vicinity of Mirmande, outflanking an enemy column. Mirmande is in the Rhone Valley halfway between Avignon and Lyon.

The NARA WWII casualty listings by state and county for Georgia show McKenziem Herbert E, Capt from Decatur County as killed in action 29 Aug 1944 so we can assume he was killed somewhere near Mirmande.

Source: Brian Kueker, Facebook contributor for American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC).

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project (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 smartphone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the fallen's name and read his/her story.

SBTSProject/Alabama/Decatur County

Herbert E McKenzie