Alvin E. Ohlsson

Headquarters Company 1st Battalion 22nd Infantry

4th Infantry Division

KIA 06/22/1944

Alvin E. Ohlsson was born in Bemidji, Beltrami County, Minnesota on February 12, 1917.

He enlisted in the Regular Army on September 21, 1937. On September 22, 1940
he re-enlisted in the Infantry Branch for service in the Philippine Department at Fort Snelling,
Minnesota with the rank of Corporal. His home of residence was listed as Ashland, Wisconsin.
At the time of his second enlistment he had completed two years of High School and was
single with no dependents. His religion was listed as Protestant.

He was assigned to Headquarters Company from the 4th Infantry Division
replacement pool on June 13, 1944.

Staff Sergeant Ohlsson was killed in action in France, during the attack toward Cherbourg
on June 22, 1944.

Staff Sergeant Ohlsson was most likely the driver for Captain Oscar Joyner, the Executive Officer
of 1st Battalion 22nd Infantry, and was therefore most likely killed in the same incident in which
Captain Joyner was killed.

An article by Charles H. Briscoe in Veritas Magazine described the incident:

On 21 June, as the 22nd Infantry was approaching Le Thiel in the 4th ID-led VII Corps drive to Cherbourg,
accurate enemy artillery fire forced CPT Joyner to relocate the 1st Battalion jeep-mounted command post (CP).
They barely escaped a well-directed barrage. ‘Bugging out’ under fire, the CP vehicles chose to follow a narrow wagon trail.
This route channelized them into a well-camouflaged hedgerow ambush. The jeep-mounted CP was annihilated
by heavy machinegun and rifle fire. CPT Joyner and his driver were killed instantly. ¹

Alvin E. Ohlsson was buried in the temporary U.S. Military Cemetery,
Sainte Mere-Eglise #1 at Carentan, France and some time later
his remains were returned to the United States where he was
reinterred in Wisconsin.

Burial:
Mount Hope Cemetery
Ashland
Ashland County
Wisconsin
Plot: Section "D", Lot 59, Grave 1E

Grave marker for Alvin E. Ohlsson

Photo by Pat Lindholm from the Find A Grave website

¹ From Vertitas Magazine Volume 16 Number 1 2020

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