Private First Class Walter E. Borden - 83rd Infantry Division
Private First Class Walter Emil Borden enlisted for Army service on March 15, 1943. Born on May 10, 1923 in the New York City borough of Queens (Jackson Heights), Borden liven in New Rochelle, NY at the time he enlisted. With four years of high school to his credit, he worked at The Standard-Star, the city’s local newspaper.
Borden served overseas in the fight against Germany with Company L, 329th Infantry Regiment, 83rd Infantry Division, commanded by Major General Robert C. Macon. The division, which landed in Normandy weeks after D-Day, participated in the push across France into Germany in 1944. It served primarily with Patton’s Third Army, but was ultimately transferred to First Army, on Third Army’s left flank, where it engaged in fighting in southern Luxembourg, opposite the Moselle River and the Siegfried Line. By late November 1944, the division was facing 416. Infanterie-Division, recently transferred to the Western Front from Denmark in October.
Borden served overseas in the fight against Germany with Company L, 329th Infantry Regiment, 83rd Infantry Division, commanded by Major General Robert C. Macon. The division, which landed in Normandy weeks after D-Day, participated in the push across France into Germany in 1944. It served primarily with Patton’s Third Army, but was ultimately transferred to First Army, on Third Army’s left flank, where it engaged in fighting in southern Luxembourg, opposite the Moselle River and the Siegfried Line. By late November 1944, the division was facing 416. Infanterie-Division, recently transferred to the Western Front from Denmark in October.
The 12th Army Group situation map of November 23, 1944. The US 83rd Infantry Division is shown opposite 416. Infanterie-Division (Library of Congress).
On November 23, 1944, Private Borden was part of a four-man outpost when it was attacked by a patrol of German troops. Although mortally wounded, suffering gunshot wounds to his leg and abdominal area, he desperately fought off the enemy attack. In recognition of his exceptional valor in the face of the Germans, Borden was posthumously awarded the Silver Star. A copy of his actions, taken from his unit’s General Orders and reproduced for his family at Fort Jay in New York City, is shown below and reads as follows:
Borden’s remains were returned to his family and buried in Beechwoods Cemetery, in New Rochelle, New York. He is shown below; his death was announced in his own local newspaper.
