Silver Star group attributed to John A. Owen, 7th Infantry

Group of five attributed to Sergeant John A. Owen, Jr., 7th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division: Silver Star, slot brooch, unnamed, in a black leatherette case with a damaged lapel pin; Army Good Conduct Medal, unnamed, boxed; American Campaign Medal, boxed; Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal, with 2 stars; World War II Victory Medal, Plus, a Combat Infantry Badge, marked “Sterling”; a single dog tag to Owen, discharge button, 3rd Infantry Division patch and photocopied discharge and copied photograph in uniform. With an original 1946-dated post card to Owen relating to his Veterans Administration pension claim and a post-war business card (Directory Sales Supervisor, Southwestern Bell Telephone).

Owen’s discharge verifies all the awards. A copied, undated local news clipping reports that Owen received the Silver Star for gallantry “on April 8 near Stienback, Germany, where heavy machine gun and rifle fire inflicted ten casualties and forced his company to withdraw, Tech. Owen, radio operator, remained and engaged the enemy with his carbine. Then with machine gun fire hitting a foot from him he crawled forward 50 yards over flat and open terrain to a position of partial cover 150 yards from the enemy. After observing hostile dispositions he began adjusting artillery fire by radio. For almost an hour he remained in great personal danger until the fire he directed forced the enemy to withdraw, thus giving his company a clear way to its objective.”