Five Atkinson Brothers Served in WW II
Guy and Sarah Atkinson raised a family of seven sons and one daughter in Barnesville on North Broadway Street. All seven boys served in the military overseas. Five saw combat. Five were in World War II and two were in Korea. All returned safely.
During World War II, The Barnesville Enterprise wrote a column each edition called “News of the Boys in Service.” The five sons of Mr. and Mrs. Guy Atkinson were featured in the column on the front page of the November 16, 1944, Enterprise edition. Four of the boys, all but Ralph, were overseas at the time. Mrs. Sarah Atkinson was the only one in Barnesville wearing a five-star service pin, and she also had a brother, Ellis Craig, in service.
This was the first time that one family had taken up the entire “Boys in Service” column on The Enterprise page one and continued on page 7.
At the time of The Enterprise story, Dale, Lawrence, and Jack were all on New Guinea. They were not able to see each other, but Lawrence and Dale discovered that they were 600 miles apart. Guy Junior was in France.
On this Veterans Day, let us remember the service and sacrifices of the men and women in uniform, as well as the families supporting them at home.
Richard D. Atkinson
BRANCH OF SERVICE: U.S. Army
ACTIVITY DURING WORLD WAR II:
Forward Observer, Combat in the Philippines. Field Artillery.
Kenneth R. Atkinson
BRANCH OF SERVICE: U.S. Army
ACTIVITY DURING WORLD WAR II:
Served in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater, Field Artillery.
Lawrence G. Atkinson
BRANCH OF SERVICE: U.S. Army
ACTIVITY DURING WORLD WAR II:
Rifleman, 1st Regiment, 6th Division in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater.
AWARDED ACCOMMODATIONS:
- Bronze Star
- Purple Heart
- Combat Infantryman Badge
Guy J. Atkinson
BRANCH OF SERVICE: U.S. Army
ACTIVITY DURING WORLD WAR II:
Served with the 30th Regiment, 3rd Division in the European Theater of Operations.
Spent the last 6 months of the war as a German P.O.W.
AWARDED ACCOMMODATIONS:
- Bronze Star
- Purple Heart
- Combat Infantryman Badge
Jack Atkinson
BRANCH OF SERVICE: U.S. Navy
ACTIVITY DURING WORLD WAR II:
Served on APA. Combat at Okinawa.
Thomas R. Atkinson
BRANCH OF SERVICE: U.S. Navy
SIGNIFICANT DUTY STATIONS:
- USS Rio Grande AOG-3
- USS Quapaw ATF-110
AWARDED ACCOMMODATIONS:
- Navy Good Conduct Medal
- American Defense Service Medal
- China Service Medal
- Korean Service Medal
- United Nations Service Medal
Gene A. Atkinson
BRANCH OF SERVICE: U.S. Army
Served during the Korean War and was in the Military Police.
The author would like to thank Diane Burga at the Barnesville Hutton Memorial Library who located The Barnesville Enterprise front page. Also, she would like to thank the family members who found pictures, documents, and other information to make this story possible.
Barnesville Area News Needs Your Support!
We're dedicated to providing coverage of the local happenings in Barnesville and the neighboring communities.
As a non-profit entity, we rely on the donations of readers like you.
Make a donation today and you'll be helping keep local news alive in the Barnesville area.