McCraw, Ray Dean

1922 - 1974  (52 years)

• Name	McCraw, Ray Dean
  Birth	8 Apr 1922	Clay County, Illinois   [1]
  Gender	Male
  Reference Number	MCCR.R009
  _FGRAVE	18562384
  Funeral	Cardascio Funeral Home, Flora, Clay County, Illinois   [1]
  Military Service	World War II, Corporal, Company D, 119th Infantry Regiment, 30th Infantry 'Old Hickory' Division, United States Army
  	Entered active service as a draftee on December 29, 1942 at Chicago, Illinois. After basic training, assigned to Company D, 119th Infantry Regiment, 30th Infantry 'Old Hickory' Division in field training at Camp Blanding, Florida. Departed the Continental U.S. with his unit on February 12, 1944 bound for the European Theater of Operations. Entered combat as a Light Machine Gun Squad Leader (military occupational specialty 604) on June 15, 1944 near Isigny, France. Fought through the Normandy Campaign until wounded by enemy action on July 13, 1944, one mile from St. Lo. Evacuated from the field of battle for treatment by the 280th Station Hospital and returned to the U.S. on October 29, 1944 for convalescence at O'reilly General Hospital, Springfield, Missouri. Earned the Purple Heart Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge, Good Conduct Medal, American Campaign Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with bronze battle star and the WWII Victory Medal. Honorably discharged with a certificate of disability as a Corporal on May 29, 1946 at O'reilly General Hospital. This information has been posted on the National World War II Memorial's Registry of Remembrances website by Robert Medley Gatewood. It is entered here with his permission. Source: http://www.wwiimemorial.com/Registry/plaque.aspx?honoreeID=1950738
  		Springfield, Missouri
  		United States of America Flag, 48 Stars (1912-1959) In 1912, two stars were added to the United States flag, representing Arizona and New Mexico, bringing the total number of stars to 48. They were arranged in six rows of eight stars each. American fighting men would fight under this flag during four wars: World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the beginning of the Vietnam War. (In 1959,…
  		Ray Dean McCraw (1922-1974)
  		United States Army
  		Corporal, United States Army and United States Army Air Forces (Sep 1942-Aug 1948)
  		United States Army Enlisted Rank Insignia
  		Combat Infantryman Badge, United States Army
  		Combat Infantryman Badge, United States Army
  		Military Service Ribbons, McCraw, Ray Dean Contributed by Carl Wayne Gray
  		Purple Heart Medal, United States Military
  		Purple Heart Medal, United States Military
  		Good Conduct Medal, United States Army
  		Good Conduct Medal, United States Armed Forces
  		American Campaign Medal, United States Military
  		American Campaign Medal, United States
  		European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, United States
  		European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, United States
  		World War II Victory Medal, United States Military
  		World War II Victory Medal, United States Military
  		World War II (1939-1945)
  		European Theater of World War II
  		30th Infantry Division ("Old Hickory"), United States Army
  		30th Infantry Division, United States Army
  		119th Infantry Regiment, United States Army
  		Camp Blanding, Florida
  		Operation Overlord, World War II
  		Saint-Lô, France
  		Isigny-sur-Mer, France
  		Brochure, World War II Memorial, Flora, Illinois, Nov 11, 2007 On Veterans' Day, 2005, the city of Flora, Illinois dedicated a memorial to all known Clay County, Illinois World War II Veterans. Located on the south side of the city library, this is a copy of the brochure honoring that event. This 2007 brochure adds a matrix for locating the memorial brick that was laid in honor of each veteran. …
  Death	17 May 1974	John Cochran Veterans Hospital, St. Louis, St. Louis County, Missouri   [1]
  Burial	Dillman Cemetery, Sailor Springs, Clay County, Illinois   [2]
  		Headstone, McCraw, Imo Lee and Ray Dean
  Person ID	I26750	Carl Wayne Gray Research
  Last Modified	6 May 2024

  
  

  Father	McCraw, Esta Raymond,   b. 16 Jul 1894   d. 10 Sep 1968 (Age 74 years)
  Mother	King, Addie Leora,   b. 29 Nov 1898   d. 18 Jul 1992 (Age 93 years)
  Marriage	6 Dec 1916
  Age at Marriage	He was 22 years and 5 months - She was 18 years and 1 month.
  Family ID	F11500	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Bateman, Imo Lee,   b. 10 Jun 1925, Homer, Champaign County, Illinois d. 22 Apr 2014, Helia Healthcare, Olney, Richland County, Illinois (Age 88 years)
  Marriage	28 Sep 1947	Flora, Clay County, Illinois
  Age at Marriage	He was 25 years and 5 months - She was 22 years and 3 months.
  Children	1. McCraw, T.T.   2. McCraw, R.L.
  Family ID	F11499	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	31 Jan 2023

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 8 Apr 1922 - Clay County, Illinois Funeral - - Cardascio Funeral Home, Flora, Clay County, Illinois Marriage - 28 Sep 1947 - Flora, Clay County, Illinois Death - 17 May 1974 - John Cochran Veterans Hospital, St. Louis, St. Louis County, Missouri Burial - - Dillman Cemetery, Sailor Springs, Clay County, Illinois  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Notes

  Mr. McCraw was born in Clay County. He was a member of the American Legion and the VFW. A veteran of World War II, he was a salesman for the J. C. Borah Motor Co. in Flora.

  
  

• Sources

  [S7542] (Reliability: 2). [S7543] (Reliability: 2).