Alex Robson, enlisted in the Army in 1942 and was a
paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division. He was sent overseas in
February 1944, and according to a letter he sent to his parents, was
injured in France eight days after D-Day. For three months he lay with a
weight on his leg at a hospital in England before finally having to have
the foot removed below the ankle. He was awarded the purple heart. He
returned to the United States on December 21, 1944, arriving in South
Carolina before being transferred to a hospital in Atlantic City, NJ for
treatment.
He worked for 41 years at Alcoa in Massena before retiring in 1983. He
was a member of the Disabled American Veterans, the VFW, and past
commander of the American Legion Post 514 in Winthrop. He was survived
by his wife, a son, two daughters, a sister, and seven grandchildren.
The article below detailing an interview with Alex Robson about his
memories of the D-Day events was published in the Potsdam Courier
Freeman on Tuesday, June 5, 1984 on the 40th anniversary of the Normandy
Invasion and was written by Betsy Baker:
Paratrooper Who Lost Leg Recalls Normandy
WINTHROP - He and his buddies landed in a swamp sometime after 11:30 pm
on June 5, separated from others in their regiment.
But Paratrooper Alex Robson of Winthrop knew that he and the others were
part of a big operation - the landing on the coast of France that has
come to be known as the Normandy Invasion.
Wednesday is the 40th anniversary of D-Day, the massive invasion of
Normandy by the Allied forces that was to begin the liberation of France
from Hitler's Army.
Robson, who volunteered three times to jump, was shot in the leg some
days later, and lost the leg.
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The 20 year old Robson, a private in the 508th Regiment, 82nd Airborne
Division said Tuesday that he and others landed together "near St. Mary
something, I can't remember the name. We were all separated," he said,
"and some of the planes blew up."
The next day, June 6, Robson said he and his buddies "didn't actually
know where we were." They were to jump in behind the troops landing on
the beaches, and their destination had been a site where German soldiers
were head-quartered, but "we were getting so much flak" the jump planes
couldn't get close.
Armed with an M-1 rifle, a hand grenade and "plenty of ammunition,"
Robson and the others spent the next couple days "trying to find out
where we were."
He also had a land mine, intended to be used to blow up a bridge, but
"it was no use to me. There was no bridge where we landed."
Later, Robson and others "holed up in a cheese factory." "All we had was
cheese," he said laughing. "I said I would never eat cheese again, but I
did," he added.
After he was wounded, Robson was flown first to England, where he was
hospitalized for six months, and then to Atlantic City, where three
hotels were turned into hospitals for the returning wounded.
Casualties were heavy among paratroopers Robson said. Only 42 percent of
them came back.
After six months of hospitalization in Atlantic City, Robson returned to
Massena and a job at Alcoa where he had worked before the war. He
married, lived five or six years in Massena, then bought a farm on Route
11, outside Winthrop toward Potsdam, where he now lives.
Retired from Alcoa as a clerical worker about a year ago. Robson has
three children.
It is painful to remember Normandy, Robson said. He will be 61 in
August. |
WINTHROP — Funeral services
for Alex A. Robson, 61, of Winthrop,
were held Monday (Feb. 18, 1985)
at 1 p.m. at the Hammill Funeral
Home in Winthrop with the Rev.
Bradford D. Hunt officiating. A
spring burial will be made in the
Madrid Cemetery.
Mr. Robson died Friday (Feb. 15,
1985) at the Massena Memorial
Hospital.
Surviving are his wife, Gertrude;
a son, James, Pawling, N.Y.; two
daughters, Mrs. James (Judy) Ploof, Brasher Falls, and Mrs.
John [illegible],
several nieces and nephews.
Mr. Robson was born Aug. 26,
1923 in Waddington, son of Henry
and Pearl Rutherford Robson. He
was a veteran of World War II, having
served in the U.S. Army from
1943-45, and was wounded on D-day,
June 6, 1944, during the Invasion
of Normandy. He was a
member of the 82nd Airborne Division.
He was married to Mary Clohosey on Sept. 15, 1945. The
marriage ended in divorce.
He was later married to Gertrude
Castle of Louisville on Aug
26, 1978 in Buckton, N.Y.
He worked
41 years at Alcoa in Massena,
retiring in September of 1983.
Mr. Robson was a member of the
Disabled American Veterans, the
VFW in North Lawrence, and was a
past commander of American
Legion Post 514 in Winthrop.
Memorial contributions may be
made to the Tri-Town Rescue
Squad. |
(courtesy of Anne Cady)
Grave marker for Alex A. Robson in the Madrid
Cemetery, Madrid (St. Lawrence county), New York.
Alex enlisted at Utica, NY on 22 April 1943 and went
through basic training and jump school.
Pvt Robson was shipped overseas and assigned to an
82nd Airborne Replacement Depot.
On 5 April 1944 he was transferred to Company G, 508th
PIR.
Pvt Robson made te jump into Normandy on D-Day.
He was wounded in action on 20 June 1944 and evacuated. A portion
of one leg was later amputated due to this wound.
On 27 Sep 1944 he was transferred to a hospital in the
US.
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