William McMahon
Era: World War II
Military Branch: Army
William B. McMahon of Duluth, Minnesota was inducted into the Army on July 28, 1942.
He was a Staff Sergeant with the 1508th Engineer Company), 80th Engineer Battalion.
"In late 1942, President Roosevelt and Joseph Stalin of Russia came to an agreement to start a supply route in Iran for military equipment and supplies, with the approval of the shah of Iran. The U.S. had thousands of troops of many units stationed from the southern city of Kharranshahr at the Persian Gulf where the ships docked and unloaded supplies and equipment, which were then sent to Kasvin and on to the Russian border via water and rail routes. Our 1508th Engineers supplied the units with purified water from the rivers or by digging wells. I spent my service time in Iran."
Mr. McMahon received the: Good Conduct Medal, European-African-Middle East Campaign Service Medal and World War II Victory Medal.
He was discharged on October 22, 1945.
Source: Hometown Heroes: The St. Louis County World War II Project. 201.
