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Eugene Roe
EugeneroeEasy506
Nickname Doc Roe, Gene
Born (1922-10-17)October 17, 1922
Died December 30, 1998(1998-12-30) (aged 77)
Place of birth Bayou Chene, Louisiana, United States
Place of death Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States
Allegiance United States
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service 1942-1945
Rank US Army WWII T4C Technician Fourth Grade
Unit 506 patch Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment,
US 101st Airborne Division patch101st Airborne Division
Battles/wars

World War II

Awards
  • Bronze Star
  • Purple Heart
  • Army Good Conduct Medal
    [1]
  • Relations -Ed Roe (father)
    -Maud Verret (mother)
    -Maxine Tircuit (daughter)
    Marlene Langlois (daughter)
    -Eugene Jr. (son)
    Other work Fisherman

    Technician Fourth Grade Eugene Gilbert Roe, Sr. (October 17, 1922[2] - December 30, 1998[3]) was a non-commissioned officer with Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, in the 101st Airborne Division of the United States Army during World War II. Roe was portrayed in the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers by Shane Taylor. Roe's life story was featured in the 2010 book A Company of Heroes: Personal Memories about the Real Band of Brothers and the Legacy They Left Us.[4]

    Youth[]

    Eugene was born in Bayou Chene, Louisiana to Ed Roe and Maud Verret. Roe quit school during his elementary years.[5] He was semiskilled in oilers of machinery.[5] The Roe family moved to Morgan City, Louisiana later.[6] Eugene enlisted on December 12, 1942 in Lafayette, Louisiana.[5]

    Military service[]

    Roe was one of Easy Company's medics. While stationed in Aldbourne, Roe met his first wife Vera. Their wedding date was set for June 6, 1944, but had to be postponed because it was the day when Roe made his first combat jump into Normandy in the Battle of Normandy[7]

    Roe also participated in the British controlled American military operation Operation Market Garden in the Netherlands. While in the Netherlands, he was wounded on September 17, 1944. Roe also took part in the Battle of the Bulge at Bastogne. He was discharged on November 17, 1945[2] and arrived in the United States 11 days later.

    Later years[]

    When the war was over in Europe, Roe married Vera on May 8, 1945 in England.[8] After his discharge, Roe and his wife moved to Baton Rouge and had three children[9] The couple divorced twenty seven years later, and Roe re-married five years later.[10]

    Roe became a construction contractor post war.[2] He died of lung cancer in December 30, 1998 in Louisiana.

    Band of Brothers[]

    Roe was portrayed in the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers by Shane Taylor. Episode 6 of the miniseries, called "Bastogne'", is told from his point of view. In that episode, Roe's grandmother was said to be a traiteur, but it was not true.[6] Also, in that episode, Roe met a Belgian nurse called Renee in the aid station in Bostogne. While a nurse called Renée Lemaire was indeed working in an aid station in Bastogne at the time, it was unclear if Roe had met with her.[11]

    Roe was mentioned only briefly in Stephen Ambrose's book Band of Brothers, but it was said that he was a very brave and heroic medic.

    Medals and Decorations[]

    Bronze oak leaf cluster
    Bronze Star ribbon
    Bronze Star with one Oak Leaf Cluster
    Purple Heart BAR Purple Heart
    Bronze oak leaf cluster
    Presidential Unit Citation ribbon
    Presidential Unit Citation with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster
    Army Good Conduct ribbon Good Conduct Medal
    American Defense Service ribbon American Defense Service Medal
    American Campaign Medal ribbon American Campaign Medal
    Arrowhead
    Bronze star
    Bronze star
    Bronze star
    European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign ribbon
    European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 3 service stars and arrow device
    World War II Victory Medal ribbon World War II Victory Medal
    Army of Occupation ribbon Army of Occupation Medal
    Croix de guerre 1939-1945 with palm Croix de guerre with palm
    French Liberation Medal ribbon French Liberation Medal
    B Commed 40-45 Belgian World War II Service Medal
    CombatMed2ndAwdBadge Combat Medical Badge with a 2nd Award
    Cp2j Parachutist Badge with 2 jump stars

    References[]

    1. DeAngelis, Frank. "Roe's shadowbox". http://www.frankdeangelis.com/T-5%20Eugene%20Roe.htm. Retrieved 2009-10-13. 
    2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Eugene Roe's discharge papers. (Scroll about half way down the page)
    3. Last Roll Call from Currahee website
    4. [1]
    5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 WWII Army Enlistment Records: on-line NARA Archival Database
    6. 6.0 6.1 p.177, Marcus Brotherton, A Company of Heroes: Personal Memories about the Real Band of Brothers and the Legacy They Left Us
    7. p.178, A Company of Heroes: Personal Memories about the Real Band of Brothers and the Legacy They Left Us
    8. p.178, Marcus Brotherton, A Company of Heroes: Personal Memories about the Real Band of Brothers and the Legacy They Left Us
    9. p.181, Marcus Brotherton, A Company of Heroes: Personal Memories about the Real Band of Brothers and the Legacy They Left Us
    10. p.184, ibid
    11. p.179, Ibid

    Bibliography[]

    • Ambrose, Stephen E. (1992). Band of Brothers: Easy Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0-7434-6411-6. 
    • Brotherton, Marcus (2010). A Company of Heroes: Personal Memories about the Real Band of Brothers and the Legacy They Left Us. Berkley Caliber. ISBN 978-0-425-23420-4. 

    External links[]

    All or a portion of this article consists of text from Wikipedia, and is therefore Creative Commons Licensed under GFDL.
    The original article can be found at Eugene Roe and the edit history here.
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