AI enhanced image generated from original newspaper clipping photo
Cecil Dudley Butler
Captain Cecil Dudley Butler was a dedicated American soldier whose life and service embodied the highest ideals of duty, leadership, and sacrifice. Born on March 6, 1910, in Newport News, Virginia, to Dudley Cleveland and Clara Elizabeth Crosby Butler, he grew up alongside a sister and a brother. The Butler family later settled in Russell, Greenup County, Kentucky, where Cecil graduated from Russell High School in 1927. He began his civilian career in the clerical department of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad.
On May 15, 1928, Butler enlisted in the Kentucky Army National Guard as a Private in the 126th Wagon Company, 38th Division, based in Ashland, Kentucky. Demonstrating exceptional dedication and competence, he was promoted to Corporal and then to Sergeant by July 22, 1929, serving as Company Clerk and Supply Sergeant in Company G, 149th Infantry Regiment. His leadership qualities led to his commissioning as a Second Lieutenant on August 15, 1939.
In January 1941, Butler’s unit was federalized and stationed at Camp Shelby, Mississippi. He attended the Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia, where he was promoted to First Lieutenant on May 29, 1941. After completing a three-month course, he returned to Company B under the command of Gustavus H. May, who would later become the Adjutant General of Kentucky.
During World War II, Butler served with distinction as the commanding officer of F Company, 2nd Battalion, 345th Infantry Regiment, 173rd Infantry Brigade, 87th Infantry Division, part of General George S. Patton’s Third Army. The division saw combat in France’s Alsace-Lorraine region and played a significant role in the Battle of the Bulge, the last major German offensive on the Western Front.
On December 17, 1944, during intense combat near Medelsheim, Germany, Captain Butler was killed in action. [1] Reports indicate that his unit encountered heavy German resistance, and a misdirected artillery barrage tragically resulted in friendly fire casualties, including Butler’s. He was posthumously promoted to Captain and awarded the Bronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart for his bravery and sacrifice.
Captain Butler was survived by his wife, Isabelle Marie Rose Butler, and their two children, Elizabeth Ann and Charles Edward. He is interred at the Lorraine American Cemetery and Memorial in Saint-Avold, France, in Plot B, Row 31, Grave 18. His name is honored on the Kentucky National Guard Memorial, ensuring that his service and sacrifice are remembered by future generations.
[1] The Russell Times, 26 Jan 1945, p. 1.