Staff Sergeant Lafayette G. Pool

A True Knight of the Armor Force

Lafayette G. Pool left college and enlisted in the Army on 13 June 1941. He completed basic training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, and was sent to Camp Beauregard, Louisiana, to the newly formed 3rd Armored Division. He landed with his unit at Normandy in June 1944. He served with the 3rd Platoon, "I" Company, 32nd Armored Regiment, 3rd Armored Division from 1941 to 1944. During a short 83 days of combat in France, Belgium, and Germany, SSG Pool and his tank crew were credited with destroying 258 enemy vehicles, including tanks, self-propelled guns, and armored cars. He and his crew killed over 1,000 enemy soldiers and took in excess of 250 prisoners. SSG Pool's tank was the lead vehicle in 21 missions, and he survived many harrowing close calls with death. Fighting from three different Sherman tanks, SSG Pool and his crew destroyed or disabled no less than 12 German tanks. SSG Pool had learned to use tactics and maneuver techniques to defeat the superior enemy tanks.

SSG Pool was twice recommended for the Congressional Medal of Honor. Unfortunately, given the "Infantry mentality" of the members of the Army Recommendation Board, they decided that tanks were crew-served weapons, and therefore he did not deserve the medal. SSG Pool was awarded many other medals for his service, including the Distinguished Service Cross, the Legion of Merit, and the Silver Star. He also received the Belgian Fourragère and the French Legion of Honor.

In his last battle on 19 September 1944 near Stolberg, Germany, two German 88mm anti-tank rounds struck SSG Pool's tank. He was blown from the turret and severely wounded. He was rushed to a medical unit, where he would eventually lose his right leg. After a long hospital stay, SSG Pool was discharged from the Army in June 1946. But the Army wasn't finished with this Tanker; he was recalled to active duty in 1948 to serve as an instructor with the 3rd Armored Division at the Home of Armor at Fort Knox, Kentucky, where he helped train a whole new generation of tankers. He retired from the Army on 19 September 1960 as a Chief Warrant Officer 2nd Class. On 30 May 1991, this Knight of the Armor Force passed away in his sleep. He is buried at the military cemetery at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, close to where he began his Army career.