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Submitted: 3/10/11 • Approved: 8/14/14 • Last Updated: 8/17/14 • R482602-G0-S3
Arkansas
LIEUTENANT COLONEL US Army
1 Battalion 359 Infantry 90 Division
World War II
June 6, 1917 - January 15, 1945
Distinguished Cross
Silver Star
Bronze Star
Purple Heart
French Croix de Guerre with Palm Leaf
Died Of Wounds
"He Gave His Life In Freedom's Cause"
Leroy R Pond
June 6, 1917 - January 15, 1945
Decorated War Hero Lieutenant Colonel
Leroy Pond was born in Fayetteville, Washington County, Arkansas, the son of Hugh J and Alice M Pond. He graduated from Fayetteville High School in 1933 and received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Arkansas in 1938. He entered the United States Army prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. Pond served in the 1st Battalion, 359th Regiment of the 90th Infantry Division of the United States Army and quickly became one of the most respected officers in the Army in World War II, with some comparing him to General George Patton. Pond participated in the D-Day landings and within seven months became the most decorated war veteran ever of Washington County, receiving the Distinguished Cross, the Silver Star, the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart and the French Croix de Guerre with Palm Leaf.
Pond was nicknamed “Fireball” for both the color of his hair and his strong personality. The University of Arkansas constructed a small camp (now demolished) at the bottom of the university to house all of the new war veterans who would become students, emergency camp "Camp LeRoy Pond" which was named in honor of Pond. Leroy Pond Drive, near Bud Walton Arena, on the University of Arkansas campus, and LeRoy Pond Army Reserve Center
1616 N. Woolsey Ave. Fayetteville, AR is also named in honor of Pond.
Captain Leroy Pond died in a hospital in England from wounds received in Germany a month earlier.
Contributed on 3/10/11 by tslundberg
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Record #: 482602