About
William H. Schermerhorn, the son of Herbert and Vera Schermerhorn, was born in 1922, in Saratoga, New York. After 1935, he lived in Scotia, New York. Before entering the service, he graduated from Scotia Glenville High School and worked for the American Locomotive Company.
On June 10, 1942, William enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps. He was assigned to the 389th Bomb Group and held the rank of Staff Sergeant. William was on a mission to bomb a German plant in Wiener Neustadt, Austria, on October 3, 1943, when his team sustained numerous hits, some of which pierced the fuel cells, causing leaks and fires. They had run out of fuel and crashed while on their way to Morocco for repairs. Only one of the fifteen men on board survived. The crew was laid to rest in North Africa before being reburied at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in Missouri.
Sources: The Schenectady Gazette, Find A Grave, Ancestry