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754. Pensacola's November Loss 11-29-1944 WWII

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Updated: Feb 27, 2022

US Army Corporal Olin Iverson Handley was born in Mobile, Alabama on November 12, 1912, the son of George Thomas Handley (1883-1951) and Carrie Pearl Sutton (1886-1958). Olin's father was from Bibb County, Georgia and entered the work force there in 1900 as a laborer at a lumber mill. Ten years later he was a machinist for a steam railroad. But by 1918, he and Carrie had moved to Mobile, Alabama where he was still working as a machinist. Two years later they were still in Mobile but he was supporting them by selling lubricating oils. Then tragedy struck the family when their son James Thomas Handley, age 18, died on August 7, 1925 at the Pensacola Hospital following an operation. He had traveled over from Mobile to Pensacola to visit his aunt and uncle Henry H. Handley of 1201 West Garden Street. His remains were returned to Mobile and buried in the Pine Crest Cemetery. In 1930, George and Carrie were still in Mobile but he had become a traveling commercial salesman for a knife company. He and Carrie would return to Bibb County, Georgia in 1940 where George continued with his knife company job.


While the family was still in Mobile, Olin was attending the local schools there to include Wrights Preparatory School that was founded in 1893 by Dr. Julius T. Wright. Olin would study under Dr. Wright before enrolling in the Gordon Institute in Barnesville, GA., later known as Gordon College. There, he became the manager of their football team in his senior year and editor-in-chief of the college yearbook. After graduation, he enrolled in the University of Alabama.


Somewhere along the line he decided to enlist in the US Army in 1933 for a period of three years and received his discharge in 1936. Prior to his discharge he would marry Miss Betty Sue McNeill (also McNeal) (1916-1935) on February 9, 1935. She was the daughter of Neal Monroe McNeill (1878-1942) a farmer in Bluff Springs and Josephine "Phenie" Elizabeth Fail (1880-1961). Five weeks after the wedding, Betty developed pneumonia and passed away.


Three years later, Olin would marry again to Miss Clara Louise Gonzalez on April 29, 1939. She was a graduate of Pensacola High School in the Class of 1931 and the daughter of Hugh Fitzsimmons Gonzalez (1881-1939) and Clara Augusta Weekley (1882-1959). Her father was the manager of the Standard Export Lumber Company with an office at #602 Blount Building. Olin and Clara moved in with her parents at 106 West Hernandez Street but the following year had moved to Macon, Bibb County where their son, Hugh Thomas Handley Sr. (1940-2007) was born. After a short while they had moved in with his parents with Olin working as a farmer.


Then came the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 and the recruiting stations began filling up the next day. On December 9th, Olin reenlisted in the US Army at Ft. Benning, Georgia. He was eventually assigned to Company "B" of the 113 Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron. The primary role of these squadrons was as a highly mechanized reconnaissance force that could fight with the best of them if called on upon to do so. To meet the challenge, they were organized into three Calvary Troops, lettered A to C. Each Troop contained M8 Greyhound armored cars, M8 Scott HMC's and M24 Chaffee tanks. In all, they were a very potent force to encounter.


After training at Ft. Hood, TX they moved to Louisiana for two months performing war maneuvers. Then they boarded a train for Boston and were loaded onto a troop ship for the ten-day voyage across the Atlantic. In January 1944, they landed in Glasgow, Scotland where they disembarked only to reembark onto a troop train for Camp Lobscomb, 10 miles north of Salisbury, for more training. Here, their commander felt that two squadrons was far more effective than one regiment so he split them into two squadrons, the 113th Armored Cavalry Recon Squadron and the 125th Armored Cavalry Recon Squadron. When all was ready, they loaded onto a LST for the voyage across the English Channel. They landed on Omaha Beach on June 16, 1944 where they were put into line for the breakout of Normandy. From that point on, they were in constant combat as they fought their way across France and entered the Aachen area in Germany on October 2. By November 26, they had moved to support the 84th Infantry Division during the Roer offensive. In this capacity, the 113th remained on its defensive mission in the Geilenkichen area. And it was here that Olin was killed in action and his body was turned over to the grave's registration company. Today, he rests peacefully in the Margraten Cemetery in Holland.


Afterwards, Clara returned to her hometown of Pensacola with her son Hugh and never remarried. Hugh would go on to graduate from Pensacola High School in 1958 as well as the University of Florida. He would enroll and graduate from the Florida College of Law as an attorney. He would pass away in 2007 in Atlanta, Georgia having retired from law.


















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