John Marvin Steele (1912 - 1969)

Born 29 Nov 1912 in Metropolis, Massac County, Illinois, United States

Ancestors

Died 14 May 1969 at age 56 in Fayetteville, Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States

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Biography

John was born in 1912. He was the son of John Steele and Josephine Lynn. He passed away in 1969.

John was the American Paratrooper that became famous because his parachute got caught on the steeple of the church in Sainte-Mère-Église.

"John was wounded on the left foot, probably by a flesh-ripping jagged piece of steel, but continues his descent towards the central square where a barn is on fire. While trying to avoid the blaze, he crashed on the church. He hung for two hours, pretending to be dead, before being captured, with six others, by German forces. Several members of company F were killed before even reaching the ground. "Taken out like ducks", will testify a survivor."

John escaped four days later and rejoined his division. There is a monument to him on that church.

"In the 1930s, the Steeles were a model family living in Metropolis, Illinois. His father, also named John, piloted freight boats on the brownish waters of Ohio. He was a born captain, a man of authority who transported cargoes of wood and/or coal while his wife, Josephine, took care of the traditional wooden house. The couple raised seven children, two girls and five boys. John Marvin, the future paratrooper, was the eldest of the siblings. He was a tough guy, a good American football player, more a Democrat than a Republican. He wasn’t such a great student, and eventually dropped out of college; it was said he wanted to become a barber. But when the United States entered the war at the end of 1941, his fate was to change forever: while one of his brothers, James, opted for the navy and another, Norman, for the army, John joined the paratroopers at the ripe old age of 29.

In the spring of 1943, John Marvin Steele discovered North Africa with the 82nd Airborne Division. Very soon, the missions followed one after the other, with a first battle jump on Sicily, during which he broke one leg, then a second on the Naples region, without injuries this time. Steele and his companions from company F then took the boat to the United Kingdom, where the Allied forces were preparing the landing on the French coasts of Normandy. The little guy from Metropolis first stayed in Northern Ireland, the land of his ancestors, and then trained near Leicester, England. In a letter to his family, he wrote that he played golf on days of permission and managed to earn a few dollars by cutting the hair of his comrades; and charging an extra cost to officers!" -excerpted from the Normandy American Heroes blog

John was awarded the Bronze Star for valor and the Purple Heart for being wounded in combat. He is portrayed by Red Buttons in the film "The Longest Day", based on the book of the same name. He also appears in the first "Call of Duty" video game.

He was married twice - first wife Katherine, second wife Verma.

Sources

• "Illinois Births and Christenings, 1824-1940", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:H9R2-G6T2 : 13 February 2020), John Marvin Steele, 1912.
• "United States Census, 1920", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MJHV-JZC : 1 February 2021), Marvin Steele in entry for John H Steele, 1920.
• "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XS18-V9H : accessed 9 June 2023), Marvin Steele in household of John H Steele, Metropolis, Massac, Illinois, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 14, sheet 7A, line 11, family 137, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 544; FHL microfilm 2,340,279.
• "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KWC2-76R : 8 January 2021), Marvin Steele in household of John H Steele, Metropolis Election Precinct, Massac, Illinois, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 64-11, sheet 9A, line 30, family 207, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 856.
• "United States World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KMX5-77Y : 5 December 2014), John M Steele, enlisted 05 Mar 1942, Peoria, Illinois, United States; citing "Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938-1946," database, The National Archives: Access to Archival Databases (AAD) (http://aad.archives.gov : National Archives and Records Administration, 2002); NARA NAID 1263923, National Archives at College Park, Maryland.
• "Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2016", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2ZQ-KKC6 : 24 September 2021), J Marvin Steele and Catherine Esther Main, 1948.
• "North Carolina Deaths, 1931-1994", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FP95-74L : 29 September 2022), John Marvin Steele, 1969.
• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/84657877/john-marvin-steele

• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Steele_(paratrooper)
• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sainte-M%C3%A8re-%C3%89glise
• https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/private-john-steele-monument
• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/84657877/john-marvin-steele
• https://www.normandyamericanheroes.com/blog/sainte-m%C3%A9re-eglise-paratrooper-john-steele
• http://www.bigrivers.com/a-legendary-landing-and-legacy-brec-board-member-attends-75th-d-day-ceremonies-honoring-great-uncles-parachute-landing-in-french-village/
• https://army.togetherweserved.com/army/servlet/tws.webapp.WebApp?cmd=ShadowBoxProfile&type=Person&ID=362114
• https://www.timesnews.net/Blog/2019/08/28/div-class-libPageBodyLinebreak-The-Longest-Day-tells-story-of-D-Day-while-respecting-history-div.html
• https://ww2gravestone.com/people/steele-john-marvine/