Legion marks 100th anniversary of death of post’s namesake



The grave of William Bradford Turner at the Somme American Cemetery in France. Garden City resident Gerry Whalen photographed the grave during a trip to France for Memorial Day.

The grave of William Bradford Turner at the Somme American Cemetery in France. Garden City resident Gerry Whalen photographed the grave during a trip to France for Memorial Day.

Thursday, September 27th, will be a special day at the American Legion Post 265 in Garden City. The day marks the 100th anniversary of the death of the post’s namesake, William Bradford Turner, a Garden City resident and war hero who died in the heat of battle during World War I.

Frank Tauches, a former Garden City mayor and Commander of the American Legion Auxiliary William Bradford Turner Unit, said that Turner was one of the village’s most illustrious residents.

“He was a United States Army officer who received the U.S. military’s highest decoration, the Congressional Medal of Honor,” said Tauches, who served as village trustee and mayor from 1990-1997. “We are honored to have our American Legion post named after him.”

Turner, who was born in 1892, grew up in Garden City and attended St. Paul’s School, before transferring to the Trinity Pawling boarding school upstate.

After graduating from Williams College in Massachusetts in 1914’ he joined the National Guard for a few years, pulling duty on the Texas-Mexico border. With the start of World War I in 1916, he was commissioned by the army to serve as lieutenant in the 12th New York Calvary.

“Before the time of his death in 1918, he was serving in France as First lieutenant, leading an attack on the German’s near Ronssoy,” said Tauches. “Despite being wounded three times in battle, he led the charge forward, and was able to capture and clear three lines of trenches before succumbing to his injuries.”

Tauches said that one of his happiest moments during his term as village trustee and deputy mayor, was when he received four medals honoring the 75th anniversary of the end of WW I.

“While serving as deputy mayor in 1993, our office received these medals commemorating the end of the war. We gave these medals to four deserving veterans at the American Legion post in a ceremony which took place on Veterans Day. It was the proudest moment in my service to the village.”

He said that it was important for all of us to remember those who served our country in each and every war.

“We recently just lost our last surviving member of World War I, and we are losing these servicemen day-byday,” said Tauches. “In 2020 we will be marking the 75th anniversary of World War II.”

Leave a Reply