US Army Private Wilson Eugene Mixon was born in Alexander City, Tallapoosa, Alabama on April 8, 1926, the son of Carl Pace Mixon (1902-1969) and Inez Godwin (1906-1980) of 825 East Baars Street. His father supported the family as a garage mechanic.
Wilson attended Alexander City High School and left school to enlist in the US Army on August 11, 1944. After his initial processing and training at Ft. McClelland, Alabama, he was assigned to Company "A" of the 9th Infantry Regiment of the 2nd Infantry Division. Sometime after that, his parents and siblings moved to Pensacola where they rented a home at 825 East Baars Street. In the meantime, Wilson was sent overseas to a replacement unit who in turn would decide what regiment needed him the most. His regiment had already landed at Normandy and had broken out from the beachhead and began fighting inland. Wilson joined the regiment at or around St. Vith, Belgium where they were entrenched in defensive positions. They crossed the German border on October 3rd and attacked the Roer River dams on December 11th. However, an unsuspected attack by the Germans in the dead of winter forced them to withdraw to Elsenborn Ridge. Wilson did not even leave the States until January 6, 1945, thus he joined his regiment in the middle of this chaotic battle. He was thrust into the frontline as his regiment was fighting the Germans to a standstill in what became known as the famous Battle of the Bulge. Soon, Wilson and his regiment were ordered to counterattack, driving the enemy backwards. It was here that Wilson was killed in action on February 2, 1945. His body was brought back for processing and burial in a military cemetery.
His family received not one, but two of the dreaded telegrams in late March 1945. The first informed them that their son was missing in action. Seven hours later, another one arrived telling them he had been located and had been killed. After the war, they filled out the necessary paperwork in 1947 and had their boy shipped home and buried with military honors in the Alexander City Cemetery, Alabama.
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