05/28/2026
World War II’s Operation Dragoon is widely referred to as the Allies’ “Second D-Day.” Like the first, combined airborne, amphibious, and ground forces stormed French beaches occupied by the Germans. It was August 15, 1944, and the overarching goals were to establish a second front by way of southern France, capture and secure deep-water ports at Marseille and Toulon, and supply Allied forces marching toward Germany.
1st Lt. William Wirt Webb was serving in the 59th Armored Field Artillery Battalion, attached to the 45th Infantry Division, when they landed at St. Maxime. Initial German resistance was sparse compared to D-Day landings two months earlier in Normandy. However, U.S. forces did suffer light casualties, including 95 killed and 385 wounded.
The day of the landing, Webb was acting as a forward observer with a rifle company when they came under enemy fire. A 1944 Jacksonville Journal article recounts, “In order to bring immediate artillery fire on the hostile positions, Lt. Webb attempted to set up his radio without taking cover. Although enemy shells burst close to him, he continued his efforts and was killed while calling for fire.” Hospital records noted he sustained a bullet wound to the neck.
William Wirt Webb was 33 years old when he died. It was a major loss to the Jacksonville and Mandarin communities. Webb’s father, William Warren Webb, had grown up on the family’s farm in Mandarin, now known as Walter Jones Historical Park. Major William Webb, a Civil War veteran of the Union Army and William Wirt’s grandfather, built their home in 1875.
Tributes were many for the young Webb who was laid to rest in the Rhone American Cemetery in Draguignan, France, especially from Boy Scout Troop 36 of which he was a Scoutmaster and served as the skipper of Sea Scout Ship Sabra. A memorial stone was also placed for the Silver Star and Purple Heart recipient in Mandarin Cemetery.
