Leonard Landis was born October 11, 1923, in Adams County, Indiana. His parents were Earl and Bertha Fugate Landis. He attended Kirkland Elementary school, all the way through 2 years of high school. All the while, he assisted his father on their farm. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in March of 1943. He had his basic training in Camp Wolter, Texas, and performed maneuvers in Tennessee, Kansas, California, and Arizona. He was assigned to the 80th Infantry Division, and the 308th Infantry Regiment and achieved the rank of Private First Class. He was sent overseas from New Jersey. He was killed in action in France on September 10, 1944. His division was part of the force that captured Utah Beach. From here, he was part of the siege through Normandy. With his division, he assisted in the capture of Argentan on August 20. From here, Leonard assisted in the Battle of the Hedgerows across France where he was killed in action. His division would continue on to assault the center of the Siegfried Line, and then northward to Luxembourg and Bastogne and assist the 4th Armored Infantry to punch through the Siegfried Line and into Germany. He is buried in the Lorraine Cemetery in France. For his service, PFC Landis earned the WWII Victory Medal, American Campaign Medal, and the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal. Information collected and researched by Quinton Ganaway, 2014.
80th Division: History of the 80th Division Lone Sentry, Forward 80th: The Story Behind the 80th Infantry Division. 80th Infantry Division, history.army.mil/documents
Indiana Historical Bureau, comp. Gold Star Honor Roll: Adams County. Bloomington: Indiana War History Commission, 1949. Print. Vol. 1 of Indiana in World War II.