The Reference Department at the South Carolina State Library is assisting a family in the Netherlands who is researching information on Pvt. James E. Wise. Mr. Wise, a former resident of Dillon County, was killed in action in Germany on April 11, 1945, during WWII and is buried in the 65-acre American cemetery in Margraten, Netherlands. Margraten is the only American military cemetery in the Netherlands.
In 1945, the cemetery began a program where members of the community could adopt a grave of a fallen American soldier buried in the cemetery. Today, the Foundation for Adopting Graves at the American Cemetery Margraten runs the program. As a way memorialize the soldier, many take flowers to the cemetery and research the life of the service member as a way to honor their sacrifice. The Foundation, United Adopters American War Graves, created a program known as The Faces of Margraten. This group collects photos of the fallen, and sponsors a bi-annual event at the cemetery during Dutch Memorial Day weekend, which is usually around May 4, the Dutch Memorial day. The photos are on display that weekend next to headstones and the Walls of the Missing, allowing visitors to see the face of their liberators.
A family who adopted Mr. Wise’s grave is seeking any information or pictures of him to learn more about the man they honor and memorialize. Mr. Wise was married to the former Gladys Snipes, who later remarried.
Please contact the Reference Department at reference@statelibrary.sc.gov if you have any information.
