Clarence William Dawson (Bill) - U.S. Army
1943-45

Clarence William Dawson "Bill", of Halifax Co., served as a Tank Destroyer Commander in the U.S. Army during World War II from 1943-45. He was assigned to the Tank Destroyer Unit #661, A Company in Germany during the war. His unit fired some of the last shots of the war.

He remembers the German soldiers taking refuge in a heavily fortified building but his Tank Destroyer Unit bombarded the building, forcing the German's to surrender. He had a pet rabbit who rode on his tank and took cover under the turret when under enemy fire.

His tank unit has a reunion every year in various parts of the country, with Bill always attending.