On Saint Patrick’s Day 2016, Jim Farrell received a surprising email: an M-1 rifle engraved with the name M. Teahanhad been discovered in Normandy 72 years after its owner, Martin (Matty) Teahan, Jim’s uncle, had been killed in the June 1944 D-Day invasion of France. A young private in the 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, Matty had been laid to rest beside his fellow heroes in the Normandy American Cemetery, but now French Army General Patrick Collet was writing to inform the family that Matty’s rifle had been recovered and was safe in his possession. Luck of the Irish!

Thus began Jim Farrell’s adventure of discovery and self-discovery, as he and his family embarked on the successful quest to bring his uncle home in spirit by repatriating his historic rifle. A saga spanning four generations and multiple countries, the rifle’s extraordinary journey and recovery is also the story of Matty Teahan, a humble private made of the stuff that made so many of his generation great—the strength of character, courage, and will-power to prevail against great odds, and the guts, determination, and sheer daring-do to jump out of a perfectly good airplane over enemy territory.

Martin Teahan’s emblematic M-1 rifle currently hangs in office of the Chief of Staff of the US Army, awaiting donation to the new US Army Museum at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. Similarly, the Farrell family’s quest represents something larger than itself: the intensifying search by the children of the Greatest Generation to understand the facts and meaning of their fathers’ and grandfathers’ war, and their intense desire to come to terms with the often tragic, yet seldom discussed, repercussions of the death and violence their elders experienced in World War II.

INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi

PROLOGUE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xvii

Saint Jerome’s Church: A Landmark and a Trigger . . . . . .xvii

PART ONE

UNCLE MATTY’S WORLD: THE IRISH SOUTH BRONX NEIGHBORHOOD, FAMILY, AND THE GREATEST GENERATION

CHAPTER 1

Born to be Airborne . . . . 3

CHAPTER 2

Uncle Matty’s Irish South Bronx, by Bill McWeeney . . . . 11

CHAPTER 3

Two Martins from the Greatest Generation . . . . 25

CHAPTER 4

Matty’s Family . . . . 31

CHAPTER 5

My Father Mickey . . . . 49

CHAPTER 6

A Soldier and His Rifle . . . . 69

CHAPTER 7

I Owe You Big Time, Uncle Matty . . . . 75

CHAPTER 8

Beyond Dying—Killed in Action . . . . 87

PART TWO

UNCLE MATTY’S WAR: D-DAY, NORMANDY—THE 508TH PARACHUTE INFANTRY REGIMENT IN COMBAT

CHAPTER 9

The Parachutist’s Creed . . . . 99

CHAPTER 10

My Normandy Invasion Experience, by O.B. Hill . . . . 103

CHAPTER 11

A Conversation with Rock Merritt, “Mr. 508th” . . . . 115

CHAPTER 12

Distinguished Unit Citation: 508th PIR . . . . 127

MAPS

82nd Airborne Division, 508 PIR Drop Pattern, June 6, 1994 . . . . 133

D-Day near the Merderet River . . . . 135

Crossing La Fière Causeway . . . . 137

The 508 at Chef-du-Pont . . . . 139

PART THREE

SEARCHING FOR UNCLE MATTY: THE FAMILY QUEST IN EUROPE—ADVENTURES IN NORMANDY AND NOTTINGHAM

CHAPTER 13

My Hero, General Patrick Collet . . . . 143

CHAPTER 14

The Rock Stars of 1944 . . . . 151

CHAPTER 15

Our Journey to Nottingham . . . . 159

PART FOUR

UNCLE MATTY COMES HOME: MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

CHAPTER 16

Uncle Matty Comes Home . . . . 171

CHAPTER 17

Mission Accomplished! . . . . 179

PART FIVE

RECALLING TIMES PAST: FRIENDS AND HEROES AT HOME AND IN COMBAT

CHAPTER 18

Uncle Matty’s Best Friend, Jim McMahon . . . . 189

CHAPTER 19

Uncle Matty’s Army Buddy, Art Jacoby . . . . 195

CHAPTER 20

A Family Friendship with the Donahues . . . . 201

CHAPTER 21

A Family Friendship with O.B. Hill . . . . 209

CHAPTER 22

Rock Merritt and the Battle that Started It All, by Eve Meinhardt . . . . 221

PART SIX

TORCH BEARERS: YOUNGER GENERATIONS PRESERVING HISTORY

CHAPTER 23

Liz’s Special Connection to Uncle Matty . . . . 229

CHAPTER 24

Walking with Ghosts: A Talk with Glyn Shipstone . . . . 237

CHAPTER 25

Uncle Matty’s French Angel, Valérie Gautier Cardin . . . . 247

CHAPTER 26

Lucien’s Wall, Le Mur du Souvenir . . . . 255

EPILOGUE

Saint Jerome’s Church: Uncle Matty Brings the Family Together . . . . 271

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . . . . 281

ILLUSTRATIONS

Photo galleries follow pages 140 and 186