Term 1980-1989 | Name Ellsworth Jones | |
Born January 6, 1918 ( 1918-01-06 ) Corinth, New York Died December 31, 2006(2006-12-31) (aged 88)
Saratoga Springs, New York Occupation Former Mayor of Saratoga Springs, New York | ||
Ellsworth J. Jones (January 6, 1918 in Corinth, New York – December 31, 2006) was a mayor of Saratoga Springs, New York, and veteran of World War II.
World War II Service
Jones joined the service in early 1942, shortly after the attacks on Pearl Harbor. He rose through the ranks quickly, becoming a paratrooper with the famed 101st Airborne DIvision, the "Screaming Eagles."
He participated in the D-Day invasion of Normandy, commanding a platoon of troops as 1st Lieutenant, within G Company, 502 Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. After parachuting several miles inland from the French coast during the early morning hours of June 6 troops under his command successfully captured and disabled a German 88mm gun firing on Utah beach, the platoon's primary objective. Jones and his troops participated in the battle of Carentan (June 10–12). During the battle, Jones was hit in the back by shrapnel from a German bomb when fighter planes strafed his position. A 1-inch (25 mm) square piece of steel lodged in his back. Unable to breathe, his life was spared when a fellow paratrooper covered up the hole in his back with his hand enabling Jones' lungs to once again fill with air.