PVT Rolland K. Bills
1899 - 1956
USAR
WWII
Rolland Keith Bills was born in Columbia City, Indiana, on October 28, 1899 to Arthur and Rosa Eisaman Bills.
On August 4, 1923, he married Myrtle Waltz in Whitley County, Indiana; they had two children.
In 1934, Bills was employed by the Chicago & Northwest Railroad, where he worked for 22 years as a crossing watchman and flagman.
Bills was inducted into the U.S. Army in November, 1942, and honorably discharged in April, 1943, having served as a Private in the DEML (Detached Enlisted Men’s List). With the influx of draftees and great expansion of the U.S. Army in 1940-1942 the DEML expanded as a catchall for new types of enlisted specialists whose duties were immaterial to any branch. These troops were often assigned duties in line with their previous civilian jobs, such as Railroad Engineers and Railway Specialists.
Private Rolland K. Bills was killed in freak accident at a Barrington train crossing when a car that was clipped by a passenger train was spun and hit him. He died on April 22, 1956, and is buried with two brothers at Evergreen Cemetery.
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Remember. Honor. Teach.
Courtesy of Signal Hill Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution
