Arthur J. Honohan
Biography: Arthur Joseph Honohan was born on December 31, 1912, in Brooklyn, New York. He was the son of William Patrick Honohan and Marie Dechartrand and attended local schools through the 8th grade. He then worked as a plumber.
Service Time: On October 24, 1940, Arthur joined the New York National Guard and was eventually assigned to Company A, 102nd Anti-tank Battalion. He entered active service on January 13, 1941, at Hempstead, NY. The 13th is the same day that the 102nd Anti-tank Bn was federalized.
The 102nd went on to become the 802nd Tank Destroyer Battalion and Arthur served in Company A. He was promoted to the rank of Sergeant on May 8, 1942, while stationed at Camp Sutton, North Carolina. He functioned as a Platoon Sergeant for the unit and continued to train with them at a number of facilities within the U.S., including Fort Bragg, NC, Camp Hood, Texas, Camp Polk and Camp Claiborne in Louisiana. They also participated in maneuvers in both North Carolina and Louisiana. It was during his training on January 6, 1944, that he qualified as an Expert with the M1 Rifle.
The unit then proceeded to Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, to prepare for overseas shipment. The 802nd boarded the troopship Ile De France and set sail on April 7, 1944, from the New York port and arrived at the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, on April 15th. After three months of additional training, they boarded transports and landed on Utah Beach in Normandy, France on July 1st. They were equipped with 3″ towed guns and entered battle near Carentan on July 4th.
Advancing into Brittany in August, they supported the attack on St. Malo in August and then crossed France, entering Luxembourg on September 23rd. The unit supported operations against the Siegfried Line through November and then participated in the Battle of the Bulge in Luxembourg, in late December. The 802nd converted to M36 tank destroyers in February and March 1945, and crossed the Rhine River at Wessel on April 2nd.
They joined the elimination of the Ruhr Pocket after which they took on occupation duties. The unit received credit for campaigns in Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland, the Ardennes and Central Europe. Arthur received credit for each of the unit’s campaigns, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, the EAME, WWII Victory, American Defense and Good Conduct Medals. He would also receive the Purple Heart in recognition of the wounds he received on August 7, 1944, while in France.
Arthur shipped home on October 6th and arrived back in the U.S. on the 17th. He had been assigned to the Headquarters and Headquarters Company of the 146th Engineer Battalion and was discharged at Fort Dix, New Jersey from that same unit, at the rank of Staff Sergeant.
Now back in the U.S., Arthur found a job with the Jericho School District as a custodian. In his spare time, he enjoyed horseracing and was a member of the American Legion.
Arthur married the former Margaret Theresa Finn who was the daughter of Lester William Finn and Margaret Agnes Edmonston. The couple would have four sons, William, Gil, Thomas and Timothy. Arthur passed away on May 22, 1983, and was buried in the Calverton National Cemetery in Wading River, NY.
The photo at left is Arthur and Margaret in 1960.
I want to thank Arthur’s son, Tim, for providing the information and photo of his parents.