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.com. Welcome back everybody for another deep
dive. And today we are going to look at the life
of Cecil H. Bolton. Okay. This guy led a seriously
double life. So our sources today tell a story
about a man who was both a really, really great
boxer and a total war hero. What made this guy
want to be so good at such different things?
That's what we are here to figure out today.
Right, yeah, that is a good question. Like most
of us, we tend to think of boxing as individual
strength. and agility and speed. But war often
calls for a whole team to work together and strategy
and stuff like that. So how did both of these
experiences come together to form the life of
Cecil Bolton? It's interesting how you wouldn't
really think that those two things would go together.
Right. But maybe they do. Yeah, maybe. So let's
see. OK, so Cecil H. Bolton was born in Crawfordville,
Florida, way back in 1908. Wow. Yeah. And his
family, they ended up settling in Huntsville,
Alabama sometime in the late 19... No, here's
the thing. You ready for this? Yeah. Before the
war, Bolton was a boxer. Oh, really? Yeah, and
they called him Bushy Bolton. Bushy Bolton. I
love it. I know, right? That's great. And get
this, he wasn't messing around. Oh. In 1928,
he had 37 fights. What? 37. Wow. That's a lot.
That's a lot of fight. That's a lot of punches.
Yeah. And he was also a referee, which I think
is really cool. Yeah, absolutely. He knew the
boxing world like inside and out. It really sounds
like he was, you know, at the heart of it all.
Yeah. He was a real local sports star. Yeah.
His boxing career lasted 16 years. Wow. Which
is amazing. And he was like a hometown hero in
Huntsville. Yeah. Well, makes you think maybe
all those years he spent in the ring, you know,
facing different opponents all the time. Yeah.
Maybe that's where he got his mental toughness
from. Right. You know, like maybe that's where
he learned to be so resilient. Yeah, maybe that's
how he was able to do all the crazy stuff he
did on the battlefield later on. Right, like
a different type of training. Yeah, it's not
something you'd usually connect boxing and, you
know, being a war hero. Right. But you're right,
maybe all those years boxing really did get him
ready to be courageous. And, you know, Bolton
was also a really smart businessman. Oh, yeah.
He owned a nightclub, even. And he managed some
other boxers. He was a big part of the Huntsville
community. So not just a tough guy, but a real
leader, too. Exactly. And I bet all that experience
helped him become a great leader in the army
later on. Yeah, you're right. Because leading
a bunch of boxers and running a business, you
have to inspire people and come up with plans
and make tough decisions. For sure. And those
are all things that are important in war, too.
Yeah. OK, so we've got Bushy Bolton. the hometown
boxing hero, a successful businessman, and a
leader in Huntsville. Then 1942 comes along and
everything changes. World War II. Yep, and at
33 years old, Bolton gets drafted into the army.
Wow, can you imagine going from boxing rings
and night clubs to boot camp? That is a huge
change. Yeah. How do you think he dealt with
that? It must have been really hard. Total. But
I bet even though everything was different, Something's
probably stayed the same. Like what? Well, in
boxing and war, there's one main goal. To win.
To win, that's it. OK. And to do that, you need
discipline and focus. Yeah. And you have to push
yourself beyond your limits. Totally. And those
are all things Bolton learned from boxing. Yeah.
So maybe those years in the ring gave him, like,
a mental model. Uh -huh. for dealing with challenges.
Yeah, even if they're completely different challenges.
Exactly. Like war instead of boxing. And don't
forget about his leadership skills. Oh, right.
From managing those boxers and running that nightclub.
Yeah. I bet that helped him adjust to leading
soldiers. Yeah, because in the army, it's not
just about you anymore. You're part of a team
and you're responsible for other people. Exactly.
So Bolton goes through basic training, then he
does really well at officer candidate school
and he becomes a second lieutenant. Okay. And
then they assign them as a weapons platoon leader
in Company E, 2nd Battalion, 413th Infantry Regiment,
104th Infantry Division. Wow, that's a lot. It
is, isn't it? So for someone like me who doesn't
know anything about the military, what does all
that even mean? So basically, a weapons platoon
is like a special unit within a bigger company.
Okay. And they're the ones with the big guns,
like machine guns and mortars. Oh, wow. So in
Bolton's case, that meant He was right there
on the front lines, leading his men into battle.
Oh, wow. Yeah, the 104th Infantry Division, get
this, they had a nickname. What was it? The Timberwolves.
Oh, that's cool. Yeah, I know, right? Those nicknames
are kind of like taking that team spirit from
boxing and bringing it to the battlefield. Right.
It's all about having that feeling of being a
part of something bigger. So Bolton, our boxer,
is now Lieutenant Bolton leading a weapons platoon
called the Timberwolves. Yep. What happens next?
Well, August 27th, 1944, the Timberwolves sail
off to Europe. They arrive in France on September
7th. OK. And by October 23rd, they're fighting
in Voesfelsel, Belgium. So things move pretty
quickly. Very quickly. And I bet the closer they
got to the fighting, the more intense things
got. I'm sure it was pretty stressful. Yeah.
So that brings us to a really important part
of Bolton's story. Yes, it does. November 2,
1944. OK. The Timberwolves had just crossed the
Mark River in the Netherlands, and as soon as
they do, they get hit with all this enemy fire.
Oh wow. Yeah, it was bad. Oh no, it was really
bad. So they're like trapped and getting shot
at from all sides? Yeah, it was a tough spot.
Two German machine guns had them totally pinned
down. Oh wow. And their mortars weren't doing
any good because they couldn't see where the
Germans were. Okay. So people were getting hurt.
Man, I can't even imagine what that must have
been like. It's hard to picture, isn't it, all
that chaos and the fear and the noise? Yeah,
definitely. And to make things even worse, Bolton
was already hurt. What? Yeah, he had shrapnel
in both legs, a bullet in his shoulder. Oh my
god. Another one that just grazed his mouth.
And he'd even been knocked unconscious for a
bit. Seriously? You think that would be enough
to make anyone give up? Yeah, you'd think. Right.
But not Bolton. Remember we were talking about
how tough he was from all that boxing? Right.
Yeah. What really came in handy here, even though
he was all messed up. His first thought was for
his men. So like a true leader. Yeah. He knew
they were stuck and needed to get out of there.
So what'd he do? He crawled over to his guys
and asked for volunteers. and get this, he waded
into this freezing cold water that was up to
his chest to try to take out those machine guns
himself. Wow, he was already hurt and he's gonna
go put himself in even more danger. He was, it's
pretty amazing when you think about it. He wasn't
worried about himself at all. Wow. All he cared
about was getting his men to safety. That's incredible.
It really is a crazy level of selflessness. Okay,
so how did he take out the machine guns? We got
to the first one using grenades. Okay. Took it
out. and then went back to his bazooka team to
get the second one. So he's dodging bullets and
freezing in this water, and he's still going.
Oh, yeah. And he wasn't done yet. There's more.
After they took care of the machine guns, Bolton
realized there was this big 88 -millimeter artillery
gun that was just hammering the American lines.
Okay. So he leads his bazooka team over to that
thing, braving all the enemy fire, and that ice
-cold water again. Man, this guy is... Unstoppable.
I know, right? He had such courage and he was
so strategic about it all, picking out the biggest
threats and taking them out one by one. Uh -huh.
And thanks to him and his bazooka team, they
destroyed that artillery gun, which gave them
a much better chance of surviving. So he basically
took out three major enemy positions all by himself.
Pretty much, yeah. And remember, he was doing
all this while he was seriously wounded. Right.
He actually got hit again during all this. Yeah.
But he refused to get any help. Why? All he cared
about was his men. He wanted to make sure they
got out of there safely. Man, that's just crazy.
And as he told his guys to retreat while he covered
them, he crawled back to their lines until he
finally collapsed. I can't even imagine what
that must have done to him, both physically and
mentally. I know it's hard to fathom. By November
7th, the Timberwolves had accomplished their
mission. Good. But it came at a huge cost. How
huge? They lost almost 1 ,500 men. 313 killed
in action and 103 missing. Oh my god. I know
it's a lot. Major General Terry De La Mesa Allen
Senior, their commander, sent each one of his
men a letter. Oh wow. Congratulating them and
at the end of each letter he wrote his motto,
nothing in hell must stop the Timberwolves. Oh
man that gives me chills. It's pretty powerful
isn't it? It really shows how tough and determined
the 104th Infantry Division was, and it shows
just how much they sacrificed. And what Bolton
did that day perfectly represents that spirit.
Absolutely. He was given a silver star for his
actions, which was later upgraded to the Medal
of Honor. Yeah. On September 4th, 1945, President
Truman himself gave him the medal in this big
ceremony at the White House. Wow. He was one
of 28 heroes who got medals that day, including
another guy from Alabama named Paul A. Bolden.
That must have been an incredible moment for
him. It must have been to receive that recognition
after everything he'd been through. And he got
other medals, too. Yeah. What else did he get?
Two bronze stars and two purple hearts. Wow.
So what did the Medal of Honor citation actually
say about what he did that day? Well, it's a
pretty powerful document that really captures
his bravery and selflessness. I think it's worth
reading a part of it here. OK, let's hear it.
It says, as leader of the weapons platoon of
Company E, 413th Infantry Regiment, 104th Infantry
Division on the night of 2 November 1944, 1st
Lieutenant Bolton fought gallantly in a pitched
battle which followed the crossing of the Mark
River in Holland. So it starts by setting the
scene, you know, the craziness of the battle
and how hard it was to fight there. Exactly.
And that talks about how Bolton first tried to
use the mortars to take out the machine guns,
but they couldn't see where they were. OK. and
he kept directing the fire until he got hurt
so badly that he was knocked out. That's some
serious determination. It really is. He didn't
give up even after being wounded. And then the
citation goes on to describe how he took out
the machine guns and that 88 millimeter artillery
piece and talks about how brave he was and how
he was a great leader and how he was thinking
strategically the whole time. It really paints
a picture of what a hero he was, doesn't it?
It does. And it finishes by saying how he wouldn't
let anyone help him, and he made sure his men
retreated while he crawled back. It's such an
amazing story. It really is a story about sacrificing
yourself for the people you care about. So what
happened to Bolton after the war? How do you
go back to normal life after going through something
like that? I know. It's hard to imagine going
back to like everyday life. Yeah. But Bolton,
he stayed in the army. Oh, really? Yeah, even
through the Korean War. Wow. He really dedicated
his life to serving his country. And he ended
up becoming a colonel before he retired. So from
boxer to war hero to colonel, that's pretty amazing.
It is. It shows how he could adapt to anything
and how committed he was. Yeah, he wasn't just
one thing. But his story, it doesn't have a happy
ending, does it? No. Sadly, Cecil Bolton died
pretty young, actually. Oh. Yeah, he was only
56. Wow. He passed away at Brooke Army Hospital
in Fort Sam Houston, Texas, January 22, 1965.
Man, that's a reminder that even the toughest
guys, they're still human. They are. So what
happened after he died? Well, he was buried with
full military honors at the Fort Sam Houston
National Cemetery in San Antonio, Texas. OK.
And his wife, Bessie, she was buried there with
him when she passed away in 1978. That's nice
that they're together. Yeah. It's a fitting tribute
to a man who spent his life helping others. Yeah,
and his legacy it lives on. How so? Well, in
Panacea, Florida, where he was born, they built
a monument for him. Oh, wow. Yeah, it's a permanent
reminder of his journey from that small town
to the battlefields of Europe and back again.
So we've gone from Bushy Bolton, this like charismatic
boxer, to Lieutenant Bolton, the war hero, to
Colonel Bolton, who served his country his whole
life. It's quite a story, isn't it? full of twists
and turns. Yeah, it really is. And I think what
makes it so interesting is that it challenges
the way we think. How so? Well, we don't usually
think of a boxer becoming a war hero, but Bolton's
life shows us that those two things can actually
work together. Yeah. It's a reminder that people
are complicated. Yeah. They have hidden depths
and they can always surprise us. Exactly. And
I think there's something we can all learn from
this. What's that? Bolton's story teaches us
to look deeper than the surface. to see that
courage and leadership can pop up in unexpected
places. Yeah, I like that. His life shows us
the power of never giving up and putting others
first. And how strong the human spirit can be.
Yeah, it's a really inspiring story. I think
we've done a good job of exploring the life of
Cecil H. Bolton. I think so too. From boxing
to war, his story is all about bravery, determination,
and always being there for the people around
him. It reminds us that heroes are everywhere,
even in places we might not expect. So keep your
eyes open and never stop looking for those incredible
stories of bravery and resilience. And on that
note, I think we'll wrap up our deep dive into
the amazing life of Cecil H. Bolton. Sounds good.
Thanks for joining us, everyone. And I want to
thank everybody for listening to Veterans Radio
today. I am Jim Fossone. It's been a pleasure
to be your host. I'm a Veterans disability lawyer
at Legal Help for Veterans. And you can reach
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