Community members have been encouraged to line the Frankfort courthouse square to honor a local hero as he is escorted home this Friday, Sept. 20.
U.S. Army Private First-Class Clossie Brown of the Company F 2nd Battalion 157th Infantry Regiment 45th Infantry Division will be welcomed home to Clinton County this Friday, Sept. 20. Brown passed away on Jan. 21, 1945 near the village of Reipertswiller, France during World War II at the age of 37.
Brown entered the U.S. Army at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana on April 8, 1944 and served in the European Theater. During intense ground combat in the area, Brown was killed by enemy fire, and his remains were not accounted for following the battle as German units controlled the area.
Between 1945 and 1947, French civilians and demining units discovered numerous remains in the hills and forest in the vicinity of Reipertswiller and alerted American graves registration personnel.
In June 2021 and August 2022, the Department of Defense and American Battle Monuments Commission exhumed the remains of “Unknowns” from Lorraine American Cemetery in France and from Ardennes American Cemetery in Belgium for forensic analysis and comparison with Brown among other unresolved casualties. During the operation, identification was made from DNA specimens obtained from maternal cousins of Brown.
For his service, Brown received The Bronze Star Medal, The Purple Heart, Army Good Conduct Medal, The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, The World War II Victory Medal, The Combat Infantryman Badge and Honorable Service Lapel Button.
Brown was born on Sept. 24, 1908 in Kirklin as the son of Alonso D. and Mary (Schimmel) Brown and lived alongside his three siblings, Alvin Dewey Brown, Denzel Louis Brown and Losa Cleo Brown. He married Mildred Irene Cline, and the happily married couple had two children, Barbara Joan (Brown) Heaton and David Lee (Joyce) Brown, and two granddaughters, Roslyn R. (Heaton) Clendenning of Kokomo and Annette J. (Brown) Sisson of Story City, Iowa.
In honor of his sacrifice, an escorted procession from the Indianapolis Airport will arrive in Frankfort around 5:45 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 20. The public has been invited to line the square in downtown Frankfort in honor of Brown.
Visitation will be held from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 24 at Goodwin Funeral Home at 200 S. Main St. in Frankfort with the funeral services beginning at 2 p.m. on Tuesday. Burial with Military Honors will be in Whiteman Cemetery in Michigantown.
Following the burial, the public has been invited to the Kirklin American Legion at 105 E. Madison St. in Kirklin for food and fellowship.
