Henry Allen Blackie

Henry Allen Blackie was born in 1926. He was the son of Charles William Blackie and Lillian A. Blackie. He resided on Church Street in Clinton prior to the war. 

Henry served as a Seaman Second Class, U.S. Navy during World War II. He was aboard the USS LST 507 and was killed during the Exercise Tiger--one of the large-scale rehearsals for the D-Day invasion of Normandy. This took place in April 1944 in Slapton Sands, Devon in the UK. An Allied naval convoy involved in the exercise was attacked by German submarines, and coordination and communication problems resulted in friendly fire deaths. At least 749 American servicemen were killed. Because of the impending invasion of Normandy, the incident was highly classified and the full story did not come out until years later after the war. 

Henry’s older brother, John, was also a Navy Veteran of World War II. 

Henry is now buried in the Cambridge American Cemetery, Cambridge, United Kingdom. He also has a cenotaph located in Riverview Cemetery, Topsham, ME.