Audie Murphy
Celeste, Hunt County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Most decorated soldier in World War II. Born 4.5 miles south, June 20, 1924, sixth of nine children of tenant farmers Emmett and Josie Killian Murphy. Living on various farms, Audie Murphy went to school through the 8th grade in Celeste -- considered the family's home town. He had to quit school to help support the family, acquiring marksmanship skills by hunting to provide food. On his 18th birthday, after being rejected by the Marines because of his size (5 feet, 7 inches; 130 pounds), he enlisted in the Army while working in Greenville. For unusual courage and bravery, he received 24 decorations, including the U. S. Congressional Medal of Honor; the French Legion of Honor, Chevalier: the Distinguished Service Cross; and a Silver Star. After the war he became a successful actor, his most prominent role portraying himself in the film "To Hell and Back," his war career autobiography. Following his untimely death in a plane crash in Virginia, May 28, 1971, and burial in Arlington National Cemetery, the U. S. Congress paid him a final tribute, dedicating a new veterans' hospital in San Antonio to the memory of this American hero. Survived by widow Pamela, sons Terry and James. (1973)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Born to tenant farmers near Celeste in 1924, the sixth of nine children, Audie Murphy left school after the eighth grade and honed his marksmanship hunting for the family table. Rejected by the Marines for his slight build, he enlisted in the Army on his eighteenth birthday and became the most decorated American soldier of World War II, earning the Medal of Honor and two dozen other decorations. He later portrayed himself in the film of his memoir, To Hell and Back, before dying in a 1971 plane crash.
Why it matters
Murphy's rise from Depression-era poverty to national hero and Hollywood star became one of the enduring legends of the American WWII generation.
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Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Birthplace of Audie Murphy
Kingston, TX
On a farm near Kingston in 1925, Audie Murphy was born into the hardscrabble life of a Texas sharecropping family. He enlisted in the army on his seventeenth birthday in 1942 and became the most decorated American soldier of World War II, honored with the Medal of Honor and a string of American and European awards for valor. He turned his fame into a Hollywood career, even portraying himself in the film of his memoir "To Hell and Back," before dying in a plane crash in 1971 and being buried at Arlington.
The Old Greenville Post Office
Greenville, TX
Greenville's post office dates to 1847, when mail was reputedly dropped at a saloon, but it moved into this Neo-classic building only in 1910, later enlarged in 1930. Its most famous moment came on June 20, 1942, when a young Hunt County man named Audie Murphy joined the Army here on his 18th birthday. Murphy went on to become the most decorated American soldier of World War II, and the city acquired the building in 1973 to preserve it.
Site of Phillips Field/Majors Stadium
Greenville, TX
Opened in 1929 with a gift from Eula Lasater Phillips in memory of her husband, this field hosted Greenville's football triumphs—including a 1933 state championship—before being remade for baseball. Rechristened for Truett Majors, the first local man killed in World War II, the minor-league Majors drew huge crowds and once beat a barnstorming New York Yankees team fielding Casey Stengel and Joe DiMaggio. Hometown pitcher Monty Stratton also took the mound here before the stadium's demolition in the 1960s.
Audie Murphy's Homecoming, June 15, 1945
Farmersville, TX
On his 18th birthday Audie Murphy enlisted in the U.S. Army, and over more than two years of combat across North Africa, Sicily, Italy, and France he became the most decorated American soldier of World War II, earning every Army valor citation, including the Medal of Honor. When he came home to Farmersville on June 15, 1945, thousands packed the town square, and Life magazine put the reunion on its cover.