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Biography · Business & Enterprise

William G. Dabney

1924–2018

United States

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Biography

William Garfield Dabney (June 24, 1924 – December 12, 2018) was an African-American resident of Roanoke, Virginia, who served in World War II. He was awarded the French Legion of Honor for his actions during the invasion of Normandy. Notably, Dabney — one of the last known surviving soldier from the 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion, the only all-black unit in the D-Day landings — did not receive the honor until the sixty-fifth anniversary of D-Day – 18 days shy of his eighty-fifth birthday.

Sources & collection details

Wikipedia contributors — original record ↗

Black heritage reference ↗

Biography text · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source checked 2026-10-13

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