Joseph Charles Bouffard
Private 1st Class, 262nd Infantry Regiment, 66th Infantry Division
Joseph was born the 23rd of November 1913 in Marlborough, Massachusetts the oldest child and only son of Charles and Margaret Bouffard. He was raised in Marlborough and attended Marlborough schools. He was working at the Lapointe Machine Tool Company when he enlisted into the Army the 22nd of February 1944.
Following his basic training he was assigned to Company F, 262nd Infantry Regiment, 66th Infantry Division. Joseph and his fellow “Black Panthers” were sent to England and spent much of December billeted in English villages. On the 24th of December 1944, Joseph, and the others of the 262nd board the SS LEOPOLDVILLE in England and headed for the French port of Cherbourg.
Early on Christmas Eve morning, a torpedo from U-boat 486 struck the LEOPOLDVILLE sinking the ship and causing the deaths of 763 men from the 66th Division and 56 of the ships crew. Due to the timing of the attack so close to the Christmas holiday, rescue of the men from the stricken vessel was not made in a timely manner. Joseph’s remains were never found. His name is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing at the Normand American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer, France. Bouffard Drive in Marlborough is named in his honor.
