BLUEFIELD- Roscoe Luther Taylor, 77, of 351 Pinnacle View Rd. (Bluewell), P.O. Box 3081 Bluefield, died Saturday, April 6, 2002 at his residence.

Born Aug. 28, 1924 in Montcalm, he was a son of the late Oliver Jesse Taylor and Martha Scott Taylor.

Mr. Taylor had been a resident of Bluewell for six years, was retired from the U.S. Steel Plant in Lorain, Ohio where he worked for 22 years and he worked for 10 years at the American Coal Company at Crane Creek. He was the former owner and operator of his own Furnace Repair Company and was a member of the Freewill Baptist Church in Coaldale. He was a veteran of the U.S. Army serving during WWII and was a member of the VFW. He entered the Army on April 17, 1943 and served until Dec. 15, 1945 where he served as cannonear under Gen. George Patton serving in the Eastern Theater of Operations. He saw action in the battles of Northern France, Ardennes, Rhineland and Central Europe and was wounded in the Battle of the Bulge on Dec. 18, 1944. He was awarded the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, Silver Star, American Theater Service Ribbon, Combat Infantry Badge, European African Middle Eastern Service Ribbon, WWII Victory Ribbon and the Good Conduct Metal.

From Great Britain he received the ‘British Gall' Award and from the French government the ‘Croix-de-Guerre'. Recently he was the recipient of the commemorative ‘Gratitude Metal' from the Belgian government and the commemorative ‘French Jubilee of Liberty Medal' honoring Operation Overlord from the French government. He was a member of the American Order of the French Croix-de-Guerre and was member of the Loyal Order of Moose.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by sisters, Edna Sprinkle and Nora Walker; and brothers, Lewis and Edward Taylor.

Survivors include sisters, Lucille Bryant Riddle of Rt. 5, Bluefield, Kathleen Poff and husband, Wilson of Bramwell, Opal Case and husband, Gale of Bland, Va., and Janice Tolbert of Port Neches, Tx.; brothers Harold Taylor and wife Marie of New Castle De., Nelson Taylor and wife, Alice of New Castle and Bobby Perkins and wife, Eva of Rt.20, Bluefield; and many nieces and nephews.

Funeral services will be conducted at 3 p.m. Tuesday at the Cravens-Shires Funeral Home in Bluewell with the Rev. Roger Lacy officiating. Burial will follow in Woodlawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Bluewell.

Pallbearers will be nephews and honorary pallbearers will be Frank Beavers, Robert Shrewsbury and Leonard Scott.
The family will receive friends at the funeral home from 6-8 p.m. today.

The family may be contacted at the homes of his sisters, Kathleen Poff at 248-7194, Lucille Riddle at 589-5627 or Opal Case at 688-9822.