William Nick Hale was born in 1924 in Baltimore. His family was Baptist and religious. He was drafted into the army in 1943 upon his graduation from high school. Nick served in the infantry in the 1st Division as a rifleman.

Nick was in the invasion of Sicily and the Battle of the Bulge. He was awarded medals for his service and bravery.

In Czechoslovakia, Nick’s unit came across a concentration camp with American and British POWs and freed them. Later, they discovered a concentration camp with Jewish prisoners. Nick did not learn the name. Upon entering, he saw emaciated and weak prisoners. There were dead bodies in many bunks. The US forces showed the camp to the citizens of a nearby village and the villagers claimed ignorance of its existence. After three days there, Nick’s unit left.

After the war, Nick traveled around Europe for a while. He graduated from the University of Maryland in 1950 and started his own company. He married and had a daughter.

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