Col. William Benjamin Tuttle

Col. William
Benjamin Tuttle, Jr.
LAKE WYLIE -- Col. Tuttle, 85, died Sunday, June 11, 2006 after two years of declining health. He was born January 16, 1921, at Camp Sherman, OH, son of Captain William Benjamin Tuttle and Charlotte Mae Ricketson Tuttle.
Bill Tuttle graduated from Manlius Military Academy in Syracuse, NY. He entered West Point USMA and graduated in the accelerated three-year class of 1944. He earned the Infantry Badge, Master Parachutist Badge, Glider Badge, Vietnamese Airborne Wings, and the Green Beret. Col. Tuttle fought and survived three wars: World War II, Korea and Vietnam. He was awarded two Bronze Stars and two Legion of Merits. His three Combat Infantry Badges, one from each war, placed him on the Plaque of Honor at the US Infantry Museum in Fort Benning, GA. He assaulted the Siegfried Line in WWII, led patrols behind communist Chinese lines in Korea, and commanded the Special Forces camps in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam. He taught at the Citadel for four years. He was Professor of Military Science and head of ROTC at Presbyterian College. He was a true American hero.
Bill was preceded in death by his parents, his sister Norma Yarborough, and his beloved wife of 61 years, 'Peggie', who died in February 2006. He is survived by his son, Dr. Nicholas Tuttle and his wife, Kelley Tuttle, of Rock Hill, SC; his daughter, Louisa Patterson and her husband, Robert Patterson, of Hickory, NC; five grandchildren, Caroline, Graham and Emma Tuttle of Rock Hill, SC, and Lauren and Alec Patterson of Hickory, NC.
The family would like to thank caregivers Coreen Karnes, Martha Goforth and LaRue Shuford for the love and compassion shown for Col. Tuttle in the last two years.
Visitation will be held on Thursday, June 15, 2006 from 5-6:30 PM at Greene Funeral Home, Northwest Chapel in Rock Hill, SC. Interment will be held at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date.
Memorials may be made to the River Hills Rescue Squad at Lake Wylie, SC.