William Melvin Magarrell was born in Adair, Iowa, April 14th, 1890. Up until the year 1915 his whole life was spent in Adair, where he was reared and educated and where he graduated from the Adair High School in 1909. In 1915 he came to Nevada and took up his residence with one of his brothers, L. C. Magarrell, in the County of White Pine. And there he lived until Nevada called her young men, when he left McGill to enter the service at Camp Lewis, Washington, (September 18, 1917). He was first assigned to Battery E, 348th Field Artillery of the 91st Division, but on the 10th of November, 1917, he was transferred to Company K, 164th Infantry, 41st Division. With this division he crossed to France in December, 1917, for duty as one of those temporarily assigned to the depot division, which division became a source of replacements for the combat divisions in the line. A month later, January 9th, 1918, he went as replacement into the Machine Gun Company, 16th Infantry, 1st Division.

From January 18th until April 2d the 1st was in the front line trenches of the St. Mihiel Sector; then it was relieved by the 26th Division and sent to the northwest of Paris in reserve. The Germans had already launched their first great offensive of the year and had completely overrun the old battlefield of the Somme. The allies were finding themselves hard pressed to withhold the onslaught.

On the 25th of April the 1st Division relieved two French divisions on the Montdidier front and a month later, May 28th, it captured the heights of Cantigny by assault. It was the first offensive of American troops, and so well did the division carry itself that, although the enemy made furious counter-attacks one after the other, the 1st stubbornly held the ground it had captured. In this battle the American soldier showed the world what he could do in modern warfare, and Private Magarrell did his share. He was severely wounded and sent to the hospital for a month.

During June and early July the Germans made desperate but unsuccessful attempts to break through the allied lines on the Marne and sweep on to Paris. Several American divisions took a leading part in the defense and even drove the enemy from ground he had captured. On July 15th he made his last great bid for victory. Mustering every available division, he hurled them against the allied lines in Champagne and on the Marne, but the lines held fast against the assaults, and then, in their turn, the allies launched their great counter-offensive of July 17th.

The point of attack of the 1st Division was about five kilometers south of the Aisne River and directly west of Berzy-le-Sec. After four days of constant fighting they had advanced 11 kilometers, captured the town, seized the heights above Soissons, and taken 3,500 prisoners and 68 field guns from the enemy’s force of seven divisions. It was a mighty victory for our cause, but to gain it Nevada bore her share of the sacrifice. Among those who fell was Private Magarrell of the 16th Infantry, a brave soldier and a hero among men. (July 19, 1918.)

The close relatives who survived the young man were his father, T. M. Magarrell, his mother who passed away on December 7th, 1919, and two brothers, Russel H. and David G. Magarrell, all of Adair, Iowa, and another brother, L. C. Magarrell, formerly of Nevada but now residing at 316 Myrtle Avenue, San Francisco, California. The people of Adair signally honored their former townsman by naming their new park “Melvin Park.” On the occasion of the dedication of the park, August 25th, 1918, appropriate services were held and the following resolution adopted: “Resolved: That we name our new park “Melvin Park,” in honor of our first soldier to fall in France fighting for the freedom and liberty of the world.

“That in doing this we not only honor him but all our boys who have gone to the front. May this act help to keep green the memory of William Melvin Magarrell and his noble deeds.”

The many friends of Melvin Magarrell in Nevada rejoice in the honor that has been shown him for he was one of Nevada’s bravest sons.