News

American Battle Monuments Commission’s Sicily-Rome American Cemetery commemorates 81st anniversary of Allied landings in Anzio-Nettuno

The American Battle Monuments Commission commemorated today the 81st anniversary of Operation Shingle at Sicily-Rome American Cemetery in Nettuno, Italy, to honor the service and sacrifice of the U.S. armed forces and their allies during World War II at Anzio and Nettuno.  

 

ABMC welcomed local residents, along with U.S. and Italian dignitaries to pay tribute to the service members commemorated or memorialized at the cemetery. 

Image
Wreaths at Sicily-Rome American Cemetery ceremony on Jan. 22, 2025. Credits: American Battle Monuments Commission.

 

“I am so proud of the service members - airmen, sailors, soldiers, carabienierisoldati - here today,” said Mark Ireland, superintendent of Sicily-Rome American Cemetery. “Your execution and service today has brought honor, respect and dignity to those men and women we remember.” 

 

Remarks were delivered by Mark Ireland, Sicily-Rome American Cemetery Superintendent; Shawn P. Crowley, Chargé D’Affaires of the U.S. Embassy in Italy; Rear Adm. Patrick S. Hayden, Director of Maritime HQ, NAVEUR/6th Fleet; Nicola Burrini, Mayor of Nettuno, Aurelio Lo Fazio, Mayor of Anzio and Matteo Perego di Cremnago, Italian Undersecretary of Defense.  

 

The ceremony also included an invocation by Cpt. Nathan Solomon, U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa U.S. 6th Fleet, a benediction and a wreath laying. 

 

Additionally, students from the Istituto Comprensivo Nettuno III shared the stories of two other individuals commemorated at the site — 2nd Lt. Kitty S. Driskell and Staff Sgt. Willis E. Taylor. 

 

Driskell, a Southern Belle from Selma, Alabama, enlisted in the Army Nurses Corps during World War II, where she served as a Second Lieutenant. After graduating from nursing school in New Orleans, she was stationed at Craig Field Infirmary before being deployed overseas. Driskell worked in a modern hospital in Sardinia, Italy, where she wrote letters describing the beauty of the island, the kindness of the locals, and the contrasts of life in wartime. Despite the challenges, she embraced the experience with optimism, even detailing her cultural experiences and interactions with Italian doctors and townspeople. 

 

Tragically, Driskell, who married Lt. Wendell Barber during the war, was killed in an aircraft accident on Sept. 19, 1944, just months after her letters from Sardinia were published. She is buried at Sicily-Rome American Cemetery, Plot I, Row 13, Grave 41, in Nettuno, Italy. A cenotaph was later placed in her honor at Live Oak Cemetery in Selma. In 1947, an Army Air Corps bomber was named after her, further memorializing her service and sacrifice during World War II. 

Image
Picture of 2nd Lt. Kitty S. Driskell in her uniform. Credits: Sicily-Rome American Cemetery's archives.

Taylor was a member of the 4th Ranger Battalion, Company C, during World War II, known for his bravery and commitment to his fellow soldiers. As part of this elite unit, Taylor participated in numerous critical operations behind enemy lines. His battalion played a key role in the Italian campaign, particularly during the brutal Battle of Anzio, where they fought to secure a foothold on the Italian mainland. Taylor’s courage under fire was recognized by his peers, making him a respected figure among his comrades. 

On Jan. 30, 1944, Taylor was killed in action near Cisterna, Italy, during a fierce assault by the Rangers against entrenched German forces. His actions during the battle earned him posthumous recognition, including the Purple Heart. Taylor rests at the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery Plot I, Row 8, Grave 14. 

Image
Picture of Ssgt. Willis E. Taylor in his uniform. Credits: Sicily-Rome American Cemetery's archives.

Sicily-Rome American Cemetery is the final resting place for approximately 8,000 American military members, most of whom died during the liberation of Sicily, in the landings in the Salerno area and the fighting northward, in the landings at Anzio Beach, and the air and naval support throughout the region. Additionally, more than 3,000 names of those who went missing in these operations are etched in the white marble walls of the cemetery’s chapel. 

 

This year marks the 81st anniversary of a series of Allied military campaigns that changed the course of World War II, including operations at Anzio-Nettuno, the D-Day landings in Normandy, France, in June; the landings in the south of France during Operation Dragoon in August; as well as the Battle of the Bulge in Belgium and Luxembourg beginning in December. 

 

Sources: 

Article realized with Sicily-Rome American Cemetery's team. 

ABMC website, brochures and leaflets.