The battle burial of Major Thomas D. Howie on the rubble of Saint-Lô Cathedral.
On the morning of 17 July, Major Howie was reported to have phoned Major General Charles Gerhardt saying “See you in Saint-Lô,” then issued orders for the attack to take the town. Sometime afterward, he was killed by shrapnel during a German mortar attack.
The following day, at Major General Gerhard’s request, the 3rd Battalion entered the town with the Major’s body on the hood of the lead jeep so that Major Howie would be the first American to enter Saint-Lô. Shortly after, his flag-draped body was placed at the Cathedral and became one of the most iconic images of the war. A witness to the solemn event, Stars and Stripes reporter Andy Rooney, called it “one of the most truly heartwarming and emotional scenes of a gruesome and frightful war.”
As for the memory of the Major, Saint-Lô erected a monument in his honor and the character of Captain Miller, of Saving Private Ryan, was said by historian Stephen Ambrose to have been based upon him.