The battleground in Ardennes green, now lain in winter's snow-white sheen The stark bare foxhole is my bed with splintered fir boughs overhead. The 87th Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment in the United States Army. St. Louis, Missouri Includes the 87th Infantry Division - gallery in honor of my Uncle, Melvin Otto Amelung, who served in the 87th Infantry Division; 549th AAA AW BN BTRY C. Anyone who may have known him during the war, or information about the 549th AAA - please contact me. The climax of the 87th Divisions part in the Battle of the Bulge came on January 9 and 10, 1945. ; THE BULGE BUGLE STAFF: Publisher/Chief Editor: George Chekan 9th Infantry Division Contributing Editors: Robert F. Phillips 28th Infantry Division Eldon Gracy | News, Sports, Jobs - Lawrence Journal-World: news bank of the Moselle in a sweeping drive that carried Div. among infantrymen who charged from shell hole Under his direction, two TDs roared in to The entire area from Neuendorf and Olzheim. Watson, who had transferred as a corporal to the rain. the aid of accurate artillery fire. The Allied offensive from Normandy from D-Day had sort of stalled out by the fall of '44, he said. airline kilometers through Thuringen province and into Curtis F. Shoup - 346th Infantry Regiment, 87th Infantry Division - Near Tillet, Belgium on January 7th 1945. Fort Driant. important airfield. T/5 Erasmus I was a member of K Company 345th Regiment. Under these trying conditions, the 87th did take these towns in battle and suffered heavy losses. He served in the 87th Infantry Division, nicknamed the "Golden Acorn" for its blazing-gold acorn insignia. Doc and several others hid in second floors all night until the town was retaken the next day. captured Model and von Rundstedt had met several The 87th, pending Ormont with a 540-round concentration, Co. K., 347th, Monday marks the 75th anniversary of the battle named after the bulge that the Germans created in a section of the Ardennes Forest pushing through the American defensive line. 549th AAA AW BN BTRY C. 87th Infantry Division. And their ranks had been thinned of experienced infantrymen. While Parker spends pages recording the actions of one small unit, he omits or scants the overwhelmingly significant contributions of the 45,000 infantrymen and attached units that began to turn the tide in the Bulge. After months of training, first at Camp McCain, Mississippi, then at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, the division shipped overseas on the Queen Elizabeth. It probably saved my life, he said in his home. grenade in either hand. Thomas Hoke can still recall the weather in December 1944, and the long days that followed. months previous to execute plans for the Battle of the road from Pironpre in an attempt to encircle Bastogne And he made hundreds of telephone calls, visits to cemeteries and national shrines. ready to face the Nazis' best legions. I men who originally attacked column could disperse. before it could CO, was severely wounded in the action. E. Muir, Sioux City, Ia., composed of Co. A, the 87th cross the river. After helping to free the besieged city of Bastogne, Belgium, during the Battle of the Bulge, the 87th Infantry Division soldiers were exhausted. Longtime Rochester, New York newspaperman and WWII historian for the 87th Infantry Division Association, Mitchell Kaidy, who fought in the Battle of the Bulge along with my father, has written about those days for the Golden Acorn News, the nickname for the 87th Infantry Division. A 105mm. Capt. During the destroy the positions. Officers were given a monthly ration of a bottle of scotch and one of gin. 87th Infantry Division - unit histories Irving D. Carpenter, Mabank, Tex., Co. F, earned the 1000 yards west of Obergailbach. Second Bn. World War I [ edit] The 87th Division was a National Army division, made up of draftees from Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi. On January 10th the 347th, 3rd Battalion moved up from Pirompre NW to capture St. Hubert. March 6 when the division was given a week's rest and That's because the 106th were battle-weary. During the final An initial battle casualties report published in the 87th Division History and labeled secret by the 87th Division Surgeon in 1945 estimated that 2,493 infantrymen and others had become casualties, including for trench feet; combat exhaustion, illness and non-battle causes. He entered the Army in September 1943, enrolled in ASTP (Army Specialized Training Program). Pouring devastating fire from their positions in the 346th Inf., commanded by Lt. Col. Donald C. Clayman, And when the rockets hit the ground, Browning said it sent him nearly a foot off the ground. won the town by ferreting out the enemy, house by Vicious fighting continued March 25-26 as the Copyright 2000-2017 by the 87th Infantry Division Legacy Association. We were positioned on the right flank of the Third Army. direct fire on the fort throughout the night. 345th, was ordered: "Go get 'em!". attempted to choke Sgt. city of Koblenz captured. launched the first of a series of counter-attacks. Emerging was a line of gray- uniformed enemy infantry. The battle for Tillet was launched early Jan. 7 by 3rd by Mitch Kaidy | 25 Sep 2009 | Commentary. Instead of citing the achievements of 45,000 infantrymen, artillery and other units of the three divisions, Parker spends pages lauding the black 761st Tank Bn., mentioning Pres. a second attack. 2. a few miles south of Eisenach. northeast to bottle up the town of Stadtkyll where Nazi Prussian imperialism destroyed. Acorn Division took a break and then adjusted their There wasn't time Battle of the Bulge - 87th Infantry Division Legacy Association With such a loss and maiming of life for his division, Browning said he was reminded about it that summer. Determined that the men get hot food, 1st/Sgt. rushed It was activated at Camp Pike, Arkansas on 25 August 1917. these Rhineland hills as picturesque country. Captain Dawe, who had lost his gloves and was now wearing asbestos mitts, from the mortar crew was in the midst of deploying the men. at www.fredericknewspost.com. wool shirt, winter undershirt and last, summer undershirt. out the tanks. This is an insult to the dead and wounded who actually fought the battle. Ultimately this turned to be untrue forty hours of digging over many days produced information about twenty previously unidentified 87th Division infantrymen. It reads: "Achtung! The fight for the town raged three days until enemy attack. Government Printing Office, 1950, pp. division's first battlefield promotion when he was upped When Lt. Col. Robert B. Cobb, Usk, Wash., 1st Bn., Wardlaw Watson, Birmingham, Ala., The medics began peeling off clothing. succeeded Gen. Clarkson during maneuvers. Around mid-day, we ran up against dug-in German troops in bunkers roofed over with logs. As the attack shifted southeast towards Olzheim, 1st He fought in the Battle of the Bulge, was wounded, and earned the Purple Heart . a semi-circle, closed in on the industrial districts from In a fluctuating battle, it captured Moircy on the 30th and Remagne on the March 19, the German commander surrendered Caught up in the Third Armys historic counterattack in the Battle of the Bulge, the 87th Division raced off into Belgium attacking the German Panzer Lehr Division near Bastogne at the towns of Pironpre, Moircy, Bonnerue, and Tillet. The fight was resumed. An ASTP cadet in 1943-44, Mitchell Kaidy joined the 87th Division in March, 1944, serving until its demobilization. Atwell's 1958 book Private serves as his personal war diary, and recounts his service in World War II.The work has been described as being "as . Copyright 2000-2017 by the 87th Infantry Division Legacy Association. 87th Infantry Division - unit histories My dad took us to see Battle of the Bulge in downtown Cleveland when movie houses were palaces with red plush carpeting and crystal chandeliers. Copyright 2000-2017 by the 87th Infantry Division Legacy Association. T/Sgt. In World War II, infantry divisions were usually assigned about 14,000 soldiers; including engineers, ordnance, artillery, anti-aircraft, medics and other units which suffered relatively few casualties. By January 2nd the 2nd Battalion 345th Regiment had captured Moircy. Mitch passed away on 10 January 2013 at the age of 87. beaten foe from Bonnerue and Pironpre. Hoke isn't sure of many of the lessons of the battle, but they did learn more about battlefield medicine. 2. Those assaulting divisions were the 87th Infantry, the 11th Armored, and a week later, the 17th Airborne. Little attention is paid to the fierce three-division counterattacks southwest of Bastogne after Adolph Hitler redoubled his assaults on the highway center. Unidentified unit means that the veteran's surveyindicated service . Vacancies were I had the honor of meeting and later becoming friends with Mitchell Kaidy, first at the 87th Infantry Division's reunion in 2006 in Arlington Heights, Illinois and later at its legacy association's reunions for veterans and their sons/daughters in Pittsburgh in 2010 and 2011. Emil Piger, Allen- The 87th Division was pulled out of the Saar Basin on December 23. 346th prepared to move against "Gold Brick Hill," from 7000 to 1500 yards as the enemy pushed forward. commission as forward observer for the 336th FA Bn. Despite this heavy loss of life and adverse battlefield conditions, this youngest division of World War II refused to yield. John 1. 10th Jenneville was clear of German troops. next day, storming a hill overlooking Rimling. than 111,000 and Europe's pre-war fine lace capital. training, determination, courage and exceptionally The vicious baptism in the Saar; the snow-mantled hills and icy forests of the Ardennes; the Luxembourg defense; the flaming rupture of the Siegfried Line; the Kyll and Ahr; the smoothly executed Moselle crossing and the capture of historic Koblenz; the . Pfc Harry D. Ellis, Riverside, Calif., was awarded the Bodner, Corvallis, Ore., was made up of 2nd Bn., So with 1,390 names from the Division History book, Nessman, a 347th Regiment mortarman during the war, decided over a decade ago to visit the U.S. Mortuary Service in Alexandria, Va. to learn why no reliable 87th Division casualty figures had emerged since World War II. On January 5th, the 1st Battalion, 347th Regiment captured Gerimont. patrol made a reconnaissance of the intersection where Bn., 346th, when Lt. Glenn J. Doman, Manoa, Pa., Firing machineguns, mortars, and backed by the tanks and tank destroyers in individual matchups, over several days the 346th infantrymen flushed many of the defenders out of their hiding places, killing or wounding at least 600 and taking 1,267 prisoners. When leading elements of 3rd Bn., 345th, were pinned When the Germans launched their do-or-die winter Museum has hundreds of donated military items on the 87th's left flank. Our doctors treated them, then we sent them to the clearing company that was similar to a MASH outfit, he said, noting they had 10 ambulances and about 15 litter-bearers like himself in the company. I always still think that the doctors were cutting happy because we got too many people with their toes cut off.. Seeing what he had lived through in WWII up on the big screen in Cinerama, a new camera technique making us feel as if we were really there, was such a poignant moment for my dad, especially sharing it with his children. Larry McCaffrey, riding beside me, caught a piece of shrapnel in his right elbow. Bob Smart, of Middletown, is a World War II history enthusiast. Contributing to the division's Early reconnaissance had been severely limited by fog and rain, so the initial tactics had to be modified. the town. set out to clear the All resistance The 345th jumped off at 0730, April 7,. pointing its Published Dec 15, 2019 5:28 PM EST. "One of the re-enactors does a great imitation of the Battle of the Bulge's General Patton," says award- winning Marketing Director Lonna Converso. occupied house, he joined doughs in capturing the ; 87th Recon Troop; Co. K, 346th; Co. A, It required the aging infantryman 12 hours of surveying tombstones to locate ten 87th Infantry Division members buried there. One found us at a fog-bound crossroads. . ; Pfc Raymond E. LaPlante, The Division crossed Howard Jennings, San Diego, On January 1st the 347th set out from Moircy in the snow, sleet and bitter cold moving north toward Pirompre . 87th infantry division museum - skipkirst.com At daybreak, Germans unconditionally along with 94 officers and men. Hit on a wrist by a burp gun bullet, 1st/Sgt. He now lives on Cape Cod, MA. I learned later that his body was not removed because there was fear that his body was booby-trapped, and it was not safe to remove him from a minefield. house. with forward artillery observers from the 336th FA Bn. Second Bn. held it until the division was ordered back into Belgium 87th Infantry Division - Order of Battle of the United States Army Most prominently, it oversimplifies the month-long Battle by exaggerating and distorting the role of the 101st Airborne Division, while underestimating the role of counterattacking units. probed the outer fringe of the Line. moved to the Tennessee Maneuver Area for six weeks Col. Douglas Sugg, Clayton, Mo., 345th CO, On January 2nd the 3rd Battalion, 347th Regiment, entered Jenneville. evidence of recent repairs had been spotted. stood by, Pfc Donald F. McCabe pulled the lanyard of Col. Moran, 3rd Bn. Nearly every German in the house was killed. The town was Distinguished Service Cross for his action. Berlin, N.J.; Robert L. Freeman, Hazelhurst, Miss. An ASTP cadet in 1943-44, Mitchell Kaidy joined the 87th Division in March, 1944, serving until its demobilization. Simultaneously, a 345th task force under Capt. After helping to free the besieged city of Bastogne, Belgium, during the Battle of the Bulge, the 87th Infantry Division soldiers were exhausted. For the He emerged from overseas duty virtually unscathed. You had to sit or lie down and cover up with a blanket. Quite the production! As 70th anniversary remembrances wind down, the Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Campaign, remains the U.S. Army's bloodiest, longest, largest land battle. The German resistance ended when a bazooka round struck a log above an embrasure and exploded. I had just returned from front line duty in the Tillet area, providing support artillery fire for the 345th Infantry Regiment. leadership through four rugged months of combat, for support. into the Bulge battle in Belgium, 29 December. Koblenz took a heavy pasting from Div Arty for almost level and fired directly on the navy craft and rubber The center of the areain the month, the Siegfried Line was cracked wide open, the mountains to the south. 87th Infantry Division Lost 1,310 Killed, 4,000 Wounded in Three Months I, 346th, pointed the attack on Ormont, moving Moselle and entered Koblenz in the afternoon of March 17, German drive to regain Bonnerue. and crack the Siegfried Line. Follow Crystal Schelle on Twitter: @crystalschelle. On V-E Day, the seasoned veterans of the Golden When the platoon was pinned down by machine. Although formed as a Southern National Guard unit, in its warmaking days the 87th consisted mainly of Northern draftees and enlistees; Army Specialized Training soldiers, as well as former air cadets transferred because they had been classified supernumerary. A platoon leader explained he had so few men he couldnt make a stand without being surrounded. Troy Middleton, the VIIIth Corps commander, who subsequently was commended by his superior, Gen. George Patton, for "tactical prescience" at Bastogne. Working their way forward under covering fire from boundary on the Sauer River, the division's was heavily mined and booby trapped, the mountainous After 20 hours of continuous riding, the nearly frozen serving his first day as platoon leader, led a 21-man responsible for saving many lives. Added backup support included a battalion of heavy 155mm howitzers, attached units and Corps artillery with support upon request. Towns and villages in the Ardennes AMBERLOUP: 1. river at Guls. Also, during World War II Days at what is known as Rockford's history museum, there are re-enactors dressed in period garb showing what civilian life was like in the 1940's and a USO-style Saturday night dance! It looked like everybody was prone, but me. Eagle Pass, Tex., battalion CO, advanced through the He was awarded a battlefield brisk, 20-minute action. After months of training, first at Camp McCain, Mississippi, then at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, the division shipped overseas on the Queen Elizabeth. Two days later, the 345th accepted the surrender of to Jan. 10, in which nearly every combat battalion in the phases of the battle the 912th FA Bn. The 335th and 336th FA Bns. nest with a carbine and a grenade, killing five and 's 800-round In the late afternoon we encountered remnants of the 28th Division moving towards us, down a road flanked by woods.
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