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Spangenburg, Germany -
As always was the case just before leaving a bivouac, there were a few individuals who could be considered orphans as far as rides were concerned. Armand Kops was one of these boys who had no assigned place for travelling. On this occasion he was offered a ride in the Division Ordnance three-quarter-ton truck. However, at the last minute, he changed his mind after discovering a choice vacant seat in the front of a peep. During the ride to Spangenburg, a German plane slipped out of the clouds and swooped low over the column peppering it with machine gun fire. The company suffered no casualties, but it was evident that Armand Kops would have been a candidate, after observing the riddled truck seat that he originally intended to occupy. It may have been intuition but we were inclined to believe that it was just plain luck. The German pilot, however, never was able to lift his plane back into the sky due to the sharp-eyed gunners of the 777th AAA Battalion attached to this division. Upon our arrival at Spangenburg, we found that we were to be billeted in factory buildings. This may not sound very inviting, and it wasn't, but everyone was content because we at least had a roof over our heads and protection from the elements was a prime consideration. All hands were busy from the moment we arrived, adding to the individual stores of loot. Some men made a tour of the various buildings and in doing so, picked up quite a bit of information concerning the production methods used in the German clothing industry. The factory was producing Army blankets made from old clothes. The cloth was shredded and then spun into yarn which was later woven into blankets for the Wehrmacht. We found thousands of finished blankets which were immediately put into service of the U.S. Army. Robert Brennen, our industrious supply sergeant, had very few requests for blankets after we arrived at Spangenburg. |
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Langula, Germany -
That the division was advancing in great strides was proven to us on the morning of April 5 when we moved a distance of 60 miles to the town of Langula, Germany. We were now following close on the heels of our forward elements. In fact, we found ourselves in the midst of an artillery unit once more but they were preparing to move out much to our disappointment since we were counting on being thrown out of our bedrolls every time the big guns went off. On the following morning the Luftwaffe made sure that we didn't oversleep, for they were busily strafing our area at the break of dawn. Our 50 cal. machine guns were immediately manned, but most of the fellows were running around in a shocking attire. Enough lead was thrown into the sky to drive them away, but they took the opportunity to make a return visit the next morning and the whole process was repeated. |
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Langensalza, Germany -
After two days at Langula, we proceeded to the spacious airport at Langensalza which was to be our home for five days. The trip added 18 miles to our already large total. We had no sooner dispersed our vehicles than we were greeted by a single enemy plane. Apparently the pilot was unaware that the airport was taken over by our forces, because he was attempting to make a landing when he was fired upon by our gunners. He immediately gained altitude and flew away from the field. From that time on we were regularly attacked by enemy planes. It was interesting to note the reactions of the different men during the attacks. There were the very stout-hearted who rushed out when an attack started and manned the various machine guns that were set up around the area. Then there were the curious who stood out in front of the hangars and watched the duels between the planes and the gunners. A great majority of us, however, usually took cover in the nearest cellar when the raid started. The Germans had a habit of being very precise. Their planes came over three times a day at 7 a.m., 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. They were so punctual that we could set our watches at the aforementioned times when the planes appeared. Heavy anti-aircraft equipment was soon set up around the field and consequently the German pilots became discouraged when they found themselves in the midst of bursting shells and heavy concentrations of tracer ammunition. It was both amusing and gratifying to see Fred Connick running across the field toward one of the grounded German planes, climbing into the gunner's compartment and directing their own German 20 mm aircraft gun at the attacking Luftwaffe.  An anti-aircraft unit at Langensalza airdrome Henry Bucher also had the time of his life firing a captured 13 mm quadruple German aircraft gun which was set up on a ground mount. The Second Echelon boys also had their fingers in the pie with Charlie Ahrens and his powerful little 30 cal. machine gun spitting lead, which added more humor to the situation than any damage it could do to the enemy. The two 50 cal. machine guns mounted on the wreckers were always barking during every attack. Dutchy Baer and Pappy Rauscher worked hard in trying to bring down a plane, but were only successful in landing a few shots which always registered a broad grin on Pappy's face -- the misses were indicated by Dutchy beating his gums. The airport was what might be termed a souvenir hunter's paradise as the hangars and storage buildings were loaded with parachutes, precision tools, radio equipment and a thousand other items too numerous to mention. All the companies benefited by the discovery of the tools. They were immediately put into service in shop trucks and third echelon shops. The parachutes were requisitioned by men and officers alike and sent home. Russell Eckert and Nelson Weidman held the distinguished honor of chief loot-seekers. It seems that Mail Clerk Earl O'Brien was overworked many times soon after we reached the various bivouacs that were blessed with loot. German rifles were the Number One item with the popular German helmet rating a close second place in the mail-bag. The most unsual [unusual] item that O'Brien tried to squeeze into the U.S. mail bag was an 18-passenger rubber lifeboat used by the Luftwaffe in rescue work. Who else would send fuch [such] a monstrosity except Ekert and Weidman. The records show that Nelson Weidman hit a total of 23 German rifles, so it looks as though a new trophy shop will be opened in Albany, N. Y., early in the post-war days, also a museum at Ephrata, Pa., Russell Eckert's home town. It was while at this area that a large warehouse, choked with foods, was discovered in a town near the airport. The Ration crew went to investigate and came back loaded with canned steak, canned potatoes, applesauce, salami and a host of other good things to eat. This food was divided among the companies of the battalion to be used in supplementing our regular rations. Everyone had his fill of steak and potatoes for quite a few days. The salami was used for those late evening snacks of which we all were so fond. There was hardly a room that didn't sport at least one roll of salami hanging on a nail hastily pounded into the wall. Chief Cook Henry L. Lipinski of the Kitchen staff became acquainted with new methods and tactics of the "Cuisiniere" through the touch of "Chef" Peter H. McMann who had been practicing the art during the whole campaign on the Ration Section's private stove. Lipinski was greatly impressed as Pete soon had things running in great shape, which added new life to the kitchen and since "the Army travels on its stomach" -- put new life into the whole company. It was interesting to note just how rapidly the American forces arrived at the airport. We found ourselves quite alone when we first arrived, except for the tank units who captured the area just a short time before. The Piper Cub observation planes, which were dubbed our "Sixth Armored Division's Airforce," joined us next. Before long, we found ourselves in the nucleus of a great supply system that was a beehive of activity. The giant C-47's or the Army Air Corps cargo airships, were landed by the hundreds. It was a very efficient and speedy system of bringing supplies to the immediate area and solved the problem of long supply lines. Liberated American and British prisoners of war were flown back on the return trips.  The giant C-47's landed by the hundreds Capt. Carl L. Miller, our battalion supply officer, blessed the battallions [battalions] with a liberated 16mm movie projector. Many parts were missing but these were readily manufactured through the skill of James Tyner and Biase Lagana who were anxious to cooperate, since it would mean evenings enjoying the luxury of motion pictures. Zaner "Wires" Sawyier was given the job of putting the sound system in order. |
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Malau, Germany -
After another big jump of 72 miles, we bivouacked just outside of the town of Malau on April 12. Many different units were moving with us and often we were mixed in their columns as well as they in ours. By the time we arrived at the bivouac area, Capt. Edward Wilson had a difficult time in separating the company vehicles from the other convoys, which is quite a trick in the evening darkness when all of the vehicles appear the same. However, he was successful in collecting the company even though a few of the boys were "reamed." The civilians from the nearby town of Malau collected near our area to watch our every move. They especially watched the, kitchen truck and the waste food that went into the garbage pit. It made us self consious [conscious] in what we wasted even though it was only "C" rations.  Serving "C" rations When we were given the orders to move, it seemed that the whole town was on the alert and even before the whole company had entirely left the area, the civilians had taken over on their scavenger hunt. |
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Stollsdorf, Germany -
To further support the rapidly moving division, we moved 60 miles to the fields outside of Stollsdorf on April 15. The day following our arrival, we were not especially surprised to learn that we were completely surrounded by the enemy. In fact, we actually had a ringside seat while watching the 50th Infantry clean out the woods adjoining our area. It looked more like psychological warfare as we watched the infantry operate. They would spot a small group of the enemy and immediately send a few rounds of chattering 50 caliber "persuaders" just short of the enemy position, throwing puffs of dirt high into the air. The next group of bursts would be just a little bit nearer and before the next rounds would find their goal, the German soldiers would throw up their hands just as much as to say, "Who is this guy Hitler?" On another occasion, the infantry pulled a surprise attack in the woods just north of us during the time that we were enjoying our evening meal. The steel helmet made a very convenient stool while eating, but during the raid, we sacrificed that luxury for the use for which it was originally intended. Many tracers found their way to our area but it usually took more than that to disturb a G.I. at mess. It was here that we became familiar with the so-called monsoon season which wasn't exactly comparable to those in Burma, but we were thoroughly satisfied when the wind subdued and the sun began to shine once more. We were pleasantly surprised by our reacquaintance with the Red Cross doughnut girls who arrived just before we were preparing to move to Geithain, Germany. |
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Geithain, Germany
Inside billets were arranged here after civilians were moved to one particular section of town. We parked our vehicles around a brick factory and consequently became very much interested in brick making. The industry was thoroughly investigated by members of the company. Every hatch and door was opened to satisfy our inquisitiveness - which resulted in a minor catastrophe. It seemed that the regulated draft system was tampered with over the ovens, allowing the furnaces to burn at full blast and emit sparks through the vents which in turn ignited the wooden superstructure over the ovens. This was discovered by Sergeant Of The Guard Clarence Baeten who, with the help of several other boys, successfully extinguished the blaze which threatened our gasoline dump. The German movie projector that Capt. Miller had so thoughtfully "liberated" for us was finally put into working order. The "premier" preformance [performance] was slated and a good audience appeared. Regardless of the fact that "Movie Operator" Sawyier and "Assistant Operator" Andrew Mazur had their fingers crossed while knocking on wood during the first two successful reels, the machine still sabotaged us and developed mechanical troubles during the final reel, and of course, right at the most exciting part of the picture. |