by Ian Gardner
LtCol Robert Lee Wolverton had been horrifically slaughtered in Normandy moments after landing on June 6, 1944. The men from 3rd Bn were passionate about their leader as was Col Robert F. Sink, the commander of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment (506th PIR) – affectionately known in combat as “The Fox” and in garrison as “Uncle Bob.” From the early training days in Georgia at Camp Toccoa, Col Sink had developed a respect and admiration for the “Point”-trained West Virginian (“Point” means a graduate of the prestigious West Point Military Academy). It was obvious that Wolverton’s immediate successors following his death – Maj Oliver Horton and LtCol Lloyd Patch – were both highly capable, but to the “originals” they could never be in the same league.
A New Englander from Massachusetts, Lloyd Patch was a short but muscular leader who had been responsible for destroying a gun battery on D-Day for which he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. As a captain serving in 1st Bn, Patch was commanding HQ Co on June 6, when he assembled a group of six soldiers from various regiments and led them in a highly successful attack against a 105mm gun site near Ste-Marie-du-Mont. Reversed, the captured guns were then used by the Americans to neutralize enemy machine-gun positions, allowing Patch and his small team to capture the town. Despite Patch’s track record, the veterans from 3rd Bn truly believed that Maj Robert Harwick was cut from the same cloth as Wolverton and, therefore, the only true candidate for command. Originally from H Co, Harwick had been 3rd Bn XO in Holland, and temporary commander after Maj Horton was killed at Opheusden, on October 5, 1944. When Lloyd Patch took over on November 21, Bob Harwick was re-assigned to 1st Bn, where he became LtCol James LaPrade’s XO.
During the occupation the Germans had used the adequate facilities at Camp Châlons (which included three magnificent cinemas) as a tank depot and airfield. Everyone was horrified by the traditional French-style latrines, each designed with two footprints set into concrete either side of a shallow drainage hole. Immediately plans were commissioned and 1/Sgt Fred Bahlau (HQ Co) was asked by Col Charlie Chase (regimental XO) to oversee the building of a new set of toilets and washrooms. Accommodation was basic but clean, with all junior ranks sleeping 32 men to a barrack block. The senior NCOs fared better and were quartered three men to a room, each equipped with its own stove and basic amenities.
By the end of November 1944, acting company commanders 1st Lt Joe Doughty (G Co), 1st Lt Jim “Skunk” Walker (H Co), and 1st Lt Fred “Andy” Anderson (I Co) finally received their captain’s bars after several years’ service and action in Normandy and Holland. Walker, a fiery redhead from Alabama, summoned platoon sergeant Ralph Bennett (3 Ptn) into his office to discuss a suitable punishment for being late returning to Ramsbury in the United Kingdom when the battalion was mobilized for Holland:
It made me laugh that Walker always looked like someone had asked him a question to which he did not know the answer – and this day was no exception. The captain’s antagonistic attitude improved during the interview, when I smugly reminded him about my exemplary conduct in Holland and that I’d won the Silver Star. I figured that there was no way that he could even think about charging me with being “absent without leave” (AWOL). It was a close run thing but in the end the SOB relented and dismissed me with nothing more than a warning followed by a few choice words.
Not all members of 3rd Bn lived up to the unit’s meritorious war record. After spending most of the previous six months in the stockade, Pvt Howard “Sunny” Sundquist (H Co) was posted back to 1 Ptn. Capt Walker and platoon sergeant Frank Padisak unanimously blocked the move and Sundquist was “side swiped” to 1st Bn. Sgt Lou Vecchi (H Co 1 Ptn) from Martinez, California remembers, “Not long afterwards Sundquist went AWOL and vanished without a trace. Months later he was arrested and I appeared as a witness at his court martial, where I am pleased to say the lizard was found guilty of desertion and given a substantial prison sentence.”
Back-dated leave passes from Holland slowly began to filter through, and despite the fact that there had been several reports of a sniper taking potshots at Allied troops in Reims, the city was still popular, but ultimately everyone dreamed of Paris. After what the men had been through, the three- or seven-day passes could not come fast enough, and inevitably disappointment and frustration soon set in. Joe Doughty discovered that Camp Châlons was not going to be quite the relaxed three-month posting he had first imagined. Somewhat taller than average, Doughty was a quiet, fair man, who had a relaxed but firm attitude toward discipline and was well respected by the company. However, soldiers like Pvt Macrae Barnson from Los Angeles, California demanded a completely different approach. Although Barnson was an unstoppable combat asset (having been seriously wounded in Normandy and Holland) he was a total nightmare in camp. Earlier on November 22, Macrae had gone AWOL after returning from the 10th Replacement Depot. Finally, on December 10, Barnson’s luck ran out when the Military Police brought him back to Mourmelon whereupon he was incarcerated in the regimental guard house to await trial.
Ironically the weather took a turn for the worse and heavy rain reduced the camp to a 6in-deep sea of mud. Gravel was requisitioned and bricks recovered from ruined buildings to construct company streets and sidewalks. In a letter home to his parents, Cpl Bob Webb from the Communications Platoon wrote the following:
Things are back to normal and it’s the same old training all over again. The camp is getting better all the time and the mail has been coming in pretty good and I have already received a couple of Christmas and birthday presents. However, the packages just don’t make a Christmas, and the only gift that I want is for the war to be over. Our chaplain called me the other day and wanted permission to give my name to Anthony Wincensiak’s parents as “best friend” and first point of contact. Anthony was killed in Normandy and was my assistant before I got busted. He was a lovely, 18-year-old Polish kid who although new to the outfit was liked by everyone. I wrote his folks last night. I knew it would be hard but when I got into it – boy was it tough!
Five hundred and forty enlisted men and 38 officers under command of Maj Franklin Foster were flown into Mourmelon as replacements for the 506th PIR, who had suffered around 60 percent losses in Holland. During the flight, five aircraft, hampered by poor weather, were forced to return to the United Kingdom. The new soldiers had previously been processed through the Casual Detachment at Denford Farm Base Camp in Berkshire and temporarily attached to Service Co before being assigned. Twenty-year-old Pvt Bob Izumi, a Japanese-American, was one of 40 new men posted to G Co:
My parents had settled on the west coast in the late 1890s. Before the attack on Pearl Harbor my dad was a teacher specializing in Japanese language. Following the declaration of war with Japan, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, which permitted the military to circumvent the constitutional safeguards of American citizens in the name of national security. The order set in motion the evacuation and mass incarceration of any persons with Japanese ancestry living in the USA. Strangely those of Chinese or Korean origin were not interred like us but instead were permitted to wear armbands stating their particular race.
The Izumi family were sent to Manzanar Internment Camp in California where they grew their own food and lived in tarpaper barracks.
My parents were deeply upset by what was happening but at the time it was all a big adventure to me. Most of us had jobs on campus making products for the War Effort such as camouflage netting and earned around $7.00 per month. We went to school and were taught by volunteer teachers who came from all over America. Helen Ely taught me history and it was through her that my younger brother Roy and I gained permission to leave the camp in 1943 and continued our studies in Iowa.
I finished my education and volunteered to join the US Army in June 1944. The military was still segregated at the time so I had no choice but to enlist in the 442nd Regt Combat Team – a Japanese-American unit more commonly known as “The Nisei” whose motto was “Go for Broke.” I was only attached t
o the 442nd until September 1944, when the opportunity arose for me transfer into the 101st Airborne Division and train to be a paratrooper.
Upon arrival at Mourmelon, Izumi was posted to 3 Ptn G Co, which at the time did not officially have a platoon leader or even an assistant. Due to the temporary lack of leadership, mortar sergeant Harvey Jewett managed to persuade Pvt Clyde McCarty, Pvt Harry Barker, and Pfc Stan Davis to go AWOL. The four men were arrested the following evening and returned to G Co where they were immediately confined to quarters. Two days later Capt Doughty reduced Jewett to the rank of private although no formal charges were made against the other three soldiers. Initially Izumi wondered what he had gotten himself into but the situation soon resolved itself after discipline was restored.
The squalid conditions on the line during the last three weeks in Holland saw hundreds hospitalized with non-combat-related injuries such as yellow jaundice and emersion foot, like 26-year-old T/5 Teddy Dziepak from I Co. “I was sent to England for about five weeks recovering from trench foot and returned to 1 Ptn in late January 1945. My stay in hospital gave me the opportunity to write every day to my wife Bette in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, who I was missing terribly.”
As the battalion was preparing to leave Holland, 1st Lt Bill Wedeking (OC [Officer Commanding] MG [Machine-Gun] Ptn) was evacuated after being diagnosed with yellow jaundice (probably caused by ingesting contaminated water). Although a form of hepatitis, the acute liver complaint is most visible in the white conjunctiva, when the eyes of the sufferer become bright yellow. “After spending two days in a hospital near Brussels, I was flown back to the UK and sent to a specialized medical facility in Scotland.” In Wedeking’s absence, Lt Fenton was brought in to command the platoon, ably assisted by T/ Sgt George “Doc” Dwyer. Doc took over from S/Sgt Nathan “Nate” Bullock, who graciously stepped back down to section leader, alongside S/Sgt August Saperito (ex G Co).
After escaping from the Germans in France, when Doc had returned to England he was posted to the Parachute School at Chilton Foliat, and much to his regret missed out on Holland. Several other men had also managed to escape and return to England, such as Pfc Jimmy Sheeran and Pvt Bernie Rainwater (I Co), Cpl Martin Clark and Pvt Joe Mielcarek (MG Ptn), and Pfc Ray Calandrella and T/4 Joe Gorenc (Co HQ). The Geneva Convention stated that all escapees who made it back to their parent units were entitled to return home under the ZI (Zone of the Interior) option. After reaching the United Kingdom on September 9, Marty Clark was debriefed by the authorities and was in the process of taking the ZI option when he bumped into Joe Gorenc in London. Like his escape partner “Doc” Dwyer, Joe had refused ZI and rejoined 3rd Bn, although at the time it was probably more for financial reasons than anything else. The week before D-Day, Joe had won $2,000 in a card game. Unable to send his winnings home, Gorenc asked his immediate superior, Ed Shames (who was then battalion S3 operations sergeant) to hide the cash in his private billet above the grocery store at Ramsbury.
Back in London after an emotional reunion and a few drinks, Joe invited Marty to Ramsbury for a “proper goodbye.” Marty recalls, “The guys encouraged me to stay even though the machine-gun platoon didn’t really need my services anymore. Once we reached Holland, Joe sorted out a position for me at Battalion HQ in the S3, but it wasn’t the safe and comfortable job he’d originally promised.” On October 6, outside the battalion command post (CP) at Boelenham Farm near Opheusden, Clark was badly wounded by a mortar burst along with 1st Lt Alex Bobuck (Adjutant) and 1st Lt Lewis Sutfin (81mm Mortar Ptn). Both officers were hit in the legs by shrapnel while another fragment pierced Clark’s right lung, almost killing him.
Pfc Don Ross (S3 runner) had also been captured in Normandy. Don’s younger brother Ken joined the 101st Airborne at Mourmelon. Ken recalls: “My brother’s experience with the 506th inspired me to become a paratrooper. The training I received was tough but nowhere near as tough as his. Those guys who passed selection for the 506th back in Toccoa were forged from steel and we all knew it. Despite that my dream was to fight alongside Don as a member of 3/506 but after he went missing I opted for the 502nd PIR where I was assigned to RHQ [Regimental HQ] Demolition Ptn.”
After being wounded Pfc Jim Martin (2 Ptn G Co) was evacuated to the 61st General Hospital at Witney in Oxfordshire before being sent to the 10th Replacement Depot at Lichfield. Jim’s experience was altogether different from that of many others, as he recalls: “A prison would have treated its worst inmates more humanely. The colonel in charge of the depot encouraged his staff to be brutal and I witnessed many beatings.” Jim was not alone in thinking that the severe conditions were specifically designed for a higher turnover of manpower.
In early November about a dozen guys from G Co, myself included, were told we were being sent to a regular infantry unit. Of course we all wanted to go back to the 506th but were told that this was not negotiable. The following day, under the watchful eye of the Depot NCOs, we were virtually forced onto the train that was to take us to our new unit. During one of the later stops in France we noticed a parachute drop going on nearby and decided to go “AWOL.” Eventually we made it to a makeshift command post (CP) and discovered that the paratroopers were from the 504th PIR. The soldiers manning the CP were surprised to see us and enquired where on earth we had come from. We explained our situation, and to cut a long story short, despite interference from the replacement depot, the 504th contacted the 506th who then furnished us with the necessary travel permits for our return to Mourmelon.
Despite the enormous influx of new soldiers the most radical changes to the battalion were experienced among the officers. This was not surprising due to the fact that during the battalion’s 72 days in Holland 17 commissioned men from the 506th had been killed. By the end of November 1944, G Co received several new lieutenants, including 1st Lt Lawrence Fitzpatrick and 2nd Lt Sherman Sutherland (formerly A Co and battlefield commission) who subsequently became 1st Lt Frank Rowe’s assistant in 2 Ptn. 1st Lt John Weisenberger (previously assistant battalion S1) was re-assigned to G Co as XO, while 1st Lt Blaine Pothier became temporary XO for the battalion.
After recovering from his leg wound, former adjutant Alex Bobuck was promoted to captain and posted to a regular infantry unit as a foreign liaison officer. When 1st Lt Pete Madden rejoined 3/506, he returned to HQ Co, taking up his previous post commanding the 81mm mortar platoon, alongside 2nd Lt Frank Southerland. Lt Southerland seemed to fit in and was well liked by the men, unlike his predecessor Lewis Sutfin. At the same time 23-year-old family man Gil Morton was promoted to platoon sergeant after Roy Burger received his battlefield commission and was posted to HQ 2/506 mortars. Each 81mm squad was made up of seven men, including the squad leader who was usually a corporal. The complete weapon system weighed 136lb and could be broken down into three parts: tripod, tube, and base-plate (which by itself weighed 46lb). As a consequence the majority of the mortar platoon lost anything up to 4in in height during their wartime service!
H Co received its fair share of new officers, including 2nd Lt Harry Begle and lieutenants Lawrence, Wilkinson, and Smith. Harry Begle recalls, “Along with Lt Ed Wilkinson, I was posted to 2 Ptn as assistant to 1st Lt Clark Heggeness, so rather unusually the platoon had three officers on its table of organization.” 1st Lt Bob Stroud from 1 Ptn (nicknamed the “Forty Thieves” by Col Wolverton) recalls his new assistant, Lt Smith: “Smith stuck to me like glue and every time I’d turn around he’d be right there like some sort of anxious puppy.” 2nd Lt Willie Miller rejoined 3 Ptn after being wounded at Opheusden, and was relieved to learn it was still under the able and efficient command of 1st Lt Alexander Andros from Illinois. 1/Sgt Gordon Bolles was another familiar face. A regular soldier, “Pop” Bolles had been with the outfit since Toccoa. “Pop” had a wonderful sense of humor and was the only “top kick” (slang for “first sergeant”) to serve throughout the entire war with the same company.
The old sweats in I Co – first lieutenants Floyd Johnston (1 Ptn) and Don R
eplogle (3 Ptn) – welcomed 1st Lt Jerome Knight and second lieutenants Denver Albrecht and Roger Tinsley. Knight and Albrecht took over 2 Ptn, while Tinsley joined Johnston. The new intake replaced Mickey Panovich, Ray Eisenhauer, Charles Santarsiero, and Jim Nye. Always unpopular, Nye (2 Ptn) had been posted to F Co in Holland, while Panovich (1 Ptn) and Santarsiero (3 Ptn) were badly wounded. Santarsiero’s injuries were so severe that he spent the next three years in hospital. After attending teaching college, Sgt Harley Dingman (3 Ptn) from Carthage, New York, had been called up at the age of 21 in May 1943 and was sent to Camp Wheeler in Macon, Georgia:
After basic training, I accepted promotion to corporal and stayed on at Wheeler as an instructor. Several months later I opted to join the paratroops. Not long after qualifying for my wings I was shipped to the UK and posted to I Co. At the time it took a little while for the guys who had just come back from Normandy to accept me as a junior NCO but everything worked out OK by the time we jumped into Holland. Later in the campaign up on the island, I was acting as an artillery observer when a small piece of shrapnel lodged in my hand. The wound was minor and I thought nothing more until a week or so later when it started showing signs of infection. Shortly afterwards, I was evacuated and spent the next five weeks in a succession of hospitals. By early December, I was ready to return to the battalion but frustratingly got held back by bureaucracy at a replacement depot. One day I thought, “To Heck with the paperwork” and smuggled myself onto a truck bound for Mourmelon. When I got back to the company, Capt Anderson called me into his office. Anderson had a very dry sense of humor and told me that not only was I about to be accused of desertion but also they were billing me for the loss of a Thompson submachine gun! He thought it was highly amusing that I’d “deserted” to come back to the outfit when usually it was the other way around. He had me believing for a while that I was going to be court martialed but then he burst out laughing and asked me if I’d like to take the job of acting 3 Ptn sergeant – which of course I accepted without hesitation. There was a bottle of liquor on the table and Anderson offered up a drink to toast my new “promotion.” I was quite GI at the time and figured there was no way an enlisted man like me should be drinking with an officer! So I graciously refused, saluted, and marched out feeling a lot happier than when I went in.