Marion... My dad was Sgt Earl J Saxton, Co A, 1301st Engineers. He had three issues of the Spanner, the newsletter of the regiment, and I made scans of them.
20 Jul 1945, approaching Gibraltar
One copy for each 10 men on account of paper shortages [Why these are hard to find]
Rules for mail censorship.
14 Aug 1945, Pacific
WAR ENDS plus cartoons
17 Aug 1945, Pacific
VJ awards ceremony. Speech by Col Purcell on some highlights of the history of the regiment.
List of those awarded medals that day, and since the regiment landed in France on 6 Aug 1944.
Our honored dead.
All of these were done aboard the SS Sea Quail.
A government publication so public domain.
Legal size, roughly. 8" X 13". One sheet mimeographed on both sides. I did these as jpeg and pdf files, both full color. The black-and-white tiff test file was less legible so I didn't do tiffs. Resolution 600 dpi, the maximum for the copier I was using. (I doubt an Army mimeograph had 600 dpi resolution.) There are some faint areas but they are a problem with the original mimeographing. I've printed these on legal size paper, jpeg from Windows 7 Photo Gallery and pdf from Adobe Reader. Equally legible.
Total 6 pages
File size per page:
jpeg 4.73 MB to 6.92 MB
pdf 4.71 MB to 6.64 MB
Total for the 12 files: 71.88 MB
I could transfer these via Dropbox, or multiple emails.
Best wishes,
Mike
Michael J. Saxton
So happy to have these. Thanks for your time and efforts! I know many will enjoy reading these newsletters from the unit.
These links can also be accessed directly on our Engineer History page on the main site:
VI Corps HQ Itinerary - Many thanks to Ed Swanson for providing the details below. Very cool!
Hi, Marion!
This is the list of where the VI Corps went during the war and how many days spent at each place!
I believe it to be the 'official' VI Corps itinerary as my Dad was with the HQ unit of the VI Corps the entire war.
I know that at different times, he interfaced with the Combat Engineers, other division commanders, the Rangers, did reconnaissance, was a mapmaker, interpreter, etc
The handwritten notes are his and indicate the total times spent in each country or region.
191 days North Africa
335 days Italy
220 days France
40 days Germany
A lot of action there!
Not sure of how often the Combat Engineers were with the rest of the VI Corps at these locations, or out in front of it, etc, but would love to find out how that all worked!
The tragedy at Orlando - condolences to Mark Bando and family
I know we all shuddered when we read and viewed the tragic events regarding the Orlando massacre this past week. So hard for us to imagine this kind of event and to put ourselves into the shoes of the victims and their families. So imagine my surprise when I read the following article this morning, upon waking, for many of you will recognize the name BANDO.
Mark Bando, famous WWII historian and author of several books, lost his son in this horrible shooting.
I met Mark for the first time, shortly after starting this forum, while attending a 101st Airborne meeting in Farmington Hills, MI. I was introduced to him by my dear friend, George Koskimaki, of 101st Airborne fame and also a very well-known author. The last time I saw Mark was a few years back, when he, George, Don Burgett, myself and several others were invited down to Fort Wayne to sign books/documentaries at one of their events.
My condolences to Mark and his family. I'm at a loss for words today, for what do you say to someone who loses a son in this manner...
