Hello

seeking info on Clayton H Thornton KIA north korea was a member of 65th engineer combat bn 25th inf div in north korea 7-28 1951 any info a help!!

thanks scott

Incorrectly, you may have thought all we had to be concerned with were the Krauts but some of our own were far out!!

"In re "AWOL in Italy" by Recon:-

I don't know if the younger posters here can truly appreciate what Recon has given all of us and I include the BTDTs like myself. Not only have I been engrossed in his stories but I then find myself recalling things that I haven't thought of for ages.

In my earlier postings,I had mentioned that my unit was pulled back to provide security for the 17th AB Div. when they were going to parcipate in Operation Varsity and jump into the town Wesel,Germany in March of 1945. Our strict orders were that "Nobody is to go in and Nobody is to get out" and that is what we accomplished to the satisfaction of Maj. Gen.Wm. "Bud" Miley the 17th CG and the Intel hierachy overseeing things.

The only glitch in our operation was so bizarre that it was almost out of a far-fetched novel. We had sucessfully shielded the 17th AB guys from the people in the nearest town that they had no idea that they were there. These people were getting back to a normal life because the war had passed through their area and they basically ignored us GIs --if and when we went into town which wasn't often.

One evening about 10 o'clock we heard the sound of small arms and grenades but we took it to be the Paras so we continued our normal patrol in the area until we met one of the local Gendarmes who was so excited he could hardly speak. I managed to slow him down and found out that some how "Krauts" were attacking the town and in particular their town hall where a celebration dance was going on. My Plt.was assembled and we approached the town to find that in fact there was a vehicle firing into the Town Hall and tossing grenades just about everywhere like confetti

In the darkness, it was difficult to see that it was an American half-track with four GIs in it.As we were closing in,they decided to enter the Town Hall through the front door naturally without bothering to open it and continued firing the .50 cal. wildly. The panic was incredible as the town's people tried to get out of the building. Before the building was totalled these four idiots dismounted and were sitting at a table drinking Calvados so they were secured easily. Three were rated as T3's and the other guy was a T4 so at some time they did have brain power.

It turned out that they were AWOLs from a vehicle maintainance unit and after a few days of living on practically nothing but Calvados they decided to have some "fun". Leavenworth was to be their next duty station was the word that we got. The AMG people came in to try to smooth the feathers of the town's people and make restitution for the damages which were extensive.

I know 172A was in Normandy and if he ever tasted the homemade Calvados which was made from beets it is a first cousin to White Lightening Moonshine he could tell you how potent this was.We had a guy go temporarily blind from drinking it and when a Medic showed us that it burned with the same type flame as medicinal alcohol everybody switched to wine.

Sgtleo

:freedom: :freedom:

More background data on WW II FYI. Interesting I hope?

This is where we were before the 3rd Army was established August 1,1944 with "Himself" Gen. George Smith Patton as our leader in Normandy.

The 12th Army Group was formed in 1944 from the former First United States Army Group. The 12th U.S. Army Group was the largest body of American soldiers ever to serve under one field commander; at its peak it consisted of four field armies, over 39 infantry and airborne divisions and 15 armored divisions.

The Headquarters of the Twelfth Army Group was established in London on July 14, 1944, and was given operational control of the United States First and Third Armies on August 1. Its commanding general was Lt. Gen. Omar N. Bradley, who was also commanding general of its predecessor, the First United States Army Group.

No officer in the U.S. Army had any practical experience with the operations of an army group. On September 5, 1944, the United States Ninth Army was assigned to the Twelfth Army Group. For a short time in late 1944 and early 1945 the First and Ninth Armies were detached for duty with the Twenty-first Army Group. In the midst of the Ardennes counter-offensive the United States Fifteenth Army was assigned to the Twelfth Army Group. It remained with that Group until the end of the combat period.

Twelfth Army Group Headquarters, also known as the Central Group of Armies, was entirely American in composition. The operations of the 12th Army Group was dominated throughout the fall of 1944 by the necessity of developing a new administrative base in close proximity to the front lines.

On the basis of daily maintenance needs of 650 tons a division, the 12th Army Group's requirements totaled 19,000 tons a day during the first half of October 1944, assuming the employment of twenty-two divisions, and 23,000 tons a day by 1 November 1944, when the strength of the army group reached twenty-eight divisions.

Sgtleo

Seems that the History Channel site has changed it's format, and it's now affecting our THIS DAY IN HISTORY feature. Before when you clicked on the link, the date would change automatically and show you today's date. Now if you click on it, it shows you the last date you pulled up and then you have to manually re-set today's date on your page. ARGGHHH!

While it's just something little, it is aggravating. I wrote to them this morning to let them know and asked if they were going to rectify the problem.

Dear Elizabeth:

Get well soon. It was nice talking with you this evening. My thoughts and prayers are always with you. Nice talking with you too Rocky. God bless you both.

Lots of hugs,