A thank you to our troops!

Thanks to our Troops

Hello, combat engineer fans. I'm from Tennessee, and I'm a long-time WWII buff. I found out about this board on wildbillguarnere.com, where several of you are already members. I became interested in combat engineers after reading "The Damned Engineers" several years ago. My wife and I spent two weeks in Europe in 2004, and toured some of the Bulge and Market Garden battle areas.

Stewart Crane

Is anyone interested in purchasing an official history of 5th Army? A used bookstore in Knoxville, Tennessee, has a copy. I think the price is about $30.00. The name of the bookstore is Book Eddy. You can Google for the address and phone number.

Stewart Crane

Sent to me by John Fallon. Thank you. Rest in peace my dear VI Corps Engineer!

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WE just lost another comrade, Mervin Rudd. He was not on our roster but I just heard about him from his son. The 6th Corps website keeps picking up seahorses as they access and forward the names to me. If you know of any other seahorse who might not be on our roster let me know about it. Mervin had been in a different world for a long time because of Alzheimer's and it is a blessing to have his release but it is sad to have it happen at Christmas. I have 92 names on the roster now and every one is valuable. May he rest in peace and the rest of you------------------------------- Stay RUGGED!!!!

36 Engineers are rugged......John Fallon II. Capt. USA Ret.

Hello,

I am doing archaeological survey work in the area used by the 101st airborne for forming up and training in England prior to D-Day and Market Garden.

SOLE COMMON CAMP USAAF station number 424.

I have been told it was an engineers base by the only local old enough to remember, but searches have turned up nothing. The unit built a glider runway at Wickham, gliders (ground still posioned with dope), and the camp itself. The camp is halfway between RAF/USAAF Welford and Craven House (101st HQ), near Newbury, Berkshire. Nearest US neighbours at the time were Gen 'Nuts' Mcauliffe & staff billeted at Wormstall House, a Glider Field Artillery unit at Wickham House (next to Wormstall) and a parachute packing depot (503rd?) at Welford Farm.

I've looked at websites for engineers attached to the 101st, but they all say they were based at Basildon Park or Camp Ranikhet. The first is too small to accomadate all the troops (so HQ i think) and the later apears to have disapeared all together. It is possible that Ranikhet and Sole are the same because:

1) Basildon Park and Ranikhet are listed as being near Reading, but Basildon Park is near Newbury, so perhaps Ranikhet is as well.

2) Ranikhet is the name of an Himalayan base camp, and Sole Common is hilly, where as Reading is mainly flat.

Any help would be hugely appreciated,

Tanks very much,

Jim Harriss, Ridgeway Military and Aviation Research Group. (search RMARG if you want to check us out).