Hi Marion,
When I got the duty roster, I created an excel spreadsheet containing all the names of the men in the roster. I noticed that the platoons formed within the stalag were based on their parent unit/division. It could be that the other men listed with SGT Hamilton were also associated with combat engineers/6th Corps. I can e-mail you the spreadsheet if you’re interested.
The attached is a really brief summary of what the POWs would have experienced at Stalag XIII-C, based on “Hold at All Cost”. You can share it on your website if you want.
As rough as these men had it, I read that the lower ranking soldiers were at stalags where they often had to do manual labor. Some of those stalags were ‘liberated’ by the Russians, our alleged allies. The Russians told the US POWs that it was safer for them to be taken to Russia. Some POWs decided to go with the Russians, where they were held captive in Russia for awhile. I heard of Howard Humble, whose father was taken to Russia and died. He is still trying to find out where his dad was buried.
Sincerely,
Kat
Proud Daughter of Walter (Monday) Poniedzialek
540th Engineer Combat Regiment, 2833rd Bn, H&S Co, 4th Platoon
There's "No Bridge Too Far"