Post by connie on Jun 30, 2017 8:46:58 GMT -5
FLOYD RAGSDALE 424 G was a very active contributor to this discussion board for a number of years before his passing.
In acknowledgement of his contributions, I will begin listing his posts with links... There are treasures here, some I'm sure other members of the 106th could relate to.
NOTE: THE DISCUSSION BOARD BANNER, designed by Carl Wouters, contains 2 photos of Floyd Ragsdale.-- one during WWII and one more recent:
BASIC TRAINING AND THE LIZARD 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/3774/thread
Many in the division had a history in other units before or after their time in the 106th.
Here's a link to Floyd's account of his time with the 65th Infantry Division and his transfer to the 106th: 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/2421/thread
And here's most of the humorous story of Basic Training and the Lizard:
The very first morning of my basic training at Camp Shelby, MS a drill sergeant stood outside of the barracks and shouted, “Now hear this. Your soul might belong to God, but you’re rear-end belongs to the Army, so get it out here on the double.” Day long training sessions were strict and very demanding of ones utmost attention.
About the only time a fellow could relax was after his evening meal. During this time several basic-trainees conjured up the idea of frustrating one of their not so favorite drill sergeants into a fit of anger.
Their scheme was to catch several lizzards (very common in the south) and put them in his bed; which they did about an hour before it was their bedtime.
The lights were out when the Sergeant entered the billets to retire for the night. Everyone was waiting for the expected uproar to follow when he crawled into his bunk , yet a very firm voice said, “If you guys are going to sleep with me you’re going to have to lay still."
To say the least, that broke the ice with recruits. In their opinion,the drill sergeant wasn’t such a very bad guy after all.
EVENING OF 12/16/44. 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/3298/thread
The day is Saterday evening and the date is December 16, 1944. Eight, or perhaps ten fatigued Soldiers are in a Bunker, an underground shelter made of sand-bags and logs. All of those men, including yours truly were chatting about the days action.
The day opened just minutes before 05:50 in the morning. The majority of us were stirred from sleep by exploding German artillery projectiles all over our area. The barrage continued for about two more hours.
Every-one of us understood one thing. Get to your battle stations (foxholes) at once. As the bombardment lifted, out of the misty-foggy weather, German armor and infantrymen were observed advancing toward G Company locations.
Like a cat waiting for its’ victim, G Company men held their fire until enemy soldiers were well within target range and then the bloodbath began. Enemy soldiers began dropping as if they were ducks in a shooting gallery.
Yet on they came, as if they had an attitude of, “I don’t care if I get killed or not.” This Soldier was in a mortars squad and targets had been well zeroed in by 2nd Division Soldiers.
A column of enemy soldiers was observed advancing toward a small hamlet close to our gun-position. Our observer yelled to our gun crew, fire on target number so and so. Our crew (two of us) put six shells in the air before the 1st one hit the ground. Bulls eye, right on target. They detonated between those advancing troops.
That’s the way the day continued. All day long, at entervala, German missiles pounded G Company locations. To say the least our Company suffered many causalities from that enemy fire.
One of our men could speak German fluently and he coxed a squad of German Soldiers into surrendering. One of them could speak fluent English and he said, “You will not stay on this hill, our Army is too big and powerful. American forces will be crushed” he told us.
That evening, while in the Bunker, some very tired Soldiers were discussing our predicament. “Were in the hell did those darn Germans get all this war making stuff, we wondered?
We had no idea that two of our Regiments were about to surrender and the 424th Regiment would almost suffer the same disaster.
It wasn’t going to be a Merry Christmas or a Happy New Year for the 424th Regiment. Also, 424th Regiment Soldiers didn’t realize that there would be many days and night of freezing hell still directly ahead of us.
It’s a good thing we didn’t have a crystal ball.
A TANK THAT SPUN AROUND OVER A FOXHOLE. 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/3753/thread
The sensation of experiencing a monster of a tank spinning around and around over a Soldiers foxhole is not a pleasant memory to reminiscence over. Yet, this veteran experienced that and lived to tell about it.
The tank, a German one, was coming straight at my foxhole.
While in combat, much of the time, a soldier doesn’t have time to dilly dally over what to do! This was one of those moments; hunker down in the foxhole was the one and only choice I had.
Soon the tank was on top of my foxhole, grinding its’ tread around and around on top of the hole.
Instantly, a flash back of basic training came to mind, “Dig that foxhole deep enough soldier, or you can be crushed to death in it by a tank”, we were told.
As chunks of earth were falling down my neckline, I thought, “Thank God this hole is deep enough.”
Moments such as this seem to last far too long, however in horrifying seconds they are gone.
As the unfriendly tank continued on its’ way, this anxious Soldier anticipated German Infantry men to be following close behind; however, fortunately for me they where not.
In less time than it takes to tell about it, I was out of that hole in the ground and scampering for more friendly territory, which was several hundred yards away.
That was an occasion in this Veteran’s life that I’ll never forget.
GOING TO SLEEP WHILE HIKING 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/3758/thread
The first 14 days of the Bulge campaign were very hectic for the 424th Regiment.
The front lines were very fluid during that period. My memory reminds me of the short daylight hours and long nights. We were short on sleep so much of the time. When the troops should have been resting they we were hiking a great deal of the days and nights.
The body can get so drained of energy that a soldier would go to sleep while walking. I recall that happening to me at least several times.
On one occasion, I dozed off to sleep and strayed off the road into a ditch and fell on my face. Another time we were hiking in a column of twos along a road and I (fell asleep) wandered from the right column to the left one. One of my fellow soldiers wearily said, “Ragsdale, get on the other side of the road where you belong”. I remember saying, “Just push me and I’ll move over.”
A person’s legs just continues walking, nevertheless, the body takes over and requires some sleep
There were times when the ground was so muddy that a soldier simply couldn’t lay down, or sit down. So, three or four of us would form a huddle, put arms around each others shoulders, lean forward and snooze for a short while.
Sometimes Yankee ingenuity came to the rescue during the war.
DON'T BLOW UP THE BRIDGE YET. 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/3061/thread
IIt’s wintertime, you are in Belgium and the Battle of the Bulge is still raging, however your outfit, Company G of the 424th Regiment has been temporarily relieved of its’ front line duty for several days.
Nonetheless, a detail of men from G Company has been assigned to the task of guarding a bridge that passes over a railroad bed and you are one of the men selected to take part in the mission..
A very foggy, misty night exists when it’s your turn to stand guard at one end of the bridge. If German Soldiers approach the structure it is your responsibility to ignite a fuse that will blow up the bridge.
It is difficult to see more than twenty or thirty feet, consequently, you keep your ears tuned to the situation as well as your eyes.
“What’s that sound?, you wonder, yet nothing unusual is visible. There it is again and once more. It’s a clicking sound; now your mind's eye turns the sound into a very slow, intermittent footstep like noise.
Cautiously, you check conditions of the mechanical device that is wired to blow up the bridge and all is well.
Slowly, the sound becomes more distinct and your eyes and ears become tuned to the direction of sound. At this moment you envision a German Army patrol, very cautiously, sneaking up to the bridge.
Your body is tense and your heart is going like a galloping racehorse as you anticipate seeing silhouettes of German Soldiers appear through the fog and mist. Unexpectedly, your imagination turns into realism when out of the fog appear about a half a dozen sheep, grazing along the railroad bed.
The German patrol that you visualized in your minds eye are four footed creatures who held your almost breathless attention for what seemed like unending moments to you.
Your opportunity to blow-up a bridge just vanished as a flock of sheep emerged out of the midnight fog instead of the imagined enemy patrol that you were waiting for.
In acknowledgement of his contributions, I will begin listing his posts with links... There are treasures here, some I'm sure other members of the 106th could relate to.
NOTE: THE DISCUSSION BOARD BANNER, designed by Carl Wouters, contains 2 photos of Floyd Ragsdale.-- one during WWII and one more recent:
BASIC TRAINING AND THE LIZARD 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/3774/thread
Many in the division had a history in other units before or after their time in the 106th.
Here's a link to Floyd's account of his time with the 65th Infantry Division and his transfer to the 106th: 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/2421/thread
And here's most of the humorous story of Basic Training and the Lizard:
The very first morning of my basic training at Camp Shelby, MS a drill sergeant stood outside of the barracks and shouted, “Now hear this. Your soul might belong to God, but you’re rear-end belongs to the Army, so get it out here on the double.” Day long training sessions were strict and very demanding of ones utmost attention.
About the only time a fellow could relax was after his evening meal. During this time several basic-trainees conjured up the idea of frustrating one of their not so favorite drill sergeants into a fit of anger.
Their scheme was to catch several lizzards (very common in the south) and put them in his bed; which they did about an hour before it was their bedtime.
The lights were out when the Sergeant entered the billets to retire for the night. Everyone was waiting for the expected uproar to follow when he crawled into his bunk , yet a very firm voice said, “If you guys are going to sleep with me you’re going to have to lay still."
To say the least, that broke the ice with recruits. In their opinion,the drill sergeant wasn’t such a very bad guy after all.
EVENING OF 12/16/44. 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/3298/thread
The day is Saterday evening and the date is December 16, 1944. Eight, or perhaps ten fatigued Soldiers are in a Bunker, an underground shelter made of sand-bags and logs. All of those men, including yours truly were chatting about the days action.
The day opened just minutes before 05:50 in the morning. The majority of us were stirred from sleep by exploding German artillery projectiles all over our area. The barrage continued for about two more hours.
Every-one of us understood one thing. Get to your battle stations (foxholes) at once. As the bombardment lifted, out of the misty-foggy weather, German armor and infantrymen were observed advancing toward G Company locations.
Like a cat waiting for its’ victim, G Company men held their fire until enemy soldiers were well within target range and then the bloodbath began. Enemy soldiers began dropping as if they were ducks in a shooting gallery.
Yet on they came, as if they had an attitude of, “I don’t care if I get killed or not.” This Soldier was in a mortars squad and targets had been well zeroed in by 2nd Division Soldiers.
A column of enemy soldiers was observed advancing toward a small hamlet close to our gun-position. Our observer yelled to our gun crew, fire on target number so and so. Our crew (two of us) put six shells in the air before the 1st one hit the ground. Bulls eye, right on target. They detonated between those advancing troops.
That’s the way the day continued. All day long, at entervala, German missiles pounded G Company locations. To say the least our Company suffered many causalities from that enemy fire.
One of our men could speak German fluently and he coxed a squad of German Soldiers into surrendering. One of them could speak fluent English and he said, “You will not stay on this hill, our Army is too big and powerful. American forces will be crushed” he told us.
That evening, while in the Bunker, some very tired Soldiers were discussing our predicament. “Were in the hell did those darn Germans get all this war making stuff, we wondered?
We had no idea that two of our Regiments were about to surrender and the 424th Regiment would almost suffer the same disaster.
It wasn’t going to be a Merry Christmas or a Happy New Year for the 424th Regiment. Also, 424th Regiment Soldiers didn’t realize that there would be many days and night of freezing hell still directly ahead of us.
It’s a good thing we didn’t have a crystal ball.
A TANK THAT SPUN AROUND OVER A FOXHOLE. 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/3753/thread
The sensation of experiencing a monster of a tank spinning around and around over a Soldiers foxhole is not a pleasant memory to reminiscence over. Yet, this veteran experienced that and lived to tell about it.
The tank, a German one, was coming straight at my foxhole.
While in combat, much of the time, a soldier doesn’t have time to dilly dally over what to do! This was one of those moments; hunker down in the foxhole was the one and only choice I had.
Soon the tank was on top of my foxhole, grinding its’ tread around and around on top of the hole.
Instantly, a flash back of basic training came to mind, “Dig that foxhole deep enough soldier, or you can be crushed to death in it by a tank”, we were told.
As chunks of earth were falling down my neckline, I thought, “Thank God this hole is deep enough.”
Moments such as this seem to last far too long, however in horrifying seconds they are gone.
As the unfriendly tank continued on its’ way, this anxious Soldier anticipated German Infantry men to be following close behind; however, fortunately for me they where not.
In less time than it takes to tell about it, I was out of that hole in the ground and scampering for more friendly territory, which was several hundred yards away.
That was an occasion in this Veteran’s life that I’ll never forget.
GOING TO SLEEP WHILE HIKING 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/3758/thread
The first 14 days of the Bulge campaign were very hectic for the 424th Regiment.
The front lines were very fluid during that period. My memory reminds me of the short daylight hours and long nights. We were short on sleep so much of the time. When the troops should have been resting they we were hiking a great deal of the days and nights.
The body can get so drained of energy that a soldier would go to sleep while walking. I recall that happening to me at least several times.
On one occasion, I dozed off to sleep and strayed off the road into a ditch and fell on my face. Another time we were hiking in a column of twos along a road and I (fell asleep) wandered from the right column to the left one. One of my fellow soldiers wearily said, “Ragsdale, get on the other side of the road where you belong”. I remember saying, “Just push me and I’ll move over.”
A person’s legs just continues walking, nevertheless, the body takes over and requires some sleep
There were times when the ground was so muddy that a soldier simply couldn’t lay down, or sit down. So, three or four of us would form a huddle, put arms around each others shoulders, lean forward and snooze for a short while.
Sometimes Yankee ingenuity came to the rescue during the war.
DON'T BLOW UP THE BRIDGE YET. 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/3061/thread
IIt’s wintertime, you are in Belgium and the Battle of the Bulge is still raging, however your outfit, Company G of the 424th Regiment has been temporarily relieved of its’ front line duty for several days.
Nonetheless, a detail of men from G Company has been assigned to the task of guarding a bridge that passes over a railroad bed and you are one of the men selected to take part in the mission..
A very foggy, misty night exists when it’s your turn to stand guard at one end of the bridge. If German Soldiers approach the structure it is your responsibility to ignite a fuse that will blow up the bridge.
It is difficult to see more than twenty or thirty feet, consequently, you keep your ears tuned to the situation as well as your eyes.
“What’s that sound?, you wonder, yet nothing unusual is visible. There it is again and once more. It’s a clicking sound; now your mind's eye turns the sound into a very slow, intermittent footstep like noise.
Cautiously, you check conditions of the mechanical device that is wired to blow up the bridge and all is well.
Slowly, the sound becomes more distinct and your eyes and ears become tuned to the direction of sound. At this moment you envision a German Army patrol, very cautiously, sneaking up to the bridge.
Your body is tense and your heart is going like a galloping racehorse as you anticipate seeing silhouettes of German Soldiers appear through the fog and mist. Unexpectedly, your imagination turns into realism when out of the fog appear about a half a dozen sheep, grazing along the railroad bed.
The German patrol that you visualized in your minds eye are four footed creatures who held your almost breathless attention for what seemed like unending moments to you.
Your opportunity to blow-up a bridge just vanished as a flock of sheep emerged out of the midnight fog instead of the imagined enemy patrol that you were waiting for.