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Post by connie on Jul 12, 2014 1:21:29 GMT -5
Floyd,
Your description of that first day is powerful...
Your notation of the bunker location :" The Bunkers were just inside the tree-line of the forest and slightly below the crest of the hill (Schnee Eifel.) " helps explain the way the mortar site/ your fox hole was camouflaged. If I remember things correctly, when I saw the site, the wooded area extended almost to the road. It sounds as if back in 1944 there was open field extending from the road, through your position, and back behind you nearly to the crest of the hill, where it dropped off to your rear. Am I picturing that correctly?
Connie
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Post by floydragsdale on Jul 12, 2014 19:48:31 GMT -5
Hi Connie:
Our mortar position was exactly on the edge of the Ardennes Forest. The Bunkers were perhaps 30 yards in back of us. I do not remember (in 1944) the road at all.
Floyd
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Post by connie on Jul 13, 2014 13:35:11 GMT -5
Hi, Floyd,
Thanks... So the tree line we saw a few years back was basically in the same location as it was back in 1944, if I'm hearing you correctly, but the country road that now runs just forward of your positions probably was not there in 1944...
I'm looking at a situation map of the whole 106th area that shows Grosskampenberg near the bottom of the map. The north-south road that runs toward Grosskampenberg does indeed appear to veer off to the east before reaching the spot just south of the town where 424 G was... So the map seems to confirm what you're saying. Not even a trail is marked there.
Funny with the addition of a road that the land where you were seemed to remain untouched. And it was amazing to find the dent from your foxhole still visible...
The kitchen, if I remember correctly was down hill from where I am picturing the bunkers?
Connie
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Post by floydragsdale on Jul 13, 2014 18:47:41 GMT -5
Hi Connie:
Our mortar position was exactly on the tree line. The]e Ardennes forest began at that point and extended to our rear. The area in front of us was completely open, like a football field.
Floyd
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Post by connie on Jul 14, 2014 9:57:37 GMT -5
Floyd,
That's interesting stuff. I can better picture what you saw daily for a few pivotal days...
The village of Grosskampenberg, then would have been ahead ahead and to your left (?) beyond that open field? Could you see the village?
Connie
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Post by floydragsdale on Jul 14, 2014 10:54:13 GMT -5
Connie:
Grosskampenberg was in a 1:00 o'clock position from our mortar and it was just below the crest of the hill where Grosskampenburg was (Schneeifel). The village was visible from the foxholes that our riflemen were in. Our spotter, Sgt. Nugent was in one of those foxholes when he spotted a column of German troops hiking into Grosskampengurg. The rooftops of the village were just barely out of out sight. There was another small village that was in the 11:00 o'clock position in front of us (don't remember the name)
Floyd
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Post by engineercutoff44 on Jul 15, 2014 1:33:10 GMT -5
Hi Floyd!
just looking at my maps here Grosskampenberg was in the 1 oclock position,the town of Lutzkampen was in the 11 oclock position to your rear was Leidenborn creating a triangle in this triangle is a small stream and one of the trails is marked as being a Heerstrasse in other words a military road will dig out better maps and drive out there and have a closer look...
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Post by connie on Jul 16, 2014 0:38:40 GMT -5
Michelle,
It's great to have you join in this discussion-- nice to have another person in the mix but especially nice to have someone who is over there. It will be interesting to see what you can find!
Do the other town names sound familiar to you, Floyd?
Connie
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Post by floydragsdale on Jul 16, 2014 19:35:02 GMT -5
Hi Floyd! just looking at my maps here Grosskampenberg was in the 1 oclock position,the town of Lutzkampen was in the 11 oclock position to your rear was Leidenborn creating a triangle in this triangle is a small stream and one of the trails is marked as being a Heerstrasse in other words a military road will dig out better maps and drive out there and have a closer look... Hi Michelle I remember one little hamlet that was just to our left front (11:00 o'clock position) by the name of Hekscheid. About the 3rd day of the Bulge, at night when I was standing watch in a foxhole, a German Armored column came straight at me. They were probably 100 to 150 yards from me and suddenly they turned to their right (my left) and disappeared into the night. The vehicles were driving with their black-out light on. Now my mind tells me that the column of Germans drove into that tiny village of Hekscheid and turned to their right, almost directly to my immeadiate front on a road going out of Hekscheid. I believe, at this very moment that the 423rd Regiment of the 106th Division was being surrounded and unknown to this soldier at the time, I was witnessing that event. Floyd 424th Regiment |
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Post by engineercutoff44 on Jul 17, 2014 0:48:26 GMT -5
Thank you for the Information Floyd,I will get out the maps and start doing some old fashioned triangulating followed by a field inspection of the area,by the sounds of it we are getting pretty hot ha ha greetings to you and your family from the schneifel!
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Post by engineercutoff44 on Jul 17, 2014 0:54:44 GMT -5
Hi Floyd! just looking at my maps here Grosskampenberg was in the 1 oclock position,the town of Lutzkampen was in the 11 oclock position to your rear was Leidenborn creating a triangle in this triangle is a small stream and one of the trails is marked as being a Heerstrasse in other words a military road will dig out better maps and drive out there and have a closer look... Hi Michelle I remember one little hamlet that was just to our left front (11:00 o'clock position) by the name of Hekscheid. About the 3rd day of the Bulge, at night when I was standing watch in a foxhole, a German Armored column came straight at me. They were probably 100 to 150 yards from me and suddenly they turned to their right (my left) and disappeared into the night. The vehicles were driving with their black-out light on. Now my mind tells me that the column of Germans drove into that tiny village of Hekscheid and turned to their right, almost directly to my immeadiate front on a road going out of Hekscheid. I believe, at this very moment that the 423rd Regiment of the 106th Division was being surrounded and unknown to this soldier at the time, I was witnessing that event. Floyd 424th Regiment |
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Post by engineercutoff44 on Jul 17, 2014 1:09:17 GMT -5
just did some fast triangulating you are absolutely right from the spot I will be going to the village of Heckhuscheid is in your 11 O'clock position,Grosskampenberg on your 1'oclock position,and to your rear was the Belgian border the main thrust of the Attack came up the Pronsfeld-Winterspelt road,where the column that you described broke off the main column in a village called Habscheid and Headed your way...you are absolutely right with your assessment Floys you were on the outer verge of the balloon encompassing the 422nd and 423rd Infantry regiments the other side of this big balloon coming from Losheim,through Roth,Auw(the town where Mr Withee earned his Medal of Honor)converging in Bleialf to close the trap on both Regiments.very busy at the moment but will get out as soon as possible and take some pics of the area for Connie to post...
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Post by floydragsdale on Jul 17, 2014 10:33:54 GMT -5
Something that I know now yet didn't realize during the Bulge Campaign is this: There was a 2,000 yard gap between the 424th Regiment and the 423rd Regiment. That is precisely where the German Army broke through our lines and encircled the 422nd and 423rd Regiments. We, the 424th Regiment,came very close to being caught in that same trap.
Not many days after that, at least the 2nd Battalion of the 424th Regiment hiked about fifty miles (some of us had been without food for two days) to avoid being trapped, or, to get out of one. The hike began several hours before dawn and lasted until about 1:00 a.m. the next day. Immediately after the hike we had a "foot inspection". Right then and there we lost 50% of our men because of trench foot and frost bite. It was during that hike that some of us (including this veteran) went to sleep while walking, believe it or not.
The body, after so long a time, demands sleep no matter what a person is doing. More than once some of us formed a huddle, put our arms around one-another, leaned forward and went to sleep standing up.
Floyd
424th Regiment
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Post by engineercutoff44 on Jul 17, 2014 23:51:01 GMT -5
You are completely right as usual Floyd you were after all there!the Germans like to call them pincers.Col.Cavender had his HQ in a little Hamlet called Buchet some 2 miles as the crow flies from where I am sitting this moment typing this post to you,His boys from the 423rd Inf Rgt stretched over into the town of Brandscheid,then the 2,000 yard gap,when the Germans Attacked they must have had some Intel on this situation because they sent up their troops from Pronsfeld in the initial attack up the very main road leading from Pronsfeld towards Winterspelt slicing between both of the Regiments,causing the 423rd to fall back on to the relative security of the Schneifel hogback and the dense Forests up there they did that job so well the Germans did not even realize they and the 422nd were up there until some hours later,the Germans were too busy Fighting your guys,none the less the pincers were shut in Bleialf where this post is being composed now and the unfortunate History of Both Regiments were written,But Damned it Floyd that is why I have so much respect for your predicament at the time nobody can fathom just how Dark,Dank Cold and lonely the schneifel can be in the best of times let alone after a bombardment of huge proportions,throwing everybody out of a cold and restless sleep and the area being filled with German armor and troops!You and your boys up here will Always have my Respect for that!!
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Post by floydragsdale on Jul 19, 2014 19:03:45 GMT -5
Michelle & Connie:
Here ls an account of five of us from G Company, 424th Regiment on the night we withdrew from our combat positions on Scheeeifel; it is still very clearly etched in my mind.
Five Anxious Men
Someone said, "Old veterans don’t die; they just fade away. " Yet, we shouldn't let our stories fade away with us. Needless to say, there are some stories still to be told by WWII Veterans..
This story concerns five men, of whom I was one, from G Company, 424th Regiment of the 106th infantry Division. It occurred several days after the colossal German offensive, The Battle of the Bulge, 16 Dec. 1944, began. The stage is the Schnee Eifel region of the Ardennes Forrest, on the German/Belgian border.
Before the night of the 18th had passed five men from G Company, separated from our outfit, were in an extremely unsafe predicament, that was to last until the next morning.
That evening, as twilight covered the battle sector, combat activity diminished to occasional gunfire. Well into the night two of us located at our mortar fortification received a company messenger who relayed orders that everyone should pull back from their battle positions in a systematic way. Heavy weapons and related ammunition were to be left behind. The word was, travel light. Our squad, composed of eleven men, was the last in our area to leave. The Germans, somehow knew the moment of our withdrawal as they commenced firing volleys of rockets (screaming memies) at intervals all through our exit maneuver. They made frightful sounds when launched; the louder the noise the closer they came. - - - As our squad descended the hill, the Germans fired them in our direction. As the first one exploded, everyone hit the dirt. A salvo contained six rockets. We fell, with faces buried in the turf, as each one fell closer and closer. From, left to right, exploding with a deafening sound. A slight feeling of relief came when they were exploding to our right; then the chances of remaining alive a while longer increased dramatically. Several more barrages detonated around us before we reached Company Headquarters. It was a profoundly scary incident.
Arriving at Company Headquarters, officers ushered everyone into bunkers and instructed all to remain inside for further orders. The interior was dark as pitch. Our squad leader fell into a deep sleep. Everyone suffered fatigue due to ceaseless battle conditions since the morning of the 16th.
Sometime later, maybe an hour, the bunker door opened. A calm, low, voice advised "We will move out soon, proceed single file; each one take hold of the man’s coat belt in front of you. Move quietly, no conversation; the woods are full of Germans. - - - Of course it was quiet - - - too quiet. A GI behind me said, "Do you have a hold of the man in front of you? I replied, "Yes." Wondering then, my hands sought the arm of the man ahead of me; then groped for his hand that was firmly attached to a wooden post. With disgust I said, "You have hold of a post." That statement provoked instant response from our gunner; he yelled, "You a dumb s.o.b." What fighting words! One shoved the other outside the bunker and both faced off like two bandy roosters. The commotion awoke our squad leader who, surrounded in complete darkness, didn’t remember where he was or what day it was. He came out of the bunker like a wild man yelling "Where is the company - - where am I ?" Two of us subdued him by wrestling him to the ground and slapping his face to end his nightmare. The squabble no doubt lasted just a few moments, but at the time it seemed like an eternity. Somehow the other two men came to their senses and stopped quarreling. Then we realized that we were alone. The Company was nowhere in sight.
Five of us, now separated from the company faced a serious situation. Our immediate concern was being taken prisoner or shot; a powerful incentive to get out of there. Without a map, our intuition and clues had to be trusted. We searched for foot traffic in various paths that led out of the vicinity; then pursued the path with the most footprints. After a while, forks in the trail appeared and, dead reckoning had to be applied from that moment on. A footpath led us near a log home in the forest. In a way it was a welcome site with smoke curling from the chimney top. How easy it was to imagine the warmth and comfort inside. Yet, a premonition forewarned us about that cabin. Quietly, we circumvented the site, hoping to be unobserved by the inhabitants.
Through the night, five motivated GI’s traversed hills and valleys, pausing now and then to whisper opinions and offer suggestions. All froze at the slightest movement, or sound, in a forest that was no longer friendly territory .
As dark gave way to daybreak another cabin came into view; in like manner we bypassed it. Farther ahead appeared another hill to climb. As the ascent started voices became audible. Are they American or German, we wondered? Cautiously we moved forward, pausing now and then to listen. As the crest of the hill was reached not a soul was in sight, however the sounds increased in loudness. Reaching the summit of the next hill we observed Army personnel. However, are they friendly or enemy? Gingerly, five of us moved ahead seeking to ascertain their identity. Finally men wearing familiar olive drab clothing could be seen. What a relief to see American Soldiers!- - - Low and behold, what a revelation; it was our own Regiment. Exhausted, yet jubilant in overcoming extreme odds, we soon learned that our situation remained acutely grim. There were many rumors and, sounds of combat surrounded us.
For some reason our Company was not engaged in any action that day. To say the least, for the next few hours some shut eye and rest felt like a luxury.
We had no thought, at the time, that our division was involved in the largest campaign in the history of the American Army and that it would last almost another six weeks. There were two enemies to fight. The German Army and the bitter cold days and nights that were still ahead of us. Yet, that’s another story. Fortunately for us, the future came just one day at a time.
Floyd
424th Regiment
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Post by connie on Jul 20, 2014 13:41:04 GMT -5
Floyd,
I almost fear breaking the silence. You took me with you.
I hope the story continues...
Connie
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Post by floydragsdale on Jul 21, 2014 9:42:24 GMT -5
[/font Christmas Eve & Christmas Day 1944.
Christmas Eve on the Front Lines 1944
By Floyd D. Ragsdale,
Co. G, 424th Regiment., 106th Division
Sixty-seven years after The Battle of the Bulge a day by day account of the engagement, after the first three days, will not fall into place from memory; yet, many incidents remain permanently etched in my memories. Some American Soldiers referred to that Battle as “forty one days and nights of freezing hell. That is a good reason for anyone not to remember that campaign in exact order. However, they will be described as reminiscence retracts them but not exactly in order.
Much has been written about the Battle of the Bulge yet it is the individual story that gives a personal touch to that engagement. Those tales relate what the individual Soldier had to withstand. Not only in fighting against extreme odds in numbers but the bitter cold weather also.
A simple decision concerning matters at hand could save ones life, or take it away. One night, after resting for several hours in a bunker, it was my turn and that of a fellow soldier to stand watch for several hours in the foxholes. As we approached our battle stations he said to me, “Which fox-hole do you want?” “It doesn’t matter, I said; one is just as cold as the other one.” Then I thought it best to take the one near our mortar position in case a flare needed to be fired. That decision saved my life but took his. In another hour he would be killed by a direct hit from an enemy artillery burst.
This is a story with a better ending. It happened Christmas Eve and the following day; approximately five weeks before that Battle would be brought to a conclusion.
Imagine that you are there; the year is December 1944, You are in Belgium and you have been battling the German Army and the frigid weather for a week in the Ardennes Forest. You are battle weary and hungry
Christmas Eve your Infantry Company hiked into a tiny Belgian Village (Haare) seeking some sorely needed rest and warmth. To a man, everyone was exhausted from continuous battle conditions for the past seven days. Your officers arranged, with local civilians, to accommodate your Company with a nights lodging in their homes. The Company Commander announced that your outfit would be there until morning and, company officers would assign you temporary sleeping quarters. Then he said, “Merry Christmas men, and have a good nights sleep.”
Most of you did not know it was Xmas Eve.
The platoons, 1st through the 3rd were dispatched to short-lived quarters; however they over looked the heavy weapons platoon; the platoon you were assigned to. Calling this to the attention of an officer, he said to you “Find a place where-ever you can.” At every dwelling the word was, “There’s no room here.” Consequently, you roamed the Village searching for warmth and rest. A Military Policeman, guiding traffic in the town circle, directed you to an American Anti Aircraft Gun outfit located just outside the village. They had 10 man tents with stoves and army cots; also they had their welcome mat out. “Come in and get warm” one of the men beckoned. Heat from the stove seemed like a luxury to you. One of the Gun Crew said, “It’s time for me to go on watch at our gun site, you can have my bunk while I’m on duty. Sleep came effortlessly to you.
A short time later shut-eye was interrupted by a voice saying, “Wake up soldier, your outfit is moving out.” Within minutes, you rushed into the village circle where the MP said, gesturing with his hand, “Your Company went that way.”
To say the least, bidding that little Village goodbye as you walked into the darkness of the night, alone, wasn’t on your Christmas wish list,.
Just a few minutes down the road, one of the Battalion companies was organizing for an advance across country. The Company Commander, learning of your dilemma said, “You can join our outfit for the time being”; he then appropriated you to be point man in one of his platoons. That sort of post was on the extreme right, or left of a unit. Somehow, as the company advanced, your contact with the platoon vanished, although you could hear the men exchanging words with each other. Your location, now in a wooded area, appeared to be a cluster of trees that in actuality was a forest. In this situation, repetition of sounds taught you a lesson. In hills and forest sounds echo from hillside to hillside making it difficult to ascertain what direction the noise was coming from.
“Good grief”, you thought; another night to spend, alone; in a forest trying to find a way out. For a while, the sound of two men chopping wood and conversing was most distinguishable. Their language, though quite audible, was not American or English. Consequently, instinct cautioned you to remain unobserved by them.
Daylight hours were welcome since the chances of locating a trail, or path that, would lead to somewhere, increased considerably. Warning! Some one was approaching from behind you. What a relief it was to recognize an American soldier, who of all people, was a Soldier from your company. His situation the night before had been identical to yours. However, he had a full night’s shut-eye and, discovered his circumstance while seeking something for breakfast the next morning. - - - After discussing your circumstance for several minutes. The two of you set out to locate your outfit. Selecting more heavily traveled trails, a path led you to a main road.
Near midmorning, along a roadside, you came in contact with an accumulation of GI's, a mixed variety of vehicles and several Sherman Tanks. It was the remnants of personnel assembled by Brigadier General Bruce Clark. They had been surprised by a German counter attack earlier that day.
At this moment you were reunited with your company. Your understanding from them was your Company had been ordered to counter attack the Germans in a nearby village late Christmas Eve. The encounter was successful; yet in the morning while the men ate their rations the Germans launched a surprise counter attack driving the Company from the hamlet. In the action your Company Commander was seriously wounded; several enlisted men had been wounded and the German’s destroyed the company jeep. The Troops withdrew in absolute disorder. Clearly, the German action completely bewildered them. At some point, shortly after that episode, General Bruce Clark, with some of his armored vehicles, came upon the scene; quickly, he analyzed the state of affairs and restored order to the dilemma.
General Clark assembled a combat force that afternoon, giving pep talks and encouraging the men as he issued orders to everyone; then he gave a brief rejuvenating talk. He said “I’ve chased these bastards (Germans) all the way across France and we’re not going to run from them now. This afternoon we are going to re-take the ground that you men forfeited this morning”. Minutes later General Clark, overhearing you fussing about the mediocre accuracy of your carbine rifle, took a “Springfield 03” Rifle with a bandoleer of ammunition clips from his vehicle and, handing it to you said “Soldier you can have my rifle; I used it in France during World War I; take good care of it.”
The General squandered no time by turning a critical situation into a favorable one. Soon an advance to retake lost ground commenced. Again, by chance, your position was point man on the left flank of the company. The opposite point was near a road. Both posts were considered a risky place in a forward action under battle conditions. All of a sudden, you accepted the fact that surviving this war was not going to be easy. Your company encountered little resistance until someone spotted several enemy armored vehicles blocking the road. Two of your men, volunteered to put them out of action with a bazooka. Their first shot missed, alerting the German gun crew who pointed the gun turret toward them and fired point blank, killing both men instantly. Immediately the Germans fired a number of rounds toward the rest of your company. The terrain was hilly and comprised of dense forest. Hence, movement through the trees could be easily noticed. German artillery fire had a deadly effect on your advance. One man in the company lost his legs and begged the medics to let him die crying, “I don’t want to live like this.”
The advance, in that area finally dislodged the Germans from their battle stations, near Manhay. As late afternoon approached it was essential to dig in and secure our positions by establishing observation posts for the night.
As twilight faded to dark, the air turned bitter cold. Aware of “enemy searching artillery fire” bursting in treetops, in the near distance, you were prompted to commence digging a foxhole. It took some time to penetrate through the frost line and dig the hole head and shoulders deep. This activity produced good circulation that generated body heat. - - - Meanwhile, somebody passed out tins of rations, snatched from a Sherman Tank, that the troops welcomed. The ingredients, frozen by now, had to be held between your thighs to thaw it out. The nourishment turned out to be bacon-flavored spinach; which, believe it or not, tasted good. - - - Almost anything does when a person is hungry.
That’s the way it was for you Christmas Eve and Christmas day 1944 on the American Front Lines some where, in the Ardennes Forest, in Belgium, during WWII.
Floyd
424th Regiment
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Post by connie on Jun 1, 2015 12:27:09 GMT -5
A link has been added in the first post to a thread on Milton J. Schober T/5 424 F 1st Platoon. Links her to his personal accounts and to letter summaries add more detail to the history of the 424th: 106thdivision.proboards.com/post/4057/thread |
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Post by connie on Jul 10, 2016 18:21:24 GMT -5
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Post by connie on May 5, 2021 11:10:35 GMT -5
424 HThe following list of some men from this company appears in the Cub Magazine 1949- 10/11. (click to enlarge)  Attachments:
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