Happy Independence Day!

[connie]

And many thanks to all who gave so much so that we and others could live in Freedom.

Connie

[floydragsdale]

Independence day 1945 is still very vivid in my mind. I believe we (G Co. 424th Regiment) were stationed near Bingen Germany. That area was, and still is, famous for its wine making.

Reading news posted on the Company Bulletin Board was a common thing to do early in the morning. I had to read the following notice twice to believe my eyes.

It stated that "ANYONE CAUGHT SOBER BY 10:00 HOURS ON THIS DAY WILL AUTOMATICALLY BE PUT ON KP!"

Our company officers were already well "lubricated" when I read that notice.

I soon left the Camp in haste and stayed clear of there until about 10:30 that night. By that time most of the men in our company were in bed; sleeping it off.

Thus, I avoided being put on KP. Anyway, I'm not a wine sipper but a connoisseur of several glasses of good German beer instead.

Floyd,
424th

[connie]

Floyd,

You're good at reading minds, too! As I wrote my 4th of July greeting it crossed my mind to wonder about where you were. I now can picture the town of Bingen on the west bank of the Rhine with a hill rising on the east side of the river and a monument on that.

I just checked to see where Dad was on the 4th. I have letters from him on the 3rd and 5th. He was writing from Mayen, Germany but on the 4th made a run to division headquarters. I'll have to hit a map to see where these points were in relation to Bingen.

Thanks again for fleshing out another bit of date/ location history...

Connie

[floydragsdale]

Connie:

I think that the monument was Niederwald Denkmal. I used to hike up that hill just to admire the countryside. If I remember correctly, the Loralie was just across the river and upstream, or down stream just a little.

On the 4th of July 1945, I was served peaches and champagne, in the afternoon, by a German family in Bingen.

That was much more enjoyable than doing KP for a a bunch of drunk G.I.'s.

Floyd

[connie]

Floyd,

OK. There has to be more to this story. The peaches and champagne served by Germans in Bingen, Germany... Love to hear more if you're willing to share ... (curious about how you met these folks; if you were with others; what the general attitude of the local population was toward the occupying soldiers, etc...)

Connie

[floydragsdale]

Connie:

Here's the way I remember the rest of the story.

I do not remember how, yet by some means I became acquainted with a German lad. It may have been along the Rhine River, since I occupied many of my off duty hours hiking along that river.

I learned to speak some German while in high school so I never hesitated to ask questions of local citizens. Surprisingly, many of them replied to me in better English than I could speak. This lad (ca 16 yrs old) spoke very good English. Soon, we became friends.

The German boy was most enthusiastic in trying to be of assistance to my queries. He spoke well of his parents and that his father was a merchant of some sort.

Soap was one item that was very scarce in Germany, at that time, so I gave him several bars of American soap to take home.

In one of my encounters with the lad he invited me to his home to meet his parents. I accepted and off we went to where he lived, somewhere in Bingen.

His Mother and Father spoke very good English. They were most appreciative for the soap that I gave to their son.

I think the father was a wine merchant, if my memory serves me correctly.

In the afternoon, 4 July 1945, I was served peaches and champagne in their home. However, it wasn't a glass of champagne and a dish peaches; the two were combined in the same dish. Yummy! It was delicious.

Every German citizen I met was glad the war was over and they seemed anxious to be friendly with the American troops.

Floyd

[connie]

Thanks, Floyd,

This is a beautiful story!

Fleshing out the picture, the historian side of me wonders where your camp was and what it looked like. ( I'm picturing a tent city somewhere on the outskirts of town?)

As I told my spouse about the peaches and champagne treat, he brought up questions for the culinary side of this board. Were there fresh peaches available as early as the 4th of July or did the dish employ home canned peaches? Were the peaches warmed or chilled? halved or sliced? It sounds like an interesting dish to try...

Connie

[floydragsdale]

HI Connie:

Our outfit (G company) and the rest of the 2nd Bn. were living in tents. I think a squad of men occupied one tent. The camp was several miles from Bingen. I remember there was a pontoon bridge across a small river; perhaps a half mile outside of Bingen.

As for the peaches; I'm not certain if they were fresh or canned. My memory says fresh, but?? Nevertheless, they were sliced and chilled. The champagne was cold also. The two of them were combined into one large dish then each person was served a portion from the main dish.


A portion was desert size, in a desert glass, and one was all I consumed. The head of the house referred to the occasion as special.

It certainly was.

Floyd

[connie]

Floyd,

I think that peaches and champagne may become a new 4th of July tradition at our house!

I've been looking at the google map of Bingen trying to figure where your encampment was... (I've not yet attempted attaching anything to this site. I may have to master this... later).

I do see a stream running perpendicular to and through the town into the Rhine. It appears that the bulk of the town (and maybe all of it in 1945 is to the right of this stream as one looks at the map with the Rhine at the top of the picture. There is still a large undeveloped flat area behind the town and to the left of the stream (up river and behind the town). I'll try to send you the map to see if this could be the spot.

Connie

[floydragsdale]

I believe the peaches and champagne must have suited your taste buds.

Floyd

[connie]

Well, I haven't tried them yet, but they sound great!

Meanwhile, a few more history/ location questions. I'll admit that I sent a google map to Floyd via e-mail. I haven't attempted attaching it here. But the satellite view showed a stream bisecting the village and dumping into the Rhine. With the Rhine at the top of the map, most of Bingen at the time was probably on the right side of the stream.

Floyd noted that the pontoon bridge he remembered was approximately where there is now a real bridge.

Here's my first question. There are two bridges over the stream on the map. I'm wondering which was once the pontoon bridge you remember:
A. The one that leads directly into Bingen near (not far from the Rhine.

B. The one much further back from the river -- just a bit beyond the area that I'm guessing was the camp.

Since you said it was about a mile's walk from the bridge to the camp, I am guessing it was the bridge into Bingen and close to the Rhine. This makes sense, but I'd like to verify...

Connie

[floydragsdale]

Hi Connie:

It was not the bridge close to the Rhine River. Tent City (our camp) was adjacent to Stromberger Str.

I remember trying to help a drunk (really plastered) cross that that bridge one night. He became belligerent and unmanageable, thus I left him in the middle of the bridge and took off for camp.I don't know how he found his way back to camp; yet he did and he didn't get up till about noon the next day. He didn't remember that I tried to help him get across the pontoon bridge.

There are moments when it doesn't pay to be helpful.

Floyd