45th infantry division wwii roster

Platoon, D Company), 47th Tank Battalion, 14th Armored Division, 47th Tank Battalion, 14th Armored Division (less 45th Infantry Division WWII Veteran Cap Black 5.0 (1) $2695 $7.49 delivery Fri, Dec 23 Arrives before Christmas 45th Infantry Division/Brigade 1 inch Enamel Pin $999 Save 15% when you buy $40.00 of select items FREE delivery Dec 22 - 28 Small Business 45th Infantry Division in the Sicilian Campaign, Part 2 by U.S. Army 45th Infantry Division The division was organized as a full Armored Division in May and June 1942 under the command of . No record of Clarence E. LaHayne in the June 1945 Roster of the 45th Infantry Division nor. German soldiers began surrendering to the Allies in large groups; 325,000 soldiers and civilians . It arrived on December 2, 1920 and redesignated as a Philippine Scout regiment the next day. The 45th landed at Anzio, 22 January 1944, and for 4 months stood its ground against violent assaults. [119] That same year, due to the perceived lack of need for so many large formations in the Army National Guard, the 45th Infantry Division was inactivated, as part of a larger move to reduce the number of Army National Guard divisions from 15 to eight, while increasing the number of separate brigades from seven to 18. [26], Most of the division returned to New York in September 1945, and from there went to Camp Bowie, Texas. Washington, DC 20024-2126 In size, these cars were of the small European type, which, when used for the movement of troops, would never accommodate more than 40 men. Thank you for posting your request on History Hub! Confessed murderer Frank Sheeran later recalled his war service as the time when he first developed a callousness to the taking of human life. Men from the state militias of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Oklahoma made up the division. B Company), 2nd Chemical Mortar Battalion (less [59][60][61], In a third incident, the Army considered court-martialling several officers of the 157th Infantry Regiment under Lieutenant Colonel Felix L. Sparks after servicemen were accused of massacring German soldiers who were surrendering at the Dachau concentration camp in 1945. However, everyone at that time had heard of Dachu so it is what stuck in people's minds. [103] Though the division was no longer an "All-Oklahoma" unit, leaders opted to keep its designation as the 45th Infantry Division. The 45th Infantry Division of the United States Army was a major formation of the Oklahoma Army National Guard from 1920 to 1968. . Lucas then ordered the rest of the division ashore. It will take considerably longer to eliminate the backlog on other types of requests, such as genealogical requests for complete copies of records. In Section 1, Item 1, where it asks which items you are requesting, please check Other and specify that you want the entire file. [39] It would remain in the area for a month waiting for other units to catch up before crossing the Mortagne River on 23 October. [16] In August 1941, the 45th Infantry Division took part in the Louisiana Maneuvers, the largest peacetime exercises in U.S. military history. He also claimed to have been at Dachau and talked about it to some detail when I was younger. [102] Additionally, in an effort to reduce the burden on the National Guard,[n 2] troops from the division were often replaced by enlisted and drafted soldiers from the active duty force. Campaigns of the 45th Infantry Division: Sicily. [120] In its place, the independent 45th Infantry Brigade (Separate) was established. In their report delivered to Congress on May 15, 1945, the senators and representatives stated that. The following year, on 10 September 1946, the 45th Infantry Division was reconstituted as a National Guard unit. In many cases where personnel records were destroyed in the, , proof of service can be provided from other records such as morning reports, payrolls, and military orders, and a certificate of military service will be issued. [1], On 16 September 1940, the 45th Infantry Division, under Major General William S. Key, was federalized from state control. You may experience a delay in receiving an initial acknowledgment as well as a substantive response to your reference request from RL-SL. . [122][123], The 45th Infantry Division was awarded eight campaign streamers and one foreign unit award in World War II and four campaign streamers and one foreign unit award in the Korean War, for a total of twelve campaign streamers and two foreign unit decorations in its operational history. As we visited Dachau we saw on a railroad sidetrack paralleling the main highway, and close to the gates of the prison camp, a train of cars which had been used to bring additional civilian prisoners to this camp. The 36th Infantry Division is a possible candidate for your father. TheDivision was pulled off the line for rest and training. [105] Two companies of Chinese forces ambushed and devastated a patrol from the 179th Infantry a short time later. [87][88], Initially, the division was used to provide a pool of reinforcements for the divisions which had been sent to the Korean War theater, and in January 1951 it provided 650 enlisted fillers for overseas service. The following month, the division landed in Sicily, where it engaged Axis troops in combat. [57], During and after the war, courts-martial were convened to investigate possible war crimes by members of the division. By the time the 45th Infantry Division made it into Germany, the German army was in bad shape. Eisenhower wanted as many as possible to witness the camps. forces. The 3rd Division was not directly involved in the liberation of Dachau, but Dad, if he was with the 3rd Division, could have been sent over to see the camp. [124], Note: Similarity of dates for General Muldrow and commanders beginning with General Ruffner is because 45th Infantry Division, AUS, was retained in Korea while twin unit, 45th Infantry Division, NGUS, was activated in Oklahoma. On the second incident, Captain John T. Compton ordered Italian soldiers to be lined up and shot; the officer claimed he had only been following orders and was acquitted. If you provide your dad's name, I can check it. The division remained on the front lines in such engagements as Old Baldy Hill and Hill Eerie until the end of the war, returning to the U.S. in 1954. It will take considerably longer to eliminate the backlog on other types of requests, such as genealogical requests for complete copies of records. After advancing up the Italian peninsula, the 45th landed at Anzio in February 1944, where it withstood repeated German assaults against its positions. They assumed he meant the more well known D-Day in Northern France in June 1944, but what he was actually talking about was the D-Day in Southern France in August 1944. Please turn JavaScript back on and reload this page. My mom remembers him talking about liberating concentration camps, and my grandmother remembers that he was artillery and she thinks he trained at Fort Sill. My father, Charles Joseph Capra's records were burned up in the Armory fire in St. Louis. Raymond B Company, 601st Tank Destroyer Battalion 382. The main goals of the World War II Recreation Association, 45th Infantry Division reenactors are to honor the veterans who served the United States Armed Forces in World War Two so that their legacy may live on, and to educate all within our reach about the history of our nation and our Armed Forces. & 01.04.1945-10.05.1945, 636th TD Battalion (SP) (less C Company Some of the victims apparently had died only hours before the 45th Division entered the camp, while many others lay where they had died in states of decomposition that overwhelmed the soldiers' senses. [37] Against stiff resistance, the 45th pushed to the Calore River after a week of heavy fighting. Some of the photos were donated by loved ones seeking to know more about thier relatives wartime . [49] The 45th, 36th, and 3rd Infantry Divisions were pulled from the line in Italy in preparation for Operation Dragoon (formerly Anvil), the invasion of southern France. Check out the people who helped make it possible! [64] Some veterans of the 45th Infantry Division have said that only 30 to 50 German soldiers were killed and that very few were killed trying to surrender, while others have admitted to killing or refusing to treat wounded German guards.[65]. [107] The division suffered its first casualty on 11 December 1951. [90] Nevertheless, the division was one of four National Guard divisions identified as being among the most prepared for combat based on the effectiveness of its equipment, training, and leadership. View of a Clearing Station, somewhere behind Utah Beach, Normandy, taken June 6 - 7, 1944 - triage of Airborne casualties and patients . We hope this is helpful. Allied intelligence estimated that the island was defended by approximately 230,000 troops, the majority of which were drawn mostly from weak Italian formations and two German divisions which had been reconstituted after being destroyed earlier. Dante's Inferno seemed pale compared to the real hell of Dachau. [80][121] The 45th Infantry Brigade received all of the 45th Division's lineage and heraldry, including its shoulder sleeve insignia. The 45th Infantry Division was reassigned to VI Corps on New Year's day. In addition to burying the dead, the Allied forces attempted to help and comfort the survivors with food, clothing and medical assistance. The soldiers of the 45th Division who liberated the camp were outraged at the malnourishment and maltreatment of the 32,000 prisoners they liberated, some barely alive, and all victims of the Holocaust. These pages are built and maintained by the World War II Recreation Association with membership in Northern Delaware, Eastern Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. & 3rd Battalions), 3rd Battalion, 36th Engineer Combat City and State: HUNTLEY MT You can not post a blank message. [citation needed]. The thunderbird is a symbol of the Southwestern Indians meaning sacred bearer of unlimited happiness. The muster rolls often indicate which unit a soldier is transferring from when he is first noted on the muster rolls as transferring to the unit. For more information see Official Military Personnel Files (OMPF), Archival Records Requests. This explains the book he had on the 180th Regiment. [39] The Fifth Army was battered and pushed back by German forces until 20 September, when Allied forces were finally able to break out and establish a more secure beachhead. [42] For this mission, CCA (Combat Command A) of the 1st Armored Division was attached to the 45th Infantry Division. 45th Infantry Division. AAA Group, 31.08.1944-10.11.1944 & 23.11.1944 &18.02.1945 It is curious that his draft card (Ancestry.com) has an annotated discharge date of 31 March 1946. [54], After the crossing was complete, the division was relieved from V Corps and assigned to Major General Wade H. Haislip's XV Corps. Headquartered for most of its history in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the guardsmen fought in both World War II and the Korean War. I found that book on the 180th Regiment by George Fisher on line. He died in 1966. [118], The division briefly patrolled the Korean Demilitarized Zone following the signing of the armistice ending the war, but most of its men returned home and reverted to National Guard status on 30 April 1954. Thank you so much!Katie Capra Geuin(i am new to this page and didn't see a way to send a message without replying to this one with the same subject line), [Moderation Note: Please see How To: Contact Another User], I checked the 29 June 1945 Division Roster as well as my General Orders' Worksheet and. OMPFs and individual medical reports for soldiers of the U.S. Army who served during World War II and who separated from the service before 1960 are in the custody of NARA's National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis. Headquartered for most of its history in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the guardsmen fought in both World War II and the Korean War. Our History Department collects Veteran information for this website and the Library of Congress Veterans History Project. Army Unit Rosters and Unit Photos. [41] Until 9 January 1944, the division, now under Major General William W. Eagles (replacing Major General Middleton who, struck down with arthritis, was sent to England to command VIII Corps in the Normandy invasion), inched forward into the mountains reaching St. Elia, north of Monte Cassino, before moving to a rest area. [39] The division captured Munich during the next two days, occupying the city until V-E Day and the surrender of Germany. His name was Donald E. Thompson, PFC. One story I often share to illustrate how we have to look at the stories left by soldiers and their families helps illustrate the problem. The 45th Infantry Regiment, Philippine Scouts, was an element of the Philippine Division, U.S. Army, based at Ft. McKinley. [39] The 45th Infantry Division landed its 157th and 180th regimental combat teams and captured the heights of the Chaines de Mar before meeting with the 1st Special Service Force. [10] In 1937, the division's troops were once again called up, this time to help manage a locust plague affecting Colorado. Please complete a GSA Standard Form 180 and mail it to NARA's National Personnel Records Center, (Military Personnel Records), 1 Archives Drive, St. Louis, MO 63138-1002. It had left Buchenwald four weeks earlier on April 7 filled with more than 5,000 prisoners. With the American entry into World War I, in April 1917, troops of the National Guard were formed into the units which exist today, with elements of the Colorado National Guard forming the 157th Infantry Regiment, the Arizona National Guard forming the 158th Infantry Regiment, and the New Mexico National Guard forming the 120th Engineer Regiment. I know that the 45th, the 42nd, and the 3rd Divisions swept down through that area. In many cases where personnel records were destroyed in the 1973 fire, proof of service can be provided from other records such as morning reports, payrolls, and military orders, and a certificate of military service will be issued. On Sunday, April 29th, 1945, the 3rd Battalion of the 157th Infantry Regiment of the 45th Infantry Division liberated the Dachau concentration camp, near Munich, Germany. They returned home at the end of the war, which occurred on Armistice with Germany. Cutting across the country, the unit was sent to southern France in August 1944. Holocaust Memorial Museum provides information about which units liberated which camps on their Recognition of U.S. Liberating Army Units website. [47] On 4 June the 45th Division crossed the Tiber River below Rome, and entered the city along with other VI Corps troops. Inside this website you will find over 100 pages of Maps History and Photographs of the World War Two Thunderbirds. In later interviews with Charles Brandt, he divided such massacres into four categories: During World War II, the 45th Division fought in 511 days of combat. Read more about the division insignia and there nickname. [104], The division remained as a unit of the Oklahoma National Guard, and participated in no major actions throughout the rest of the 1950s save regular weekend and summer training exercises. Immediately after Dachau's liberation, US Army authorities and other Allied representatives began treating the sick prisoners, implementing health and sanitary measures to curb the typhus epidemic, and bringing in tons of food to feed the starving prisoners. When the three units arrived at Dachau, they discovered more than 30,000 prisoners in the overcrowded camp. Hoping to occupy as much of the country as humanly possible before the German Army could react, the U.S. Fifth Army prepared to attack Salerno. [49] The 45th moved north to the Sarreguemines area and smashed through the Siegfried Line, on 17 March taking Homburg on the 21st and crossing the Rhine between Worms and Hamm on the 26th. The 45th Division was deployed on the southeastern side of the beachhead, along the lower Mussolini Canal.[45]. Primarily I'm looking for a roster of the 45th Division, but also interested in the same for the 3rd Division. Some of those photos match the area where Operation Dragoon was executed. Army Battle Casualties and Nonbattle Deaths in World War II, Final Report, 1 December 1941 - 31 December 1946. [11], The division's original shoulder sleeve insignia, approved in August 1924,[12] featured a swastika, a common Native American symbol, as a tribute to the Southwestern United States region which had a large population of Native Americans. At the time, the 45th Infantry Division was comprised overwhelmingly of high school students or recent graduates and only about 60 percent of its divisional troops had conducted training and drills with the division for a year or more. The Division fought defensively along the German border, withdrawing to the Moder River. The first major German counterattack came in early February, was against the British 1st Division. Send Email To NORA DREWRY. the 45th infantry division, oklahoma, colorado, arizona and new mexico national guards, the thunderbirds, were a group of citizen soldiers who fought long and hard during world war ii (sicily, naples-foggia, anzio, rome-arno, southern france, rhineland, ardennes-alsace, and central europe campaigns), and still do today, as a seperate infantry Slowly advancing through Italy, they fought in Anzio and in Monte Cassino. The 45th Infantry Division was recognized as a liberating unit by the US Army's Center of Military History and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1985. Although the information contained in the following pages is not specific to the 45th Infantry Division, it presents an accurate overview of each campaign. Group, 21.10.1944-24.10.1944 & 01.11.1944-11.11.1944, 15.08.1944-18.08.1944 & 19.09.1944-27.10.1944 Anyways if you see this his name was Clarence LaHayne and he was enlisted. However, everyone at that time had heard of Dachu so it is what stuck in people's minds. Yellow is a symbol of warmth or energy. The muster rolls often indicate which unit a soldier is transferring from when he is first noted on the muster rolls as transferring to the unit. In January 1943 it moved to Fort Pickett, Virginia, for its final training. Rosters for units serving in World War II from 1944 - 1946 were destroyed in accordance with Army disposition authorities. [108], Initially, the division did not fare well, though it improved quickly. The 45th Infantry Museum honors not just their service, but that of all Oklahomans. The 42nd and 45th Infantry Divisions and the 20th Armored Division liberated Dachu, however there were many subcamps and soldiers with our unit, the 36th Infantry Division, often related in the stories they told to their families that they liberated Dachu, when technically it was a subcamp called Kaufring II in Landsburg. Nevertheless, the Army officials in charge of this camp advised us that there were 50 of these cars in this 1 train and that at least 100 of these civilians had been jammed into each car . The 45th participated in its fourth assault landing, 15 August 1944, at St. Maxime in Southern France. Over the course of its history, the 45th Infantry Division sustained over 25,000 battle casualties, and its men were awarded ten Medals of Honor, twelve campaign streamers, the Croix de Guerre and the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation. [2] Also activated from division assets were the 45th Field Artillery Group, later redesignated the 45th Fires Brigade, and the 90th Troop Command. Battalion. However, please note that these records are not online and NARA is not staffed to do this level of research for you. However, with the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany, with its infamous swastika symbol, the 45th Division stopped using the insignia. Please turn JavaScript back on and reload this page. The Regimental, Command Post was moved into Dachau and training began. [39] The division remained on the line with the U.S. 6th Army Group the southernmost of three army groups advancing through France. [62] The cremation ovens, which were still in operation when the soldiers arrived, contained bodies and skeletons as well. [49] From 2 January 1945, the division fought defensively along the German border, withdrawing to the Moder River. Several units were activated to replace the division and carry on its lineage. By 12 September, the Seventh Army linked up with Lieutenant General George S. Patton's U.S. Third Army, advancing from Normandy, joining the two forces at Dijon. 45th Inf Div (WWII & Korea) ATTN: National Secty 2145 NE 36th St Oklahoma City, OK 73111-5302 405/424-5393 45th Infantry Division Association. These brigades would see no major deployments or events, and were inactivated five years later in 1968. [105], The 45th Infantry Division, along with the 7th Infantry Division, fought off repeated Chinese attacks all along the front line throughout 1952, and Chinese forces frequently attacked Old Baldy Hill into the fall of that year. In company with the British 1st Infantry Division, they advanced north along the Anzio-Albano road and captured the Aprilia "factory", but encountered ingrained resistance from German armored units a few miles further on. The 45th Infantry Division was a National Guard Unit. Hey Dave, Im new to this site and stumbled across this thread. Fearing political ramifications, Army leaders sought to prevent large numbers of casualties from any one state, and the 45th Infantry Division was an all-Oklahoma organization at the beginning of the war. The 179th Infantry and a tank battalion of CCA tried to recapture Aprilia but were repulsed. The 42nd and 45th Infantry Divisions and the 20th Armored Division liberated Dachu, however there were many subcamps and soldiers with our unit, the 36th Infantry Division, often related in the stories they told to their families that they liberated Dachu, when technically it was a subcamp called Kaufring II in Landsburg. Seventh Army under Lieutenant General George S. Patton, for the operation. Re: Seeking roster for 45th Infantry Division Dave Kerr Nov 30, 2022 12:50 PM ( in response to Katie Geuin ) Katie, I checked the 29 June 1945 Division Roster as well as my General Orders' Worksheet and did not find your dad's name. Does anyone in the family have his discharge papers that confirm he was a member. It joined the United Nations troops on the front lines during the stalemate of the second half of the war, with constant, low-level fighting and trench warfare against the People's Volunteer Army of China that produced little gain for either side. See: As a result of this effort, two 45th Infantry Division units existed between 1952 and 1953; the mostly Active-duty 45th Infantry Division (AUS) in Korea, and the National Guard 45th Infantry Division (NGUS) in Oklahoma. Ray, E. D. 3rd Photo Reconnaissance Squadron 914. Devers. NPRC expects to eliminate this portion of the backlog by fall 2022, and restore their pre-pandemic response times of under ten days for these requests later this fall. I also examined the lists of names in the History of the Third Infantry Division without success. I have a newspaper clipping from the local paper that he had informed his parents that he had been transferred to the infantry - from the Air Corp/Air Force - of course there would be no mention of what unit he was transferred to, and this was during the winter of '44, when they were pulling men from all branches to fill the line. Also in that collection are two Army Air Corps patches - he started out in the Air Corps - and one USSTAF patch, which the Air Corps evolved into sometime prior to the crossing of the Rhine. It quickly advanced through western France, reaching the German border by the end of the year. If there is any information requested by the form that you do not know, you may omit it or provide estimates (such as for dates), but the more information you provide, the easier it will be to locate the correct file if it survived the fire. After brief inactivation and subsequent reorganization as a unit restricted to Oklahomans, the division returned to duty in 1951 for the Korean War. The 45th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the United States Army, most associated with the Oklahoma Army National Guard, from 1920 to 1968. [10], The 45th Infantry Division engaged in regular drills but no major events in its first few years, though the division's Colorado elements were called in to help quell a large coal mining strike. The majority of the 45th ID GIs who returned in September 1945 were discharge Nov. - Dec. 1945. A shame. [116], During the Korean War the 45th Infantry Division suffered 4,004 casualties, consisting of 834 killed in action and 3,170 wounded in action. The division then defended the hill against a series of Chinese assaults from the Chinese 38th Army. The Dachau massacre and other reprisal killings of concentration camp guards and trustee inmates. Click the image to view the campaign. [39] The division was then slated to move to the Pacific theater of operations to participate in the invasion of mainland Japan on the island of Honshu, but these plans were scrubbed before the division could depart after the surrender of Japan, on V-J Day. Each car was loaded with emaciated human corpses . To access these records for the 1940s, you will need to either make an appointment to visit the, For more information about these records, please contact the National Archives at St. Louis (RL-SL) at, You may experience a delay in receiving an initial acknowledgment as well as a substantive response to your reference request from RL-SL. Division, 1st Battalion, 315th Infantry Regiment, [39] The division had great difficulty moving across the rivers and through the mountainous terrain, and the advance was slow. Rosters. Our officials advised us that many of the others who had survived the trip had died since in the camp, and many more, although still alive, were starved beyond redemption. [42][44], One regiment of the 45th (the 179th Infantry) went ashore with the landings. [111], In the division's first few months on the line, Chinese forces conducted three raids in its sector. That's the most information, all in one place, nailing things down to a specific place and time, that I've seen on Dad. This tool uses JavaScript and much of it will not work correctly without it enabled. Headquarters & Headquarters Battery, 105th I have two rosters of the 45th Division plus several Excel worksheets of men who served in the division. Markham. 180th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Division | American Battle Monuments Commission Cemeteries & Memorials Burial Search Education About Us News Data Multimedia Contact Us 180th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Division Home 180th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Division Legacy ID 27959 Legacy Alias His old dress uniform has a 3rd Infantry Division shoulder patch. The following month, the division landed in Sicily, where it engaged Axis troops in combat. [94] The division was awarded four campaign streamers and one Presidential Unit Citation. In September of 1940, the War Department called the 45th Infantry to federal service and began training for a possible war with Germany and Japan. [36] The 45th Division spent a few days in that city, but on 1 August, the division was withdrawn from the front line for rest and rear-guard patrol duty,[26] after which the division was assigned to Major General Ernest J. Dawley's VI Corps, part of the U.S. Fifth Army, under Lieutenant General Mark W. Clark, in preparation for the invasion of mainland Italy.

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