by Ian Gardner
Jim Martin recalls his platoon’s return to Saalfelden:
Things began to change… Again we occupied private dwellings, but discipline started to tighten with regular morning parades and inspections. However, there was an upside. One weekend about half a dozen of us visited a nearby German ordnance depot and took as many explosives, flares, and small-arms ammunition as we could carry into the foothills for a party. Before we departed we had our photographs taken with the vast array of shells and mortars. We spent the day firing thousands of rounds, blowing up trees and anything else we could find with Panzerfausts and plastic explosive. Capt Cann heard some of the explosions and saw smoke drifting over the valley. Thinking it was some form of enemy activity, Cann sent out a patrol to find out what was going on.
Later that month, our food supplies began to dry up and at one point it became so bad that some like me in G Co were on the point of malnutrition. It didn’t take long for us to find out that certain senior members of the QM Department, who were responsible for our rations, were in fact hauling them over the Alps from Innsbruck through the Brenner Pass down into Italy to sell for immense profit on the Black Market!
At the time Capt Cann was trying his best to resolve the situation but when things got worse I decided to go sick. My weight was always on or around 134lb, but when the doctors weighed me I was horrified to see that I was down to 109lb. The medics just couldn’t believe that we’d been denied our regular rations and immediately began an inquiry to find out why this had happened. I was admitted to hospital and placed on a seven-day high-protein diet along with some of the other urgent cases. Not long afterwards a colonel from the QM Corps and several senior enlisted men were brought up on corruption charges and sent to prison.
Like many others, Bob Webb was relieved when his second Purple Heart came through, lifting his ASR score to 87 points. “Everyone was wandering around shaking hands and calling each other ‘Mister.’ No damn South Pacific for us. Now I could get a decent sun tan, go home, get married, and not have to go through all this crap again.”
On June 28, around 400 men with a minimum of 85 points were alerted for transfer to the 501st PIR, which was to be the first regiment scheduled for deactivation. At the same time the 501st re-assigned 655 of its low-point troops back to the 506th. Shortly afterwards, the regiment began to decrease its area of operations by about 50 percent and stepped up its training on a variety of individual weapon skills. All units fired preliminary and record courses with their personal weapons. “HQ Co spent two mornings on the ranges, starting at 4am,” recalls Bob Webb. “I scored 182 out of 200 with the M1 and qualified as ‘expert,’ which was no surprise as God knows I’d had enough practice over the last 12 months!”
Before leaving Austria, Col Sink gave the “Old Boys” a moving and heartfelt speech, as Hank DiCarlo recalls: “While we were all gathered in the sunshine he told us of his pride in the 506th and thanked us for what we’d done for our country over the last two years before wishing us goodbye and good luck.”
Since June 1944, the division had spent an astonishing 214 days in combat. During that time over 2,000 soldiers had been killed and over 8,000 wounded or missing in action. In total the division was awarded two Congressional Medals of Honor, 47 Distinguished Service Crosses, 516 Silver Stars, and 6,977 Bronze Stars.
France, August 4–November 28, 1945
The regiment received orders on July 31 for a move to Auxerre in the Burgundy region of France. Over the next two days the unit moved out by road and rail and by August 4 was established in the crumbling French garrisons of Joigny and Sens. Meanwhile, most of the high-point enlisted men had been transferred to the 501st and sent further east to a large three-storey barracks at Nancy.
Clark Heggeness and Fred Bahlau were shipped home on the SS Mariposa out of Marseille, heading for Boston. Fred was no fool and had three solid wooden containers built to covertly hold all the souvenir handguns collected by 1st Bn. “Every pistol was oiled and individually tagged with the person’s name and company. I had a beautiful collection of mint-condition Lugers and P38s. These were the last items to go into the third box before they were all sealed with steel strapping. When we got back to the States, I discovered that one of the boxes had been tampered with at the dockside in France. It was even worse when I found out that it was only my pistols that had been taken. Luckily, I had enough sense to store four more in my footlocker so at least I had something to bring home other than just Frau Göring’s letters.”
After reaching Nancy, Bob Webb recalls, “We didn’t do a damn thing except sit around waiting for our education courses to begin. We were only allowed to take two subjects. I chose ‘Arithmetic’ plus ‘Bookkeeping and Accounting’ so my time here, although limited, wasn’t totally wasted. One of the guys in my room had a radio so we were able to keep up to speed on current events and listen to a bit of music.”
Much to Hank DiCarlo’s surprise a note arrived informing him that he was to be awarded the Silver Star:
I didn’t really know what I’d done to deserve it, but what the heck. To relieve the boredom, I volunteered for Chute Patrol and was paired up with a regular army MP called Joe Bellante. We patrolled a lot around the local brothels. The most famous was called “Number Nine” and owned by a middle-aged Italian couple, Maria and Arturo Sargento, nicknamed “Mama and Papa.” The place was off limits to enlisted men on weekends when it was strictly officers only. I was amused but also confused. Did this mean Uncle Sam was a pimp? Because we both spoke Italian, the Sargentos took an instant shine to the pair of us. Bellante couldn’t believe it when they offered us access to all their amenities, including food, laundry, and a place to sleep. I didn’t want to go home with a sexually transmitted disease so politely refused. But it took me another 15 minutes to convince Joe to do the same. I wasn’t popular but I think ultimately it was a smart move.
Shortly after the second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, the high-point men were transported south by train to a transit camp near Marseille. While his colleagues were heading down the Rhone valley, S/Sgt Ralph Bennett was on his way to England to marry the very special and lovely Miss June Earl, whom he had met prior to Normandy when the 506th was based in Ramsbury.
The wedding took place on August 15, 1945 (the day Japan officially surrendered) at Saint Mary’s Parish Church, Church Street, in Slough. As Ralph recalls, “Spencer ‘SO’ Phillips was supposed to be my Best Man and left France ahead of me, carrying all the wonderful wedding presents I’d purchased in Paris. Spencer presented the gifts to June as if they were from him before disappearing on a seven-day bender and didn’t even bother to turn up for the wedding!” June adds, “Due to SO’s absence I had to ask one of our neighbors, Arthur Marsdon, to step in. Because it was VJ Day, we all had to sit and listen to a long sermon about the end of the war. The wedding cake looked stunning, but as it was made with powdered eggs the whole thing went off and was inedible!” Although Ralph returned home in November it would be another year of waiting before he and June were reunited in the States.
“At Marseille, the newly built wooden huts seemed reasonably comfortable considering the amount of men who were passing through the port,” recalls Jim Martin, who was part of a 50-man group from G Co sent to the 501st. “My group was attached to a motley crew of regular infantry and paraded with them every morning for two weeks until it was my time to go home.”
While waiting, Jim met up with his old platoon buddy Sgt Guerdon Walthall, who had since fully recovered from the wounds he had received six months earlier on “Hell Night.” “Every morning at formation, we were checked for VD as the army wouldn’t let anyone return to the US with a sexually transmitted disease. Walthall was tearing his hair out because he was being treated for an STD and asked me to cover for him at next roll call. I did this for a couple of days until he successfully smuggled himself onto another troopship! Despite the ban on cameras, I always carried an Argus A2 35mm and took photos wherever and whenever possible. During my
time at Marseille, I had five rolls of combat film stolen before being able to get them processed. I never knew who took them or where they went but I know that there were many images of Bastogne that would now be regarded as historically important.”
While waiting for a ship, Manny Barrios was put in charge of a large post exchange (PX). “They gave me my own private bunk and issued me with a sidearm. It wasn’t all work because I still found time to see the Bob Hope USO show before handing over to another NCO and packing my bags for home.”
Around September 1, 1945, Manny Barrios, Hank DiCarlo, Teddy Dziepak, Jim Martin, Bob Webb, and dozens of other “high-pointers” from 3rd Bn and the 506th, sailed for America on the troopship SS Manhattan and arrived at Camp Shanks, Orangeburg, New York – ironically the exact same place from where the regiment had departed in September 1943.
Shortly after arriving, the men boarded a number of different trains that carried them back to the military camps from where they had originally enlisted. Jim Martin recalls:
The woman at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania, who processed my paperwork, wrote in the “Organization” box at the top, “513th Parachute Infantry.” I know this was the unit we were all re-assigned for discharge but personally that wasn’t good enough for me. There was no mention of the 506th or the 101st, and when I asked her to change the Unit ID, she tutted loudly and refused. However, I insisted and reluctantly she typed out a new discharge form with “506th Parachute Infantry Regiment” at the top. It may seem a little crazy now but then it meant a heck of a lot to me! Two weeks later, I met Donna Verveka, from Newton, Iowa, who was building aircraft in Dayton at Wright Field. We soon started dating and I quickly realized that she was the one. We were married on March 10, 1946 and are still together today (2014).
Bob Webb was honorably discharged on September 22, at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, where he had started out three years earlier. Clark Heggeness was sent to Camp Miles Standish in Massachusetts. “From here they gave me a rail ticket to Camp McCoy, Wisconsin, where I was officially discharged and eventually returned home to my wife in North Dakota.” Teddy Dziepak was sent to Fort Dix, New Jersey, for demobilization.
Before going home every soldier was asked to declare any injuries, as Ted recalls: “The military authorities made it totally clear that if we had any medical issues connected to our service then it could possibly delay discharge. Despite having had emersion foot and some shrapnel in my arm, when asked, I said everything was fine. The following year after arthritis began to set in, I visited the VA (Veterans Affairs) hospital in East Orange, New Jersey, who turned me away because I hadn’t declared any combat-related injuries on my discharge papers!”
Hank DiCarlo was also demobbed at Fort Dix. “Within two years I was missing the army so much that I re-enlisted into the 82nd Airborne. But when my Dad got sick and died of bowel cancer in 1950, I finally decided to hang up my boots to take care of my mom.”
Joigny – the last paycheck
The 101st Airborne Division was now in Supreme Headquarters Reserve and 3rd Bn posted to Joigny. The camps at Joigny, Sens, and Auxerre (Divisional HQ) were situated along the banks of the river Sens and had seen better days.
After two weeks of easy living, Harold Stedman was granted seven days’ leave to Switzerland, “where I had crowns put in to replace my missing teeth … all for the princely sum of $35.00! After returning to base, Andy Anderson told me that I would be fighting middleweight for the 506th on August 25, at the ETO Championships. This was a bit of a surprise because I thought they were going to send me home. Anyhow, this was by far the biggest and most important boxing event that I’d ever competed in … and after almost three weeks off, I’d put on around 13lb and just wasn’t prepared mentally or physically for the task.” Macrae Barnson was also selected for the team as a light heavyweight. Despite his bravery throughout three campaigns, as a persistent AWOL offender Barnson still only had an ASR score of 70. “The competition was spread over three nights,” recalls Harold. “Although I was boxing in a heavier class, I won my first two fights. But by the last evening, after knocking James Wagoner (327th GIR) out in the third round, I lost in the final. I was devastated at being beaten by Wagoner and really felt that I’d let Richie Shinn (who won the welterweight championship), the team, and the regiment down. A few days later I got into a fight with a senior NCO who was picking on a young replacement in the chow line. The situation got a little out of hand and I broke the guy’s nose and jaw plus a couple of ribs. Disciplinary action followed and I was busted back to private, but luckily Andy Anderson kindly stepped in and saved me from going to jail.”
After Japan formerly surrendered the whole dynamic changed and the prospect of the 101st Airborne seeing any further action quickly became a distant memory. “I wasn’t guilty about the atomic bombs being dropped on Japan, as the thought of the Pacific was just too horrendous to contemplate,” recalls Harley Dingman. Shortly afterwards, Maxwell Taylor handed over command of the division to BrigGen William Gilmore. Taylor returned to the USA, whereupon he became superintendent of the West Point Military Academy, while his faithful assistant, Gerald Higgins, took command of the Parachute School at Fort Benning. William Gilmore stayed in charge for just over a month until being replaced on September 25 by BrigGen Gerald St Clair Mickle. During September, the division announced that every parachute-trained individual had to make one last clean fatigue jump (without equipment) to qualify for “Para Pay.” During the next four weeks over 5,000 descents were carried out. “On September 21, it was my turn to jump,” recalls Lou Vecchi. “I was earning around $160.00 a month (most of which I sent home to my mother) and needed to stay in date. Many said they weren’t prepared to participate because of the risks but they were transferred shortly afterwards to serve out their remaining days in regular infantry outfits. We jumped in company groups onto a grass DZ because it wasn’t actually big enough to take a full battalion insertion. I was happy to take part, the weather conditions were fantastic, and it became my 21st and last jump.”
“It was all very casual,” recalls Harley Dingman. “There were even local vendors selling refreshments and cotton candy [candyfloss]! A delegation from the House of Representatives were sent over to observe the jumping and assess the future of the division. Soon afterwards the powers that be decided to shut down the 101st in favor of the 82nd, but to be honest none of us really gave a damn just as long as we got to go home.”
Bob Dunning returned to what now remained of HQ Co after being wounded in the stomach en route to Berchtesgaden. “Jack Manley and I immediately went AWOL and toured around Europe for a while like we were on holiday.” When Bob and Jack decided to come back, 1st Lt Chaz Schaefer (who had recently been posted in from G Co) informed them that they would both be on the next shipment home. “We went AWOL again, and when we returned the lieutenant threatened to tie us both to a tree to make sure we didn’t disappear again.”
Although many of the original players, like Joe Madona and Albert Gray, were now dead, the “Champagne Bowl” football game between the 506th and the 502nd, which had been interrupted by the Battle of the Bulge, was finally rescheduled. This time, as a mark of respect, two matches were played and both regiments declared winners.
By the middle of October the remaining troops began transferring to the 82nd Airborne Division. Bob Izumi was among the first to be re-assigned along with 21 other enlisted men from G Co and sent to Germany, where the 82nd had become the main occupying force in Berlin.
The 508th PIR were selected to act as security for SHAEF HQ now based in the IG Farben HQ at Frankfurt. On June 10, the 508th arrived and requisitioned apartments and houses in the suburb of Heddernheim. Izumi was sent to 2nd Bn, whose “Occupation Mission” was to patrol the towns of Oberusel, Bad Homburg, and Königstein. “I was assigned to F Co in Bad Homburg,” recalls Izumi. “Before leaving Europe, we stood guard during a visit from Eisenhower and several other dignitaries, such as Patton and Gen Joseph T. McNarney, CO Mediterranean Thea
ter of Operations.”
Back in the USA, two vehicles that had once been part of the fleet belonging to Adolf Hitler and Hermann Göring went on tour as part of the US Treasury Department’s effort to raise money for a victory loan. Seven men, including two officers from the 506th, were sent home to take part in the tour, including S/Sgt Charlie Maggio from 3 Ptn G Co and S/Sgt “Red” Falvey from 2/506, who had been wounded on January 13, in the woods above Foy.
Despite now having the correct number of points, Harley Dingman was held back and ordered to organize the formal Honor Company for a big parade on November 7, to mark the end of the 506th PIR. “Of course I had no idea how this should be carried out nor did anyone else, but Andy Anderson handed me a manual 4in thick and told me to get on with it. The training and rehearsals took about two weeks but everything went smoothly on the day and I must say the drill and the men looked amazing.”
The divisional G3, Col Harry Kinnard, wrote the last bulletin issued by the 101st Airborne, then commanded by BrigGen Stuart Cutler. “To those of you left to read this – do not dwell on the disintegration of our great Unit, but rather be proud that you are of the ‘Old Guard’ of the greatest Division ever to fight for our Country. Carry with you the memory of its greatness wherever you may go, being always assured of respect when you say, ‘I served with the 101st.’”
