The Lost Ranger: A Soldier's Story

by Mehlo, Noel

  "All you men interested in being Rangers, report to the Orderly Room for your papers for your interview" said our 1st Sgt. at reveille one morning in September of 1943. I had no idea what he was speaking of, but several obviously did for they went. At noon when they returned, they related how a Ranger Battalion was being formed. It would have a few weeks training and then would go overseas. It would be in on 'The Big One'. That sounded good, and my buddy Harry Vogler and I looked at each other. 'Let's go, V.J." and I said: "All right, Harry J. Let's go!" We went that afternoon for the interview and, perhaps surprisingly, were chosen. Within days we were on a truck heading for the railway station and Tullahoma, Tennessee. We volunteered for various reasons… Harry and I simply didn't like the idea of training another group of trainees and not getting into fighting for many more months. That may sound silly today; but if I was going to be in the war, I wanted to be in the most exciting part of it!”

  Victor J. "Baseplate" Miller, Sgt., Co. E, 5th Ranger Battalion, U.S.A.23

  Among the requirements for joining the new Ranger unit were: Ability to meet the physical requirements of a parachutist.

  Qualify in all arms the battalion possessed

  To have been part of a unit which had experienced a division-size maneuver.

  (Taken from Rangers in World War II – Black)24

  Private Hull found himself transferred as noted in the September 1943 payroll records of the 134th Infantry Regiment.

  Hull, Herbert S., 35597467, Jan 14/43, Transferred as Private from Private to 5th Ranger Battalion, Camp Forrest, Tennessee, per par 2, 30-197, Hq 35th Infantry Division, Dated 1 October 1943.

  5 BECOMING AN ARMY RANGER IN THE 5TH RANGER INFANTRY BATTALION – CAMP FORREST

  I have a definite perspective as to what a Ranger is. For those brave men who have earned the right to wear the mark of the United States Army Ranger, the Ranger Tab or previous Ranger insignia; it means much more than I am sure that I can do justice. The tradition and term Ranger first appeared in United States history dating back to around 1675. During this era, there were many small wars between the colonists and the Native Americans or by proxy with British and French interests behind the conflicts. The first Rangers were professional soldiers who would “range” between the frontier forts in order to provide early warning and reconnaissance against hostile raids. When on the offense, these men would locate targets such as villages acting as scouts and guides. The militia or other colonial troops would then be brought to bear against the opponent if the enemy force was more than the Rangers could take on their own. These first Rangers were used during the French and Indian War, and many American school kids have learned about a famous group of those men, Rogers’ Rangers at some point. Major Rogers served in the Colonial Army, where he honed his war craft while engaging the French and their Native American allies. He spent a great deal of time studying the strategy of his opponents, and then used their own tactics on them, beating them at their own game. He would go on the offense against his enemies by leading raids with his scouts into enemy territories.

  Major Robert Rogers drafted a code of rules known as Roger’s “Standing Orders” that are still included in the modern Ranger Training Manual. These Orders still hold true for a modern warfighter. The orders are:

  STANDING ORDERS, ROGERS' RANGERS 1. Don't forget nothing.

  2. Have your musket clean as a whistle, hatchet scoured, sixty rounds powder and ball, and be ready to march at a minute's warning.

  3. When you're on the march, act the way you would if you was sneaking up on a deer. See the enemy first.

  4. Tell the truth about what you see and what you do. There is an army depending on us for correct information. You can lie all you please when you tell other folks about the Rangers, but don't never lie to a Ranger or officer.

  5. Don't never take a chance you don't have to.

  6. When we're on the march we march single file, far enough apart so one shot can't go through two men.

  7. If we strike swamps, or soft ground, we spread out abreast, so it's hard to track us. 8. When we march, we keep moving till dark, so as to give the enemy the least possible chance at us.

  9. When we camp, half the party stays awake while the other half sleeps.

  10. If we take prisoners, we keep' em separate till we have had time to examine them, so they can't cook up a story between' em.

  11. Don't ever march home the same way. Take a different route so you won't be ambushed. 12. No matter whether we travel in big parties or little ones, each party has to keep a scout 20 yards ahead, 20 yards on each flank, and 20 yards in the rear so the main body can't be surprised and wiped out.

  13. Every night you'll be told where to meet if surrounded by a superior force.

  14. Don't sit down to eat without posting sentries.

  15. Don't sleep beyond dawn. Dawn's when the French and Indians attack.

  16. Don't cross a river by a regular ford.

  17. If somebody's trailing you, make a circle, come back onto your own tracks, and ambush the folks that aim to ambush you.

  18. Don't stand up when the enemy's coming against you. Kneel down, lie down, hide behind a tree. 19. Let the enemy come till he's almost close enough to touch, then let him have it and jump out and finish him up with your hatchet.

  --MAJOR ROBERT ROGERS, 1759 During the Revolutionary war, the use of Rangers became less “officially” important to the United States Army due to the type of combat engaged in. However States did employ the ranger methods locally and on the frontier.1, 2 During the fight for independence, Colonel Daniel Morgan led a group of motivated soldiers known as “Morgan’s Riflemen”. Francis Marion, known as the “Swamp Fox”, organized a band of frontiersman and other unconventional militiamen who served as enough of a thorn in the side of Lord Charles Cornwallis to keep him engaged with his army in the southern states instead of marching north to route General Washington’s forces there. By 1813, the U.S. military accepted the term and practices of the “Ranger”, and twelve Ranger companies were inclusive to the Army. Some 20 years later, 600 mounted Rangers served as Ranger Calvary in the Black Hawk War. The legendary Texas Rangers were birthed from this and survive today as the highly acclaimed Texas law enforcement agency. The Texas Rangers repulsed attacks on their border from Mexican and Native American forces. During the Civil War, the Union Army did not use “Ranger” units; however, special type units were utilized by them for the war. The Confederacy did form Rangers based on a Confederate law known as the Partisan Ranger Act. The most famous of these was Confederate General John Hunt Morgan.3 He would lead raids into Ohio from Sparta Tennessee, not too distant from Tullahoma. General Morgan’s Rangers were defeated by Union forces on July 26, 1863 in one of the northernmost incursions of Confederate forces into Union territory. The engagement is known as the Battle of Salineville, Ohio which is approximately 30 miles from Herbert Hull’s boyhood home. General Morgan was captured near the town of West Point, Columbiana County, Ohio. The term “Ranger” fell by the wayside until World War II, although scouting, raiding and other special warfare tactics have routinely been used by the United States military throughout our history.

  I have learned much about the 5th Ranger Infantry Battalion as a result of this research. First and foremost is that in a generation of heroes, these guys were something special. They were an all volunteer outfit. They had amongst the first formal special warfare training developed by the U.S. Military. They and their fellow Ranger Battalions were often called upon to perform against impossible odds and seemingly impenetrable targets from North Africa, to Sicily, Italy, France, Germany and the Philippines. It is not my intent to recreate the story previously told by men who were much more qualified than I to tell it, such as Glassman, Black or Raaen. My intent is to build upon their work and fill in missing gaps in data and story.

  Between 1940 and 1942, the British heavily employed the use of their elite commandos to protect their threatened interests and to take the fight to the Germa
ns in a very surgical way. They had developed a commando school and had their training methods down to an art. Once America was attacked on December 7, 1941, it began to gear up for a global war on multiple fronts. As part of this wartime focus, attention turned to the British commando system for possible applicability to the American military. In April 1942, Colonel Lucian King Truscott reported to General George Marshall, Army Chief of Staff in Washington D.C. for the assignment of looking hard at the British commandos. This would be the beginning of a four month process of crafting the organizational structure for what would become the 1st Ranger Infantry Battalion.

  The British had organized their commandos to fit the limitations and characteristics of British landing craft and naval organization. The commando platoon size was based upon the number of men who could fit aboard a landing craft assault (LCA). The commando troop could fit aboard two LCAs; and a battalion-size unit called a commando could be carried by a flotilla. Colonel Truscott determined the new American forces should be organized like British commando units for the purpose of combined operations.4

  After finishing the work of evaluating the commandos, Truscott drafted a letter to Major General Russell P. Hartle, Commanding General of United States Army Northern Ireland Forces (USANIF) and V Army Corps (Reinforced), with the purpose of organization of the unit. This letter led to another letter titled "Commando Organization" written by Major General James E. Chaney, Commanding General of United States Army Forces British Isles (USAFBI), on June 1, 1942. The men joining the unit would be trained by the British and take part in combat operations under British control. When the men received training and exposure to combat, the men would be returned to their original organizations, and the cycle would repeat.

  The guidelines established by this letter were clear on what measures to follow in selecting personnel. All officers and NCOs were to be of superior leadership quality. They were to have initiative, sound judgment and common sense. The unit was only to accept fully trained soldiers of the best type. It was imperative that all men have good stamina, natural athletic ability, without physical defects, and be capable of the maximum exertion and endurance expected from a man of that age. The guidance did not establish an age limit was established. The new unit was to seek certain military and civilian skills; such as self-defense, marksmanship, scouting, mountaineering, seamanship, small boat handling, and demolition. This included seeking men who were familiar with things like railway engines, power plants, and radio stations. The reason for this was to provide the unit with organizational knowledge of how to destroy things in the most effectively manner on raids. 4

  It is said that General Dwight Eisenhower made a comment that the American unit should not be named commandos as that term is distinctly British. This is kind of funny, since the original Rogers Rangers were themselves British subjects. The modern United States Army Ranger was thus born anew from history’s long memory. The providing for Ranger training of soldiers was seen by some in the Army brass to be disruptive to Divisional training schedules. The organization of Ranger units was resisted by the commanders of many units because it was thought that such elite units would take away their best fighters who would be the natural leaders and role models in combat. General Ben Lear, Second Army Commander, secured permission for and authorized the formation of additional Ranger Battalions amidst this controversy. It was officially the case that these men would be rotated back into their regular units at some future date to act as combat specialists.5

  The first Ranger units developed and deployed were the 1st Ranger Infantry Battalion which formed June 19, 1942 under the command of Lieutenant Colonel William O. Darby. The 3rd and 4th Ranger Infantry Battalions formed on May 21, 1943 from cadre moved over from the 1st Ranger Infantry Battalion. They were considered Provisional Battalions until sufficiently trained on July 21, 1943 when the Provisional status was dropped. The 29th Ranger Infantry Battalion formed in December 1942. These men participated in three raids of German positions on the Norwegian coast and in Brittany along with the British No. 4 Commando. The Army decided to disband that unit by November 1943 as the 2nd and 5th Ranger Infantry Battalions were set to depart for England in short order. The Ranger trained men from the 29th Ranger Infantry Battalion unit were reabsorbed by the 29th Infantry Division and their training proved important to the D-Day invasion on Omaha Beach. There were also some other highly specialized outfits created that saw action across the world that were not designated as Rangers that were every bit special warfare soldiers, sailors and Marines. The 2nd Ranger Infantry Battalion activated on April 1, 1943 followed shortly thereafter by the 5th Ranger Infantry Battalion which activated on September 1, 1943. Lastly, the 6th Ranger Infantry Battalion activated in the Pacific theater on September 25, 1944 and went on to fame as the liberators of the Japanese Cabanatuan Prisoner of War Camp.6

  When PVT Hull wrote home in the February 1943 about his desire to be able to do more in the Army, little could he know that decisions regarding the necessary invasion of France were being made at the highest levels of the Army that placed him on a collision course to become a member of the then non-existent 5th Ranger Infantry Battalion. His dedication and growing skill as a soldier and those larger decisions made by others would change his life forever.

  Tullahoma, Tennessee was founded in 1850 from an agreement of five men who owned the land. It was named based on Native American words “Tulla” and “Homa” which together mean land of yellow flowers. It then served as a railhead and shipping point for the region of Tennessee between Nashville and Chattanooga. The railroad was completed through the town in 1855. From 1850 to 1940 the main source of income for the town was the presence of the railroad, which was the main line from Nashville to Chattanooga and points in all directions. For most of its existence, it was just a quiet, sleepy little southern town. The Confederate Army used it as a supply base for their army under General Braxton Bragg during the latter part of the Civil War. The Union Army eventually outflanked the Confederate forces there and moved on to Chattanooga about 50 miles to the southeast, which in the grand scheme of the Civil War eclipsed Tullahoma’s role in that war. The town’s 1000 foot above sea level elevation results in a natural lack of malaria bearing mosquitoes and it also has excellent drinking water resources resulting in a lack of typhoid.

  The area did well by the tobacco industry in the early part of the twentieth century. There was extensive logging to support that industry around 1900 that left Tullahoma stripped of timber. By the time of World War II, secondgrowth scrub oak timber remained in the area that was to encompass the area around Camp Forrest. This secondgrowth forest was often burned yearly in the winter in order to reduce the underbrush. This reduced the commercial value of these lands. The earlier deforestation of the region resulted in the desirability of these lands however as a surrogate for European terrain that was affordable to the government. Tullahoma had some small industry including metal product fabrication, some furniture building, baseball production (including the largest baseball manufacturing plant in the U.S.), clothing and lumber, all-in-all supporting about 1,100 industrial jobs in the area. The downtown is shown in Figure 49.

  Figure 49: Tullahoma, Tennessee, 1940’s era postcard: public domain The Nashville, Chattanooga, and St. Louis Railway (NC & St L) gave the State of Tennessee approximately 1,040 acres of land on the outskirts of Tullahoma for the establishment of the National Guard summer camp would become Camp Peay in 1926 encompassing 1,040 acres. The establishment of this base brought in around 1,500 troops per year for their two week training cycle. For annual maneuvers the camp could accommodate 2,500 men. There was a 75,000 gallon water tower and tank with a complete water, sewerage and fire protection network. There were adequate streets and lighting. The post had one administration building, 20 kitchens and mess halls, six bath houses, one large warehouse, one garage and 20 trucks of five ton capacity.7 The 85,000 acre Camp Forrest would eventually grow from Camp Peay. By 1940 Tullahoma would see what seemed like endle
ss trains at all hours.

  Figure 50: Tullahoma Railroad Station - 1940’s era postcard public domain Tullahoma had about 4,500 residents according to the 1940 United States census. By the end of the war, the population would rise to 75,000, and during the periods of the Tennessee Maneuvers, the population would swell to 145,000. Many soldiers returned to the region after the war that had passed through Camp Forrest to settle down. This doubled the population of Tullahoma even after the demolition of Camp Forrest. U.S. Highway 41 which connected Tullahoma and Manchester was paved from Nashville to Chattanooga, but Coffee County only had a total of about 75 miles of paved roads in 1940. Many of the other routes in the county were dirt and in the process of being graveled. The city of Tullahoma had mostly reliable electricity, but the rural areas did not. The railroad enabled newspapers from larger cities to arrive on the day of publication. There were many churches in Tullahoma in 1940; however, they were all from the mainline Protestant denominations. As was the case in the southern United States, segregation was the norm and enacted in law. The local train station is shown in Figure 50.

  Several public officials were integral to the site selection and development of Camp Forrest in 1940. These men included United States Senators Tom Stewart and Kenneth McKellar of Tennessee. Senator McKellar was a powerful member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and advocated strongly for part of the military build-up in Tennessee. He used his influence to convince the Army that Tullahoma would be an ideal location for an army base. State Treasurer John Harton, Sr., Governor Prentice Cooper, and Senator Stewart would later be credited with the realization of Camp Forrest by Tullahoma’s mayor. By enacting the draft the President set the tone for the build-up of the military. The Tennessee Senators had convinced General George C. Marshall that Tullahoma was ideal because land could be acquired cheaply there. Other attributes included good transportation, cheap housing areas, and appropriate terrain for maneuvers. It also had a ready civilian workforce that was just emerging from the Great Depression that was ready to be put to work. To make Tullahoma viable as a military center, the road and rail systems would have to be improved, as would the electrical and communications and other infrastructure. After selection as a military base, Camp Forrest was born that resulted in a robust period of construction culminating in the construction of some 1,300 buildings.8 This included development of an air training base called William Northern Field located four miles north of Tullahoma. This airfield became the third largest airfield in Tennessee.