Sgt Harold Rutz, 395th Infantry Regiment, M Company. There Major Butler collapsed due to exhaustion on 30 April, and Lt. Col. J. The 3rd Battalion, 395th Infantry, led by Lt. Col. McClernand Butler and 2nd Lt. Col. Roy S. Groffy, occupied the area around Hfen, Germany, on the border with Belgium during early December. To make circumstances worse, just beyond the bloodied-but-not-beaten Volksgrenadiers waited the tanks of the 6th Panzer Army. The 99th Infantry Division, comprising the 393rd, 394th, and the 395th Infantry Regiments, arrived in England on 10 October 1944. The German armor, with SS Panzergrenadiers riding on their decks, clattered down the icy roads of Rocherath and headed for Krinkelt, only a stones throw away. So fierce in fact that the German commander pulled his tanks back for fear of running into a superior American force, deciding to hold his positions until the following morning. It was not just the lives of 3/395 at stake; a German breakthrough here would have enabled the Sixth Panzer Army to outflank the 2nd ID and 99th ID and achieve a direct route to the Meuse River. Several photos from the private collection of, THE EARLY YEARS Joseph Richard Evans (Dick) was born on October 17, 1920 to Charles E. Evansand Wenonah (nee Muirhead/Miller)in, Source: family of Raymond J. Willaredt. This northern shoulder of the American line where the 99th ID was entrenched would be the hinge on which the German assault would pivot northwest toward Antwerp. Their success in defending Hfen resulted in the 395th Infantry being repeatedly assigned to other divisions for difficult assignments during the remainder of the war, earning them the sobriquet, Butler's Blue Battlin' Bastards. Family lore, The 99th Infantry Division Artefacts Collection. Led by 20-year-old Lieutenant Lyle Bouck Jr., they delayed the advance of the 1st SS Panzer Division, the spearhead of the entire German 6th Panzer Army, for nearly 20 hours. Unbeknownst to its commanding general at the time, Maj. Gen. Walter E. Lauer, the division would play a strategic role in the war and would gain the honor of having the most decorated platoon of the US army during World War Two. The Combined Bomber Offensive (CBO) in the European Theater was one of Americas bloodiest campaigns. Seth Paridon was a staff historian at The National WWII Museumfrom2005 to 2020. "[13] The division continued to attack without opposition to the Inn River and Giesenhausen until VE-day. It was like a golf course, so I used the night for concealment."[6]. When three hours later a third SS assault hit the defenders, it too was stopped. The war was over six days later.[6]. That was not the case for the Americans near Elsenborn. A 105mm artillery piece from the 2nd Infantry Div. 395 Infantry Regiment Medical Detachment (99th Infantry Division) Report, January 1945. By December 1944, Allied armies had reached the western border of Germany itself. EN RU CN DE ES. [6] On more than one occasion, BAR gunners would allow Germans to get within feet of their positions before opening fire, with the objective of increasing the odds of killing the attacking Germans. The 99th Infantry Division received recruits from the ASTP program (Army Specialized Training Program, to make up for the personnel shortages in front line units during 1944. The rapid advance did not deter the men of the 38th Infantry Regiment, however, who put up a fierce defense. From 21 December 1944 to 30 January 1945, the unit was engaged in aggressive patrolling and reequipping. Those who survived the initial onslaught and did not manage to flee, had to eke out a living on a battleground ravaged by incessant bombardment and street fighting. 99th Infantry Division used the relatively quiet period to prepare an extensive defensive system, including redundant lines of communication, precise positioning of weapons to provide interlocking grazing fire, and aggressive patrols that kept the Germans off guard. During the Battle of the Bulge, the regimentat times virtually surrounded by Germanswas one of the few units that did not yield ground to the attacking Germans. After clearing towns west of the Rhine, it crossed the Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen on the 11th. By the end of the December 16, much of the American front lines in the Ardennes had been broken by the German assault. The breakout from Saint-L, France was accomplished far more rapidly than Allied planners had dared hope, and American units plunged through the French countryside with undreamed of rapidity, far in advance of operational plans. With ammunition supplies dwindling rapidly, the men obtained German weapons and utilized ammunition obtained from casualties to drive off the persistent foe. The blue and white checkerboard in the division's insignia is taken from the coat of arms of William Pitt, for whom Pittsburgh is named. : 33 On at least six occasions they called in . [20], After a short period off the line, the battalion conducted offensive operations in Germany, including the seizure of several German towns from 1 to 5 March. [10], Around Hfen, which the 395th defended, the ground was marked with open hills. In the opening days of the Battle of the Bulge, Robert's regiment was on the front lines in the Losheim Gap. The 99th RSC was awarded the Army Superior Unit Award on 9 May 2016 by the US Army Human Resources Command for its role in the relief support after Hurricane Sandy, from 29 October 2012 thru 31 March 2013. The 393rd, 394th & 395th were the Infantry Regiments of the 99th Infantry Division. This required the corps commander to draw on an infantry battalion from another division, and because of the reputation the 395th had earned at Hfen, it was transferred often to various divisions, including the 9th Infantry Division, the 3rd Armored Division, and the 7th Armored Division. The 395th Infantry had mostly held their lines, and now with the battle hardened 2nd Infantry Division on the way to back them up, the lines of defense near Elsenborn appeared to be significantly harder to pierce. The program was called the Army Specialized Training Program (ASTP), and it sought to give extra training and special skills to a select group of intelligent and able young men, most of whom were taken from America's colleges. The US Armys 99th Infantry Division, recently arrived in Europe and untested in combat, was assigned to the northern shoulder of the Allied front line in the Ardennes Forest. The 99th Infantry Division, the "Checkerboard" division, gained its nickname from the division's insignia. The combination of no ammunition and heavy German armor caused the American lines to fold, like a dam bursting. Ordered into active military service: 15 November 1942 Camp Van Dorn, Mississippi. Motto VIGILANS ET CELER (Vigilant and Swift). Although 3/395 had only 600 men to defend a large area, they had been told that the German army, or Wehrmacht, was no longer capable of major offensive operations and that their winter in the Ardennes would be a quiet one. Earl Denzil Reese April 13th, 1945 - A combat engineer snapped this series of photos while riding on back of a truck during the Battle of the Ruhr Pocket. The German 20th Infantry Division was an infantry division of Nazi Germany.HistoryThe was established in 1934 under the cover name. T. E. Piersall and Pfc. As many as half a million civilians remained in Stalingrad when the Germans approached in the late summer of 1942. . German losses were much higher. The buck's head was used to indicate the allocation of the organization to the mountainous section of Pennsylvania, where deer abound. They shall not grow old,As we that are left grow old:Age shall not weary them,Nor the years condemn.At the going down of the sunAnd in the morningWe will remember them., Albertson Dale WBass Robert DBrown Edwin C, Busk Alman FFeeney Thomas CHoman Eugene S, McKuen John SPerrine Sam HPolykoff Benjamin, Rafelson Robert JRobinson William SSedam Elmer M, Sorensen Howard DWilson Harry C JrWolston Kenneth C, Empfield Raymond GFisher Anton JGaffin Charles R, Adkins Jesse EAllenberg Edward MAllman Harold MAllord Edward WAlmond Herman UAnderson Darrel LAnderson Marvin OApitz Harold AAsh Ralph AAtkisson Joseph FAtwell Willie DAustin James EBaird William DBaker Earl EBaker Melvin LBarnum Roy ABarrett John W JrBartlett Raymond EBaxter Harry OBaxter Thomas QBeadle Francis EBedra Edward JrBelcher Garland LBelknap William TBennett Howard EBenoit Alvoid JBenson Edward J JrBerg Arthur LBerger Carl JBesozzi RenoBlack Robert HBlackburn William W JrBlair Erwin HBlumberg Robert ABoliek Richard LBorders HermanBowman Buefird TBradshaw Fred JrBreland Kernis RBrewer Granville HBrewer J. D.Brigandi FrankBrown George HBrowne JamesBryant Ammon RBryant Harold MBurd John RBurks William M JrBurnett MonroeBurnhelm Carl RCade Francis WCarey Richard VCarland Joseph ECarns George RCarpenter Stanley WCarrick George JrCarroll Hugh JCarter Travis ECasey Robert WCataldo Rocco AChenault David F JrClark Harold EClark Leland WClary Charles EClaypool Kermit MCollins EdwardCollins George DCollins Richard AColvett William LColville David PComber Joseph AConley Lawrence JConnolly John JrCork Bob VCounseller Jean ECousino Robert HCox Cary DCox LeonCrawford Glen RCreekmore Albert GCross Jesse TCrowe Gwen HCwiklik Michael ADailey Francis JDamico Francis XDaves Robert ODavis Donald BDavis Seborn EDecker FrankDenny Glen L, Densock Robert EDi Cicco TheodoreDillon Robert CDixon Johnny MDowning Orleen SDowning Roger HDreher Edward PDrennan Howard GDrumm Edmond GDrzazgowski Frank ADurfee William PDurnell Richard EDutcher Roy BEasterday Roger EEdwards Clayton DEllico Jesse R JrEllis James GEllis John PElson CalvinEngelbretson RoyEnlow John WEnnis Thomas LEppinger Robert HErxleben John EEscarela Joe JEskra VictorEspinoza Nino JEvans Robert EEvaristo Manuel MFelch Harold E JrFields Oran RFierst Lawrence AFiner Morris LFischel BernardFitch Ferris HFitch Howard LFord Lyle RFort Jack WForte Italo SFrancis Edward RFreeman Edward WFrey Henry JFritsch Russell HFugate Thomas RFullerton Thomas FGaddy Robert JGair John JGalliani RobertGardner Raymond CGarrett Elbert DGeorge Lloyd AGeroni DanielGillaspey Winton EGilliam John DGist LloydGochee Peter F JrGoedert William CGordan Ellsworth LGoudeau Joseph LGraf Donald WGreen Eugene DGreenwood Ralph JGriles Joseph DGrundman Kenneth RGustafson GlennGutzwiller Raymond AHacker Robert GHaendiges Henry EHamrick Harvey DHand JackHanlon BentonHansing John FHarboy John JrHarman Talmage E JrHarper James F JrHarris Albert AHearn Norman GHeffner CharlesHeffron Francis CHeller Robert IHemenway Arthur LHerb Julius DHerr Jay RHerring John LHerzberg LawrenceHess Charles GHesser Ernest W JrHetrich Warren KHettel Charles JHill Charles E, Hill LeonardHinds James HHobson John JHoch Eugene AHodges James S JrHoing paul AHolda Walter JHolloway L. O. JrHopkins John LHoranzy Michael RHouchins Vernon EHoward Millard HHoward William AHudson Frank C JrHudson Leroy VHunter Clarence WHupp Howard THurley John JIcenhower John AIppolito Carl FJabcuga Anthony JJackson Howard EJackson Richard MJameson Joseph DJenkins David J JrJenkins John CJenkins Stuart MJennings Patrick AJohnson WilliamJohnson William EJones Amasa LJones Charles WJones James LJones Robert CJordan Richard TJordan Robert EJoy John LJuiris AlfredKachmar MichaelKapple Jay PKay David CKays Robert LKeener Ralph KKelly Raymond JKerin Frank WKilpatrick Chester MKing Joseph JKlein JacobKober George BKoken Joseph JKorell Walter H JrKowal JohnKudlak WalterKurko JohnKuykendall WallaceLa Charite Norman JLa Faber Calvin RLampkin Jack CLang Fred WLawecki Charles CLedford Cleo HLee Lester WLee Yeun WLenzen John ALeo Alphonse JLewis Lawrence JLindholm John MLingar John DLippman SeymourLloyd Cyrus BLockhart Lewis MLopez LouisLudtke William FLukacin JosephLynn Alva BMacchia Antonio FMagee Eugene PMarenna Pasquale MMarsh George HMatthews John H JrMaynard Benjamin TMcAndrews George TMcCorkle Coy MMcCoy John FMcCoy Lewis FMcCurdy Benedict GMcIntire Sylvan RMcIntyre Walter FMcWilliams Harold LMertz Leverne M, Meyer Sherman LMichalowicz Florian BMiller George DMiller Leslie MMiller LesterMiller RobertMilliren Donald W JrMizerny Stanley A JrMongoy Arthur PMonnot Richard GMooney John TMoore Johnnie DMoran Albert JMoran John S JrMorgan John DMoses Robert FMouchette Horace DMurray James ENeff Carl WNelson John LNess John KNewton Charlie MNickel Charles BNielsen Roger CNovino Albert FOas Norman LOgren Harry LOkane John LOliver Lat PPacheco Henry PPargulski Gerald JParker Ernest TPecsenye Joseph JPendel Anthony GPerdue Jack MPetersen John NPeterson Edward JPettijohn Willis TPettus Calvin FPetty Rodney CPhelps Cecil JPhillips Herbert SPiechowiak LouisPierce Gilbert MPittenger Edward JPoff Henry WPostlethwaite Earl APower Edmund CPratt John CPreissler Walter OQuinn John H JrRand William CRegnier GregoryRhodes Norman TRiccardi John ARicci Orlando JRichardson Jerry DRichardson Merrell CRizzo Ralph PRockwell John MRodgers Thomas J JrRodriguez Ernest RRogers Paul WRomero JohnRomero JohnRoot John FRopp EdwardRosencrane Harry MRoy John DRutkowski JohnSanders Robert RSappington John HSchaffer Stanley CSchauster Delmar MSchell Richard ESchoonover Dale ESchuerger AndrewSerkes David JSharbaugh Leonard GSharpe OdellShary George HSheffield O. V.Shelton William AShumsky TheodoreSiglin James HSimpson RobertSingletary John LSipnick RaymondSivertsen Alfred JSlater Chester J, Henneke Fred RSlayton Johnnie BSlivka John JSlyboom William ESmith Buford ESmith Chad WSmith Jerry MSmith Simon RSneed Vernon GSnow John CSnyder Arnold GSpack JohnSpencer Harry GSpriggs Harry LStanfield Donald WStanley Cecil CStanley James HStarr Lewis WSteinberg HarrySteinmetz Charles HStevens Richard DStickney Joseph WStonewall Addison PStrunk Howard JrStrype George MSuman James HSutton Theodore WSweeney John RSwisher Alvin TSwope Earl JrTerrant GeorgeTheodoropoulos SteloisThomas Drummond BThomas William H JrThome David LThurnher Erwin WToler Paul WTolle James RTrimm John HTrzaskos Leonard FTucker George ATurrittin Richard HTyrell James WUnderwood Hugh SVan Meter Vernon KVan Pelt John FVan Zant Billy WVapner RudolphVaughn Charles WVaught Raymond EVoge Helmuth FWade Guy WWagner FrederickWalker Hayden DWallis Charles G JrWaskel Casmir VWasson Robert LWaters Hubert RWeileder Edward EWheatley Hubert AWhite Albert JWhite Billy BWhite Theodore EWhitney Donald MWilkinson Charles EWillcockson Kenneth AWillemsen Henry J JrWilliams Harry EWilliams JosephWillker AlexanderWilson Robert T JrWince Manuel BWindus Charles FWolcott Henry NWomack Sollie E JrWood Richard JWorley Eldridge SWright Herman PWright Merle AWurm Joseph J JrYapel Jacob F JrYoder Paul HYoung John HYuslum Anthony TZachariah George TZaffran Eugene FZagurskie Theodore F JrZarillo Joseph PZeback Michael JrZunner Raymond L, Albrighton Weston RAllen Charles MAllender James LAlt Arthur DAppleby Ralph RAxelrod EdwardBannick TimothyBarker MilfordBarnard John RBarnes Ernest LBarrow Charles FBarry Leon FBatdorf Hobart FBates James FBauer Kenneth FBaxter Irvin ABeall Archibald KBeatty Dwight EBeck Herman JBelanchik Stanley MBell Dale EBero George EBesky Leonard LBest Norman EBlackburn Walter HBlakely Walter LBlanks Howard EBlassingame Cloyce NBockbrader Edwin WBodnar Peter JrBoehler Clyde RBogart Earl JBogart Perry SBoothe Mark J JrBosh Henry ABoyd Francis EBricker Raymond FBrinegar Junior RBrister Raz, Brookins William EBrown Earnest EBrown Leon HBrunty WillisBujan Raymond JBurdette Louis ABurdick Austin WBurzi Vincent PBusse Alfred FButcher Carl OButler Charles ECampbell William HCanner Bernard VCannon Bernard ECarmichael Herbert NCarpenter Robert LCarpenter VictorChambliss Harrell CChandler Robert NChristiansen Merlin ACline Junius HCockerill Robert ECoe Leslie ECole George HCollins Charles WComfort John RConrath Leon AConti James SCooper William DCrawford Milton HCreel Willard ECremeans Ralph CCrocitto Dominick PCulbertson Fred HCupryk SteveCurtis Richard WDallas George BDattilo Frank J JrDavidson Ernest F, Davis Edward KDavis MarvinDeakyne Duane DDechon Harold EDenman Jay DDevenport Floyd MDi Gennaro Anthony GDickerson James KDiehl Russell FDiehl Samuel HDietz Junior DDikeman Frank WDippold Arthur JDorner George WDuggan Thomas ADunaj Richard LDutton Noah LDyer Charles SDyke Harry WEberle Franklin AEllis Robert LEmmer Raymond PErvin William F JrEvans Billy KFerguson Allen JFerguson Frank RFick Robert N JrFidler Ewing EFielder Floyd WFields Robert LFinn Walter EFishel Lloyd JFisher Joseph OFlathe George LFlynn Arthur PFowler Milo FFreer Charles OFulton Thomas FGalyean Roy E, Gardner James HGarner J. T. JrGarnes Willard BGaus Frederick E JrGeiser Walter HGibson Paul RGildenberg IsaacGilley Russell JGipson JessieGisewite Clarence EGoff Edgar AGoodley Edward CGraf Samuel KGraham James HGrandstaff James OGrant Raymond LGreen Arthur LGrissom Lawrence DGullette Charles R JrHabas AnthonyHaefner Albert WHagedorn Matthew WHallberg Carl OHaller George, JrHampton Edwin WHarbaugh Lloyd EHarbaugh Valentine EHarnish Clarence JHarper Eldon LHarper Rupert EHarris Joe JHawk Daniel FHawkes Arthur EHayes Charles EHeck Morris WHedge Thomas AHeffner Eugene CHeinz Robert A, Henry Sherwood DHeytow JackHicks James HHiggins John T JrHigh George GHill Charles EHirons Elwin F JrHixson Wallace W JrHoffman Raymond JHollschwander George JrHooper Wallace JHornick Edward JHorwitch Edward JHoward George FHubiak Peter JrHudson James EHunter Eddie CHutchins Fred DHutton Robert FIngo Clayton JIrr Frank VIson Robert LJackse Anton MJackson Milton LJakubowski Stanley PJarabek JohnJones Archie WJones Charlie JrJones Guy HJones SampsonJorgensen John HJudd Fred LKaiser John LKaplan Sidney SKeglovits Walter AKelley Paul CKemmick Edward J, Abshire William FAlcorns Hubert CAllen Carl LAllen Dennis JBader Joseph PBangerter Perry EBarrett Charles WBarton Oscar HBeck Raymond C JrBeckwith Jack CBellomy Bennie BBennett Earl VBennett R. C.Berry Joseph ABillington Lawrence MBirmingham Edward LBoardman Donald HBoles Edwin VBonsack Gordon CBourn Ralph LBoyd Gordon RBrodehl Ellsworth EBrosnan Jeremiah JBrown Roland ABruce William M IIIBudinsky Joseph JBurkhardt Willard WCain Elbert BCalder George HCarlson Claus PCarter Martin RChampoux Walter L JrChaney Paul DChiodi Ernest JChlubna Joseph KCipriano Michael AClarke Banks CClarke Francis XClesi Victor JrCogar Arnold LConley Ralph VContakos Anthony CCook Charles ECorrigan John JCox Haskel LCrawford Charles MCurrie William PDavidson William MDawson Donald MDeshazer Arnold WDevereaux James J JrDiehl Joseph HDonahoe Robert JDunaway Ray FEmery Allan LErickson Hildus A, Eser Boyd F SrEvert Eugene HFarrington John WFeltner HubertFitzgerald Grover CFord George JFrankel FelixFriedman Albert LGastelum Richard GGettys Hugh MGibney Samuel B JrGibson Theodore TGonzales MateoGraffunder Carl HGreenberg StanleyGreta WilliamGrezik George JGriffith Mark G JrGross William EHarris Robert AHarsh Edwin GHassell Lloyd MHayes Ronald BHeidorn Edgar MHill John KHodson Robert WHolland Elbert EHood Charlie EHyatt Hub GJackson James NJaffe Isaac AJohns Edwin WJohnson David CJohnson James EJohnson Robert EJordan Reuben J JrKatz StanleyKennedy Clarence AKinneer Huey EKirkpatrick EugeneKirwan James E JrKlick Robert LKokotovich SaulKosegi Joseph AKovacic Leo LKreider Paul V JrKucera Ray JKudzia Walter JLa Butzke Ruben ALadriere Leon L JrLang Merle LLaybourn Roger WLeming Elroy CLing Roger TLinteman Grant KLittle John W, Locke Ralph ELopez Joe MLowman George AMaassel ElmerMalinoski JohnMallett Francis JMarks Junior S. V.Martin Robert EMassey DavidMayer Edward AMcCleary Charles WMcCoy Houston GMcElroy Lloyd DMcGowan George WMcLaughlin Oscar BMcNamara Thomas JMedisch Adam MMerrifield Cecil AMiddleton Leon GMiller George EMiller James EMiller Raymond D JrMiller Richard RMiller Warren RMinix RaleighMisenhimer Richard AMitchell PerryMonastero Charles AMitchell PerryMonastero Charles AMorris James HMorrow Thomas OMosten Jesse LMroczenski Joseph EMumford Theodore HMurray Charles MMusser Jack MNettrouer Dale ONickell EdwardNorton Raymond EOBrien John ROHara John WOates Frederick JrOlson Chester IOlson Dean HOlson Floyd AOxford Gene LPacker Eugene TPagliuca Victor DPalombi JohnPape William AParmelee William HPatton John DPaul Darrell DPaus Ormond W JrPeffer Stanley B, Perrone PhilipPerry James JPetrasek William CPetrowski Stephen MPhifer James HPierce Charles RPierce Joseph EPlevelich Steve EPopek Frank JPotts Charles E JrPritchard Will NRadford Deward BRamsey Robert LRay YulandRead David AReardon Paul FRicketson Harry JRoark James BRobinson Roy MRocha JohnRodahl Frederick RRogers James F JrRokeach SamuelRose George ERose Lawrence J JrRosenberg MorrisRossman GeorgeRowland Loren ERuzic Steven JRyall Henry ASage Paul MSalazar MichaelSampson Frank HSanders Harold ESauborn Donald NSbornik Arnold LSchmidt Gustav WSchulze William ASchwartz Philip FSeeley Walter FSellers Burnell HShaffer Jack MShannon James PSimoni Arthur RSims John GSmark Steve WSmith George FSmith William FSorensen Arthur WSpelich ThomasSperk Peter ASpikula Vincent PSquire Charles BStaigerwald John WSterner Hobart EStewart Arnold D, Stollar Delmer RStott Oren WSturm George ESwanner OrbieSwenson Harold LSword Dean WSzafranko Chester JTaggart GordonTanner Edward ETate Clenard MTate Oliver CTaylor Charlie JrTaylor Thomas STener John HTezak Frank EThomas David FThomas Herbert VThompson John KThompson Joseph LThrelkeld Harry M JrTitus Richard MTomich BrankoToney Emmett OTonker James HTryon William ATuck WilcoxTurbett Albert HTutt Giles RVaden Robert LVan Kooy James FVejil Alberto VVolkert William SVose Robert SVotava Richard JWadley Virgil HWalker Ellis HWalkey Harry JWard Irvin TWebb Richard S JrWiles Curtis SWilkes Wilbur AWillard J. D. JrWilliams Alvin GWilliams Raymond FWilliamsen Ensign BWilson CurtisWind Niles EWoods R. B.Woodyard Howard FWresinski Leo FYeaple Andrew ZYork TrumanZamarripa Santos SZbornik Arnold LZegzutor VictorZeilman Francis E, Benjamin Earl W JrCritcher Carlton BFlynt Marion JrHerpin Angelas, Hutton Thomas RKinchius Joseph JKingston Jack ELe Blanc Walter, McCormick JamesMcNabb Lloyd RPappel Bernard A Jr, Rhyne Ralph HSenich William NSmalley William H, Smith James LVolturo Philip FWood Elven S. Dean F. Gilbert was a membert of 3rd Platoon, L Company,394th Infantry Regiment.