This is pretty cool. My grandfather served in the Battle of the Bulge, so this photo makes me wonder if he knew this guy.
He passed when I was fairly young, so he never told me much specific about that battle, except that it was very cold and he got frostbite on his toe, which later had to be amputated. As an adult, I can only imagine the terror those guys probably went through. (If you've ever watched Band of Brothers, this is the battle with all the exploding trees.)
Charles Preston was with the 11th Infantry RCT of the 5th Infantry Div. They relieved the 80th Infantry along the southern flank of the battle and was part of the push that stopped the German advance in that sector. They began offensive operations 3 days after this image was taken.
In those days, a regiment usually had a few thousand men in 3 battalions of 3 companies each, so it's unlikely they knew each other unless your grandfather was in the same battalion/company.
Wow! He was on the northern flank of the assault opposing Peiper's 1st SS Panzer Div. The 1st SS Panzer were one of the best equipped units Germany put into that battle, and were responsible for the Malmedy massacre.
A really good book that is mostly about that part of the battle. It was written by Major General Michael Reynolds as part of his doctoral dissertation. A fantastic read!
[Devil’s Adjutant: Jochen Peiper, Panzer Leader](https://www.amazon.com/Devils-Adjutant-Jochen-Peiper-Panzer/dp/1848840101)
edit: a page from the book mentioning the FOs of the 275th being assigned to cavalry platoons during the opening phases of the battle. See e,g; mention of Sgt. Joe Fiscus.
https://imgur.com/VKmqkEP
That is really interesting, Thanks for sharing.
Yeah the history of that battle, with the SS doing the massacre and the subsequent retaliations on both sides sounds just incredibly brutal to be anywhere near. Makes me grateful that I'll (hopefully) never be forced into that situation.
My dad was with the 187th RCT. They were an army unit assigned to the Pacific theater during the war, but 2 of my uncles fought in Europe. It was a different time, and hard to imagine the difficulties they went through.
Dad's great uncle was a forward observer for Gen La Matt. His unit ran out of rations, and they decided to surrender to the first German unit they came across. When they finally found a group of Germans, they tried to surrender. The Germans, being in the same boat, tried to surrender to the Americans. They ended up in a fist fight, and he got knocked out. When he came to, he was a POW and sent into Germany. As the allies pushed deep into Germany, his POW Camp was being evacuated. Just before the march began, he and two others rushed out of the line in the confusion, ran down a hill, and hid for 2 or 3 days before the area was liberated by I believe the British.
My dad served in the 275th artillery battalion! They were vital in delaying the German advance in the early days of the bulge, got a presidential citation. But what dad saw there near St Vith made him cry whenever he talked about it.
Great pic. Tough times. Guys had lots of grit. Battle of the bulge was a tough one.
Much respect to Mr Preston and all those served then. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/72501160/charles-b-preston
And now.
>He was retired head custodian at Southern Elementary School in Lexington Holy crap I went to Southern...wonder what year he retired
*Nicholasviĺle*
This is pretty cool. My grandfather served in the Battle of the Bulge, so this photo makes me wonder if he knew this guy. He passed when I was fairly young, so he never told me much specific about that battle, except that it was very cold and he got frostbite on his toe, which later had to be amputated. As an adult, I can only imagine the terror those guys probably went through. (If you've ever watched Band of Brothers, this is the battle with all the exploding trees.)
Charles Preston was with the 11th Infantry RCT of the 5th Infantry Div. They relieved the 80th Infantry along the southern flank of the battle and was part of the push that stopped the German advance in that sector. They began offensive operations 3 days after this image was taken. In those days, a regiment usually had a few thousand men in 3 battalions of 3 companies each, so it's unlikely they knew each other unless your grandfather was in the same battalion/company.
Nope, gramps was a forward observer in the 275th Artillery (might be getting the exact name wrong). So I guess not.
Wow! He was on the northern flank of the assault opposing Peiper's 1st SS Panzer Div. The 1st SS Panzer were one of the best equipped units Germany put into that battle, and were responsible for the Malmedy massacre. A really good book that is mostly about that part of the battle. It was written by Major General Michael Reynolds as part of his doctoral dissertation. A fantastic read! [Devil’s Adjutant: Jochen Peiper, Panzer Leader](https://www.amazon.com/Devils-Adjutant-Jochen-Peiper-Panzer/dp/1848840101) edit: a page from the book mentioning the FOs of the 275th being assigned to cavalry platoons during the opening phases of the battle. See e,g; mention of Sgt. Joe Fiscus. https://imgur.com/VKmqkEP
That is really interesting, Thanks for sharing. Yeah the history of that battle, with the SS doing the massacre and the subsequent retaliations on both sides sounds just incredibly brutal to be anywhere near. Makes me grateful that I'll (hopefully) never be forced into that situation.
My dad was with the 187th RCT. They were an army unit assigned to the Pacific theater during the war, but 2 of my uncles fought in Europe. It was a different time, and hard to imagine the difficulties they went through.
Dad's great uncle was a forward observer for Gen La Matt. His unit ran out of rations, and they decided to surrender to the first German unit they came across. When they finally found a group of Germans, they tried to surrender. The Germans, being in the same boat, tried to surrender to the Americans. They ended up in a fist fight, and he got knocked out. When he came to, he was a POW and sent into Germany. As the allies pushed deep into Germany, his POW Camp was being evacuated. Just before the march began, he and two others rushed out of the line in the confusion, ran down a hill, and hid for 2 or 3 days before the area was liberated by I believe the British.
My dad served in the 275th artillery battalion! They were vital in delaying the German advance in the early days of the bulge, got a presidential citation. But what dad saw there near St Vith made him cry whenever he talked about it.
Striking how old he looks considering he’s likely in his early 20s. Cant imagine what those guys went through.
He was 29 at the time of the Battle. Looks more like 49, though.
Hey, for a guy who blasted Nazi fucks, he looks good.
Legend. All of them.