War From The Ground Up The following provides information on actions of Co. E, 359th Infantry at Chambois. It was furnished for this history of the 90th by M/Sgt. E.W. Beckman, Sgt. Major of the 359th Inf. T/Sgt. Wilton H. Barger, Co. E, 359th Inf.:"At the outskirts of Chambois, the company halted at Battalion order. A patrol, led by S/Sgt. Clarence E. Adkins and consisting of the third squad of the first platoon of Co. E, went forward to investigate a German motor pool and some houses on the outskirts of town. These were the first Allied troops to reach Chambois. A white flag was clearly visible on one of the vehicles in the motor pool, but when the patrol reached there, they found it abandoned. Before the men were able to report back to the company, they were caught in our own artillery's barrage, which resulted in six casualties, including one death. For two hours we waited on the plains south of town while the wource of the artillery was checked and assurances were received that no more shells would be fired without our orders. "At 1700 the order came to attack and take Chambois at all costs. We moved out with the 1st platoon to the right of the 3rd platoon, and the 2nd platoon in reserve for mopping up. The machine guns were attached, one section to each leading platoon, while company headquarters and the mortar sections came in the rear. The TDs fired into buildings known to contain enemy troops. By prearranged plan, the 1st platoon moved up through an alley into the main street and down the main drag to the east end of town. The 3rd platoon advanced on the left flank of the 1st, while the remaining elements of the company mopped-up the streets house-by-house. This sweep netted 40 prisoners, and the process gave us engraved impressions of Nazi doom to come. "Moving into Chambois, the Jerry motor pool before us consisted of more than a dozen trucks (some of American manufacture), two half-tracks, a supply truck, and a chow-wagon (horse drawn). Around the vehicles and in the traces of horses were scores of dead Germans, some hideously dismembered by artillery shells. On the main street just at the junction of the alley was an abandoned German troop carrier and beside it two Mark V Panther tanks, knocked out and burning. This street was littered with dead Germans, including SS and Panzer troopers. The gutters ran with blood, and the houses were in flames on either side of the road. In the space of two blocks from the edge of town to the main east-west street the French civillians, in a frenzy of excitement, cowered in one large house and its adjoining courtyard, but occasionally ran forth, young and old, to look at the dead Boches in their street. "Turning the corner into the east-west thoroughfare, we encountered more debris-supply trucks loaded with small arms and tank rounds, two 'screaming meemies'[nebelwerfer rocket launchers mounted on trucks], and more half-tracks. Beside the supply trucks, the houses were burning; shortly, the trucks caught fire and the tank rounds began to explode crazily. Past this obstacle the leading 1st platoon dashed, along with Capt. Edward R. Lienhart, but the men trailing detoured north through houses,over high court walls in their rear, and across back yards past the ammunition pyres and into the street below. Buildings here were largely destroyed. Perhaps our artillery really had a field day. "The command post of Co. E was fixed at the center of the company's area, in a large set of buildings to the right of the north, or Trun, road. Here we discovered the evacuating enemy had left 20 seriously wounded men, marking their position with white sheets streaming from the glassless windows of the house. As soon as communications could be established, we requested ambulances to evacuate these enemy wounded; then, security paramount, we dug in for the night. But hardly had our shovels cooled at the CP when the report came in that more wounded Germans had been left in the fields on our left flank. These wounded prisoners were brought in by a detail of prisoners, using doors off of cabinets in the house for litters... "As the night wore on, some of the wounded Germans were evacuated by jamming them into the one ambulance and jeep that braved the burning streets of Chambois to reach our CP. Two German medics were reclaimed from the prisoner cage in the town square to tend the wounded until they might be evacuated. Through the night, flames leaped skyward on the left flank from burning ammunition trucks and a barn. In this barn, S/Sgt. Mabrey B. Wheatly and PFC William Goyea found 15 horses tied to their stalls. These men liberated the horses by tearing down the back of the barn and in doing so were surprised to find 7 Germans in the same burning building..... "At daybreak Sunday, Aug. 20, three Germans wandered out of the barn at the company CP to surrender. Unnoticed the night before, they had spent the night in an adjoining stall from our men. As the first rays of light streaked the sky, the 2nd platoon on the west sighted an enemy convoy moving across the horizon in a southwesterly direction, meeting opposition from our 3rd Bn. west of Chambois. The convoy was reversing itself and hightailing it to the north. Our machine-gun section, with S/Sgt. Wayne T. Bybee in charge, went into action. The toll they took in those first minutes of daylight was two troop carriers with personnel and on self-pro-pelled gun, all afire and abandoned. Interspersed with the carriers and guns were numerous foot troops who began to fire on our positions. During the first two hours of daylight our gunners expended 5000 rounds of ammunition, while our mortars fired the basic load of rounds at the vehicles and troops silhouetted on the skyline, hitting any target of opportunity, troops or vehicles. All the while the rifle platoon, led by 1st Lt. Albert L. Budd, fired at the same targets, but on a line to the right of the mortars and machine guns. The riflemen expended nearly all their ammunition. "Around 0700 a small German tank slipped up from the west, unnoticed by our men because of the hedges, and advanced rapidly toward our lines. At 10 to 20 yards from our machine guns Ross N. Boatright stood errect in his foxhole and with his M-1 rifle, picked off the Germans on the sides of the tank. The tank wheeled, retreated without firing once, while our bazookas blazed away but missed. The tank never returned.... "Around noon, three German tanks were seen preparing for a counter-attack, out of range of bazookas. The mortars, manned by Sgt. John P. Lamb and PFC Claude C. Porter, made direct hits on one tank, but the tanks advanced with machine guns blazing. The second platoon was ordered to withdraw by its leader, Lt. Budd, and an orderly withdrawal was made to the creek bank. After reorganizing at the creek, Lt. Budd went to the company CP for supplementary bazooka teams from the battalion Anti-Tank platoon. These teams, together with bazooka teams formed from machine-gunners and mortar men, S/Sgt. Bybee, PFC Porter, PFC William W. Rettagliata, and Lt. Budd and S/Sgt. Burton E. Jacobs from the second platoon, took up positions to repel the enemy tanks. Fire from these teams knocked out the large tank (Mark V) and caused the other to withdraw. "With the tank threat over, the riflemen were brought back out of the draw onto the line. The machine guns could not be emplaced again because both guns were out of action from intense firing. "After the line was formed again, the Germans were observed pulling up towed automatic 20mm guns, accompanied by possibly 100 infantrymen. Lt. Budd at this point called for mortar fire and six cloverleafs (1098 rounds) were laid right on the enemy by T/Sgt. Allan C. Dodson's fire direction. "After the 20mm guns were silenced, more tank activity and vehicle movement was observed from among the houses to the west front. Lt. Budd called for artillery fire at this point, using his small Handie-Talkie (SCR536 radio). The fire was delivered where needed. At the company CP, Lt. Edward Penell received the fire direction on his small radio and relayed it to Capt. Lienhart, who handled a through telephone line to the artillery, the 915th or 345th FA. These artillery barrages stopped all tank and vehicle movement. In the meantime, one of the M-10 Tank Destroyers had been placed in the 2nd platoon area by bringing it up through the town. This TD was firing at a suspected tank target in a barn, and the fire brought out a white flag after the fourth round. The fire in this case was directed by Sgt. John D. Hawk, by running back and forth from a point of vantage to the TD. *Sgt. Hawk won his Medal of Honor for this action* From War From The Ground Up - The 90th Division in WWII by John Colby American Soldier by Toby Keith is dedicated to my precious Daddy2. He was a veteran of World War II of which he was awarded two silver stars and one purple heart for bravery. I Love you Daddy2 and miss you so much! Daughter #1 - Judy