The World War II Dead of University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), Bill Beigel Researches Michigan WWII Casualties, MIAs, and POWs, Hometown Heroes Fresno Unveils New Veterans Memorial, Wee Willie and the photo that started it all, Captain Norman L. Aigner: An Ordinary Guy, Tomas Garzas Daughter Now I Dont Feel Empty, Fresno Marine Dies in Action in Pacific War Fresno Bee, Oct 21, 1944, Fresno Officer Dies in Action on German Front, Fresno Bee, April 3, 1945, The Pheley Brothers of Fresno, California, Fresno Soldier is Killed in French Fighting, Fresno Bee, September 26,1944, Bills WW2 Almanac for January 21: Featuring Col. Randys Flying Circus, Remembering the Fallen: WWII Veterans of UCLA, Major Robert C. Maze. This website is only in its very early stages, aiming to give a full spectrum of data on World War II fighting units, including details on organization, commanders, and literature. Reports typically contain narratives about unit activities, descriptions of facilities and locations, and a narrative about organization and administration. In Remembrance of the AIF's 2/15th Battalion. The 1st Battalion, 39th Combat Engineer Regiment, received its baptism of fire during the fight for Gela. 3829 0 obj <>stream Lance Cpl. Best known for pontoon bridge construction, their duties also included serving as sappers deploying and deactivating explosive charges and unexploded munitions, mapmaking, camouflage, and a wide variety of construction services supporting frontline troops. Deck logs consist of journal-style entries of the ships administrative activities; location and course of travel; disciplinary procedures; and any unusual events. Marine combat engineers move the nosepiece of a bridge into place in Mirmandab, Afghanistan, March 25, 2012. Without troops like Buenagua to lead the way, there would be no clear path to victory. As a professional researcher and World War II historian, Bill Beigel providesresearch services to genealogists, historians, authors, andcivilians who are looking for information found in WW2 military unitrecords. 1517, Muster rolls are lists of naval personnel attached to a ship, station, or other activity. Kansas, The records are not yet described at the file-unit level in the National Archives Catalog, but you may request a search of the records by e-mailing the reference staff at archives2reference@nara.gov. There is a B-17G tail gunner's compartment on display at the 390th Bomb Group Memorial Museum, which is dedicated to this crew. There are also gaps in the muster rolls - we sometimes lack muster rolls, particularly for smaller units and advance bases. During the Gulf War, combat engineers cut paths through Saddam Husseins so-called impenetrable barrier a wall of minefields, wire obstacles, and fire trenches along the Iraq-Kuwait border. Most of the records relate to incidents of direct combat action with enemy forces during World War II. Later, during Operation Iraqi Freedom, combat engineers were called on again to lead the way. . 50th Engineers fought back immediately and kept fighting while nearby combat units arrived. Although we do not have an official index to the records, there is a private website. 1312, Division files usually include historical reports, general orders, directives, journals, memos, circulars, bulletins, and policy records. For information on how to access morning reports, please visit the website Access to Morning Reports and Unit Rosters. Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations, 1941-1983, . World War II: 39th Combat Engineer Regiment in the Battle for Gela They include logbooks from U.S. Coast Guard cutters, tenders, light ships, lighthouses, lifeboat stations, light ships, and other installations. It sailed to Germany in March 1952 and served there for five years, returning to Fort Lewis in April 1957. endstream endobj 3831 0 obj <>stream History of the 2nd Battalion The Royal Berkshire Regiment. Though every branch has their own specially trained explosive ordnance disposal technicians, IEDs were so ubiquitous in Iraq and Afghanistan that engineers were relied upon to use their knowledge of explosives to take on some of the workload. The series is arranged by organization and includes records of naval commands, and select naval units and ships, as well as records of other non-Navy agencies, including Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Army Air Force, among others. The muster rolls for WWII only include enlisted sailors - officers of ships are listed in the deck logs. Sramek, Frank J. 6/1/1946, , has been digitized through our partnership with Fold3 and is available on the Fold3, World War II Action and Operational Reports. Morning reports for Army units from November 1, 1912 to 1959 and Air Force units from September 1947 to June 30, 1966 are in the custody of the National Archives at St. Louis, MO. The unit was broken up, its three battalions redesignated as the 2826th Combat Engineer Battalion, the 2827th Combat Engineer Battalion, and the 2828th Combat Engineer Battalion, respectively. Arden Buenagua understood the risk he was taking when he extended his green, plastic metal detector and assumed the position at the head of the single-file patrol. Morning reports list daily personnel changes. A paper file list index for this series is available at the National Archives. Please improve this article by adding a reference. Every Marine who had walked point before Buenagua during his time in Sangin had either been killed or grievously wounded. Like so many other combat engineers killed in the line of duty, he died doing what he was trained and expected to do. Army Air Forces World War II Combat Operations Reports, 1941-1946, also known as "Mission Reports," are located at the National Archives at College Park, MD in the Records of the Army Air Forces (Record Group 18). Thank you for your efforts here. The DCGO diaries include a compiled weekly report from memorandums, reports, and meeting minutes on operational, personnel, intelligence, legal, and medical activities. reconnaissance, 381st Combat Engineers Battalion of World War II. DNA research has led to Wilson family in South Carolina, just hoping to try to piece together more information. Among those who have earned the Sapper tab are an even more elite coterie of combat engineers: 18C, or Special Forces Engineer Sergeant. 36th Engineer Brigade (United States) - Wikipedia Muster rolls list personnel attached to a unit or command, while personnel diaries list significant personnel status changes, such as transfers, promotions, leave, or temporary duty. Reports may also contain statistics, photographs, or maps. On 15 February 1945, the unit was redesignated as the 36th Engineer Combat Group, and following World War II it reorganized at Fort Lewis, Washington. DC, are arranged by year, thereunder by type of unit or station, thereunder alphabetically. It was redesignated for the 27th Engineer Battalion (Combat) on 15 July 1955. 1/1/1942 - ca. 1873, Military Construction & Combat - United States Army Corps Of Engineers An example of the closer look we can get from Unit Records is the case of Captain George Oliver. However, AARs for smaller units, such as Field Artillery Battalions, Combat Engineer Battalions, Armored units, or Military Police outfits, tend to provide more detail in connection with the individual service of their collective soldiers. chemical, UNITS, COMMANDERS, STAFF MEMBERS, AND - United States Army Center Of Combat Engineer is an account of engineering units that rarely get much attention in typical history books of the World Wars. 28th, Related Topics / Keywords / Phrases: 30th, For information about how to add references, see Template:Citation. 10th Engineer Combat Battalion; 3d Medical Battalion; 3d Division Artillery; 10th Field Artillery Battalion (105mm Howitzer) 39th Field Artillery Battalion (105mm Howitzer) 41st Field Artillery Battalion (105mm Howitzer) 9th Field Artillery Battalion (155mm Howitzer) Special Troops; 703d Ordnance Light Maintenance Company; 3d Quartermaster Company 27th, Company A, For information on how to access morning reports, please visit the website, There are several records groups containing WWII Navy records in the custody of the Textual Reference Archives II Branch at the National Archives at College Park, MD. during WWII ], [ 19th Infantry Division - Did not exist Combat engineer - Wikipedia United States Engineer Regiments in World War II, Ulysses Lee, United States Army in World War II: Special Studies: The Employment of Negro Troops, Chapter 20, accessed at, "United States Engineer Regiments in World War II", Learn how and when to remove this template message, United States Army Forces in the Middle East, https://history.army.mil/books/wwii/11-4/chapter20.htm, "Lineage and Honors - 111th Engineer Regiment", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=United_States_Engineer_Regiments_in_World_War_II&oldid=1142620311, 41st Engineer General Service Regiment - to Liberia as part of U.S. Army Forces in Liberia under, 348th Engineer Combat Regiment (348th.com), 1321st Engineer General Service Regiment, 1322nd Engineer General Service Regiment, 1323rd Engineer General Service Regiment, 1324th Engineer General Service Regiment, This page was last edited on 3 March 2023, at 12:55. Combat Engineers played important roles in numerous World War II battles, especially breaching the heavily fortified Seigfried Line protecting the German border and numerous defensive lines established by the Wehrmacht in Italy, including the Gustav Line. 1225, Combat engineers from across the 82nd Airborne Division train for the Best Sapper competition, Feb. 12, 2020, on Fort Bragg, North Carolina. So this is dredging up an old report, but I'm very curious We just found out about this. Some record groups have thousands of entries, so it can be daunting to try to figure out the best place to start. Also included among the Coast Guard records is a series of Merchant Vessel Information Files, 1939 - 1952, which is arranged alphabetically by name of vessel and contains information about merchant vessels that entered U.S. ports during World War II. Its earned. A California Marine remains in the brig, accused of threatening to chop up his wife with a machete. Engineer Combat Battalion - Wikipedia Please select any of the units below to submit a research inquiry to WW2 Researcher Bill Beigel. has been digitized through a partnership with Fold3 and is available on the Fold3, World War II Marine Corps records are also in the custody of the Textual Reference Archives II Branch, National Archives at College Park, MD, Records of the U.S. Marine Corps (Record Group 127). While Army and Navy records for the World War II period are dispersed across a number of record groups, smaller branches like the Marine Corps, Army Air Forces, and Coast Guard, are generally limited to a single record group each for the WWII period. These records consist mostly of unit historical reports, after action reports, unit journals, and general orders. 102: U.S. Army Engineers Helped Assure Victory at the Battle of Yorktown in 1781 : No. Louisiana Spotlight: Camp Claiborne - The National WWII Museum A paper file list index for this series is available at the National Archives. They document events that occurred and may contain information such as courses steered, distance run, compass variations, sea and weather conditions, ships position, principal headlands passed, names of lookouts, and a any unusual occurrences. hlj1WnEKA XKv3Kkf-MDz*oHP/`*6c"zqo\6z WWII Military Unit Records at the National Archives - An Introduction. 3d INFANTRY DIVISION - Order of Battle of the United States Army - WWII Copyright 1996-2023 Cyndi Ingle, CyndisList.com. James Austin Gray was a Staff Sergent in the regiment. 23rd, This series contains copies of reports of Army medical units and facilities, as well as reports from medical components of regular Army units. Morning reports for Army units from November 1, 1912 to 1959 and Air Force units from September 1947 to June 30, 1966 are in the custody of the National Archives at St. Louis, MO. Hi! My take is the WAFS/WASPS deserve a bit more of history's 'time in the books'. Brian Nygaard. When they werent conducting route clearance, combat engineers deployed to the battlefields of the War on Terror often filled in as explosive disposal experts. It went to Vietnam in November 1966 and remained there . %PDF-1.5 % during WWII ], Original webdesign The files are arranged by type of unit and thereunder numerically by unit designation. A number of deck logs have been digitized and are now available online in the National Archives Catalog. Very useful, WWII Military Unit Records at the National Archives, Although there are a few exceptions (e.g. It is impossible to know what will be in a given AAR. These highly trained operators provide Special Forces teams with any and all engineering support, usually in extremely austere environments and without the aid of heavy equipment. All Rights Reserved. a bureau or an independent agency). The series Ship and Shore Unit War Diaries, 5/1942 - 9/1945 series consists of war diaries submitted by District Coast Guard Officers (DCGO) and ship officers during World War II. 1941-1959 Deck Logs, including World War II and the Korean War. Some also include photographs, reported security violations, cargo data, investigations of alleged sabotage or suspicious incidents, and survivors accounts of sunken vessels. Each branch of the military kept different types of unit records, and these records are dispersed throughout various record groups and series at NARA. They can construct bridges capable of bearing the weight of entire armored units, defensive fortifications that can withstand complex enemy attacks, and berthings to house even the most forward-deployed troops. 1873 [3] During World War II, U.S. Army combat engineers were at the spearhead of fighting in all theaters, whether the battlefield was North Africa's desert sands, Normandy's fire-swept Omaha Beach, the Ardennes' snowclad forest, or the Pacific's jungle-covered islands.