My Dad's War History

My Dad's War History

102nd Infantry Division

My dad was assigned to Company B of the 405th Infantry Regiment as a replacement in January 1945. He was severely wounded shortly after crossing the Roer River on February 23. In the future I plan on having his complete story, along with others from the 102nd Infantry Division published on this page.

Below are some letters that my dad exchanged with Carl Main. Carl was in the same platoon as my dad. Carl contacted him in an effort to find members of the 102nd Inf. Division. The letters provide some bits and pieces to the puzzle that both Carl and my dad try to reconstruct.

Letter to Carl F. Main dated Jan. 15, 1992

Letter to Lloyd Leibnitz dated Jan. 20, 1992

Letter to Carl F. Main dated Feb. 12, 1992

The text and maps in the links below was taken from the book, With the 102nd Infantry Division Through Germany, by Major Allan H. Mick. I will be adding to this as I get time to scan it in.

The Ninth Army Attacks November 3 to November 28, 1944

Attack on Linnich, Flossdorf, Rurdorf November 29 to December 4, 1944

Establishing the Roer Bridgehead A detailed description of the events on February 23, 1945.

Clearing a Path to the Rhine February 24 to March 1, 1945

Map on November 4, 1944 (Map 4)

Map of a typical section of the Siegried Line (Map 5)

Map on November 20,1944 (Map 6)

Map on November 29, 1944 (Map 7)

Map of enemy defenses east of the Roer River

Map of battlefield early in the morning on Feb. 24th

Map: From Hottorf to Hardt, 24 to 28 February 1945

Battle Honors, 405th Infantry Regiment

Monthly Combat Statistics

Summary of Awards and Decorations

Ozarks Who Served Company B, 405th Infantry, KIA in Germany

Thanks to Wilhelm Jensen from Geilenkirchen Lindern Germany for the following pages and photos. He took photos of the area were my dad was wounded on Feb. 23, 1945 as it looks today. The pictures are between Rurdorf and Tetz. Click on the following link and it will take you to a page that explains how to view the pictures.

Pictures of Linnich, Rurdorf, and Tetz June 2003

The two following stories were contributed by Jim Harris, of the 407th, Company K.

Our War Becomes Real, November 1944 by Jim Harris, 407th K Company

A day in the Big War, November 30, 1944 by Jim Harris, 407th K Company

Lt Slavens This page is dedicated to Lt. James Clyde Slavens who was KIA while constructing the bridge at Linnich.

102nd Infantry Division Home Page

The 102nd Infantry Association's Home Page