37th Infantry Division: Buckeye Division

Stanley A. Frankel

Description

(From the intro) “From its initial inception the 37th Buckeye Division, which evolved from the Militia established in 1760, the members of this great Division constantly strive to mold this organization into a combat unit to be reckoned with. The outstanding heroism of its members during WW1, II, and Korea, made it one of the most outstanding peacetime organizations in the United States.”

Sujets

• Histoire
• WW2
• 37th Division
• 37th Infantry Division (United States)
• Division (military)
• History of the United States
• World War II
• History
• Seconde Guerre mondiale

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 15 juin 1995
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781681622910
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 3 Mo

Extrait

37th Infantry Division

Buckeye Division
T URNER P UBLISHING C OMPANY
Left, Ma]. Gen. Robert S. Beightler, Commanding Officer of the 37th Infantry Division throughout WWII. (Courtesy Chaney)
Below, New Caledonia, 1944-45. The sea coast at sundown. (Courtesy Chaney)

37th Infantry Division Association Book Chairman: William Marshal Chaney Coordinated and Designed by: David Hurst
Copyright 1995 37th Infantry Division Association Publishing Rights: Turner Publishing Company
This book or any part thereof may not be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher and author.
This book was compiled and written with available and submitted materials. Turner Publishing Company and the 37th Infantry Division Association regret they cannot be responsible for errors or omissions.
Library of Congress Catalog Card No.: 95-060088 ISBN: 978-156311-219-5
Limited Edition: additional copies may be available directly from the publisher.
37th Infantry Division
CONTENTS
Preface
History of the 37th Infantry Division
Casualties
Camp Shelby
Indiantwon Gap
Memories of Service
Guadalcanal
Servicing God and Country
37th Infantry Division Association
37th Veterans
Index
As I write my first article as President of the 37th Division Veterans Association, I am truly honored to serve as the 77th President of this great Association. Those who came before me have all served with distinction. I will do my utmost to follow suit.
On behalf of all the members of the 37th Division Veterans Association, I extend my congratulations to all involved in the publication of this book about the 37th Buckeye Division and many of the individuals who served therein.
From its initial inception the 37th Buckeye Division, which evolved from the Militia established in 1760, the members of this great Division constantly strive to mold this organization into a combat unit to be reckoned with. The outstanding heroism of its members during WW1, II, and Korea, made it one of the most outstanding peacetime organizations in the United States.
Through the trenches in France, the swamps and jungles in Guadalcanal, New Georgia, Bougainville, Emirau, Iwo Jima, Saipan, Tinian, Okinawa and the Philippines; the men of the 37th faced the enemy in many different battles with their courage and determination to bring the enemy to his knees. Although great losses were inflicted on the enemy on all occasions, the organization also suffered the loss of many very brave men...at times displaying individual feats of heroism. During World War I, the 148th Infantry had one recipient of the Medal of Honor, who under fire distinguished himself above and beyond the call of duty. During World War II, the 145th Infantry had one recipient of the Medal of Honor, and the 148th Infantry had six recipients of the MOH, in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater, whose names are engraved on the 37th Division Monument at Camp Shelby, Mississippi.
May this history book be a tribute to the brave heroes who gave their lives for God and Country to help preserve a free America.
Frank B. Niehaus
President
37th Division Veterans Association
Admiral William F. Bull Halsey Jr.
The tide of Japanese Imperial aggression was rolled back at Guadalcanal. The hitherto victorious Japanese first tasted the bitter fruits of defeat, here on this island that they preferred to call The Island of Death or Starvation Island.
The Commander of the South Pacific Forces, Admiral William F. Bull Halsey Jr., perhaps best portrayed The Spirit of Guadalcanal as he wrote in 1944, The successes of the South Pacific Forces were not the achievements of separate services or individuals but the result of whole-hearted subordination of self-interest by all in order that one successful fighting team could be created.
Admiral Halsey as the man of the hour was admired and respected by all those under his command, and equally feared by the enemy. It would behoove we veterans of the Guadalcanal Campaign to be ever mindful of the Admiral s words of admonition, as the victory won at Guadalcanal can be understood only by an appreciation of the contribution of the role of each service.
Let each combatant of the campaign take pride in the fact, that it was eight months to the day after Pearl Harbor, that we Americans met the Japanese at Guadalcanal, on their chosen fields of battle, and they were ours.
Let us strive to perpetuate The Spirit of Guadalcanal, by being ever ready to fly to the relief of our country, and to advance the bonds of brotherhood among our former Comrades-of-Arms.
Yours in Comradeship,
William Marshal Chaney, Chairman
37th Infantry Division History Book Committee
American Military and Naval Cemetery, Bougainville Island, 1943-1944. (Courtesy Chaney)

U.S. Navy ships off the coast of Emirau Island waiting for the 147th Infantry Regt. to come aboard, July 9, 1944. (Courtesy Chaney)

Sunday service in the jungles of Bougainville. (Courtesy Hochwald)
117th Combat Eng. Bat. (Courtesy Muller)

(Courtesy Atkins)

British Samoa maidens show influence of western missionaries. They are wearing halters. (Courtesy Chaney)
A Brief Highlighted History of the 37th Infantry Division
by Stanley A. Frankel, official historian of the 37th Div. in WWII
Although the 37th Division did not receive its formal designation and authorization until July 18,1917, the troops who were to comprise the 37th had already seen service along the Mexican border. For nine months, during 1916 and 1917, elements of what was then the Ohio National guard, were stationed at Camp Pershing, near El Paso, patrolling the border in that sector.
However, the fathers and grandfathers of the soldiers who later manned the infantry, the artillery, and the other components reflected the military tradition of Ohio s fighting men by their hand-to-hand combat in dense woods and trackless forests against the Indians before the Revolutionary War. The exploits of Ohioans George Rogers Clark and Simon Kenton in jungle-like terrain against a primitive but brave foe set the stage for WWII jungle warfare in Guadalcanal, New Georgia and Bougainville.
After clearing their enemy out of forested Ohio, the famed Minute Men next matched rifles and wits with British-organized Indians in the Revolutionary War. Those Minute Men were farmer-soldiers, prepared to work the fields or to fight the British and their mercenaries. Out of this citizen-soldier tradition came the institution of the National Guard, prepared to leave home and hearth on short notice to defend the new nation.
Next, in the War of 1812, Ohio found itself on the front lines, deep in the conflict on both water and land. The state of Ohio with a population of 230,000 furnished the men who fought the battle of Lake Erie, and the gallant defense of Fort Meigs by William Henry Harrison s soldiers stopped the forces of Britain s General Hulk which had just conquered Detroit and then moved against the Ohio territory. In the Mexican War, Ohio sent 7,000 men, or about one-eighth of the total land forces used by the U.S. in that war. In the following Civil War, Ohio s manpower made a heavy contribution in both fighting forces and leadership to the Union armies. In the Spanish-American War, the State furnished 15,000 troops, a proportion far greater than its percentage of U.S. population. These were the precursors of a long slow movement toward an Ohio-only unit which finally came to fruition in World War I, officially named the 37th Infantry Division, and drawing men only within the state of Ohio. When World War I broke out, after a frustrating series of political moves aimed at incorporating Ohio troops into other regional units, Ohio Governor Cox pled with President Woodrow Wilson for this Ohio - only authorization. On July 18, 1917, the internecine political battle was won and the 37th Division was established. Ohio troops were sent to Camp Sheridan, Alabama, to prepare for the ensuing world war. Though several of the components were split off to fight under other divisional jurisdictions, the 37th Division itself was shipped overseas and directed to the Baccarat sector of the Western Front in France, fighting in the stalemated trench warfare while readying for the great offensive which eventually ended the war.
The Division played a starring role in the Meuse-Argonne, and was one of the first American divisions, with Verdun in telescopic sight, to participate in the last, great offensive. The Division fought bravely at Pannes, part of the St. Mihiel sector; then, after a rest, shifted to Flanders in Belgium, taking up positions along the Lys and Escaut River. The river was crossed under heavy fire on November 2, and the Division pushed on to the Synghem sector, remaining there until November 11 when the Germans surrendered.

En route to Indiantown Gap, February 1942. Jenkins, Gardiner, Charlton. (Courtesy Pierce)

lndiantown Gap Military Reservation, 1942, 37th Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop. (Courtesy Lawless)
After the Armistice, famed German General Von Rundstedt specifically named the 37th as among the best divisions the German troops had faced. The 37th was brought back to the States and demobilized in April 1919.
The National Defense Act of 1920 set up the rebuilding of the Division, a peacetime effort which led to federal reorganization in 1923 whereby the 37th was reshaped into a square division. This included two brigades of infantry, each with two regiments; one brigade of artillery with three regiments and a full complement of service regiments. These units were organized at peace strength, about one half of full, war strength, and consisting of a total of 10,000 men.
During the 20 year period between world wars, various units engaged in summer maneuvers at different sites, including Ohio s Camp Perry and Camp Knox, and the state of Ohio provided generally first-rate armories as centers for meeting and training. Enlistment was strictly volunt