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187th Engineer Combat Battalion

This post was in guestbook, so am providing some material for him:

"This is a great site. As a veteran of Vietnam I appreciate the dedication, work and effort that you have put into this tribute to the military. My father, Andrew (Hank) Scolastico was a combat engineer during WWII and served with the 187th Engineer Combat Battalion. He was with his unit from Camp White to Texas to West Virginia; shipped out on the SATURNIA and arrived in Southhampton on November 2, 1944. I know they then moved to the Maginot line and were attached to 3rd army for a while but after that....I'm lost. I would appreciate hearing from anyone that has information about the 187th or who knew my father (Hank). Thank You!"

You are very welcome! Here's some initial info for you. There is even a book written by one of the members of the 187th. That should prove interesting.

Story of the 187th Engineer Combat Battalion : Central Europe, Ardennes, Rhineland

Once you go to this link, simply type in your zip code in the provided box, to see where the nearest copy is available for perusal.

BGSU - Archives

There is a brief mention, though it will give you a feel of where they were at the time and what other units were in the area, within this document, right here on our site:

http://www.6thcorpscombatengineers.com/doc...rs/202ndEng.pdf

This should get you off to a good start. I would also suggest visiting the RESEARCH section of our forum, for this will provide you with further sources. Once there, particularly check out the Army Corps of Engineers, Office of History. Contact them to see if they have any files on his unit. Contact Michael Brodhead.

Contact me with any questions you may have.

M1

Hi Marion,

I am a new member to your site and many thanks for your hard work you have put in to build and maintain this site. My dad, Charles A. Snell (deceased) was a member of the 187th. He was an unofficial photographer for the unit and took thousands of pictures. Unfortunately nearly all photos that he brought home were destroyed in our basement years ago. I have a few artifacts and slides from Cherbourg immediately after the reoccupation of allied forrces. I also have an original copy of the "story of the 187, An Engineer Memoir." I am looking for surviving soldiers from his unit and more detailed movements of the batalion as it moved across europe.

Thanks again,

colin j. snell

Hi again Colin (I answered another post from you today).

I can't wait to see what you have, but was heartbroken to hear about the photos in the basement. OMG!! I can only imagine your grief upon this discovery!

Talk to you soon!

BTW, Steve Gallagher sent me the Story of the 187th - An Engineer Memory. Thank you Steve. Another nice acquisition for me.

I am hoping I can copy it someday, but it's an old book and I have to be very careful. Sure would like to share it with everyone.

Pleased to say, I finally got around to scanning and uploading the history book.

History of the 187th Engineer Combat Battalion

Posting for Ed...

The plaque says "durch panzerminen starben" but that part is not translated. It means, "by antitank mines died" (literal translation)

Thank you for that!