Dear Mr. Zimmer:
Attached is a Lineage and Honors statement for the 796th Engineer Forestry
Battalion, and here is the information on this unit that was found in a
volume entitled Order of Battle, US Army, World War II:
Formed 25 June 1943, Camp Claiborne, Louisiana; left the New York
Port of Embarkation 26 July 1944; England 6 August 1944; France and the
European Theater of Operations 25 August 1944; was destined to go to the
Pacific as Shipment #10897 from Le Havre, France, but with the end of the war
it was directed to the Boston Port of Embarkation, where it landed 27 August
1945; inactivated 20 October 1945 at Fort Lewis, Washington. Credited with
participation in the Ardennes-Alsace, Central Europe, and Rhineland
campaigns. This information seems consistent with what you have already
learned.
The units 1391st and 1063 would not be "divisions." They were probably
companies because most of the forestry units were companies. The 796th is
the only forestry battalion that I've found. In any case we do not have any
information on them. You can try the National Archives for all of these
units; its Modern Military Records staff can be reached at inquire@nara.gov
Best of luck.
Sincerely,
Michael J. Brodhead, Ph.D.
Historian
Office of History
U. S. Army Corps of Engineers
7701 Telegraph Road
Alexandria, Virginia 22315-3865
(703) 428-6559
Proud Daughter of Walter (Monday) Poniedzialek
540th Engineer Combat Regiment, 2833rd Bn, H&S Co, 4th Platoon
There's "No Bridge Too Far"