Here is more info provided by Richard Horrell of WWII Connections.
Dear Ms. Chard,
Commanded by Lt. Col. T.P. Hughes, the facts I have is that the 253rd was a part of Ninth Army. Not in my list for XIII or XVI Corps, so they must have been at the Army level.
Rather atypical for a unit of Ninth Army to have an Ardennes-Alsace Campaign credit, so they must have been in First or Third Army for a brief time before ending up in Ninth Army.
I will keep you up-to-date if I find further facts.
Happy July 4th Holiday,
Richard V. Horrell
WW 2 Connections
More info by Richard. This is an excerpt from his email to me:
Dear Ms. Chard,
Just a few more facts as per the 253rd.
Departed Boston Port of Embarkation, October 31, 1944
Sailed on the USS West Point AP-23
Arrived at Liverpool, England, November 8, 1944
Proud Daughter of Walter (Monday) Poniedzialek
540th Engineer Combat Regiment, 2833rd Bn, H&S Co, 4th Platoon
There's "No Bridge Too Far"