Camp near Siegberg Germany?

[Jean Jacobson]

Well the Legend of Larry continues to grow. He found a book that I would never of even known to look for! It was the Memoirs of Edwin P. Parker. It was published in June of 1976. It actually turns out to be a pamphlet/soft cover document and the description inside the cover is 'The Story of Edwin P. Parker Major General U.S. Army 78th Infantry Division Commander.'

 

I have not had a chance to read it in depth nor concentrate on all the details that I want to but there is one Very Important thing that I have found! While there are no page numbers here is the paragraph written by Major General Parker:

 

'The Division CP moved to Konigswinter on the 20th, and the next day continued to Holtorf where the war room was set up in the basement of a hardware store. In Konigswinter we were in the home of the owner of the well-known 7-11 Eau de Cologne perfume. The house had a well stocked cellar of cognac and other liquors which we confiscated and sent to the rear to the rest center for the benefit of the men. About this time a brewery was captured and its output was also sent to the Division rest center. The Division rear echelon moved to the historic city of Bonn and a rest center was located in Bad Godesberg in a fine large building well-suited for the purpose.'

 

Dad said he was debriefed in a brewery. I tried to locate where a brewery could have been on my trip last summer. The Remagen historian, Kleemann, tried to help me as well. At the brewery I went to I was told adamantly, by probably the owner, that the Allieds had never occupied the place!

 

So now we have a major verified clue!!! And it was hard for me to believe that my Dad could have made a mistake about a brewery vs some other purpose that the building could have served.

 

So Larry you bring us closer and closer.... and maybe this will help Christoph or the Remagen historian or ....

 

Larry, the Wizard, Thank You, as always, for so generously taking your time to try to help figure out the story of my Dad!!!

 

Jean

[Jean Jacobson]

Larry the Legend,

 

You were correct on the crossing of the River Sieg. Met with a 2nd Guidry daughter yesterday. She was born before her Dad went overseas. She recalls her Dad telling her that he crossed a River and Dad got him across.

 

Guidry as I was told was afraid of the water. So much so that when he would be going to go across the Huey P Long bridge in Louisiana - if he saw a train on the bridge he would stop. He did not feel the bridge was strong enough for a train and them.

 

Your logic and her comments give me confidence that it is probably true - Dad carried Guidry across the River. Dad never mentioned that to me - that I can recall. And I doubt I have it anywhere in my notes from over the years. Maybe he told someone else that is still alive today - and now I know when I talk to those folks to ask that specific question. And once we find out specifically where they were picked up - there can be no doubt.

 

Thank You, as always, for everything you have done to help me with this research!!! It is because of you that I am even meeting a Guidry daughter!!!

 

Jean

[Jean Jacobson]

Christoph,

 

In my meeting with this 2nd Guidry daughter we discussed what I thought was like a torn little piece of paper, like a note, with some mention of something German.

 

I did not get to see the paper it was written on, but apparently it could have been an envelope. If so, Guidry did not get to that location before he was captured in Oct. if it was someone he met, when would that have been? or where? and why? And this would have been mailed to him? If it was someone in the Abbey, they were still there?

 

Hopefully one of these days I can visit with this 3rd sister who has all of Guidry's papers and see what is there. At that time I will photograph everything, so we know what we are working with.

 

Don't want to stop writing and thinking together, but better get going!

 

Jean

[Walt's Daughter]

Just thought I'd drop in to see what was transpiring! As always, amazed but what I see on a continuing basis!

[SonofaMP]

Just a quick note, research on this topic is continuing, just waiting for Jean to catch up and hopefully hear from some more veterans we are trying to contact.

[Jean Jacobson]

Larry, Thank You so much for updating everyone. I kept wanting to say just what you did - but didn't.

 

Today I could devote a little time and am trying to file the papers I got from St. Louis. Man each man's records that I look at are just so bleak - as I thought when in St. Louis.

 

One deceased gentleman, Jefferson Pafford, has a page amongst his papers that is Reel Content. I wonder what you think of that Larry.

 

Jean

[Jean Jacobson]

Yesterday I had a surprise telephone from a gentleman I was hoping was still alive and that I could locate. Apparently at 92 1/2 he has moved into an Assisted Living Facility and my letter fortunately got forwarded to him.

 

While he knows nothing of Siegburg he was a Medic with the 4th Division, as was my Dad but he was attached to a different Regiment. His connection to Siegburg is that he was the lone Medic left with about 10 wounded men in the Hurtgen Forest. And at least one of those men were sent to Siegburg. This Medic was sent to a different Camp and I need to look up the location on a map - he said it was deep in the interior of Germany. When I look at my notes I can share the location with you. He had frost bitten feet and was kept off of them for a few weeks. Then he went to work there as a Male Nurse.

 

There is obviously a lot I can learn from him! This is really another incredible stroke of great fortune!

 

How I want to dedicate more time to this research - but can not quite do it - just yet. And the pressure because of the ages and health of the gentlemen is huge.

 

More, as soon as I can. I miss Larry and Christoph so much - and all of our fun surprises for one another.

 

Jean

[Jean Jacobson]

Still looking at the St. Louis records. I think that the Kritzer records are possibly for a different Kritzer.

 

The Pisar records while limited, might lead to an interesting story. He was shot down on Dec. 23rd, 1944 - we do not know how long he was at Siegburg and, if or when, he was moved along to an Air Force Camp. At least we have some lead to the group and squad he was in before they were shot down.

 

Jean

[Jean Jacobson]

Another Airman, Sanders, not much in his records but maybe because from a place like Cedar Falls, Iowa he stayed there after the War.

 

Interesting to see he was discharged Oct. 1945 from the Station: AAF Separation Base, Miami Bch., Fla.

 

Jean

[Jean Jacobson]

Larry, I know you keep very busy but I was wondering.....

 

Could you try to locate information on the Spurlock family.

 

It is bad enough when you have to deal with those that were unmarried that died at Siegburg - but the married with children adds to the awfulness of it all!

 

Spurlock was with 28th Division, 112th Regiment. He appears to have been wounded and captured on Nov. 8, 1944 (Bloody Hurtgen Forest Battle) and died Feb. 12, 1945. It appears family members wrote the Govt to try and get information and from what I found in the records - like so many others, there was basically nothing there.

 

If they do not now know of Siegburg, we can at least tell them what we know. And in some way reassure them that if he had to have ended up somewhere - we know he got the best care there that they could give under the circumstances. I can read them part or all of my Dad's letter to Geraghty's Dad - and talk about the Nuns (the ones that I know worked on the Allies) and the French Priest and others... And then there were some wonderful and caring men that were recovered enough to work as Aids as did Otto Tonneson and John Creighton and apparently Guidry too.

 

Larry, I will send you the documents, and if you can not find anything - at least we will have tried.

 

Thank you for being there to help me and all of these WW2 Veterans and their Families!

 

Jean