W-1920MB-WW2.Doc

The original file and photos cannot be found. These photos have been reconstructed from poor quality print of a first draft copy of the document..

On Oct. 30 1940 Max Bobbitt & Harold Nitcher drove from Oberlin Ks to Mc Cook NB and enlisted for 3 years in the Army. Times were difficult with few jobs available, Hitler had invaded Poland and Checkoslovakia, like most young men they figured it was a matter of time before

Fig 1 Grandma Bobbitt, Max & cousins, 1935 at Rell Landau’s Oberlin KS

In photo above Max is to the right of his grandmother Julia. Seated are Charles Barclay & Don Kump. First row standing is Phyllis & Marjorie Landau, Warren Kump, Marba Jean & Geraldine Bobbitt, Max's sisters. Standing in back are Darrell Landau, Julia Bobbitt & Max Bobbitt. Darrell & Warren would be following Max into service.

Max was born in Oberlin Ks but moved with his parents to Atwood in 1929 then returned with them to Oberlin in 1939.

Max and Harold were sent to Ft Crook Omaha NB where they were given a physical and sworn in. Max had asked for the Army Air Corp but the quota was full and the recruiting Sgt at Mc Cook said go ahead and pick something else because you can always put in for transfer in six months. There was Field Artillery in Oklahoma and Medical Corp in Minnesota. Max selected the Medical Corp and was sent to Ft Snelling Mn where he was given exams and Basic Training. After Basic Max was assigned as a technician at the Station Hospital.

Ft Leonard Wood, Hospital: In March 1941 orders were cut to ship Max to Ft Leonard Woods, Mo where he was assigned to the Station Hospital. While there Max went to St Louis and visited his uncle Earl Bobbitt. Earl gave him a small camera which Max's dad Ray had carried with him during WWI while in the Navy. Max took lots of pictures with this camera finding it an ideal size.

Figures 2, 3, 4, 5

Max was very fortunate in being selected by a strictly business older Dr as his nurse to assist during surgical procedures. The Dr didn't like female nurses, thus providing an opportunity for Max to learn by watching first hand. This experience came in handy later when on his own as a Medic. It became necessary for Max to perform emergency first aid on one occasion when one of the fellows received a bad cut in his upper right arm. Max was able to sew up the exposed muscle using cat gut which dissolves, then close the wound with some fine stitching. Months later the solder reported back after an exam where a Dr saw the scar & looked at his arm. The Dr had told him, "who ever sewed you up did a beautiful job." Max's father Ray was a tailor so Max had learned to sew as a kid helping his Dad.

Camp Claiborne LA & 359th Engineers: In April 1943 Max left his girl friend, figure 4 above, & was shipped to Camp Claiborne La where he was part of the cadre forming the new 359^th Engineering Regiment being gathered to training new recruits for pending overseas assignments.

Two Man Medic Team: There were two medics assigned to each Engineering Company which consisted of about 200 men. Max was assigned to "E" Company and remained with them through the war. As they prepared to ship out Max put the camera that had been his dads up on a shelf, later aware he'd left it behind, he went back to get it but it was gone; thus he lost a keepsake and a means of taking photo's.

Queen Elizabeth to England; On June 23 1943 the 359th, of which Max was a part, shipped out of NY Harbor to England on the Queen Elizabeth which had been converted to a troop ship. The ship held about 22000 troops. There were eight persons per state room designed for two. Max was able to look out a port hole and see the statue of Liberty as they pulled out of port. They landed in Scotland 7 days later.

Building Quarters for Troop Buildup: The 359th was moved about various locations in England primarily building Barracks, one of the locations was Sherwood Forest near Notingham. At Redding England they built WAC barracks which was part of 8th AF headed by Jimmy Doolittle. They built army barracks near Glochester in Nov & Dec of 1942. At one time the company was camped on a large estate which belonged to the French Ambassador to Argentina. This was quite an experience because the mess hall was in the stables which were quite clean with it's tiled walls. Quartering troops in stables was a common practice in England at this time. A British civilian came in and took notes on the status of the buildings when they moved in, he return to check them for damage when they were ready to leave. This was the basis for compensation to the persons for wear and tear of their homes. On Christmas Eve and Christmas Day six of the fellows played poker. The cooks, in Christmas spirit, brought them food.

In June of 1944 the 359th was sent to Falmouth on the coast of Devan England. In going to & from HQ at night across the mores of Devanshire they could hear noises from the hills which reminded them of the story Hounds of Baskerville. There was a little village where you'd walk 3 mi from camp to a pub where they'd drink beer and play darts with the residents of the area. They had to memorize the route home at night, often you could not see your hand in front of your face in the fog. They were quartered in eight man pyramid tents with a pot bellied coal stove in the middle. Max and the other medic, Max Thompson from Indiana, were provided with two man Command Tents as used by the commissioned officers. They had a cot on each side with their medical chest at one end. They would trade off with one going out to the construction site and the other staying in camp manning their first aid station.

Building Dummy Warships: While at Falmouth they build over 100 dummy warships at night for the British Navy .They made large frames which they covered with canvas and painted to look like the silhouette of a war wagon then floated out in the harbor. The German Nazi recognizance planes flew over every day to take photos of the build up of this fleet.

The Illusion of Plenty: It was rumored that in 1939 Churchill had arranged for some top German officials to be included on inspection tours of British air bases where they would see several hundred British fighters lined up on the runways. They would then be taken by truck or train to another air field were they would be permitted to see more airplanes ready to go into the air. This was done at a number of sites. The British wished to impress these diplomats, before their return to Germany with how well prepared England was for the protection of the British islands. These diplomats didn't know they had seen the same planes at each base, the planes being flown ahead and set up while they were in transit.

These deceptions paid off because the Nazis chose not to invade which they could have readily done and later expected landings across the channel that never happened.

Practice Laying Pipe: In May of 1944 the 359th was sent to South Hampton on the coast for training in laying pipe to supply fuel from tankers off shore to tanks on shore.

The Final Build Up: Vast numbers of troops were massed near by in tents close to the embarkation ports. While waiting to board they intermingled at chow with veterans of the landings in North Africa and Sicily. The 5th of June some P-51's flew over with wide black stripes painted on the wings. One of the veterans of other landings said, "It won't be long now the fighters have their war paint on.” Such markings were not applied until the very last. That same night one of the fellows from the 3rd Armored shot himself, he'd said he'd been through two landings and didn't want to go through another.

In a park near by the British people set up a Pub from which they dispensed beer to the troops, the requirement being you bring your own mug. Most used canteens but some used their steel helmets, sometimes carrying two at a time, taking care to not spill it as it sloshed, as one buddy carried for another .

Queued up to Cross Channel: We stood all night in the rain in full pack in a ditch, queued up to cross channel. The first Normandy Landings took place June 6th 1944. On June 6 the 359th started their walk fully equipped to board their ship. Things were so congested they were held up spending all night in a ditching in the rain with full pack.

They went on board ship the next morning & spent most of June 7th crossing the channel then waited. As far as they could see ships were up and down the coast. They could see and hear the big ships guns firing shells inland to protect the landings. They passed the next night below deck but with little sleep, when a German shell landed in the water near by it's jolt passed through the ship and bobbed their crowded ship in the already stormy sea. The next morning they were taken a few at a time in small boats to near the shore where they were let off in chest deep water to walk/wade ashore carrying full pack.

Cigarette Poker: During the wait before embarking the fellows had nothing to do and started playing poker. They had already turned in their American money and did not yet have French money so they used cigarettes. They started with individual cigarettes then to packs then to cartons as the stakes grew larger. Somehow the winners managed to get their barracks bags of cigarette carried ashore and in the ensuing days sold them back to the same fellows who'd lost them in poker .

Red-Fox Beach: The 359th landed at Red-Fox Beach at Normandy on June 8th. This was near St Mere on the Cherbourg Peninsula. After wading ashore they proceeded three miles inland over a gentle rising slope to where they could orient themselves. During their walk ashore they did not see but could smell dead bodies not yet removed. Before dark they were picked up by trucks and taken to their assigned bivouac area.

Air Mattresses: They had each been issued wrap about the waist May West life preservers which they wore when they disembarked and waded ashore. Many took theirs off after they got on the beach & tossed them aside. Max and a buddy went back to the beach and gathered some of them up inflated them and placed them on their cots as an air mattress. When moving on forward the truckers hauling them refused to carry along this extra non-essential burden.

Assemble Huge Storage Tanks: Their first assignment was to set up batteries of (3) 10,000 barrel (50 gal/barrel) tanks at (2) sites.

Finding Supplies: Max & a buddy checked out a vehicle and driver to go looking for a depot to replenish their supplies. After stocking up they stopped off on the way back watching some black fellows unloading supplies off a ship. Every so often they'd toss a case into their weapons carrier. Before they got back they decided to pick over the stuff and retain the goodies. When looking over their assortment they discovered every box was full of pineapple!

Run Pipes from Ships to Shore Tanks: They made use of an old sea wall which extended beyond the beaches for running pipe from the supply ships and the storage tanks.

Run Pipes from storage to Patton's Tanks: They placed three pipes in the road ditches along side the roads from source to destination, (1) for 100 octane aviation gas & (2) for 80 octane vehicle gas. These pipes came in 30 foot 6 inch diameter sections carried and placed by three men. They were connected with couplings except were they went through town where they were welded so they could not be tapped into to fuel commercial vehicles.

When they first arrived the French came out waving flags at them. The vehicles had been prepared for the coming winter and Preston tags had been conspicuously placed on the radiators. One older Frenchman seeing these was yelling out “Viva la Prestone”.

30 Miles of Pipe: They extended pipe from the storage area to Patton’s tanks. When Patton broke out of the hedge rows into open country they laid about 30 mile of pipe but could not keep up. The pipes were laid in the ditches along the route driven by the drivers, mostly black, of the Red Ball Express carrying supplies to the front. The pipe was often damaged when trucks veered off the road, the 359th was up & down the route making repairs. C-47's were used to fly gasoline forward to Pat tons tanks from the end of the pipe line.

While Patton was proceeding to Paris the 359th set up camp outside Cherbourg and did work in the Cherbourg Peninsula area. This included inspection of abandon Shell Oil Co tanks for use by others.

During Aug-Sept 1944 they were at Seine-et Oise France, near Paris for a rest period. They were about a mile from an A-20 Havoc base flying about 5 sorties a day. They took their medical work, such as urine samples, to a hospital in Paris. By then they had Penicillin.

Quartered in the Stable: Max was set to Battalion Headquarters, near Hasselt Belgium. They were quartered in the stables of a farm stead, two officers were quartered on the first floor of the farm house and a woman and her daughter plus the surgeon on the second floor. They were there all through the Battle of the Bulge which was not far away. While there two fighter planes, one an ME109, were fighting it out overhead. Shots hit the farmhouse and destroyed a keepsake the surgeon had selected for his wife which was setting on the mantle in his quarters. Bullets also shot up tables in the mess hall where they had been a half hour before.

Buzz Bombs Overhead: They were in the path of the Nazi Buzz Bombs fired at the allied installations near Antwerp. More than one night they laid in their bunks listening to them fly over, being reminded of the old May tag one cylinder two cycle washing machine engines put..put..put..put. They always listened. It was commonly expressed that as long as they could be heard there was no danger of being hit. However that didn't make them feel too safe.

One night they heard one of the V-1's cut out right over head, they all hit the deck but no-one heard an explosion; someone said it must have been sabotaged by the underground.

US Tank Carrier trucks were used to haul the German V-2's to the coast for shipment to the USA.

The Germans made extensive use of their 88's raising havoc with our tanks equipped with 75mm guns. The German 88's had been designed as anti aircraft guns and to counter them the US had to modify equipment's to use the US 90mm anti aircraft guns.

Overcoats to the Bulge: In Dec of 44, while in Hasselt they turned in their over coats which were dropped to troops trapped by the Battle of the Bulge. Max drew duty all alone in their headquarters building as CQ at the time American speaking German soldiers were known to be infiltrating; he decided this was a good time to write home to his folks. While writing he listened to Axis Sally, the German propagandist, who played popular American records over the radio intent on making the Americans homesick.

Pipe Line across the Rhine: In the spring the 359th was next moved to Wessel Germany and helped another Engineering outfit put a pipe line across the Rhine river. They were then moved to ______ Germany awaiting orders.

Pickup & Store Pipe: In May of 1945 the 359th was back in France using German Prisoners to help pick up pipe and sending it back to depots.

High Pointers on Standby: In July 1945 the high point personnel which included Max was split off and located 15 mi north of Remes near Paris. Eisenhour’s SHAFE Headquarters was later located near there. German Prisoners of War were assigned to help in their Mess hall. Max became aquatinted with one of them who indicated that the weapon they feared was the P-47's which came in strafing and firing rockets; they felt there was no escape when under attack. There was a German artist at one of the camps who spoke excellent English, he painted a portrait of Max for a small fee, 2 pkgs of cigarettes.

They often went into Paris. At this time it was unsafe to leave a vehicle unattended as it was likely to be stolen.

The other medic was all dressed and ready to catch a ride into Paris when a young French boy came in to have a small splinter removed. The fellow looked at it and said why don't you come back tomorrow after it festers a bit when it will be easier to remove. The fellows kidded him after that with the line …. better wait till it festers a bit.

The high point personnel were gathered in groups formed up for shipping back to the states. In Sept of 1945 Max sailed from Antwerp to Boston, when passing in the channel between France and England he could look out and see the White Cliffs of Dover .

Max was discharged Oct 14 1945 after serving 5 years.