Article about: Hi guys, These photos belong to a very good friend of mine. They are of his uncle during his service in Italy with the 88th division. This man is the reason why our unit, the 88th, exists to
These photos belong to a very good friend of mine. They are of his uncle during his service in Italy with the 88th division. This man is the reason why our unit, the 88th, exists today within the reenacting community. Bill is from Latrobe, PA, and he joined the Army in 1942.
With his permission, I am posting all of the photos of him in chronological order. There aren't very many of them, but the few that exist are very good.
To start the thread off, here is a photo of Bill at an Army signal corps camp. I cannot make out the camp name that is on the shirt of the man at the right. Bill is on the left. The back of the photo reads, 'July 1942, N.C.' Note the canteen cups, mess tins, and clothing items hanging to dry in the background.
The 88th division saw a lot of action in Italy during 1944. Most of the good ones are dated '1944' on the back. During this year, the 88th fought its way across Italy, through Rome, across the Arno River, and at famous engagements such as the Battle for Monte Battaglia.
Here is Bill posing with an M1 Garand rifle at a camp in Italy sometime during 1944. Note the 5th Army patch and the 4-post bed in the tent.
Here is a photo that Bill took of the destruction in Italy during the campaign. The 88th was the first division to enter Rome, so perhaps that's where this photo was taken?
This photo, also taken in Italy in 1944, is of two destroyed aircraft. I like this one a lot. Can anyone tell what kind of planes these are by the tail sections?
Here is a picture of one of the railguns known as 'Anzio Annie' The photo was taken in June of 1944 in Italy, but unfortunately the rest of the writing on the back of the photo is too faded to read.
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