Researching POW's

[RustyRelics]

Hello fellas, today I am pondering something that I'm not quite sure how to get. I have an Ike Jacket that some of you may remember, owned by a man named Marvin Wayne Stegman. He was a young fellow who enlisted in WWII in the 84th Infantry Division.

The following info is found in his obituary.


"He proudly served in the U.S. Army from 1943-1946. He earned a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star and was a P.O.W. He sang with the Glen Miller band in Paris. In May of 2008, at the State Convention of the DAV (Disabled American Veterans), he was designated the Distinguished Veteran of the Year for the State of Missouri. In September 2012, he was fortunate enough to travel on the Honor Flight to Washington D.C.

He told his grandchildren he was the most veteran of all veterans. He was truly proud to be an American."


The first sentence is what really intrigues me. He won a purple heart and a bronze star? He was a P.O.W? I have an Ancestry membership and didn't find any mention of being a P.O.W. How would I go about finding more about this fellow?


Thanks guys. Here's a photo of the jacket.


DSC_0624.jpg

Marvin Stegman.jpg11.jpg Marvin Stegman.jpg

[Rakkasan187]

Rusty,

You may have to go the NARA route and see if you can obtain his records.

Another route you could possibly pursue is the 84th Division unit histories to see if there are any rosters of the captured. But based on the information I read about him here is some more information:

Stegman carried a bazooka in an anti-tank company in the 334th Infantry Regiment, 84th Infantry Division.. SO there is a start right there.. See if you can find the 84th Division Unit History book and more specifically the 334th Infantry regiment.

Here is a newspaper article I found online:

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - A veteran from St. Joseph received a state award Saturday from the Disabled American Veterans.

Marvin "Wayne" Stegman, a decorated U.S. Army soldier, was recognized as Missouri's Distinguished Veteran of the Year by the Disabled American Veterans during the 25th annual convention in Jefferson City.

The honoree is a former vice principal at Central High School who served in the U.S. Army fighting in Europe during World War II.

Mr. Stegman, 83, was captured by the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge and escaped a few days later. He sustained head injuries while in combat. Mr. Stegman received a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and the combat infantryman's badge. He carried a bazooka as a private in an anti-tank company that was part of the 334th Infantry Regiment of the 84th Infantry Division. He also trained in gliders.

The nomination started at the Savannah/St. Joseph Chapter No. 6, which meets on the third Friday of each month at the Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Center.
Bernard Rath, commander of Chapter 6; Larry Daniels, the Missouri State Adjutant for the DAV; and Leonard Harris, the DAV's national service officer in St. Louis, all participated in the nomination process, Mr. Stegman said.

************************************************** **********************************************

Mr. Stegman undoubtedly was captured by the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge but since it also mentions he escaped a few days later there may be no official records of him being interned in a POW camp. Especially during the Battle of the Bulge with the lines being so fluid, it is quite possible he became separated from his unit after being captured and then escaped and rejoined his unit.

The morning reports for the 84th Infantry Division may or may not reveal his status which may have him listed as MIA.

Prisoner of War Confirmation usually comes through the Red Cross after a prisoner is processed into the interning nations records, this case being Germany, but again since it mentions he escaped there was really no opportunity for Germany to issue a POW card and send the information to the Red Cross through Geneva.

One other note and I will hit this one lightly..

Obituaries sometimes do not have all the correct information, now I am not saying this is the case with Mr. Stegman, but most obituaries are pieced together by stories from family members that may or may not be truthful or 100% accurate. Keep in mind that these events occurred 78+ years ago and sometimes memories are not as sharp as they were back then so the word of mouth stories passed down over the years tend to get blurry. There are instances where stories have been embellished and stretched so you have to take what is written with a bit of skepticism until you do some real hardcore research which at this point is going to be a bit of a challenge because first hand accounts from those who were there during the Battle may not be around anymore or they may not recall, so the best way to piece together a Soldier's uniform and decorations is going through NARA.

I have no doubts in my mind that Mr. Stegman was awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart (You will read that he sustained head injuries during the Bulge) and the Combat Infantryman's badge. It also mentions that he trained in Gliders (This I would want to confirm more and the one way may be through NARA).

Many may not realize this but the Bronze Star Medal was retroactively authorized in 1947 for all those who earned the Combat Infantry Badge as well as the Combat Medical Badge. This information comes from Army Regulation 600-8-2 "Military Awards".

Hope this helps a little

Best regards, stay safe

Smitty

[MilitariaOne]

Greetings Gents,

Attached is a relevant article from the Tri County News dated May 16, 1958. Long story short, there's no mention of an award of the Purple Heart in the article, which would have been a rather large omission to make (specifically, another five/5 Rotation's Points worth to be exact). Fold3's records (& Ancestry's) indicated he was hospitalized in October of 1945 for bronchitis, which may have morphed into something else over the years (or not). With his BS & CIB coming 13 1/2 years after the war's end, there may have been latent confusion upon his demise (within the family) as to what Marvin had legitimately been awarded during the war.

Perhaps, he was a POW (however briefly) and was awarded a Purple Heart yet, I'm surprised neither of these insights were mentioned/touched upon in the article because they would have significantly added to the article's gravitas. Also the article tag line's mention of a Croix de Guerre used to reference his Bronze Star muddies the water until you actually read the article.

That all said, it was rewarding to find a relevant article and that's not something that happens too often during these incomplete record's conundrums.

Njoy,

V/r Lance

P.S. I've added this article to his Find-a-Grave's entry for those in the future who may wish to look this gentleman's WWII service up.

Double click the image to enlarge.

Tri County News May 16, 1958.jpg

[RustyRelics]

Rusty,

You may have to go the NARA route and see if you can obtain his records.

Another route you could possibly pursue is the 84th Division unit histories to see if there are any rosters of the captured. But based on the information I read about him here is some more information:

Stegman carried a bazooka in an anti-tank company in the 334th Infantry Regiment, 84th Infantry Division.. SO there is a start right there.. See if you can find the 84th Division Unit History book and more specifically the 334th Infantry regiment.

Here is a newspaper article I found online:

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - A veteran from St. Joseph received a state award Saturday from the Disabled American Veterans.

Marvin "Wayne" Stegman, a decorated U.S. Army soldier, was recognized as Missouri's Distinguished Veteran of the Year by the Disabled American Veterans during the 25th annual convention in Jefferson City.

The honoree is a former vice principal at Central High School who served in the U.S. Army fighting in Europe during World War II.

Mr. Stegman, 83, was captured by the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge and escaped a few days later. He sustained head injuries while in combat. Mr. Stegman received a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and the combat infantryman's badge. He carried a bazooka as a private in an anti-tank company that was part of the 334th Infantry Regiment of the 84th Infantry Division. He also trained in gliders.

The nomination started at the Savannah/St. Joseph Chapter No. 6, which meets on the third Friday of each month at the Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Center.
Bernard Rath, commander of Chapter 6; Larry Daniels, the Missouri State Adjutant for the DAV; and Leonard Harris, the DAV's national service officer in St. Louis, all participated in the nomination process, Mr. Stegman said.

************************************************** **********************************************

Mr. Stegman undoubtedly was captured by the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge but since it also mentions he escaped a few days later there may be no official records of him being interned in a POW camp. Especially during the Battle of the Bulge with the lines being so fluid, it is quite possible he became separated from his unit after being captured and then escaped and rejoined his unit.

The morning reports for the 84th Infantry Division may or may not reveal his status which may have him listed as MIA.

Prisoner of War Confirmation usually comes through the Red Cross after a prisoner is processed into the interning nations records, this case being Germany, but again since it mentions he escaped there was really no opportunity for Germany to issue a POW card and send the information to the Red Cross through Geneva.

One other note and I will hit this one lightly..

Obituaries sometimes do not have all the correct information, now I am not saying this is the case with Mr. Stegman, but most obituaries are pieced together by stories from family members that may or may not be truthful or 100% accurate. Keep in mind that these events occurred 78+ years ago and sometimes memories are not as sharp as they were back then so the word of mouth stories passed down over the years tend to get blurry. There are instances where stories have been embellished and stretched so you have to take what is written with a bit of skepticism until you do some real hardcore research which at this point is going to be a bit of a challenge because first hand accounts from those who were there during the Battle may not be around anymore or they may not recall, so the best way to piece together a Soldier's uniform and decorations is going through NARA.

I have no doubts in my mind that Mr. Stegman was awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart (You will read that he sustained head injuries during the Bulge) and the Combat Infantryman's badge. It also mentions that he trained in Gliders (This I would want to confirm more and the one way may be through NARA).

Many may not realize this but the Bronze Star Medal was retroactively authorized in 1947 for all those who earned the Combat Infantry Badge as well as the Combat Medical Badge. This information comes from Army Regulation 600-8-2 "Military Awards".

Hope this helps a little

Best regards, stay safe

Smitty

Greetings Gents,

Attached is a relevant article from the Tri County News dated May 16, 1958. Long story short, there's no mention of an award of the Purple Heart in the article, which would have been a rather large omission to make. Fold3's records (& Ancestry's) indicated he was hospitalized in October of 1945 for bronchitis, which may have morphed into something else over the years (or not). With his BS & CIB coming 13 1/2 years after the war's end, there may have been latent confusion upon his demise (within the family) as to what Marvin had legitimately been awarded during the war.

Perhaps, he was a POW (however briefly) and was awarded a Purple Heart yet, I'm surprised neither of these insights were mentioned/touched upon in the article because they would have significantly added to the article's gravitas. Also the article tag line's mention of a Croix de Guerre used to reference his Bronze Star muddies the water until you actually read the article.

That all said, it was rewarding to find a relevant article and that's not something that happens too often during these incomplete record's conundrums.

Njoy,

V/r Lance

P.S. I've added this article to his Find-a-Grave's entry for those in the future who may wish to look this gentleman's WWII service up.

Double click the image to enlarge.

Tri County News May 16, 1958.jpg

Guys, I can't thank you enough! This is some amazing stuff! I'm going to write all of this down and put this info on a piece of paper and keep it inside one of the pockets. Thank you so much!