WWII U.S. Dog Tags

[ObKrieger]

Thanks guys, I'm glad you're enjoying these. Sadly, I have found that vehicle accidents were a somewhat common cause of death for many young GIs returning from the war. They were a more prolific killer back then.

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Charles Pelo was born in Wimber, Pennsylvania, on December 25th, 1920. He had a grammar school-level education. By 1940, he was 5’10.5” tall, 160 pounds, had blue eyes, brown hair, and a light complexion. He lived on Charleston Road in Newton Falls, Ohio, and worked at Atlas Powder Company.

Charles was drafted and entered service on August 20th, 1942, in Cleveland, Ohio. He was assigned serial number 35321093. He went on to serve in Company D, 104th Infantry Regiment, 26th Infantry Division, fighting in Northern France, the Battle of the Bulge, the Rhineland, Central Germany, and Czechoslovakia. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal. Just a month after the end of hostilities, he came down with a serious illness, and was hospitalized until March 1946. He was honorably discharged after his release.

Charles remained in Newton Falls, Ohio, for the rest of his life, and died on June 29th, 1964. He is buried at Newton Township Cemetery West Side in Newton Falls.


Photo: Two men of Company E, 104th Infantry Regiment, near Wiltz, Luxembourg, January 15th, 1945

[BlackCat1982]

Charles Pelo was no real age at all when he passed either. You have done a superb job is honouring the memory of these old warriors Obkrieger.

[Adrian Stevenson]

Nicely researched, well done.

[ObKrieger]

Stanley Barzacki was born in Dickson City, Pennsylvania, on January 26th, 1919. He had a grammar school-level education, was single, and lived at 1041 Lincoln Avenue in Dickson City. He stood 5’5.5” tall, weighed 143 pounds, had brown hair, brown eyes, and a ruddy complexion.

Stanley volunteered for the Pennsylvania National Guard on July 29th, 1940, joining Company B, 109th Infantry Regiment, 28th Infantry Division. He trained at Camp Blanding, Florida, and went overseas with the division in October 1943. He participated in the Battle of Normandy, and was wounded by a bullet in the thigh and genitals during the 109th regiment’s attack on Gathemo, France, on August 10th, 1944. He was hospitalized and returned to his unit in December. It’s unclear as to whether or not he was present for the Battle of the Bulge, but he did fight at the Colmar Pocket and subsequent push into the Rhineland. He injured his knee in July 1945 after falling into a ditch, and suffered from an infection, keeping him hospitalized until August. He sailed home aboard the U.S.S. John Ericsson, arriving in New York City on October 9th, 1945. He was honorably discharged on October 20th at Indiantown Gap.

After the war, Stanley worked his career at Grove Silk Mill. He died on May 25th, 2001, and is buried at Visitation of Blessed Virgin Cemetery in Dickson City, Pennsylvania.


Photo: Men of the 109th Infantry Regiment clear the village of Percy, France, July/August 1944

[BlackCat1982]

Stanley Barzacki was perhaps fortunate that due to his wound he was not with the regiment in November 1944 when it fought in the Hurtgen forest.

[ObKrieger]

Stanley Barzacki was perhaps fortunate that due to his wound he was not with the regiment in November 1944 when it fought in the Hurtgen forest.

Absolutely, although the details of his wound sound extremely unpleasant... I'm not sure which I'd prefer.

The sad reality of the mechanics of modern war is that the infantry suffer so disproportionately. Infantrymen made up about 40% of the strength of a typical division, but took about 90% of the casualties. After researching hundreds of these, you start to get a good picture of the fate of the regular rifleman, and you see how there was really no way out for him. It was a horrific situation for these men. When you really dig into it, the prevalence of desertion, self-inflicted wounds, requests (and almost guaranteed denials) for transfers elsewhere, is remarkable. But I could ramble on this for hours.

[BlackCat1982]

Absolutely, although the details of his wound sound extremely unpleasant... I'm not sure which I'd prefer.

The sad reality of the mechanics of modern war is that the infantry suffer so disproportionately. Infantrymen made up about 40% of the strength of a typical division, but took about 90% of the casualties. After researching hundreds of these, you start to get a good picture of the fate of the regular rifleman, and you see how there was really no way out for him. It was a horrific situation for these men. When you really dig into it, the prevalence of desertion, self-inflicted wounds, requests (and almost guaranteed denials) for transfers elsewhere, is remarkable. But I could ramble on this for hours.

I scarcely need to mention that another of his comrades from the 109th would have been Eddie Slovik, the only soldier in WW2 to be shot for desertion. Having read his story (and seen the movie) its difficult not to feel some compassion for his fate.

[ObKrieger]

William Verner was born in Oil City, Pennsylvania, on December 3rd, 1924. He graduated from Oil City High School in 1943. He was 6’, 230 pounds, had blue eyes, brown hair, and a ruddy complexion. He sang and played instruments for many local groups, including the Salvation Army, for which he also worked as a volunteer. He briefly worked for Oil City Glass and Bottle Company before he was drafted. In 1943, he was single, and lived with his parents at 59 Pearl Avenue in Oil City.

William was drafted and entered service on June 29th, 1943, in Erie, Pennsylvania. He was assigned serial number 33681434. He took basic training at Camp Wheeler, Georgia, and was later transferred to Fort Meade, Maryland. He sailed for England in January 1944 and joined Company G, 175th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division, as a radioman. He landed on Omaha Beach on June 7th, the day after D-Day, and entered combat in the hedgerows of Normandy, reaching Saint-Lô a month later. In a letter to the Salvation Army dated July 5th, 1944, he wrote "I'll never forget the night we were pinned down by artillery fire. We were all wondering if we would ever see the light of day again. The bursts came closer and closer, until we thought that the next one would be the one. Then there came to my mind the words of Song 717, Keep on Believing, Jesus is Near. The fear I had suddenly left me. I came out without a scratch. God is truly with me. I have thought often of how I can best serve God now, and after I return. He has been good to me."

On July 17th, 1944, the 175th Infantry Regiment, which had been locked in a bloody stalemate along the Saint-Lô-Bayeux road, launched another assault on the German defensive positions near Hill 108. Sadly, the regiment didn't make much progress, and took heavy casualties. William was killed by a near-direct hit from artillery, when he was only 19 years old. Company G overall had suffered tremendously and was worn down to 80-90 men and three officers by the end of the day. In 1946, William was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal, having been cited for bravery while maintaining communications under heavy mortar and artillery fire on July 16th, 1944.

He was originally buried at La Cambe, but was shipped to Oil City in February 1948 for reburial at Grove Hill Cemetery, where he rests today. This is one of the only tags I have that belonged to someone who was KIA, and was a local find. It was probably worn during training and then left at home when his next-of-kin set was replaced. It's possible this tag is the only memento left for us to remember Pfc. Verner.


Photos:
-William Verner, around 1943
-Men of the 175th Infantry Regiment dig foxholes behind a hedgerow, July 15th, 1944

[ObKrieger]

Lloyd Brink was born in Marshalls Creek, Pennsylvania, on December 12th, 1913. He completed one year of high school, and was single by 1940. He was 5’7”, 143 pounds, had gray eyes, brown hair, and a light complexion.

Lloyd was drafted and entered service on November 24th, 1941, at Fort Meade, Maryland. He was assigned serial number 33105946. What he did between then and February 1945 is unknown, but on February 16th, 1945, he had been assigned to HQ Company, 120th Infantry Regiment, 30th Infantry Division, as a replacement. On March 24th, the division made its assault crossing of the Rhine. It pursued the enemy across Germany, mopping up enemy pockets of resistance, took Hamelin on April 7th, Braunschweig on April 12th, and helped to reduce Magdeburg on April 17th. They contacted the Red Army at Grunewald on the Elbe River. The end of World War II in Europe came soon afterwards and, after a short occupation period, the 120th Infantry Regiment sailed home aboard the Queen Mary, arriving on August 19th, 1945. Lloyd was discharged on November 5th, 1945, at Indiantown Gap, as a private first class.

After the war, Lloyd worked as a carpenter for Raymond Cortright Builders and as a caretaker for the Sellersville Hunting Club. He died on June 26th, 2002, and is buried at Prospect Cemetery in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.


Photo: Men of the 1st Battalion, 120th Infantry Regiment, pursue the 116th Panzer Division through the Wesel Forest, March 26th, 1945.

[Danmark]

He couldn't have died one year before he was born, Mo ...