WWII U.S. Dog Tags

[ObKrieger]

Hi guys, it's been a while. These have been my niche for several years now. Hope you enjoy!

Ennis Ray Hite was born on April 3rd, 1920, in Bedford County, Virginia. He completed one year of high school, and was single. He was 6'1” tall, weighed 205 pounds, and had brown eyes, brown hair, and a light complexion. He had originally enlisted in the National Guard on October 23rd, 1939, and reenlisted on February 3rd, 1941, in Bedford. His National Guard unit was Company A, 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division.

Ennis was one of many guardsmen transferred to other units in 1942, and ended up in Company G, 18th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. He participated in Operation Torch, the Tunisian campaign, and the Battle of Sicily. In August 1943, while fighting in Sicily, he was hit with shrapnel in the scalp and forehead, and also lost his left middle finger. He returned to duty in February 1944, and was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge in August. It is unclear whether he was back with his old regiment to participate in the invasion of France in June 1944, or if he was transferred out of the infantry by then. He was hospitalized again for complications due to his wounds, including nerve paralysis, in September 1944, and was finally discharged on disability on November 22nd, 1944, as a staff sergeant. He had been awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star Medals.

After the war, Ennis worked as a mixer at the Clover Creamery Company in Roanoke, Virginia. He had a daughter and got married in 1947. He was killed in a car accident on August 28th, 1948, in Nebraska, and is buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Bedford, Virginia.

Photo: A wounded soldier of the 1st Infantry Division receives first aid, Sicily, 1943 (Robert Capa)

[reneblacky]

Nice one Ob Mate! has been awhile! great to see ya back!

[ObKrieger]

Herbert L. Raub was born in Wellsville, New York, on May 12th, 1915. He was 5’11.5” tall, 168 pounds, had brown hair, brown eyes, and a light brown complexion. He had a grammar school education, and was working as a service station attendant by 1940. He was married in October 1941, and lived at 502 Scott Avenue in Wellsville.

Herbert was drafted and inducted into the U.S. Army on March 5th, 1942, at Fort Niagara, New York. He was assigned serial number 32251939. Little is known about his overseas service except for the unit engraved on his headstone- Company I, 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He does not show up in morning reports before September 1944, so he most likely joined the company that month and participated in the Battle of the Bulge, the drive into Germany, the Battle of Leipzig, and the last operations in Czechoslovakia. He was discharged as a private first class.

After the war, Herbert worked a lengthy career at the Iroquois Gas Company. He died on February 29th, 1972, and is buried at Woodlawn Cemetery in Wellsville, New York.

Photo: A soldier of the 2nd Infantry Division kicks a German prisoner as he is captured in Leipzig, Germany, on April 18th, 1945

[BlackCat1982]

Interesting pair, as there almost seems to be a link between them. Perhaps only I see it as war photographer Robert Capa was at both locations, with the Big Red 1 during Operation Torch and also took his famous picture of the US machine gunner killed by a sniper in Leipzig.

[ObKrieger]

Albert Tabloff was born in Chicago, Illinois, on February 16th, 1926. He was 5'9”, 170 pounds, and had blue eyes, brown hair, and a light complexion. He lived at 6221 South May Street in Chicago. He was a high school student, and worked at the Service Bindery Company in 1944.

Albert was drafted on August 15th, 1944, and given serial number 36910072. He eventually became a replacement in Company A, 7th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division. His first and only combat experience was the assault on the Siegfried Line, which commenced on March 18th, 1945. On the 19th, he was with four comrades just 20 yards in front of a trench that had been partially occupied by German soldiers. Albert’s group was spotted and subsequently pinned down by heavy machine gun fire. One by one, each man made a dash for cover in the unoccupied section of the trench, with Albert sprinting last. He tripped and fell face-first just five yards from the trench, and a bullet struck his right ankle, forcing him to painfully crawl the rest of the way. He was evacuated with around 60 other wounded men from his company shortly thereafter. After an initial period of recovery in a hospital in England, he was shipped to New York City in May 1945, and finally to Bruns General Hospital in Santa Fe, New Mexico. On July 27th, he was awarded the Purple Heart. He was discharged with disability on September 1st, 1945.

Albert had a family after the war, and died on October 26th, 2006. He is buried at Shalom Memorial Park in Arlington Heights, Illinois.

Photo: 3rd Signal Company photo of the Siegfried Line

[ObKrieger]

Merideth Raymond “Slim” Miller was born in Meadville, Pennsylvania, on May 25th, 1920. He graduated from the Meadville Area High School, and worked as a pin curler at the Talon zipper factory by 1940 (you may recognize that company- they invented the modern zipper, and produced them for the U.S. military before and during the war). He was 6'1.75” tall, 125 pounds, and had brown eyes, brown hair, and a light complexion. He was single, and lived at 455 E. Henry Street in Meadville.

Slim was drafted and entered service on March 4th, 1942, in New Cumberland, Pennsylvania. He was given serial number 33160439, and eventually assigned to Company K, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division. He was rated an expert with the M1 rifle on August 18th, 1943, and departed the U.S. on January 18th, 1944.

Slim and Company K landed on Utah Beach at 11:30 A.M. on D-Day, June 6th, 1944, where the unit saw their first combat. On July 17th, after almost 6 weeks of bitter combat through the hedgerows of Normandy, Slim was taken off the line and dropped from the rolls for “exhaustion”. He rejoined the regiment later on, and served as a rifleman, grenadier, and temporary squad leader in the Northern France and Rhineland campaigns. He was transferred to HQ Battery, 462nd AAA Battalion, for occupation duty, and arrived back in the U.S. on October 5th, 1945. He was discharged at Fort Dix, New Jersey, on October 9th, as a private first class.

After the war, Slim worked as a pipe fitter. He died on January 10th, 1957, and is buried at Kingsley Cemetery in Townville, Pennsylvania.

Photo: Sergeant Wyman P. Williams of 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division, takes a break from the bitter hedgerow fighting near Villedieu-les-Poêles, Normandy, 1944. (He was KIA in September 1944.)

[ObKrieger]

Albert Galuppo was born in Rhode Island on April 19th, 1904, to Italian immigrants. Before joining the U.S. Army, he played clarinet and saxophone at local venues, most notably for Paul Whiteman and Jan Garber. He enlisted (volunteered) for army service in 1925, and was assigned serial number 6121111.

Albert had a lengthy career playing clarinet for the army. His early service was spent with the 10th Coastal Artillery Band at Fort Adams, Rhode Island, and directing dance orchestra for Madison Barracks, New York. In 1935, he was arrested for fraud, the circumstances for which are unknown. He spent May 1942 to August 1943 with the 5th Infantry Division band in Iceland. In 1944 and 1945, he was in Europe playing band concerts for soldiers in rest areas. He sailed home on September 24th, 1945, aboard the S.S. Europa, for discharge at Fort Devens, Massachusetts. He was a technician 4th grade, MOS 432 (bandsman- clarinet), and his home address was 142 Sutton Street, Providence, Rhode Island. On November 24th, he reenlisted, and worked for the army recruiting service. At that time, he was married, with one year of high school completed. At the end of his service, he was playing for the U.S. Military Academy Band at West Point, New York. He was finally discharged on November 30th, 1957, as a master sergeant.

After discharge, Albert worked as a clerk at the YMCA in White Plains, New York, retiring in 1976. He died on August 21st, 1984. His burial location is unknown.

Photo: 5th Infantry Division band in Iceland, 1942. Albert is probably in the photo, I'm just not sure where.

[BlackCat1982]

Albert Galuppo last known address was Tarrytown, Westchester, New York, USA

[ObKrieger]

Nickolas W. Lobins was born on September 5th, 1920, in Cleveland, Ohio. His parents were immigrants from Czechoslovakia. By 1940, he lived in Conneaut Lake, Pennsylvania. He was 5’11”, 165 pounds, had blue eyes, brown hair, and a dark complexion. He graduated from high school and worked at the Talon Zipper Company (along with Slim Miller of the 4th ID, see above). He was single, with dependents.

Nickolas was inducted into the U.S. Army on December 5th, 1942, in Erie, Pennsylvania, and assigned serial number 33407333. After basic training, he was assigned to Company H, 20th Infantry Regiment, 6th Infantry Division. The 6th ID moved to Hawaii in July 1943, then to Milne Bay, New Guinea, where Nickolas trained until June 1944. He first saw combat in the Toem-Wakde area of Dutch New Guinea, and was hospitalized in July after contracting Dengue fever. He was discharged that month, rejoining his unit in the New Guinea campaign which lasted until December 1944. The division landed on the Philippine island of Luzon on January 9th, 1945, where Nickolas endured months of intense combat. He was wounded sometime during this campaign. In May, 1945, he was hospitalized again for kidney stones. He remained in the Philippines until the end of the war.

Nickolas was honorably discharged on November 17th, 1945, at Camp Atterbury, Indiana, as a sergeant. He died on April 1st, 1985, and is buried at Lakeview Cemetery in Conneaut Lake, Pennsylvania.

Photo: Men of the 6th Infantry Division land in New Guinea in July 1944.

[ObKrieger]

John Philip Jones was born in Grand Forks, North Dakota, on January 21st, 1917. He lived at 1719 Whitman Avenue in Butte, Montana. By 1942, he had worked as both a train fireman and a miner, had completed a year of college, and was single.

John was drafted and entered service on January 20th, 1942, in Missoula, Montana. He was given serial number 39603915, and assigned to the 138th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He spent 34 months in the Pacific with the 138th, participating in the Aleutians Campaign in Alaska and the Battle of Okinawa. He was never wounded, and only suffered a sprained ankle in February 1944. He sailed home aboard the U.S.S. Crockett on December 8th, 1945, landing in Seattle, and was discharged as a private first class shortly thereafter.

John died on September 17th, 2006. His burial location is unknown.

Photo: 7th Infantry Division men approach Beach Red in Attu, Alaska, to meet the Japanese defenders head-on, May 11th, 1943.