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PRIVATE BERTON FLOYD
MITCHELL, JR (See German POW Camps/Gerlostein for Morris-Erle) |
| 08/04/2019 I can remember listening to my parents and grandparents talk about World War II. I was a young child of six or seven years. It seem like a whisper when my Grandmother Grace would say "Sonny died in the Battle of the Bulge". When she said that, the conversation usually stopped and things got quiet. At the time I didn't know who "Sonny" was or anything about the Battle of the Bulge. In later years I learned that "Sonny" was the son of Uncle Bert and Aunt Effie Mitchell. His remains were never recovered. Aunt Effie was an older sister of my Grandfather John Tincher. All through my school years we learned a lot about World War II, however I'm not sure I even knew where the Battle of the Bulge was other than somewhere in Europe. Keep in mind that this was long before the Internet and the ability to "Google" for information. I always had an interest in "Sonny Mitchell" and why no one ever knew what happened to him. Fast forward to around 1985. I enlisted in the Army National Guard while still in high school in 1957 and nearly thirty years later was now the Commander of the 35" Infantry Division Artillery in Hutchinson, Kansas. The Command Sergeant Major, James Morris asked me to present a long overdue Prisoner of War Medal to his father who had served in World War II. During a regular monthly Guard drill and after the formation of troops. the citation was read and the award was presented to Mr. Morris. I asked Mr. Morris to stay for lunch and visit with us. I recall Mr. Morris telling me about his experiences during the war especially the Bale of the Bulge. He told me that he was in the 1O6 Infantry Division and that the dvision had the reputation of being the poorest equipped and eas trained division in the U.S. Army. This certain caught my attention. I will expand on this subject later. It was always in the back of my mind to do further research about this battle. It seemed that I never found time in my schedule to complete it. Fast forward again nearly thirty years to 2014. I was now retired and recovering from a knee replacement. Having a terrible time of getting my sleeping habits back to normal, I was awake at night on a regular basis. I decided that I would finally start the research about the Battle of the Bulge, although I was somewhat lost at to where to begin. To start with I was not sure what "Sonny's" full name was and when you get on any website listing World War II deaths and POW's there are a lot of Mitchells. It finally came to mind that Sonny might be a Junior to his father Bert. Sure as the world turns, I punched in Bert Mitchell, Jr and there it appeared, Berton F. Mitchell, Jr, Kansas, 106th Infantry Division. This is the also the division Mr. Morris mentioned when I visited with him. Since then, I have spent a tremendous amount of time trying to research this unit and I found that Berton was a member of B Battery, 589th Field Artillery. He was also listed as being in G Battery at one time. Further research found that 589th Field Artillery Battalion was in direct support of the 422nd Infantry Regiment, 106th Infantry Division. I will cover actions of the division later, but now I think it is time to research Mr. Morris who had told me that he was in the 106th Division. Back to "Google" and after many hours, I find Erie C. Morris to be a member of the 422 Infantry Regiment. Bingo! I can hardly believe my eyes. The only two men I know of to be in the 106th Division, one a relative and the other a friend's father. I can tell you now, these two soldiers, both Privates served within three to five miles of each other. Sonny in an Artillery Battery and Erie in an Infantry Company. Before trying to summarize the 106 Division actions in the Battle of the Bulge. is doubtful that I will be able to add much to the stories of Sonny and Erie. Sonny was listed as killed in Action on either 16 or 17 December 1944 and Erie as Prisoner of War the same day. Sonny is now listed as Missing in Action on those dates. I'm not sure why this was changed. All of Sonny's immediate family and their children have long since passed. Mr. Morris died in 1997 and his son. CSM James Morris died in 2005. It is difficult to summarize the history of the 106th Infantry Division, but I will make an attempt. I would certainly encourage anyone who is interested to simply google 106th Infantry Division" and you will find pages after pages of history. Much of it was written by soldiers who served with the Division. The Division was activated on 15 March 1943 in Fort Jackson, SC. In January 1944 it was moved to Tennessee and participated in the Tennessee Maneuvers. When this was completed it moved on to Camp Atterbury, IN. This Division was the last of 66 Infantry Divisions activated for WWII. Before leaving the states they had provided over 7,000 soldiers to other divisions and replacement depots. During the summer of 1944, the Division was filled with draftees, air cadets and individuals from the ASTD Army Specialized Training Program). The air cadet and ASTP programs are another history in themselves. When the 106th Division for Europe many individuals were only partially trained. The Division arried in the Corswolds area of England on 1 November 1944 and after a very short training period started their move to the continent near Rouen. France on 26 November 1944 with some units closing as late as 5 December 1944. Most units had arrived in the St Vith, Belgium area by 8 December 1944. From this point the 106th Division relieved the 2nd Infantry Division in what was thought of as a very peaceful area. The Division was responsible for a twenty-seven mile front (about 4-5 miles was normal). The Division officially entered combat on 10 December in the VIII Corps, First US Army area. Six days later on the morning of 16 December, the Division was one of the first units to be hit at the start of what would be called "The fiercest battle in the entire European conflict". Over the next few days, two of the three Division's Infantry Regiments (the 422nd and the 423rd) and supporting units were overrun, surrounded and forced to surrender to German forces on 19 December 1944. The 106 had over 8,600 casualties in 63 days of combat. The actions of this unit is too much to summarize in a short piece. but I hope this gives the reader an idea of what these soldiers (mostly young) sacrificed for their country. Now I go back to the story of Sonny Mitchell and Erie Morris. The 422nd Infantry Regiment (Erie's unit) was occupying the first belt of pillboxes of the Siegfried Line in the area of the Schnee-Eifel. The enemy communication center for this area (Prum, Germany) was at maximum range (12,000 yards) for the 589th Field Artillery. The firing batteries of the 589th FA were located near Laudesfeld, Germany about 1.5 miles west of Auw, Germany. For B Battery, 589th FA (believed to be Sonny's unit), although he is sometimes listed in C Battery had 4 killed in action, 10 missing in action, and 8 prisoners of war in the first two days, 16-17 December. Their later figures thru 24 December show 4 KIA, 24 MIA, 12 POW's and 5 wounded in action. This was about 45% of the unit. Although Sonny's family was told his remains were never recovered he is now listed as missing in action. Is this just a decision by the fact his remains were never discovered or couid he possibly have been a POW? A story that was told to my cousn. Johnny McPherson might be a clue. Years later, Johnny drove through the small town where the Mitchell's lived (Gueda Springs. KS) and visited with a fellow who said he went to high school with Sonny. He claimed that after the war some soldier paid a visit to the Mitchells and gave them Sonny's wallet and dog tag(s). Perhaps this is a clue as to why his remains were never identified? Although I could not find numbers of casualties for the 422nd Infantry Regiment (Erie's unit). most of the POW's were marched to Geroistein. Germany (about 20 miles) and then moved by railroad box cars to POW camps in Germany. ErIe was liberated on 2 May 1945. There are still things I woud like to know, about my 2nd cousin Sonny (who I don't think I ever met). I know he wasprobably 1- years old, but was he a draftee, a volunteer or could he hae been in college and a member of the ASTP program? What was his military assignment in the firing battery? Was he a cannoneer. a driver, a fire direction computer? I spent over half of my military career in the artillery branch. I would like to know. This December 16th will be 75 years since Sonny died (?) Will I ever know more? Hopefully. Erie was born 5 August 1912. That would have made him over thirty-two when he was captured. Why would a father of a least one child (maybe more, as I don't know the ages of his children) be in combat unless he volunteered. I feel very fortunate to have met Erie and I only wish I would have spent more time hearing his story. I have made contact with a gentleman in Belgium who has studied the Battle of the Bulge and knows a lot about the 106th Infantry Division and the 589th Field Artillery. He says he can show me the turf where they marched and fought. Hopefully my health will hold out until I get there. Thanks for reading my story. Ron Tincher |