442nd Veterans Club

442^nd Regimental Combat Team, Service Company

By Alexander Oka (written in 1983 for 442^nd Veterans Club 40^th Anniversary souvenir booklet)

            Meritorious Service Unit Plaque – On Au­gust 30, 1945 the 5th Army in Italy awarded Service Company the Meritorious Service Unit Plaque for ren­dering superior service to the Combat Team during the European Campaigns.  And on May 10, 1945, Major Gen­eral E. M. Almond, Commander of the 92nd Div. sent a letter of commendation to the regiment.  Part of that letter was a tribute to the performance of Service Company for rapidly equipping the regiment upon its return to Italy from France.

            Organization of Service Company – The average strength of the Company during the war was 10 officers, 5 warrant officers and 100 enlisted men.  The Company had 10 sections performing service – 1) Company Hq Section, 2) Regimental Hq Section, 3) Regimental Supply Section, 4) Ammunition, 5) Motor Pool Maintenance, 6) Transportation, 7) Postal, 8) Personnel, 9) Special Ser­vices, 10) Public Relations.

            Company HQ Section – The Heart of Service Company was composed of administration, mess hall and company supply.  This section also operated the replacement depot for the combat team.

            Regimental HQ Section – Service Company provided the core of the personnel for the Regimental Hq.  The Regimental Sgt. Major was from Service Com­pany.

            Regimental Supply Section – In addition to obtaining supplies from Division quartermasters, the men in this section, along with mechanics and drivers, often hand-carried rations and ammunition up the moun­tains to the men in the rifle companies.  Also part of this

section were the men of the Battalion Supply Section who were responsible for the distribution of supplies to the rifle companies.  Several men in the Battalion Supply Sec­tion received the Purple Heart.

            Ammunition Section – Because of this section, the fast-moving and hard-hitting troops of the Combat Team were always adequately supplied with ammo.  Their efforts were much appreciated during the last cam­paign in Italy.

            Motor Pool Regimental Maintenance Section – Because of the skill and devotion of the mechanics in this section, the regimental vehicles always reached the destinations on schedule.  On several occa­sions, the men made repairs to vehicles while under enemy fire.

            Transportation Section – Drivers of Service Company between 20-27 June 1944, were sent on tempo­rary duty to the 1st Armored Div. to shuttle troops.  In support of the Combat Team, the drivers often drove thru enemy artillery barrage and under total blackout conditions.

            Postal Section – This section did first-class work to help up the morale of the men in the regiment by processing the mail.  They averaged 35 sacks of mail a day and their peak was on October 27, 1944 when they han­dled five truck loads of 508 sacks of mail.

            Personnel Section – was responsible for the service record of every man in the regiment.  An inspec­tor of the 44 AAA Brigade mentioned that the 442 per­sonnel records were the best he had seen.

            Special Services Section – In addition to the leisure time activities – sports – it also handled the distribution of PX rations.

            Public Relations Section – This section was responsible for much of the publicity received by the Combat Team.  It processed 2,700 news-stories on the record and achievements of the combat team.

The 232^nd Combat Engineer Company

By Charles T. Ijima

            The 232^nd Engineer Company was a very unique outfit.  This company was the only company in the 442^nd Regimental Combat Team that was comprised of 100% Nisei members.  All the other companies had non-Nisei officers in command positions.  Our company commander told us that he was given permission by the commander of the 442^nd that he could pick and choose whoever he wanted from the Regiment’s roster to form his company.

            At Camp Shelby, Mississippi, I was assigned to the 3^rd Platoon, 1^st Squad of the Engineers.  Our manpower was majority from Hawaii.  Mainland Niseis were mostly from the West Coast states.  Basic training at Camp Shelby was a new experience for most of us.  The climate, the people of the area, the animals and insects, the military way of life, the mixtures of men from different backgrounds and ages – all of these things required adjustments.  Fear of snakes, chigger bites or sand fleas attacks were all part of the training time experiences.

            After basic training our company went to Italy and joined the 100^th Infantry and the 34^th Division north of Rome.  We were so inexperienced, our company convoy drove right up to the battle area and into artillery fire.  We suffered our first casualty during this encounter.  I remember as we proceeded from the rear to the front lines, we passed large artillery guns and gradually the arms got smaller.  One person on our truck made a comment – when you start hearing machine guns and rifle fires, you know you’re in the combat zone.  We got our baptism that day and learned real fast how to survive.

            In Italy our company was fortunate to be attached to the Engineer Battalion of the 34^th Division.  We were given orientations on the various types of mines used by the German Army.  We were surprised to find mines made of metal, wood, glass, cement and even ceramic.  They came in all sizes and shapes.  There were land mines to disable tanks – heavy equipment.  Then there were anti-personnel mines like the “shoe” mine and the “Bouncing Babies.”  The “shoe” mines were the smallest and they were used to maim more than to kill.  The “Bouncing Babies” were the deadliest.  These anti-personnel mines were packed with ball bearings or chopped metal pieces and when stepped on or if wires attached to it were tripped, the inner chamber would bounce up by a charge and explode spreading all the deadly metal fragments.  Many men were killed or wounded by the mines.

            Besides disarming, neutralizing mines and sweeping for mines with metal detectors, our company was involved with building by-pass roadways around blown bridges and highways.  When the infantry units were advancing at a rapid pace, our engineers were assigned to provide passage for supplies and ammunition to the front and the evacuation of the wounded to the rear.  Usually these by-pass roads were for jeep travel.  Better and wider roads were left for the rear echelon engineers to construct.  On occasion bulldozer and heavy equipment were too noisy to use.  Manpower was the only way to complete the job.

            In the battle of Bruyeres and the “Lost Battalion,” engineers had to do a lot of work clearing the roads through the forest areas.  The Germans blew large trees with explosives onto the roads to block traffic.  To clear the large trunks and other debris, we had to use large, heavy, noisy gas engine-run chain saws.  These operations usually resulted in artillery shellings with great danger to the personnel working.  In Vosges forest area, our engineer built miles and miles of wood plank and log-covered roads so our equipment could get through the muddy roads.  During the “Lost Battalion” battle, we were assigned to sweep the forestry roadway for mines and make clear so supplies and ammo could move through.  Our squad was close enough to hear all the commotion during this battle.  We even saw the casualties coming out from the area.  A very happy day for some but a very sad one for many.

            All throughout the war, many unforgettable incidents took place.  In the Pisa area when we returned to Italy from France, our engineers during push into the Po Valley suffered 4 bulldozer losses.  All ran over land mines and were put out of commission.  One highway was so important to our offense, the engineers built an overpass over one of the disabled bulldozers so traffic could go through.  In one area where the 92^nd Division was assigned our squad with a bulldozer operator and dozer had to clear the highway full of dead horses and men – a very stinky job.  We had to throw our shoes away because the rotten oil from the dead horses was too much to handle.

            For all the bad things that we endured during the war as well as the good times we had, I am very satisfied with the end results.  I think the wartime experiences made a better person of me.