Today, it is known as the 104th Training Division (Leader Training) and based at Fort Lewis, Washington, as a training unit of the United States Army Reserve . [18] On 5 March, after heavy fighting, it entered Kln. 104th Division may refer to: 104th Division (1st Formation) (People's Republic of China), 1948-1951 104th Division (2nd Formation) (People's Republic of China), 1951-1955 104th Jger Division (Wehrmacht), a unit of the German Army 104th Division (Imperial Japanese Army) 104th Infantry Division "Mantova", a unit of the Italian Army Sobered and drained each of us eventually left the area, in the words of a poet As part of an army-wide initiative known as the Reorganization Objective Army Division plan, the division's regiments were disbanded and replaced with larger and more versatile brigades. The timberwolf, native to the Pacific Northwest, was chosen as representative of the area where the division was formed in 1942. Time dulls It was briefly inactivated from 2008 until 2010 when it was . On March 1, 2013 the formal organization of the National Timberwolf Association ended and although the formal structure no longer exist, the legacy and traditions forty-eight smaller tunnels. [15] It then moved across the Roer taking Huchem-Stammeln, Birkesdorf, and North Duren. The US Army forced about two thousand Germans from Nordhausen to bury the corpses in mass graves, a process which took until 16 April. Malnutrition and disease were rampant, and corpses lay unburied. Troops found only a few survivors among the 3000 corpses who were cared for in a field hospital. swollen, bulging feet; they had no shoes and they were unbelievably dirty. United States Army Investigation and Trial Records of War Criminals, National Archives and Records Service. Now we approached the cellar stairs leading to the French group. laid out in neat rows were an estimated thousand decaying corpses ranging from Heinrich Schmidt and an SS guard were tried in 1947 in the Dora Trial at Dachau for abuses at Boelcke-Kaserne, but they were acquitted for lack of evidence. with the 3rd Armored Division for a rapid advance of an eventual 375-mile [15][18] By 14:30 on 13 April, all survivors had been removed from the camp. There were lash marks on many of their scantily covered backs - definite proof From the 104th Training Division (LT) Commander words of a poet a sadder but wiser man.(16). [31] The 5th Brigade conducted health services training, 6th Brigade took charge of professional development training and 7th Brigade provided training support to the other brigades. No one else was tried for crimes committed at the subcamp. Activated in 1942, the 104th Infantry Division landed in France in September 1944, a few months after the Allied invasion of western Europe on D-Day (June 6, 1944). (11) United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, "104th Infantry Division Recognized as Liberating Unit," 104th Infantry Division, www.104infdiv.org (accessed Oct. 11, 2009). [15] The division then organized and assembled at Manche, France before heading into combat.[16]. gruesome sights at Nordhausen upon the men of the 104th: "For days and weeks, even months afterwards, the The 104th began combat operations on 25 and 26 October and began to attack the Germans, who offered varying levels of resistance. Post on August 17, 1946. PDF HONORING AMERICAN LIBERATORS - United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Requesting help from the 104th Infantry Division, the 3rd immediately begins transporting some 250 ill and starving prisoners to nearby hospital facilities. National Timberwolf Association, www.104infdiv.org (accessed Oct. 22, 2009). SS guards hid in air-raid shelters but did not allow the prisoners to seek cover. walk, this man was genuinely moved to pay tribute to those who were helping him The soldiers reacted in shock and disbelief to the evidence of Nazi atrocities. known?'. responsible for the operation of Mittelbau Dora Camp. outright. The 104th Infantry Division formally activated with ceremonies at Camp Adair, Oregon. he would honor me by the traditional kiss on either cheek. In all, around 5,000 V2s were launched from sites along the English Channel, killing thousands of British civilians. in trying to escape the fury of the guards. The other main national groups were Russians, Frenchmen, and Hungarian Jews. There were others, in dark cellar rooms, lying in disease and filth, Additional Nordhausen accounts can be found in our War The overall outlook changed to one of personal hatred and loathing of anyone wearing the German uniform.(12). French survivor Jean Mialet is quoted as stating "This is what hell must be like" when speaking of Mittelbau Dora. emotional impact was heavy on all who were witness to these incidents but The concentration camp prisoners were separated from the forced laborers by an electrified fence topped with barbed wire, and transported to work via a purpose-built railway spur. (11) The U.S. Army rushed medical personnel, food, and equipment to the All medical personnel that could be The US Army immediately had the prisoners transported out of the camp so that they could be treated by physicians. We would like to thank Crown Family Philanthropies and the Abe and Ida Cooper Foundation for supporting the ongoing work to create content and resources for the Holocaust Encyclopedia. In October 1944, the SS made Dora-Mittelbau an independent concentration camp with more than 30 subcamps of its own. TO ORDER CONTACT THE WEBMASTER The soldiers reacted in shock and disbelief to the evidence of Nazi atrocities. The 104th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the United States Army. Nordhausen, home of the Mittelbau-Dora Schmidt was tried again at the Third Majdanek Trial in 1979 for unrelated crimes, and again acquitted. able to tell his story. Email the Webmaster. Article. While the bulk of the division moved near Aachen, Germany, elements remained to secure Moerdijk until 7 November, when they were relieved. There were no toilets and there was no water. terrible evidence of atrocity. The liberation of the camp had a profound effect on the men of the 104th and the following story is that of veteran Stanley Dunn, as told to Robert Caggiano on April 26, 2001: After the 104th both discovered and liberated the Mittelbau Dora Concentration Camp in Nordhausen Germany, the horror of what these combat veterans witnessed affected each man differently. 104thInfantry Division. It began taking on the responsibility of holding training programs for new soldiers of the US Army Reserve. The (10) The aftermath of these atrocities were what the Timberwolves were to encounter on April 11, 1945. The Journey of Private Galione 415B Liberator of Mittelbau Dora, Concentration Camp Nordhausen, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=104th_Infantry_Division_(United_States)&oldid=1147028721, Infantry divisions of the United States Army, United States Army divisions during World War II, Military units and formations established in 1921, Infantry divisions of the United States Army in World War II, Training divisions of the United States Army, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, "Nothing in Hell can stop the Timberwolves". Our Timberwolf predecessors in the 104th Infantry Division liberated the Dora-Mittelbau Concentration Camp from Nazi Germany in World War II. [20], Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}512930.1N 104831.0E / 51.491694N 10.808611E / 51.491694; 10.808611, "Nordhausen concentration camp" redirects here. Under the supervision of the US First Army, German civilians from Nordhausen carry victims of the Dora-Mittelbau concentration camp to mass graves. Screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky also served with the 104th during WW2. Angela Fiederman, a staff member at the Mittelbau Dora memorial site stated: Until the spring of 1944 the prisoners lived underground. Massacre was the word here, We got almost nothing to eat, a piece of bread, perhaps two or three potatoes. [18] Eschweiler fell on 21 November and the enemy was cleared from the area west of the Inde River, including Inden by 2 December 1944. The "Timberwolf" division advanced into Belgium by the end of the following month. After World War II, this division was reorganized primarily as a training division for Reserve forces. (8) Richard Murphy, "Survivors of V2 Nazi Slave Camp Mark Liberation," Reuters, April 10, 1995, under "The Nizkor Project," http://nizkor.org/ftp.cgi/camps/buchenwald/press/reuters.040395 (Oct. 24, 2009). In a caravan of trucks we rushed into a job which proved weight of the other bodies piled on them had been too much for their starved, The Timberwolf division made contact with the advancing Soviet armed forces at the end of the month. made. [5] Additional prisoners arrived in June 1944 for forced labor with Junkers and in the Mittelwerk tunnel system, mostly for the production of V-1 and V-2 rockets. through the town to the graves.". The Timberwolf division made contact with the advancing Soviet armed forces at the end of the month. The 104th Infantry and the Liberation of Camp Mittelbau Dora The Timberwolves knew they were there to help liberate the world from tyranny, of course, but personal hatred usually was not present. December 1, 2009. The SS was in charge of the These men were willing to We were battle-tired It was like stepping into the In one bomb crater lay about twenty We would like to thank Crown Family Philanthropies and the Abe and Ida Cooper Foundation for supporting the ongoing work to create content and resources for the Holocaust Encyclopedia. horrors of war, but nothing could prepare them for what they would encounter upon liberating the concentration camps Hitler had created with the goal of exterminating those "unworthy of life". TTY: 202.488.0406, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, DC, The Holocaust and World War II: Key Dates, Holocaust Survivors and Victims Resource Center. work on longer, after which they were starved off or killed This monument was erected and dedicated on 16 April 2002 in Halle, Germany on the 57th Anniversary of the day that Major General Terry de la Mesa Allen, Commanding General, 104th Infantry Division (US Army), met German Count Felix von Luckner. in enormous underground factories the deadly supersonic V-2 rockets. (14) Kenneth T. Downs, "Nothing Stopped the Timberwolves," The Saturday Evening Post (August 17, 1946): 20-43. I saw one man feebly stagger to continued to contend with sporadic counter-attacks from the resisting German army. Nordhausen was liberated by the 104th US Infantry Division on April 12th, 1945. (5), August of 1943 saw the arrival of first prisoners at camp Mittelbau Dora. [8] In 2005, the current Distinctive Unit Insignia was designed under the direction of Major General Terrill K. (TK) Moffett. serve as a silent witness to the evil committed at Camp Mittelbau Dora. One of the garages held four blocks of prisoners still able to work, for whom conditions were slightly better, but for all prisoners, rations were grossly insufficient to sustain life. At the airport to greet us were Esther Eenhuisen, from the Netherlands, and Vincent De Saedeleer and Ben De Staercke from Belgium. [1] The death rate was so high that a special work detail was formed to move the corpses. here in production of V-1 and V-2 bombs*. Prisoners at Dora-Mittelbau had been forced to construct massive tunnels and work in underground factories producing V-2 rockets for the German military. He looked to be His dozen or so photos from Mittelbau-Dora show rows of emaciated corpses in brutal clarity (inexplicably,. Timberwolf Tracks Order Form, WRITTEN BY THE SOLDIERS OFTHE 104TH INFANTRY DIVISION, TIMBERWOLVES I asked myself, 'Is this what is meant by genocide? On the grounds [5][7] Some prisoners, weakened from their ordeal at other concentration camps, never recovered from the stress of transport, often in open railway cars, with inadequate food and water. African American Soldiers during World War II, Documenting Numbers of Victims of the Holocaust and Nazi Persecution, Holocaust Survivors and Victims Resource Center. [11] The barracks was located near railyards and factories, which were considered military targets;[5] Boelcke-Kaserne had not been marked with a Red Cross symbol. The 104th Timberwolf Infantry Division has held a reunion for the past 69 years, and will meet again this year at a celebration . beginning of the National Timberwolf Pups Association . experience of the dead and dying prisoners they encountered at the Camp, an experience which was one of the most profound of their entire military careers during World War II. Its role and size have expanded over that time due to the consolidation of other training commands, and the division subsequently took charge of a number of brigades specializing in various entry-level training for soldiers of all types. building, and would I please bring aid to them. similar background, on the eye witnessed horror stories of an even more This site is dedicated to all those who served on the Home Front as well as those who fought and those who never came home, who lie mute beneath rank upon rank of white marble markers and other unmarked places forever known but to their God. as a top secret satellite camp of Buchenwald in 1943 after British bombers destroyed the main missile research base at Peenemuende on the Baltic Coast. Main telephone: 202.488.0400 Joining the Battle of the Scheldt, the division moved into defensive positions in the vicinity of Wuustwezel, Belgium on 23 October 1944. me he had been kicked and beaten repeatedly. work possible at the labor camps; and "die of natural causes" while producing the V2 missiles which would win the war for Germany. prisoners were exposed to gas, noise, and the dust of explosions. The trial also addressed the question of liability of Nordhausen scientists, who were then spared in the Division were rushed to the scene to give medical aid. Concentration Camp, was first viewed as just another spot on the map, but After fierce fighting in the Ruhr pocket, it advanced into central Germany and took the Prussian university town of Halle on April 19. TThe unprovoked attack on Pearl Harbor is what prompted most young American men to enlist. As a result of the actions of the 104th and their Allied counterparts, the Scheldt Estuary was cleared. When I answered, he brightened and related that a group The division insignia is a gray Timberwolf's head on a balsam green disc. didn't know. After Daybreak: The Liberation of Belsen, 1945. The Timberwolves travelled across France by train and debarked near the Belgian-Dutch border and waited for word to take part in a new allied offensive, Operation Pheasant, taking the place of the experienced British 49th Infantry Division on the left flank and the Polish 1st Armored Division on the right. . Rosenbach was sent to Auschwitz, then Buchenwald, and at age fifteen he found himself toiling at Mittelbau Dora. A large number of Jews were to come later as the camps in the East were being emptied and slave labor was needed in manufacturing camps such as which included and updated the history of the National Timberwolf Association. In the building bedded on straw side This page last updated: 26 October 20141999 National Timberwolf AssociationSite originally developed by Peter Branton hunger and rape for the women and children. [5] Assigned to the division were the 207th and 208th Infantry Brigades, containing the 413th, 414th, 415th, and 416th Infantry Regiments. She lay there where she Colonel Taggart called into action, early 12 April, the litter Holocaust Remembrance: Story of Liberating Nazi Concentration Camp For the next two days, the Timberwolves pursued enemy remnants north to the Meuse. Their rapidity Prisoners assigned to this duty could draw the rations of the dead. The 104th Infantry Division formally activated with ceremonies at Camp Adair, Oregon. [20] After a period of mopping up and consolidation, it participated in the trap of enemy troops in the Ruhr pocket. When US forces liberated Dora-Mittelbau in April 1945, only a few prisoners were still in the camp. Mittelbau Dora Concentration Camp "secret weapon" of Hitler, launched from Holland, first hit London on continued with Easter Sunday and April Fool's Day practically unnoticed. It was located inside a former Luftwaffe barracks complex in Nordhausen, Thuringia, Germany, adjacent to several pre-existing forced labor camps. . human filth. In almost all bunkers and buildings the living were found lying among the dead. [21] The division then crossed the Saale River and took Halle in a bitter five-day struggle from 15 to 19 April. A million or more Armenian lives destroyed at the whim of those who ruled the old Turkish Ottoman Empire. Rene Steenbeke. Explosions set off during construction of the tunnels claimed many lives. "Survivors of V2 Nazi Slave Camp Mark Liberation." The Timberwolves remained focused on their main objective: Eliminate enemy opposition and ensure Hitler's downfall. As Allied troops moved across Europe in a series of offensives against Nazi Germany, they found tens of thousands of concentration camp prisoners in deplorable conditions. 104th Inf Div - RootsWeb These men were dedicated to continuing the spirit of fellowship and teamwork from which Comments? The Royal Navy took three weeks to sweep the estuary waters clear of mines, and in early December 1944, the port of Antwerp was open to Allied shipping. The executed at the slightest suggestion of sabotage. I followed the trains all the way down, for miles, and found a train car filled with dead [19], The division returned to the United States on 3 July 1945. With a new addendum, the 2014 edition brings to close the NTA and the webmaster@104infdiv.org, Please . Liberation of Achtmaal by the 415th Regiment of the 104th Inf.Div. [18][12][4] American soldiers photographed and filmed the conditions at the camp, which were widely distributed in international media. In addition, two soldiers from this division were awarded the Medal of Honor for their service in combat. 5,000 people and injured 35,000 more. of the Timberwolves will endure. camp. According to some accounts, soldiers of the 104th Infantry Division killed German civilians in Nordhausen who denied knowledge of the atrocities, believing that . unbelievable to an American; a job distasteful and sobering; one created by the 104th Division (Institutional Training), HQ (to include: Headquarters (less detachment), 1st Brigade, 104th Division, 1st Battalion, 414th Regiment, 2d Battalion, 414th Regiment, 1st Battalion, 415th Regiment, 2d Battalion, 415th Regiment, 3d Battalion, 415th Regiment, 1043d Training Detachment, Headquarters, 3d Brigade, 104th Division, 1st Battalion, 104th Regiment, 2d Battalion, 104th Regiment, 3d Battalion, 104th Regiment, 4th Battalion, 104th Regiment, 5th Battalion, 104th Regiment, 1041st Training Detachment, U.S. Army Regional Training Site, Sacramento, Headquarters 4th Brigade, 104th Division, 6th Battalion, 104th Regiment, 7th Battalion, 104th Regiment, 8th Battalion, 104th Regiment, Detachment, 9th Battalion, 104th Regiment, Headquarters, 6th Brigade, 104th Division, 10 Battalion, 104th Regiment, 11th Battalion, 104th Regiment, Headquarters, 7th Brigade, 104th Division, 1st Battalion, 413th Regiment, 2d Battalion, 413th Regiment, 3d Battalion, 413th Regiment, Detachment, Headquarters, 8th Brigade, 104th Division, 3d Battalion, 414th Regiment, 104th Army Band. immediately following the war. Conditions were rainy, chilly, wet, and muddy. Some female forced laborers deliberately had children in hopes of being sent home; other children were incidentally conceived from careless or violent sexual relationships in the forced labor camps. factory. He was comparatively healthy, as PDF 104TH INFANTRY DAY - Minnesota [18] The sector to the Mulde River was cleared by 21 April, and after vigorous patrolling, contacted the Red Army at Pretzsch on 26 April. It is primarily responsible for Combat Service Support training for soldiers entering the Ordnance Corps and other related fields. The 104th Infantry Division during World War II [7][5] According to the Encyclopedia of Camps and Ghettos, "it is difficult to describe in words" the conditions in the second garage, where prisoners were left to die. Dying on the second floor were, upon later count, There are those who now maintain that Hitler's holocaust The Liberation of the Nazi Concentration Camps - WWII Memorial. Friends I always thought this was not the end for me.(7). Washington: Pleasant Word Press 2004. The Dora-Mittelbau (also known as Dora-Nordhausen or Nordhausen) camp was established in central Germany near the southern Harz Mountains, north of the town of Nordhausen. There were many bodies strewn about. (13) "United States of America v. Kurt Andrae et al. Factory occupied large tunnels underneath a mountain near Nordhausen in the Harz Mountains in central Germany. survivors, and bury the dead. trial commenced on August 7, 1947 at the Dachau internment camp against those Reports indicated that approximately one hundred bodies were cremated per day, was huddled up against a dead comrade, as if to keep warm, having no concept SS guards barely entered the camp, instead allowing the prisoners to die from neglect. he had been in camp only three months. My legs just seventy-five but was only forty-five. In December, the 104th was forced into defensive positions by German counterattacks, but in March 1945, the division entered the Rhineland and captured the city of Cologne. Written & Submitted by Heather Smith Aprril 27, 1945 - June 11, 1958, http://www.archives.gov/research/captured-german-records/microfilm/m1079.pdf. [1] The division was assigned to III Corps of the Ninth United States Army, part of the Twelfth United States Army Group. The "Timberwolf" division advanced into Belgium by the end of the following month. Aftermath of the RAF bombing raid of 3 and 4 April 1945 that destroyed the Boelcke-Kaserne (Boelcke Barracks) located in the south-east of the town of Nordhausen and killed around 1,300 inmates. of maneuver and bold night attacks and teamwork were outstanding and held casualties down to 1445 killed, 4801 wounded, 111 missing in action, for a total of 6357.(14). of beatings and floggings by their inhuman guards. US authorities also ordered the local townspeople to bury the dead. [24], In 1996, three more brigades were added to the division's structure. They are Willy F. James Jr., for scouting German positions while being pinned down by machine gun fire,[39] and Cecil H. Bolton, who led a company of men on the attack despite wounds from a mortar shell.

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