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The first days of April found the 53rd Armored engineer Battalion participating in one of the classic maneuvers of modern warfare. During the closing days of March our Division had engaged the 116th Panzers who were now resisting fiercely in well prepared positions. Orders came from above to disengage, to swing to the North and then to the East, to get behind the bulk of the German forces. On April 1st all the Battalion elements were doing just that. The line companies moved out with their various Combat Commands while Headquarters and Headquarters Company moved out in a separate serial. When the movement was completed we were indeed behind our enemy as were several other Divisions. The various elements of the 8th Armored Division, including the 53rd Armored Engineer were assembled west of Paderborn, Battalion Headquarters being inn BORK. We were getting deeper into Germany. We crossed another time zone somewhere along the line an accordingly set our watches up another hour. Every man in the battalion confidently expected to be in Berlin within a few days. Our intelligence section got into the spirit of the occasion and issued maps covering Germany right on past Berlin to the Russian lines.
It was in this section of Germany that we began to see liberated slave laborers and Allied Prisoners of War in large numbers. They wandered about the countryside, some taking one direction, some another, all of them looking rather bewildered. Freedom having been denied them for such a long time they seemed stunned by the suddenness with which it came.
We moved slightly North and quite a ways East to the vicinity of Delbruck. At this point our intelligence reported that the enemy was planning to break out of the trap which had been thrown about him. We turned south and west to thwart him. How well we succeeded was revealed several days later when enemy Prisoners of War told of the assembly point for the planned attack being over-run. Some how the nimble 116th Panzer Division had turned around to face us once again, to match their guns and their wits against ours. The first week of April found us slowly driving them back. Speaking strictly from the viewpoint of the Engineer battalion, here's how we helped place the enemy in his unhappy position. Company 'A' moved with CCA from the vicinity of DORSTEN to the Division assembly area in the vicinity of SELM, from there to KLAUSHEDE, BERGE, ALTENRUTHEN, LOHNE, fighting and working all the way like beavers that they are. Company 'B' played similar 'one night stands' across Germany, touching briefly at SCHLOVEN, SANDE, NESTHAUSEN, SALZKOTTEN, RIXBECK, SCHMBLECKE, and many was the roadblock and mine removed on the way. Company 'C' got in some good licks too, early in April, building a corduroy road on the 2nd, filling road craters and demolishing two 75's on the 4th, removing a roadblock and the 5th, two more on the 6th, and to top off the first week of April, put down three road blocks of their own on the 7th.
The story of the first days of April would not be complete without mention of the fantastic adventures of one of the billeting parties sent out by Company 'B'. The story as recalled by those involved goes something like this. On 2nd April the Company left SALEM, destination SANDE. During this long drive a billeting party composed of LT SHERIDAN, S/Sgt Dickerman and Sgt Hagebusch joined other billeting parties of CCB and together they started in the direction of Neuhause to look for accommodations for the remainder of the Combat Command. This territory was considered to be clear of the enemy, but it turned out to be 'clear to the shoulders only'. Just outside NEUHAUSE the party was fired on by a 'Burp' gun. MAJOR ELDING, who was in charge of the billeting party instructed LT SHERIDAN to return to the main body for the purpose of bringing up reinforcements. While LT SHERIDAN was busy getting the rescue party organized, Sgt Dickerman returned to the spot where MAJOR ELDING was to wait but found that the Major was gone and two men had been killed. Sgt Dickerman was then fired at and slightly wounded. He was taken prisoner and brought in to NEUHAUSE where he was hospitalized. When LT SHERIDAN arrived with help he found our 1/4-ton riddled with holes and the Sergeant nowhere to be found. Later Sgt Dickerman escaped from the hospital and returned to the Company.
The Battalion Headquarters group distinguished themselves in and around the town of EHRINGHAUSEN on the 4th and 5th by completely clearing the town of enemy soldiers, Nazi Party members, miscellaneous weapons and fresh eggs. They even picked up a Railroad maintenance crew who happed to be dressed in blue coveralls. They also picked up two Russian interpreters just in case we meet our comrades suddenly. When the trend of our advance turned toward the West these Russians became KP's but no doubt they will come into their own again soon. The Battalion moved from one success to another all during the month. On the 8th the Headquarters Group moved from ERWITTE to SOEST, the letter companies being in support of the Combat Commands.
On the 9th Company 'A' was attached to the 194th Glider Regiment where they won the respect of all with their hard work and 'know how'. Also on the 9th, Company 'C' and the Army lost one of its best soldiers when the gallant Texan, 2ND LT BURCH was hit by a large caliber shell, losing his left arm. On the 10th, Battalion Headquarters moved into WERL for a four day stay, while the three letter companies were continuing to harass the enemy who was already on his last legs. It was during the middle of the stay around WERL that Battalion had some major changes in the officer personnel. Our commanding Officer, LT COL EDWARD T. PODUFALY was appointed Division G-3 and MAJOR HENRY C. SCHRADER, our former Executive Officer assumed command. MAJOR J. E. VICK JR moved up form S-3 to Exec, CAPTAIN CHARLES C. CASERIO came in as S-3 and was replaced in command of Company 'B' by 1ST LT MICHEAL T. SANDS.
About this time of the month the high command decided that the Division could best be used elsewhere, so a move to the East was planned and entered upon. Battalion Headquarters moved to WOLFENBUTTEL, Company 'A' to the same town, Company 'B' to HALBERSTADT and Company 'C' went into the little town of BROITZEM.
The trip form WERL to WOLFENBUTTEL was a long one in comparison with other convoys which the Battalion Headquarters had run in it's string of one night stands across Germany, therefore it offered more opportunity for such GI pastimes as running into the ditches, taking the wrong road, etc. The official report read, Departed WERL 2245 13
April 1945, closed WOLFENBUTTEL, 1700 14 April 1945, but that does not ell the full story by any means. The lead vehicles of our convoy still maintain that they did not get lost, but that they merely followed the preceding column down the wrong road. The Maintenance Section claims to have counted 27 vehicles in the ditch during the trip, half of which they pulled out. Only a small number of these vehicles actually belonged to the Engineers, the other belonged to various outfits including the Tank Destroyer Battalion which led us down the wrong road. Serves them right. The only time that the very structure of the Battalion organization was shaken to it's foundation was when the S-3 personnel 1/2 track took to the ditch, but they soon discovered their error and corrected it. It was a motley crew that finally pulled into WOLFENBUTTEL, tired, dusty, hungry but as full as fight as ever, this pugnacious attitude being translated into a violent rushing around in search of proper billets.
Our stay around WOLFENBUTTEL will long be remembered because of the long stretch of emergency rations which were our only food during this time. The kitchen crew did a wonderful job on disguising Rhubarb during this time, but we soon grew tired of it and were thankful when we moved away, although we will always wonder if Sgt Naumann would have eventually worked out some way to make coffee from the Rhubarb dishes, 'After all', they say, 'Rhubarb is only celery with high blood pressure, and nothing good has ever come of celery.' We agree. It was during this period of food shortage that those two city slickers from Battalion Headquarters, S/Sgt Arnold Singer and Tec 5 Ray Houlihan decided to go foraging for eggs. They considered themselves to be in rare luck when they found a hen with 5 eggs underneath, The hen being reluctant to leave the nest necessitated prying with a piece of peep spring but the foul deed was finally done. S/Sgt Singer says that the hen tried to bite him during the process. The cause of this trouble finally came to light when the eggs were opened. The hen was answering the call of spring, the eggs had been incubating for several weeks and Sgt Singer and Tec 5 Houlihan are wiser for the experience.
Another brave attempt to alleviate this food shortage was made by our two nimble nimrods of Battalion Headquarters, CAPTAIN GARRETT and LT BURTON. Adopting for themselves the names 'Dead Eye' and 'Daniel Boone' and paying the proper respects to Diana, Goddess of the Chase, these two went out from WOLFENBUTTEL in quest of the Kings deer. Just what happened after they left the city limits is not exactly clear, but one fact is known, Battalion Headquarters did not eat venison that night. The nearest we came to meat was the 'sheepish' look on the face of the hunters. When questioned about their activities of the day, LT BURTON will only mumble something about seeing the Headquarters armorer, who he says, will prove to one and all that the carbine is no good. 'Doc' GARRETT goes into a long explanation about windage, jammed cartridges, etc. all the while obviously trying to place the blame for the fiasco on LT BURTON. Whatever the reason behind the failure we earnestly hope that all future expeditions of type will be under-taken by CAPTAIN EDDY who is batting .1000 in the deer league.
The stay around WOLFENBUTTEL proved to be a rest period for all Companies except 'B' which was kept busy setting mines and booby traps to keep the enemy at a safe distance. On the 20th of April CAPTAIN WALLACE O. RICKARD was accidentally shot by a German youth and was evacuated and lost to the battalion. On the 23rd of April all the Companies and Battalion Headquarters moved to previously assigned areas which they were to occupy and govern for the remainder of the month. S-5 Sections were set up, towns were screened, the areas patrolled day and night. Many prisoners were picked up altho' this territory was supposed to have been cleaned up before the Battalion arrived. As the month ended the effects of good government were becoming apparent, the roads had become free of stragglers, the hungry were fed, the idle were put to useful work and Germany could be said to have started on the long road back, but for the 53rd Armored Engineer Battalion this phase was only another job to done well, one of the many jobs that would have to be done before they too, started on the road back.
Strength of the Battalion 1 April:
33 Officers, 3 Warrant Officers, 637 Enlisted Men
Strength of the Battalion 30 April:
31 Officers, 3 Warrant Officers, 622 Enlisted Men
Officer Changes During March:
1st Lt CAMPOS lost to 100th Evac Hosp - 6 April 1945
2nd Lt SYMONDS returned to duty - 8 April 1945
2nd Lt BURCH SWA in Germany - 9 April 1945
Lt Col PODUFALY reld fr asgmt and asgd to G-3 8th Armd Div - 12 April
Maj SCHRADER assumed comd - 12 April 1945
Maj VICK aptd Exec officer - 12 April 1945
Capt CASERIO aptd S-3 - 12 April 1945
1ST Lt SANDS assumed comd of Co 'B' - 12 April 1945
Capt RICKARD lost to 67th Evac hosp - 20 April 1945
1st Lt O'ROURKE assumed comd of Co 'C' 0 22 April 1945
2nd Lt BAKER aptd 1st Lt - 21 April 1945
S/Sgt MacDOUGALL honorably discharged to accept direct commission as
2nd Lt CE-AUS - 27 April 1945
2nd Lt MacDOUGALL asgd and jd Co 'B' - 28 April 1945
2nd Lt SAPP lost to 108th Evac Hosp - 30 April 1945
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