After Action Reports and Interviews
7th Armd. Inf. Bn. - S-1 Report, Feb 25-27, 1945
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HEADQUARTERS 7th ARMD INF BN
8th Armd Div
APO 258, U. S. ARMY

S-1 JOURNAL
1430, 25 Feb 45 to 2400, 27 Feb 45
Echt, Holland

Time   Incidents, Messages, Orders, etc.Action taken
  25 Feb 45
1430 Bn detached fr CCA and atchd to CCR to support atk of CCR to establish a new line fr Maas to the Roer south of Roermond about 1000 yds.
1600 Co A, with 81mm Mortar Plt atchd, moves fr Echt to Linne.
1630 Bn, less A and Sv, moves fr Echt to Aandenburg (near Montfort).
1730 Bn closes: Co A with 81mm Mortar Plt in Linne;
Bn Hq CP in Aandenburg - MG Plt in defense of CP N.E. of Aandenburg;
Co B and Hq behind and W of Montfort; Co C S. of road betw Station and Montfort.
2055 CCR: CW net to open 0400, 26 Feb; FM to stay on night and day.
2135 FA overlay comes in fr 399th FA.
2135 CO and S-3 return fr CCR with following:
CCB plans feint by fire tomorrow morn.
CCR to recon in force (limited atk) tomorrow morn. H hour is 0600 26 Feb.
58th with reinforcements will atk: Co C, 58th in Linne; Co B, at Station; Co, 58th with plt lt tks, plt TD and Mortar plt of 7th to move to west of Heide woods to be followed by Co A, 7th.
Co A, 7th to protect left flank of CCR after bend.
Co B. 58th with 1 lt tk and 1 med tk plts to go north or around Heide woods.
Co A 58th with medium and lt tks to move along Roer betw river and Heide woods, a trp of cav to exploit the bulge and a trp to flank of Co A 58th.

A patrol is now out to ck Heide woods - if not occupied Co B, 58th will move on up, if occupied Co B will by-pass and Co C, 7th will clear and hold Heide woods.
405 FA to support CCR.
399 FA to support 7th.
Div Arty plus TD, Tks and odds and ends will fire 15 min prepar at 0545.
Co C, 53rd Engr will have plt on right and 2 plts on left - if Heide woods full of mines call on Engrs.
Co C, 78th Med at Echt.
130 Ord will take damaged vehicles at Linne and salvage weapons - crew at each aid station.
Current SOI with net open at 0400 for receiving and limited transmission.
Adv CP of CCR at Linne; CP here (Aandenburg) -
   
  26 Feb 45
0300 Lt Newman, CO, Co C K.I.A.; Lt O'Brian assumes cmd Co C.
0600 Co C, 58th AIB jumps off fr the north edge of Linne. Co A, 7th in billets in Linne with AG plt atchd.
0620 1 Plt Co C, 58th reported nearing factory.
0640 1 Plt Co C, 58th crossing the AT ditch on planks.
0730 Co A, 7th on north edge of Linne, begins to move along road to pt where the RR track crosses the road.
0820 A Co calls atchd TD Plt up to houses at the RR crossing. Co closes new area. Advance CP set up in plywood warehouse.
0830 Med Det, 7th opens aid station in conjunction with 58th at Aandenburg.
0900 Two plts of 58th pinned down in the field to the left of the road at the AT ditch by German MGs scattered throughout the field. One plt in the bldg in the factory. The tk plt archd to C, 58th is at the RR crossing clearing out snipers to the rt of the road.
0910 The two plts in the field to the left of the road are pulling back behind the shelter of the RR tracks and assembling in the bldgs in that vic.
0930 Maj Muncie, Combat Team Cmdr, orders 2 plts of C, 58th to move east of RR track and up on line with the factory. Co A, 7th will then go up and clean out the factory and take the town of Muren. 4 Prisoners brought to Co A Adv CP and taken to rear by Co A - all PWs are paratroopers taken out of the AT ditch.
1040 One med tk atchd to Co C, 58th moves out into field east of RR tracks and knocks out a log and dirt dug-out.
1050 House tied in with pill box and trench system bordering the RR tracks on the east set afire to drive out snipers.
1130 A squad and a half of Cogliantry's plt Co C, 58th which had been pinned down in the field to the left of the road withdraws to A Co's CP. This squad reported several seriously wounded men in their area.
1140 Tks fr C Co's atchd pltn move out into field protecting medics and recover wounded and dead.
1230 Engr plt moves up main road along ditches to clear the mines in the abutments of the AT ditch so that bridge sections can be placed. MG and sniper fire from the factory and fr the field to the east diminish sharply betw 1130 and 1230 and after 1230 appear to consist of not more than 2 or 3 snipers. The med tk plt atchd to Co C parked on the road betw the RR crossing and AT ditch fr 1200 on dominating the fields in which the snipers and MGs have been firing.
1245 Co C, 58th pulled out of its position along the RR tracks where it had bogged down due to sniper fire fr the fields to the east. Co A sends one squad to cover that area and Co C moves up along the edge of the road towards the factory. Plan of atk: Co C to move straight up along the road, by-pass the factory and Merum, then turn north west and take Herten.
1300 Co A, 7th jumps off fr the RR crossing up the side to the road toward the factory. Lt tk Co moves up the road and halts in place.
1315 Co A halted with the head of Co at AT ditch and rear of Co at RR crossing
1355 Tk dozers start to wk clearing abbatis this side of AT ditch along road.
1405 Co C, 58th moves up the ditch to the RR track, then up along RR track and back over to road occupying houses just to the east of the factory.
1525 Engrs have moved up and are blowing mines in the road under the abbatis.
1530 Tk dozer begins to wk again clearing the trees
1620 2 prisoners brought in by outpost squad along RR track covering field betw Heide woods and field.
1635 2nd Plt, Co A moves up, crosses the AT ditch and occupies houses along the road just to the east of the factory.
1700 Maj Muncie plans to send 1 plt of Co A down the road to Merum with five lt tks to take the houses north of the factory behind the haystack. Another plt of A will be sent along the front of the factory to clean out that side. Co C will try to take Herten and after securing the houses just north of the factory will take Merum.
1730 S-3, CCR says call whole thing off, hold where you are, pull in around the factory. Co A should be drawn back to Linne.
After dark Co A pulls back to its previous position in Linne.
1730 to 2400 Bn stands pat, with A Co in Linne and rest of Bn bivouacked in vic of Montfort.
Casualties: S/Sgt Streitenberger Mortar squad Ldr, 2nd Plt killed while observing thru a window.
   
  27 Feb 45
0001 to 0945 No change
0945 Co Cmdrs meeting: Bn alerted to move to Echt. Xo A to be released fr CCR about noon. Rest of Bn will pull back to Echt on following schedule: 1000 to 1045 - C move out; 1045 ro 1100 - Hq; 1100 to 1115 - B.
1130 Co B closes Echt - this was the last Co since Co A was released ahead of time by CCR.
1300 CG, CCA gives verbal orders for Bn to move out at 1355; CO, 7th gives order of march to Co CO's; Cross IP (main road junc in Echt) Co B - 1355, Hq - 1405, Co A - 1415, Co C - 1425, Sv - 1435. Rate of march: 12 MPH. Route of march: Sittard, Gangelt, Geilenkirchen, Hilfarth.
1515 Bn passes through Gangelt.
1600 Bn halted betw Geilenkirchen and Randerath, waiting for orders to move across the Roer River. The wait being caused by necessity for reorganizing CCA as an advance guard.
1745 Tk plt, Co A, 18th moves to head of 7th.
1755 CG, CCA order to CO 7th: Order of march in CCA will be as follows: Trp C, 88th, Plt of med tks, Co's B, Hq, A, C, and Sv of 7th, 398th FA, 18th Tk Bn, Engr, TD. Route of march: Hilfarth, Huckelhoven, Golkrath, Tuschenbroich, Wegberg, Merbeck, Neiderkruchten, Heyen, St. Anton.
1800 CO to Cos: 7th order of march: B, A, Hq, C, Sv.
1810 Co B moves out of Randerth, with 9 tks of Co A 18th atchd.
1815 Co B crosses Roer.
1945 Hvy AAA fire observed over ricer cross. Move of colmn slow due to road condition and traffic congestion.
1950 Co B reaches Hilfarth.
2020 Co B reaches Golkrath (no incidents along the way).
2200 Co B halted in Golkrath and moves 1 1/2 plts ahead of tks as lead element. (Lt. Fisher says Gen Colson is up ahead trying to make a decision. The Gen wants to put the Recon on one road and us on the other but I want recon in front of us.)
2230 Topside G-2 net opens.
2330 Co B still sitting in Golkrath.