NAME: Gerald J. Seymour
ASN: 36451373
PLACE OF BIRTH: Schaffer, MI
DATE OF BIRTH: 15 Mar 1923
DATES OF SERVICE: 11 Feb 1943 - 07 Sep 1945
UNIT ASSIGNED:
B Company, 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion
82nd Airborne Division
CAMPAIGNS: Naples-Foggia, Anzio, Rome-Arno, Southern France, Ardennes-Alsace, Rhineland
AWARDS: Combat Infantryman Badge, Parachutist Badge with combat jump star, Purple Heart Medal with oak leaf cluster, EAME Campaign Medal with arrowhead and five campaign stars, WWII Victory Medal, Distinguished (Presidential) Unit Citation with oak leaf cluster
SUMMARY OF SERVICE:
15 Mar 1923 - Born in Schaffer, Michigan to Eugene Seymour and Carrie Tousigant Seymour
30 Jun 1942 - Registered for draft at Local Board No. 4 Milwaukee County, Room 8 Court House, Milwaukee, WI, Height: 5'8", Weight: 145 lbs, Hair: Black, Eyes: Brown, Place of Residence: Y.M.C.A. - 4th and Wisconsin Ave. Milwaukee, WI, Employed by Heil Co - Plant No 1 at 27th and Cleveland, Milwaukee, WI
11 Feb 1943 - Enlisted at Marquette, MI - NARA Enlistment Records
"My military career began 58 years ago when I enlisted at the age of 19 (almost) 20 in the town of Marquette, Mich which is located in northern Michigan."
00 Feb 1943 - Moved by train to Fort Sheridan, IL for one week inprocessing
"I boarded a train and arrived at Fort Sheridan, Ill. The temperature was 20 below. After a week here where I received my uniform etc."
00 Feb 1943 - Moved by train to Camp Wolters, TX for 6 week basic training, volunteered for the Paratroops
"I boarded a train bound for Texas. We arrive at Camp Walters which was located about 60 miles south of Fort Worth, Texas. The temperature was 85 degrees. I loved it. We went through basic training for 6 weeks, and then I got on a list of volunteers for the paratroops. My main reason was I was getting $21 a month and paratroopers received $50 more for jumping out of an airplane. Enough said."
00 Apr 1943 - Moved by train to Fort Benning, GA to attend The Parachute School
"I was now stationed at Fort Benning, GA. Here we were given some really rugged training. Hand to hand bayonet fighting, weapons of all kinds and 5 parachute jumps out of a C-47 plane. I then received an R&R pass and spent 10 days back home in Michigan. This was Aug of 1943."
00 ??? 1943 - Graduated from The Parachute School
00 Aug 1943 - Received 10 days leave and traveled back to Michigan
01 Sep 1943 - Moved by train to Newport News, VA as replacements to board a ship for Caeablanca, North Africa
"Sept 1st we embarked on a train which took us to Newport News, VA. Here we boarded a ship bound for Europe. We spent 27 days on the Atlantic and I think I threw up every day. I never was so glad to see the rock of Gibraltar. Finally, after a short time we landed at Casablanca, Africa. Point of interest, I spoke fluent French and enjoyed talking with the Arabs and the Free French troops. Also enjoyed hunting Gazelle from a weapons carrier. We clocked them at 30 miles per hour. "
00 Oct 1043 - Arrived in Casablanca after 27 days at sea
25 Nov 1943 - Attended Thanksgiving Day dinner in North Africa
"Nov 1943 we spent Thanksgiving in North Africa. We all had a big dinner with all the trimmings. Unfortunately, the turkeys had become tainted with bacteria and we were deathly ill for about 2 days. As the British say “Bloody poor deal!”"
00 Dec 1943 - Moved by ship from North Africa to Naples, Italy
"Dec 1943 we embarked on a ship and landed in Naples, Italy. Here we joined the 509th Parachute Battalion which consisted of 500 crack troops. We began training for an invasion by sea. Our target was a small town called Anzio, Italy."
00 Dec 1943 - Assigned to B Co 509th PIB
22 Jan 1944 - Pvt. Gerald J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co, 509th PIB Participated in Operation SHINGLE the amphibious invasion of Anzio, Italy landing at Beach X-RAY YELLOW while attached to the 6615th Ranger Task Force
"We landed on landing crafts at about 4 o’clock in the morning amid heavy shelling. This was my first baptism of fire, and I knew absolutely nothing about combat. Shells were exploding and bullets were flying all over, so I finally decided Id better hug good old mother earth."
00 Feb 1944 - Pvt. Gerald J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co. 509th PIB Wounded In Action by artillery shell fragment in right foot. Moved out by foot and ambulance to 118th Station Hospital in Naples, Italy
"We were in combat about 3 weeks when I was involved in this accident. I was in a fox hole with a buddy, dusty Dawson from Gary, Indiana. Well I got out of the fox hole for a nature call when I heard a shell coming. I dove for the fox hole and landed on top of Dusty who really cussed me out. I felt a sharp pain in my right foot as I got up and noticed I had a hole in my boot and quite a bit of blood was coming out. It seems part of the shell fragments went through my boot as I dove for the fox hole. I stayed there with Dusty all day as you could not move in daylight hours because of the enemy. At dusk a medic came and carried me piggy back to a first aid station. From the 1st aid station I was placed in an ambulance and taken to the 118th Station Hospital in Naples, Italy."
00 Feb 1944 - Pvt. Gerald J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co, 509th PIB, Diagnosis: First Location: Phalanges of fifth toe; Causitive Agent: Artillery Shell, Other or Unspec to Blast, Fragments, Debris, Type of Injury: Casualty, Battle, Injured: In the Line of Duty
17 Mar 1944 - Witnessed the eruption of Mount Vesuvius from the third floor of the hospital which was about 7 miles away
"While I was recuperating there Mount Vesuvius erupted and destroyed an entire town. I was only 7 miles from this volcano and every night we watched the hot lava and fire shoot up into the sky. We were on the 3rd floor and it was quite a sight."
00 Mar 1944 - Pvt. Gerald J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co 509th PIB, Discharged from medical facility, Type Discharge: Returned to Duty
"After about a month and a half I was pronounce fit for duty and rejoined my outfit. I also like to mention out of my company of 120 men at Anzio 30 returned and came to see us at the hospital. The rest were wounded, killed or captured. I felt very fortunate to be where I was."
10 Apr 1944 - Pvt. Gerald J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co, 509th PIB GO 5 - The following named Officers and Enlisted Men of Companies indicated having fulfilled all requirements as set forth in Par #3. a&b, Section I, WD Circular #269, dated 27 October 1943, are hereby announced as Combat Infantrymen and are entitled to wear the badge as specified in WD Circular above.
?? ??? 1944 - Pvt. G. J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co, 509th PIB Listed on the manifest for Operation Ledger Bn # 31 Co # 7 Seat: 6, This was likely one of the several canceled airborne operations in Italy.
00 Jun 1944 - Pvt. Gerald J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co 509th PIB Diagnosis: UKN, Type of Injury: Disease, Treatment: Penicillin therapy, Injury: Not in the line of duty, other
00 Jul 1944 - Pvt. Gerald J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co 509th PIB, Discharged from medical facility, Type Discharge: Returned to Duty
24 Jul 1944 - Pvt. G. J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co 509th PIB Listed on jump manifest for Operation DRAGOON (RUGBY) Bn Plane: 22, B Co Plane: 2 Seat: 6
"Jun, Jul, Aug 1944 we began training for a parachute drop into Southern France. Now I had 2 good buddies Dusty Dawson from Gary, Ind and Marv Gilman from Jackson, Mich. whom I wanted to be with on their plane. Because I spoke fluent French I thought it might help me get on the lead plane with my buddies. I was refused and put on the 2nd plane for the jump into France."
15 Aug 1944 - Pvt. G. J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co 509th PIB Participated in Operation DRAGOON (RUGBY) The airborne invasion of Southern France
"D-Day We embarked on a C47 at around 2:00 in the morning and took off over the Alps. At about 4 o’clock we got the command “hook up and stand in the door” . There was a First Lt., a 2nd Lt. our 1st Sgt, a radioman, then me and about 15 men behind me. My heart was almost in my throat. The red light came on which means get ready and then the green light came on which means jump! Now I could see out the door and although it was a cloudy night with a moon, I saw water below. The green light was on, but the Lt. said we’re going to wait one minute. That wait saved our lives, as I landed about 100 ft from the beach. I landed hard but unbuckled my chute and grabbed my M-1 rifle. Just then a figure came up out the dark and yelled in French “Welcome les Americanes” I had my hand on the trigger but when I heard his words in French I didn’t fire. The figure was an old man with a bottle of wine yelling like crazy. I immediately told him to get in house as my buddies didn’t understand French and he could be shot. I regrouped with several of my buddies and we began looking for the boys on plane no. 1 which included the company commander, 1st Sgt. and 14 other men including my 2 best buddies Marv and Dusty. We began engaging Germans all day but I still kept looking for my 2 best buddies. To make a long story short, they were never found as evidently they were over the water (Mediterranean) when they jumped and all of them drowned. With their equipment on and chute they never had a chance. We engaged several pockets of Germans all that day but we did not suffer any heavy casualties. I kept looking for my 2 buddies Dust and Gil but unfortunately they were gone forever."
21 Aug 1944 - Participated in the Battle of Castle Hill 84, was struck by an enemy round which hit his trench knife and knocked him down. He was not wounded in this battle
"The next day we climbed a rather steep hill and came down a steep draw. The time was about 4:30 in the morning and daylight was just breaking. All of a sudden riffle fire broke out and we were suffering heavy casualties. In a hill above us about 7 or 8 snipers were zeroing in on us. We laid there all day pinned down by this sniper fire and we suffered about 30 casualties. I was struck by a bullet, but luckily it struck my trench knife on my belt and exited out instead of in. The force of the bullet knocked me down and that probably saved by butt."
24 Aug 1944 - Participated in the liberation of Cannes
29 Aug 1944 - Crossed the Var River and advanced through Nice, France
08 Sep 1944 - Assigned to defensive positions in the Maritime Alps
22 Nov 1944 - Moved by truck and rail to Viller-Cotterets, France for R&R
"After the fighting in France we embarked on trucks and headed for a small town south of Paris. We all thought the war was over. How wrong we were. The time of the year was Dec of 1944. Point of interest, it was now the 1st week on December and our battalion decided to have a xmas dance. We had collected around $500 for drinks, food etc. now because I spoke French I was chosen to visit several French homes and invite the parents and their daughters to attend our dance. Everything was all set and the date was Dec 15th 1944."
22 Dec 1944 - Moved out by trucks to Manhay, Belgium to take up positions along the Northern Shoulder during the Battle of the Bulge. Attached to 3rd Armored Division
"On the afternoon of Dec 15th we were placed on combat alert. That meant all leave was cancelled and all social activities. We were placed on trucks with full combat equipment and headed for the front and so began the Battle of the Bulge in the country of Belgium."
23 Dec 1944 - B Co 509th sends out patrols to Faozel and Hormont
24 Dec 1944 - B Co 509th clears enemy from south side of Soy-Hotton Road moving west
25 Dec 1944 - B Co 509th again clears enemy from Soy-Hotton Road then takes up defensive positions southwest of Soy
"Point of interest, I was leading a squad of men through a wooded area and it was deathly quiet. We approached a small stream and I signalled a halt. Just then we heard several rifle bolts being closed in the bushes. All of a sudden out stepped 3 German Soldiers with their weapons over their heads. They had decided to surrender and they were cold and hungry and looking quite pitiful. The date was xmas day (Dec 25th 1944). We sent them back to the rear with a feeling of intense relief."
28 Dec 1944 - 509th participates in the Battle of Sadzot, Belgium pushing the 25th SS Panzer Grenadiers out of town
04 Jan 1945 - 509th relieved from positions and moves by truck to Lorce, Belgium
12 Jan 1945 - 509th attached to Comand Command B 7th Armored Division and prepares to move out to Spa, Belgium
"We were driven all night in the rain to a town called Spa. There we joined other forces and the battle began."
19 Jan 1945 - B Co 509th moves to assembly area at Wolfsbusch
20 Jan 1945 - A and B Co 509th attack to seize high ground west of Born, Belgium. At 1700 B Company meets stiff resistance and Capt. Winship is seriously wounded. Lt Justin McCarthy takes over command of the company. 1840 hours B Co takes 29 enemy prisoners. three tiger tanks appear and B Company withdraws from teh three buildings it had captured on the edge of Born, Belgium. Move to secure positions and calls up tank destroyers for support
"The Battle of the Bulge was fought in cold, snowy weather and we suffered many casualties. There were times when I felt I was back in my home state of northern Michigan as far as weather was concerned. We had to take the town of St Vith twice before we finally captured it. In this battle I lost my company commander Captain Winship who was struck by an artillery shell."
20 Jan 1945 - Wounded In Action
"The Battle of the Bulge ended for me when I froze my feet and was taken out by jeep to a Army hospital. I was quite worried about my feet as they were turning black, but after excellent care I was pronounced physically fit once again. Some of the towns I fought in while in Belgium were St Vith, Malmedy, Bastogne etc."
00 Jan 1945 - Tech 5 Gerald J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co 509th PIB Diagnosis: Observation for disease, no disease found, Type of Injury: Disease, Injury Type 2: Not a traumatism, Type Discharge: Returned to Duty, Discharge Place: Aid Station, Clearing or Collection Station, Dispensary
15 Feb 1945 - Tech 5 Gerald J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co 509th PIB Hometown: Escanaba, MI GO # 8 Under the provisions of AR 600-45, dtd 22 September 1943, the Purple Heart is awarded to the following for wounds received in action against the enemy. GERALD J. SEYMOUR, 36 451 373, Tec 5, Co "B", 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion, 20 January 1945, Belgium. Entered service from Escanaba, MI
00 Mar 1945 - Tech 5 Gerald J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 is assigned to 82nd Airborne Division
"Another weapon the Germans used in Belgium were their buzz bombs. They would come buzzing over our heads and suddenly they would run out of fuel and down they would come. These buzz bombs were more of a psychological weapon than anything else however they did destroy many buildings."
"The Bulge ended and our battalion was disbanded. We then joined the 82nd Airborne regiment and we entered Germany."
"The fighting in Germany was fierce because we were fighting on their home land. Fortunately I escaped injury and we met up with the Russians at the Elbe River. It was now around March of 1945 and the war was over. All of us breathed a sigh of relief and dreamed of going home. We were trucked to Nacy, France to wait for a troop ship to take us home."
00 Jul 1945 - Tech 5 Gerald J. Seymour ASN: 36451373 Unit: B Co 509th PIB, Diagnosis: UKN, Type of Injury: Disease, Injury Type 2: Not a traumatism, Treatment: Penicillin therapy, other, Type Discharge: Returned to Duty, Discharge Place: Aid Station, Clearing or Collection Station, Dispensary
"We embarked on a troop ship carrying 15,000 troops and headed for the good old U.S.A. I took us 10 days for the crossing and we arrive in Boston, Mass. You will never imagine the feeling I had when I stepped off that ship and onto the dock of good old U.S.A. after 34 months overseas. As I stepped on the dock a gal in uniform grabbed my arm and said “welcome home Gerald”. It was my 1st cousin Seymour from home who was stationed in Boston and driving a command car. After some boisterous greetings a buddy and I and Rita took off for Boston where we really hung one on. The next day I took a train bound for Chicago, Ill. Two days later I arrived in Chicago."
"When I stepped off of that troop ship on Sept 1945 I silently said “Thank you God and your blessed Mother for bringing me back home safely."
07 Sep 1945 - Gerald J. Seymour Honorably Discharged also listed as 27 Sep 1944
18 Jul 1948 - Gerald J. Seynour, Hometown: Escanaba, MI listed on Reunion LIST A
Worked as a Postal Clerk
1954 - Married Natalie Mae Rehome Seymour
2008 - Resisdence Delano Healthcare Center, Wright, Minnesota
14 Jan 2008 - Passed away. cremated and buried at Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota
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