Interview with William M. Blair, Jr, WWII veteran. CCSU Veterans History Project. скачать в хорошем качестве

Interview with William M. Blair, Jr, WWII veteran. CCSU Veterans History Project.

Interview conducted by Jane Natoli. William M. Blair Jr. was drafted into the U.S. Army in March of 1943. He was living in Waterbury, Ct. at the time, and working as a messenger in a bank. He went to basic training in Fort Sheridan, Ill. near Lake Michigan. Although he trained with an anti-aircraft unit, he went on to be selected for a specialized army training course in engineering at the University of Michigan. After the six month training, the army discontinued the program because of the increased need for replacement troops in Europe. Blair was slated to become a member of the 76th Infantry Division, when he applied to go to Officer Candidate School. He was accepted and transferred to Fort Benning, Ga. He completed the schooling and received his commission as second lieutenant in Dec. of 1944. After a short leave he was immediately shipped overseas on the Queen Mary, to become part of the 84th Infantry Division, where he became a replacement platoon leader. His first assignment as platoon leader was on the Roer River in Belgium, and although he was the leader, he soon found that he learned more from the soldiers that had already experienced combat than he had from the military manuals. His unit advanced closer to the front lines, and was sent in as back-up in the Battle of the Bulge. The 84th division was then sent back to the Roer River, and in February of 1945 they began to advance toward the Rhine River. During the advance, Blair was injured twice in the leg, once by sniper fire, and once by shrapnel. As a result he was sent to the hospital, until it had healed. When he returned to his unit, they were as far as the Elbe River. The Germans were just across the river, and just beyond that were the Russian troops. Blair was sent out to cross the river and make contact with the Russians that were on the other side, that resulted in being awarded a Red Star by the Russian military. Blair recounts the story in great detail during the interview. Blair was discharged from the army in March of 1946, and returned home. He held a few jobs in management before returning to work at the bank where he had been a messenger before the war. He became an officer of the bank and worked there until his retirement in 1986.