None.
Original 1/4 inch audio cassette of 1966 interviews is restricted for preservation purposes. A 1998 copy is available for listening.
(Identify the item and cite the series), Robert Wagner Collection of 36th Division Materials. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Robert L. Wagner, a native Texan, was born in 1925. He attended graduate school at the University of Texas at Austin, and studied with the historian Walter Prescott Webb. In 1954, he received his M.A. He lived in Austin, Texas and Nacogdoches, Texas, where he taught in the history department of Stephen F. Austin State University.
Wagner served as an aerial gunner with the American 8th Air Force in England during World War II. After the war, he served in the 36th Division National Guard from 1947 to 1949.
In 1963, Wagner began working on the book,
The 36th Division, also known as the
On November 25, 1940, the 36th Division was once again called to active duty at Camp Bowie in Brownwood, Texas. In 1941, the Division went to Louisiana for maneuvers, where they had mock battles with General Walter Kreuger's Third Army. In February 1942, they moved to Camp Blanding, Florida and prepared to go overseas. Orders changed, however, and instead of shipping out in the summer, the Division continued training in the Carolinas. The Division then spent the winter in Camp Edwards, Massachusetts, and, in April 1943, left for North Africa, where they were held in combat reserve.
The 36th Division finally saw action on September 9, 1943, when they landed at Paestum, Italy in the Gulf of Salerno. They were the first American combat unit to land in Europe. They spent the next 11 months fighting in the Italian campaign. After securing Salerno, the 36th Division moved forward to attack Altavilla and Hill 424. Heavy fighting ensued through September 14, and then, with reinforcements, Allied forces won, securing the Salerno plain.
From the Salerno plain, the 36th Division began a slow move toward Rome. Italian mountains and winter weather combined with German forces to make the advance to Rome slow and dangerous. In the months between November 1943 and the fall of Rome on June 5, 1944, the 36th Division saw some of the heaviest fighting in the Italian campaign. Significant engagements included San Pietro, Anzio and Velletri.
Not all 36th Division engagements were successful. One of the bloodiest and most heavily debated engagements was the attempt to cross the Rapido River January 20 and 21, 1944. Although most officers thought an attempt to cross the Rapido was doomed to fail, General Mark W. Clark ordered the crossing. The operation did fail, and the result was 2,128 casualties and the loss of the better part of the 141st and 143rd regiments. In 1946, the 36th Division Association requested an investigation into the Rapido River crossing and the role of General Clark. The United States House of Representatives' Committee on Military Affairs held a hearing and exonerated Clark, although they did acknowledge the heavy price in lives that the 36th Division paid.
On August 15, 1944, the 36th Division left Italy and landed on the beaches of Southern France. They fought their way northward in France, entered Germany and Austria, and served until the war ended in May of 1945. After six months as occupation troops, the 36th Division returned home.
After World War II, the 36th Division became part of the Texas National Guard. In 1968, the Division was deactivated. Today, its lineage and honors rest with the 36th Brigade of the 49th Armored Division of the United States Army.
The materials in this collection include correspondence (letters, V-mail, telegrams, postcards, memoranda and greeting cards), diaries, journals and reminiscences, military records, journal and newspaper clippings, printed material, photographs, negatives, maps, ribbons, patches, money, audio tapes of interviews, an armband, a book, drawings, minutes, notes, sheet music, poems, congressional testimony, transcripts of interviews, press statements, speeches, reports, outlines, index cards, bibliographies, copies of published chapters and articles, and a design for a book jacket. The collection is the research material of Robert Wagner, historian and author of
When the materials arrived, some were roughly organized by creator, but much of it was not organized in any discernible way. It appeared that an archivist had begun to organize the materials at some time in the past, but did not progress very far.
Letters were removed from envelopes and filed behind the envelopes in which they were contained, in keeping with the method Wagner used. Clippings were photocopied onto acid-free paper. Original maps were separated to the Historic Map Archive. Photographs and negatives were separated to the Prints and Photographs Collection.
The papers are organized in 2 series, the first one containing 49 sub-series:
Michele Ostrow, January 2000
Accession numbers: 1973/121, 1987/137
These materials were donated to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by Robert Wagner on April 3, 1973 and June 25, 1987.
The materials include correspondence (letters, V-mail, telegrams, postcards, memoranda and greeting cards), diaries, journals and reminiscences, military records, journal and newspaper clippings, printed material, photographs, negatives, maps, ribbons, patches, money, audio tapes of interviews, an armband, a book, drawings, minutes, notes, sheet music, poems, congressional testimony, transcripts of interviews, press statements, speeches, and reports. These materials are the primary sources collected and used by Robert Wagner, historian, in the writing of his book,
The materials were donated to Wagner by soldiers and their family members. Wagner then donated these materials to the Texas State Archives. The penciled comments and underlines found throughout the papers were made by Wagner during his research.
The materials are organized in 49 sub-series alphabetically by creator, with materials arranged by format within those sub-series, and then chronologically. After the 43 creator sub-series, there are 6 sub-series arranged by format of material.
Correspondence, drafts of citations, clippings, printed
histories, a map and map overlays, a program, and a cartoon book, 1938,
1943-1948, 1969, are the papers of Paul D. Adams, who served as Colonel in
command of the 143rd Regiment of the 36th Division from January 29, 1944 to
January 1, 1945, at which time he was promoted to Brigadier General and
transferred to the 45th Division. The bulk of the papers deals with Adams'
post-war attempts to get Distinguished Unit Citation Awards for units of the
143rd Regimental Combat Team. The original map was transferred to the Historic
Map Archive. See the folder entitled
The diary of E. Douglas Adkins, a non-commissioned officer of 'H' Company, 143rd Infantry Regiment, is an account of daily life in a German P.O.W. camp from the time he was taken prisoner by Germans on September 13, 1943, until his release in April 1945. Included in the bound diary are copies of letters he received from and sent home between 1943 and 1945, and his 1964 letter giving Wagner permission to use the diary.
Letters, greeting cards, a postcard and a photograph, 1942-1945,
are the papers of Corporal Erna A. Alexander, Company 'H', 143rd Infantry
Regiment. Most of the letters are addressed to Myrtle Dodson, a school teacher
in Texas, and trace the development of their romance. Other letters are to
Alexander's mother, Mrs. W. E. Alexander of Hawkins, Texas. Alexander was a
German P.O.W. from 1943 to 1945. The photograph was transferred to the Prints
and Photographs Collection. See the folder entitled
Letters, V-mail, cartoons, postcards, clippings, poems, articles, a ribbon, and a deposit slip, 1936, 1940-1945, are the papers of Lee F. Allison, of Rocksprings, Texas, who entered the army as a non-commissioned officer and was quickly promoted to Captain in the 36th Quartermasters Corps of the 36th Division. Most of the letters are to his wife, Amy, and concern camp life, family finances, their marriage, and their son, who was born during Allison's tenure with the 36th Division. There are also some letters to Allison's mother, and letters from military officials to Allison or Amy regarding military business. The clippings, the bulk of which date from 1943 and 1944, seem to have been collected by either Allison's wife or mother and mostly relate to the war in Italy.
Reminiscences, circa 1968, typed and handwritten by Jack Bellamy, S-3 of the 111th Engineers, at Wagner's request, concern mine warfare and engineer support of combat.
Letters, V-mail, clippings, and a printed program, 1940-1944,
1967, are the papers of William E.
A letter, one V-mail, clippings, editions of
Correspondence, clippings, a press statement and a report, 1943, 1946, [1951?], primarily deal with Mark W. Clark's part in the Rapido River crossing. Clark, Commanding General of the Fifth Army from spring 1943 through June 1944, oversaw the failed attempt to cross the Rapido River which was the subject of a 1946 Congressional investigation. These papers are copies from the Mark W. Clark Collection at The Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina.
Transcripts of interviews, 1955, with General F. von Senger U. Etterlin, Commander of the 14th Panzer Corps, and Lieutenant General Geoffrey Keyes, formerly a Major General and II Corps Commander, relate to the Rapido River crossing. The interviews were conducted by Philip A. Crowl, Department of the Army. There are also copies of notes on a 1952 interview of General Keyes by S. [T.?] Mathews.
An entry log and one letter, 1944-1945, are the papers of Marion B. Findlay, Lieutenant, 132nd Field Artillery Battalion. The log, which includes both personal and military matters, contains brief entries about Findlay's daily life in the Army.
Letters and clippings, [1944], 1967, [196-], comprise the papers of Wes Garrison, probably an enlisted man, of the 36th Division. The letters to Wagner contain Garrison's reminiscences and stories of the war. Garrison also sent Wagner some letters and clippings dating from the war, including a letter written on an armband. This letter has faded and is almost completely illegible.
V-mail, letters, postcards and clippings, 1943-1945, from Major Lawrence D. Gilmer, 155th Field Artillery, 36th Division, to his Aunt Katie Daffan of Ennis, Texas discuss army life, his impressions of Europe and news from home.
Copies of V-mail and letters, 1942-1946, from Lieutenant Colonel Samuel S. Graham, Commanding Officer, 2nd Battalion, 142nd Regiment, to his wife, Irma, and children in Huntsville, Texas, relate to Graham's day-to-day life in the army and family news.
Copies of V-mail and letters, 1943-1945, from Lieutenant Colonel
John N. (
A published book of war reminiscences, a translation of the section dealing with Velletri, and a letter to Major General Fred L. Walker (in German and in translation), 1968-1969, are the papers of Major General Heinz Greiner of the German Army, who was Walker's foe at Rome.
Letters, V-mail, postcards, money, photocopied clippings, patches from German uniforms, ribbons, drawings, printed material and copies of memoirs, 1943-1946, [ca. 1965], are the papers of Sergeant Armand Jones, Headquarters Battery, 155th Field Artillery Battalion. Most of the materials are letters Jones wrote to his mother, Mrs. Marie Gomez, of San Antonio, Texas. The 93 pages of memoirs are Jones' account of combat between September 9, 1943 and May 8, 1945.
Reminiscences of Thomas Gilbert Jones, Master Sergeant, Operations Section, 111th Engineers, cover the period from Jones' enlistment to the occupation of Naples, Italy. The reminiscences, written before 1966, were given to Wagner by Colonel Oran C. Stovall in 1966, and include Stovall's comments about Jones.
V-mail, letters, telegrams and a note, 1943-1945, [196-], are
the papers of Daniel E.
A copy of the journal, 1942-1944, kept by Colonel Clayton P. Kerr, Chief of Staff, includes statements made by officers, memoranda routed to officers by Kerr, remarks of division commanders, and copies of military correspondence and receipts, and is a detailed record of Kerr's military activities.
Telegrams, correspondence, and clippings, 1943-1945, are the papers of enlisted men Eugene, Clarence and Jesse Kettrick, three brothers from Somerville, Texas. Many of the telegrams and letters are from the Army and Red Cross to Charles Kettrick, the father, and tell the fate of the three brothers: Jesse was wounded, and Eugene and Clarence were POWs. At the end of the war, all three returned home. Included is a letter from Senator Lyndon B. Johnson to the father expressing sympathy for Jesse Kettrick after he was wounded in battle. The letters were donated by Olga Thomas, sister of the three brothers (identification of the donor made by Thomas Gripp on June 26, 2005.)
V-mail, letters and telegrams, 1943-1945, from enlisted man Clyde W. Kitchens to his parents in Austin, Texas, and letters from military officials to Kitchens' parents tell of army life and a slight wound Kitchens received. Included is a 1965 letter from Mrs. Kitchens to Wagner donating the letters.
One 1943 letter from Captain Alfred J. Laughlin, S-3, 3rd Battalion, 143rd Infantry Regiment, to friends in Mexia, Texas discusses Laughlin's recuperation from seemingly severe battle wounds. Enclosed in the letter is a copy of Walter Stoneman's
Letters to Wagner, a copy of a history of the 142nd Infantry
Regiment which is similar to a regular monthly regimental history, and a
wartime photograph which was enclosed in a letter, 1943-1945, 1968-1969, are
the papers of Lieutenant Colonel George E. Lynch, commanding officer of the
142nd Infantry Regiment. The photograph was transferred to the Prints and
Photographs Collection. See the folder entitled
Journals, memoirs, correspondence including letters to Wagner,
memorandum slips, programs, personnel lists, blank military forms, records of
burials, drawings, photographs, souvenirs, postcards, ration cards,
invitations, tickets, brochures, maps, speeches, clippings, notes, outlines,
orders and tags, 1940-1946, [1975?], are the papers of Herbert E. MacCombie,
Chaplain of the 36th Division. MacCombie's papers provide information about the
duties and activities of chaplains during the war, and the religious life of
soldiers. The photographs were transferred to the Prints and Photographs
Collection. See the folder entitled
A January 22, 1944 statement by Private Savino Manella, Medical Detail, Company A, 141st Infantry, concerns the crossing of the Rapido River the previous day.
One black and white negative, taken in 1943 or 1944, of Colonel William H. Martin, Commanding Officer, 143rd Infantry Regiment was used as an illustration in
Military documents, clippings, a program and correspondence, [between 1941 and 1945], 1944-1945, 1968, are the papers of Charles H. Owens, Colonel, 141st Infantry Regiment. Most of the materials are military documents such as patrol reports, reports of operations by month, and operations instructions with corresponding hand-drawn map overlays on tracing vellum, all of which are detailed accounts of the movements of the 141st Infantry from 1944 to 1945.
These papers, arranged chronologically as Owens had them, were removed from the cardboard covers in which he kept them. Each cover is filed in front of the material which it contained. Oversized map overlays were flattened and separated to oversize boxes 1973/121-16 and 1973/121-17.
Reminiscences of John Bob Parks of Spencer, Louisiana, Corporal, 111th Engineer Combat Battalion, written some time after 1945, describe building the road over Mount Artemisio, Italy. He operated the lead bulldozer.
Diary, 1949, of Earl Patrick Powers, Lieutenant, 111th Engineer Combat Battalion, records his return to the battle sites in Italy, France and Germany. During this trip, he kept this diary which related his reminiscences and included sketched maps. Oran C. Stovall had the diary and gave it to Wagner in 1964.
Personal and military records, reminiscences and a negative,
[1943?]-1944 and [not before 1945], are the papers of Lieutenant Colonel Andrew
Price, Executive Officer, 141st Infantry Regiment, who was wounded at Cassino
in 1944. The military records include maps and casualty lists. The negative was
transferred to the Prints and Photographs Collection. See the folder entitled
A personal report, [1943?], by Lieutenant Colonel Van W. Pyland concerns the activities of the 636th Tank Destroyer Battalion at Salerno. It was given to Wagner by Major General Fred L. Walker.
Reminiscences of Lieutenant Colonel Hal Reese, Inspector General of the 36th Division, 1944, 1967, were written a few months after the February 1944 truce which allowed Americans and Germans to recover their dead from Mount Castellone. Shortly after writing his reminiscences, Reese was killed at Velletri. Oran C. Stovall gave Wagner the reminiscences in 1967.
The diary of Captain Thaddeus Judd Sessions of the 111th Engineer Battalion, 1940-1943, documents his activities from the day he went into the Army in Texas through the first half of the war. He stopped keeping his diary due to time constraints and stringent censorship rules. Oran C. Stovall gave this diary to Wagner.
Letters, V-mail, postcards, a telegram, a receipt, a certificate, a permit to operate a vehicle and a liberty pass, 1943-1945, are the papers of Private Joseph J. Schiefen, `L' Company, 142nd Infantry. Most of the materials are V-mail from Schiefen to his mother and siblings in Elmira, New York. Also included are letters to his mother from Senator Jason S. Mead, and letters to Schiefen from the Red Cross and from Mrs. Maude Harrison asking for details about the death of her son who served with him.
Biographical information of Brigadier General Robert I. Stack, 1969, was sent to Wagner by Stack in 1969. Stack came to the 36th Division in February 1944, serving first as Assistant Division Commander, and then as Division Commander.
Correspondence, reports, reminiscences, maps, photographs and
negatives, 1943-1946, 1961, 1970 and [not before 1943], are the papers of Oran
C. Stovall, Major and Commanding Officer of the 111th Engineers and, later,
Lieutenant Colonel. Stovall assisted Wagner with his research by donating his
and other soldiers' materials and by contacting other soldiers on Wagner's
behalf. Maps were transferred to the Historic Map Archive and photographs and
negatives were transferred to the Prints and Photographs Collection. For
descriptions of maps, and descriptions and photocopies of images, see the
folders entitled
V-mail and letters, 1943-1944, from Captain Albert C. Suessmuth, Service Company, 143rd Infantry, are to his wife and son in Houston.
Letters, postcards and V-mail, 1942-1944 and [between 1941 and
1945], written by Private Hulen T.
Copies of part of his diary, articles, correspondence with Wagner, comments on the Lightening Report (a report of action in Italy from the viewpoint of the German army), and remarks made by Senator James E. Taylor on the occasion of the presentation of Walker's portrait to the Senate, 1943-1945, 1947, 1957, 1960, 1962, 1966-1969, are the papers of Major General Fred L. Walker, Commander of the 36th Division from September 1941 to July 1944. Walker assisted Wagner with his research and commented on his drafts.
Two photographic prints and one negative from 1941 or 1942 show
Colonel Richard J. Werner, Commanding Officer, 141st Regiment, at Camp Edwards
in Massachusetts, and when he was Lieutenant Colonel, G-3, 36th Division. The
Photographs were transferred to the Prints and Photographs Collection. See the
folder entitled
Letters, V-mail, and photocopied clippings, [1942?]-1945, are the papers of Staff Sergeant Charles J. Wilcox, Headquarters, 36th Infantry Division. The correspondence is to his parents in Oklahoma and to the Clemens in Boulder, Colorado. The Clemens were probably his in-laws.
Letters, telegrams, V-mail, clippings, reminiscences, postcards,
and a photograph, 1943-1945, 1968, are the papers of Alden W.
The photograph was transferred to the Prints and Photographs
Collection. See the folder entitled
Reminiscences and correspondence, 1967, by Captain William G. Yates, 'I' Company, 143rd Regiment, describe landing at Salerno, and battles at Altavilla and Hill 424 in Italy. Yates sent Wagner the 8 handwritten pages of reminiscences in 1967.
Operations reports which include casualty rosters, military investigation reports, a company roster, a military history and a report from a hearing, 1943-1944, 1946, 1968 and [194-], were collected by Robert Wagner in the course of his research. These records provide information about the movements of the 36th Division and specific battles fought in Italy. Also included is the report and testimony from the 1946 Congressional hearing investigating the Rapido River crossing.
Maps of Italy, France, Germany, Asia, South America and the
United States, 1936-1938, 1941, 1943-1944, 1948-1951, 1954-1955, 1958,
1962-1963, 1965-1967, [194-] and [19--], were used by soldiers during World War
II, or used after the war for research purposes. Many of the World War II maps
are operations maps annotated by soldiers and used with overlays. The 90
original maps were transferred to the Historic Map Archive of the Archives and
Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Copies of maps and overlays were not transferred. For more detailed
descriptions of the original maps, see the inventory of the Historic Map
Archive in the reading room and on the web site of the Archives and Information
Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission at
Black and white and color photographic negatives and prints, 1943-1945, 1947, 1960, 1970-1971 and [not before 1941], depict 36th Division officers, enlisted men, war scenes and military life. Most of the photographs are scenes from France and Italy during World War II. Many of these are prints Wagner ordered from the Department of the Army. Some of the photographs were used as illustrations in
At the 36th Division reunion in 1966, Robert Wagner conducted
taped interviews with the following former 36th Division soldiers: John N.
The original ¼ inch tape is restricted for preservation purposes. A cassette listening copy was made in 1998. There are no transcripts of the interviews.
Correspondence, trip planning material, reunion program, notes,
minutes, photocopied clippings, sheet music, and
An unidentified letter fragment, [19--], written in Dallas, Texas.
Correspondence, outlines, notes, index cards, bibliographies, copies of published chapters and articles, photocopied clippings, and a design for a book jacket, 1947-1949, 1953, 1956, 1958 and 1962-1970, document Robert Wagner's research and writing of
The materials are arranged by format and then chronologically, with the most abundant material listed first.