One Soldier's Story
Part Four
By Kernel Banks, Staff Writer

We had camped for five days in the fields and ruins of St. Lo. The five days were long and hard. We had to take short naps during the daylight hours because when the darkness of night came we got company. We tried to lay low at night because we were short of equipment to use for visual fighting during those dark hours. However, a group we called Bedcheck Charlie would fill the skies, dropping flares to light up our positions. The flares would act as black lights that would reflect off our flesh. The Germans would drop what was known as a cluster bomb. These bombs would explode on contact with the ground, expelling smaller bombs about the size of a hand grenade. they would explode three to four feet above the ground, sending the shrapnel out at us.

One afternoon I was in my foxhole. A bomb was dropped in and came across above my foxhole and exploded 50 to 75 feet away. The debris and dirt came pouring into my foxhole and I came scurrying out. While climbing out I came face to face with my platoon sergeant. He had witnessed the bombing and came running, to check if I was okay and found out quickly as we met each other.

Finally we were given orders to move away from St. Lo and our destination was to the Valley of Normandy. Leaving the outskirts of St. Lo we passed the church. This church is where the German observer was located that radioed in our positions.

Our Army Aircorp was busy, they had led our way, bombing ahead of us, as we had broken the German strongholds at Omaha Beach and St. Lo. We had the German forces on the run and was headed to Normandy. Our numbers were vast and we were spread out all along the road. Several times we were struck by accident by our own Army Aircorp not knowing our true positions. As we were approaching a fork of the road we received orders to leave the road because the U.S. Army Aircorp was bombing that location. I remember that I was suddenly in an apple orchard. I had my helmet pressed so hard against an apple tree that I felt as though I had my entire body in it as the area was bombed.

We traveled on. We would have small battles with German outposts that were left behind to slow us down on the pursuit of the main force of the German Army that we had chased out of St. Lo. We were advised not to use our gas mask unless the Germans used their chemical warfare on us. As we moved forward we would come into areas that our Aircorp had bombed. Dead horses and large animals used by the German Army was decaying. The stench of their flesh and the flesh of German soldiers was too much. I used my gas mask on several occasions to pass on through this. This was a terrible part of the war. It will stay with me. This odor I will remember this the rest of my life. This is one of the longest journeys I ever made for such a short distance of travel. Finally we reached the Valley of Normandy. Our fighting had changed.

Instead of close in and large numbers of enemy, they were spread out in smaller numbers. The fighting was at a slower pace but more precise because of distance and smaller numbers. Normandy Valley was cleared out. We went through Normandy and orders were sent down again. The 29th division was to travel to Breast, France to clear out a pocket of German Forces. The rest of the Combat Battalions were to head to Paris, that was just declared an open city. We were sent to Paris.