What rifle would be used by WWII soldier European theater?

[PBR Streetgang]

Tim,
if I remember correctly it was C company 1-505 He made all of the RCT combat jumps in WW2. My Dad has long since passed but he considered all 82nd paratroopers no matter what time frame they served, his brothers.

 

[Hacker15E]

My Dad was in an domineering stallion, and he carried an M1 Carbine..

Still chuckling while trying to figure out what you really meant before the auto-correct kicked in.

Did you mean "engineering battalion"?

Personally, I'd be pissed if I went to war and I ended up in a domineering stallion.

 

[dprice3844444]

or in front of one

 

[HankB]

You might try through official channels to find records, but be aware that in 1973 a huge fire at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) destroyed approximately 16-18 million military personnel files; there were no backups or microfilm copies, so that information is gone.

As previously stated, most combat infantrymen in late WWII were issued the Garand - many noncoms had SMGs, and officers frequently carried M1 carbines . . . but there was a lot of overlap here, and once in combat, individuals frequently swapped out for a "better" weapon.

 

[Milamber]

Did you look through his belongings after his death. You may turn up some pictures that may reveal your answer. My grandfather was in the Royal Horse Artillary and was issued the Lee Enfield .303. As was I in basic in the late '70's ! My father in law is a Iwo Jima Marine Vet and he carried a Thmpson and a 1911. He has a bunch of pictures from the period but few of Iwo Jima, too busy i would think. He carried a Gerand in Korea. Pictures are the way to go if you can find some. Search through media galleries to you may be lucky. Are any of his buddies still alive, maybe they can help.

 

[CZguy]

Quote:
My Dad was in an domineering stallion, and he carried an M1 Carbine..

Still chuckling while trying to figure out what you really meant before the auto-correct kicked in.

Did you mean "engineering battalion"?

Personally, I'd be pissed if I went to war and I ended up in a domineering stallion.

Thank you for posting that. I have a defective auto correct.

 

[shep854]

After reading a thread with similar (and even worse) bloopers, I turned those features off. Any bloopers will be my own!

To the OP; here's a chance to start a collection of WWII-themed guns--go ahead and cover as many possibilities as you can. Pick up an M1 Carbine and an M1903 as well as a as-near-GI-M1911 pistol as you can.
Not only will you honor your dad's service and sacrifice, but you will have tons of fun shooting them!

 

[Flatbush Harry]

My uncle was a company commander in the ETO and participated in the landing at Utah Beach. He carried an M1 Garand by choice even though many in his place carried either Thompson SMGs or M1 Carbines. His thought was to carry the most effective weapon he could that most of his men carried.

My father was an NCO in the PTO and carried an M1 Garand until promoted to E5. At that point he switched to a Carbine. I bought each a CMP M1 Garand as a commemorative; they both willed them back to me upon their passing.

FH

 

[Johnm1]

I'm not sure if wartime security would disallow this but you may find that letters written during the war and kept by your family will provide information on his unit. Any letters sent home may have a return address on them identifying his unit.

The obvious source would be his mother or wife. But don't exclude brothers and sisters or even aunts and uncles.

 

[Tim the student]

if I remember correctly it was C company 1-505 He made all of the RCT combat jumps in WW2. My Dad has long since passed but he considered all 82nd paratroopers no matter what time frame they served, his brothers.

I'm sure he did - that seems to be a very common thing. I know I feel the same way.

There is a reunion every year at Ft. Bragg during All American Week, and all sorts of guys from WW2 show up. I remember that some would make one trip because they knew they would die soon, and they wanted to see their brothers-in-arms one more time before they went to the final manifest call. It was an important thing for them to do before they died.

Its crazy - these guys that have multiple combat jumps and spent a lot of time in combat would be amazed at the amount of jumps that we had, while we would stand in awe of them because a) they were WW2 vets and b)even though they may only have 10 or less jumps, many had 4 combat jumps. It was always a good time to be able to hang out with those guys for a while. Just the most regular guys, nicest guys, that did amazing things.

They helped to save the world. I am truly thankful for all vets, but I do have a special place in my heart for WW2 vets. What they did was nothing short of amazing, and we should be thankful that we had men like that every single day.

 

[CZguy]

They helped to save the world. I am truly thankful for all vets, but I do have a special place in my heart for WW2 vets. What they did was nothing short of amazing, and we should be thankful that we had men like that every single day.

Amen to that. Men of that era were truly tough. My Dad and Uncle were both WWII Vets, and no matter what life dealt them, they just stoically forged ahead.

Men of honor, and iron. They are both long gone, but will always be my role models.

 

[PBR Streetgang]

Tim,My Dad was one of the old timers that made that pilgrimage a couple of times to Ft Bragg. I have to say it was the highlight of those guys that you younger troopers took such good care of them when they visited. I had the honor to meet and listen to many of their stories and all those guys were nothing short of amazing.
The paratroopers of the 82nd Abn were all brothers in arms and the young troopers of today are their legacy.
Thanks for your service and as Dad would say " All American, All the Way"

 

[Kymasabe]

My father was in anti-tank artillery and carried 1911 and M1 carbine.

 

[Bojangles7]

My grandfather was in the 93rd Cavalry Recon Squadron, 13th armored division in WWII. I wish I would've asked him what firearm he carried, but I do have a homemade knife he carried and used to cut off his buddies leg after they were hit by a mortar. He was in a half track recon vehicle when they got hit. It's a damn shame we're loosing the greatest generation so fast.

He would to talk to me about his experiences in WWII once I got back from the sandbox, it was a bond I'll always treasure. I just wish I would have kept more detailed records of his service. I know he was always haunted by what he saw at Dachau. God rest his soul.

 

[Tinpig]

in 1973 a huge fire at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) destroyed approximately 16-18 million military personnel files; there were no backups or microfilm copies, so that information is gone.

That's what I always was told, but I recently did a NPRC/NARA records request for a family friend whose Dad was in the Army in the Philippines during WWII. I received a letter saying that his records had been among those destroyed in the fire, but that they had been able to piece together from other sources the equivalent for that era of a DD214.
Included was information on dates of service, MOS, rank, overseas service, decorations and citations, and weapon markmanship awards.
So it's always worth a try.

Tinpig