Download - 70th Infantry Division Association

At 1146 Company A took its first objective and Company C took temporary control.of Obermuhlthal, while
the other units continued to advance without resistance. However, Company A was ordered to hold up its
progress at this point. because of the slower advance of the 2d Battalion due to terrain, and the
impracticability of by-passing Obermuhlthal.
Company C was hit by a counterattack at 1410 and at the same time Company B was subjected to heavy
artillery fire. A request was again sent to the Commanding Ceneral, 45th Division, to have the 2d
Battalion, 275th Infantry, aid the 1st Battalion, 276th Infantry, by taking over Obermuhlthal.
The 1st Battalion had the situation under control at 1530 but at 1555 a small arms and artillery attack was
made on its CP. This was repulsed. The 2d Battalion was under machine gun fire and artillery fire was
landing on the 3d Battalion. At 1700 the 1st Battalion reported Obermuhlthal cleared. S-3 of - the 275th
Infantry had refused permission to register artillery fire north and northwest of Obermuhlthal because of
danger to his troops. As of 1800 plans were being made to defend the ground held. There was active
patrolling by our units and the enemy during the night.
S-3's conclusions of the day's action was that the 276th Infantry had accomplished the initial phases of its
mission, but that better results would have been obtained if it had not been necessary to turn aside from
our mission on the right flank.
On January 9, 1945, we engaged in battle north of Offwiller, France at about 1700. We had one enlisted
man missing in action, two enlisted men killed in action and four enlisted men wounded in action. Those
killed in action were brought back and laid along side the road so everyone could look at them. Those
seriously wounded in action were immediately withdrawn to the regimental hospital set up in the rear
some place. The medics put them on stretchers and got them to an ambulance.
At dawn of 10 January 1945 the attack was resumed with the 2d Battalion on the left, 1st Battalion on the
right and 3d Battalion in reserve position on its original objective. The regiment continued to push forward
throughout the day, after front lines were straightened for easier contact between units.
On this day S-2 reported that enemy units in contact were 2d Battalion, 477th Regiment, 257th Division,
and 1st and 2d Battalions, 952d Regiment, 361st Division. No reserves had been located. Enemy
strength was reported as greatly reduced and battalions operating with 60 to 200 men, some with only
one officer. Morale of all Volkssturm Guards was found to be exceedingly low, but SS units had the same
high morale and fighting spirit as previously. More enemy field artillery was being encountered.
The S-1 report showed that replacements needed by the 276th Infantry now stood nine officers and 283
enlisted men. For the period 7, 8, 9 and 10 January 1945 there had been 91 casualties evacuated. There
were rations sufficient for three days, ammunition for 1 1/2 days and gas and oil for two days.
The Regimental CP moved to Offwiller 10 January 1945.
On January 10, 1945, we again engaged in battle north of Offwiller, France, and had another man killed in
action, one enlisted man lightly injured and three seriously wounded. When a man was killed in action,
the first thing you had to do was take one of hi: dog tags. A man had two dog tags: One tag you turned
into the First Sergeant and that was for the record that he would maintain to return to the rear; the other
tag had a notch in it and you were supposed to stick it in the guy's teeth and then kick it in so that it would
stay there because that dog tag represented the identification of that body. For the duration, we did not
bury the dead. They were left laying there and we pushed on. The rear echelons would come up and take
care of them. They would look at that dog tag and they could identify the body. Now if you had a guy who
was hurt badly enough when he died that you couldn't tell where the chain was, you would look into his
mouth to see whether the dog tag was in there.
The attack entered its third successive day at daylight of 11 January 1945 with the battle order remaining:
2d Battalion left; 1st Battalion right; 3rd Battalion reserve. Heavy enemy artillery, mortar and SA fire was
encountered throughout the day.