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The enemy on March 1st continued to shell our positions and the city of Forbach generally with artillery
and mortars. They seemed to throw more shells at the time of mess calls, as concentrations were
heaviest between 1130-1330 and 1700-1800.
Small arms fire of limited quantities was also noted. Our units in Forbach continued to patrol across the
railroad.
Company F, attached to the 3d Battalion of the 274th, was in Battalion Reserve. On the 26th of February
1945, the Germans counterattacked the 274th Regiment's 3d Battalion Sector. Company F repulsed the
counterattack as the two rifle companies to their front had been moved to positions in the rear of F
Company. Company E, attached to the 274th as Regimental Reserve, was committed and occupied
positions in trenches on the right flank of Company F. Further action of these two "Bloody Axe"
Companies was limited to the exchange of small arms fire with the enemy. No further counterattacks were
launched by the enemy during the time that E and F Companies were attached to the 274th Infantry
Regiment.
Company F was relieved from attachment to the 274th Regiment and returned to 2d Battalion control at
0210 on 1 March 1945.
Reinforcements required on March 1st were listed as 9 officers and 127 enlisted men.
On March 1st we promoted 66 enlisted men from Private to PFC and on March 2nd more men were
promoted.
On March 3rd we left our position in Morsbach, France, leaving one platoon in position, about 40 men. I
always hated it when we had to leave half an outfit behind. We arrived at Oeting at 9:20. We left Oeting at
1530 and marched to Forbach, France. On March 4th we had three enlisted men seriously wounded in
action in the vicinity of Forbach and three enlisted men lightly wounded. John Brewer who was in our
platoon went to sick hospital. We launched an attack at 5:30 from the south edge of Forbach.
On 2 March 1945, Company E was returned to the 2d Battalion after being relieved from the 274th
Regiment. They closed in Cocheren at 2400. Company "J" was disbanded as a training unit and all
reinforcements were returned to their proper units. Our reinforcements were generally of two types. One
group consisted of those who were recent arrivals to the European Theater having just completed basic
training at Infantry Replacement Training Centers in the United States. The remainder were those who
had overseas experience in other arms and services. Most reinforcements were alert and anxious to get
the additional training and familiarization firing.
On March 5, we had one seriously wounded,-two lightly wounded and one went to sick hospital. Our
second platoon joined us now, the one we had left behind in Morsbach. The second platoon joined
Company F this regiment at 3:00 p.m. and an attack was undertaken. The first platoon joined Company E
this regiment at 5:00. E Company is now in attack approximately one mile east of Forbach, France, and
the remainder of the company is in defensive position one-half mile east of Forbach.
Quite a few people were wounded on March 6. The company left defensive position at 5:30 one-half mile
east of Forbach and launched an attack one and a half miles east of Forbach.
The First Platoon is still attached to Company E, this regiment. The Second Platoon rejoined at 6:00 in
the morning.
During the night of 3-4 March 1945, the troops were disposed as follows: Company I was on the
Regimental left flank and was in the outskirts of Marienau. Their attached tanks were held up by a tank
ditch, so the tanks pulled back for servicing. Company K was unable to advance further because of heavy
automatic weapons fire from the enemy. Company L, in 3d Battalion Reserve, following Company I,
moved through I Company to the high ground between I and K Companies. Company A was held up by
the same enemy fire that pinned down Company K, while Company C on the right had cleared the