History Part 1 - 70th Infantry Division Association

they sang the old year out and the New Year in... Would the orders never come?
Would it be the big fight or one of the "sideshows"? Would the Group be broken-up
or fight as a unit? What Army woulditbe? What Corps? ... Most of these questions
were not to be answered for a long time but the orders to move finally came with
BARTON-STACEY in southern England the first stop. And then to the marshalling
area at SOUTHAMPTON and a midnight ride to the docks where hours of waiting
in the rain cast the mood.
Destination Known At Last
A small convoy of LjST's and Li/berty ship® gathered offshore and waited for the
night to close-in. An overcast sky and a moderate sea formed the backdrop to an
uneventful crossing of the English Channel ... A sprawling heap of rubble, once the
bustling Port of- Le Havre, and the sour glances of the local citizens were soon
exchanged for sunny roads, picturesque villages and the smiling people of inland
—
Normandy and the gumbo mud of Camp Twenty Grand ... On past the outskirts
of Paris to bivouac in SOISSONS and then at VERDUN where the men of World
War Islept nearby ...Finally, it was known —it was to be the Sixth Army Group's
Seventh Army and the XV Corps. The orders were to relieve the 106th Cavalry Group
with headquarters in Lauterbach, Germany on the SAAR RIVER FRONT.
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