I have my fathers discharge papers. It says here was discharge from the 523rd Ord H M Co. (FA). I have tried to research the 523rd Ord, but cannot find anything about it. His campaign in box 32 says Luzon. Can anyone give more information on the 523rd Ord Co? Thank you. Richard
To directly address your question, the 523rd Ordnance Heavy Maintenance Company was part of the USA's Sixth Army in the Pacific. I'm sure someone will come up with a bit more for you. If you can post a copy of his discharge, that will help us to help you. While it may be the case that his main unit was the 523rd, the unit listed on the discharge is often just a unit that the soldier was assigned to in order to be processed for discharge. Seeing the specific information in context on the discharge will help us make sense of it for you.
After looking at the discharge, it does seem likely that the 523d Ordnance HM Co. was not just the unit from which he was discharged. What's interesting is that he went to the APT in Feb 1942, came back to the USA in Apr 1943, then back to the APT in Feb 1945, and finally returned in Dec 1945. It seems almost certain that he was with the 523d at from Feb 1945 to Dec 1945 or at the least the latter part of that period. The questions I have are: 1) what unit was he with from Feb 1942 to Apr 1943, and 2) why did he return to the USA in Apr 1943. If you haven't tried to request his Official Military Personnel File (OMPF), I would suggest doing so. If it turns out his records are not available, you can still get information through the Company Morning Reports. The reason I know that the 523d Ord HM Co was part of the SIXTH Army is because they show up in the SIXTH Army Report on the Luzon Campaign. You can download the entire document from CARL if you want to. However, I have attached the three pages where the 523d is mentioned on lists of units. The first is dated Nov 1944 showing the strength, location, and staging of the units for the Lingayen Gulf landing. The second page shows the day they are scheduled to land, the number and type of landing craft, their staging location and landing beach at Lingayen. The third is dated 17 Feb 1945 and lists the units and strength. All three pages are in Part 3 of the download page on CARL if you just want the entire context of these pages. I know it doesn't help a lot, but it's something.
My dad, SSG Otto J. Furneisen, also served with the 37th INF on Luzon. He was shot at a place my mother said was, Banana Ridge, not sure if that is accurate. I never had the opportunity to ask my dad about his WWII service. I would like more info as others would too. Thanks for any info. Jim
Jim, I have a copy of the 129th Infantry Regimental history which does have a roster and your dad is not listed. The 37th Division history book does not have a roster, just a Roll of Honor listing. That is not surprising as Divisions were very large and having a complete roster would not be practical. However, there is a reference to a "Banana Ridge" in the chapter on the Battle of Baguio in Northern Luzon in April 1945. It refers to the 3rd Battalion of the 148th Infantry Regiment taking Hairpin Ridge and Banana Ridge. I do not know that this is the same ridge where your dad was shot, since you are not sure the name is correct and it may not be the only ridge named "Banana Ridge" by US soldiers in the Philippines. However, it is a possibility. You may want to try contacting the 37th Division Association to see if they have a roster for the 148th Infantry or the 145th Infantry and if they will check to see if your dad is listed in either.
Tommy, Thanks for the info I'll check with the 37th Division Assoc. I also believe Banana Ridge is correct. Sad I can't talk to my parents. Jim
No problem. Keep an eye on this thread, too. I am checking with another contact, but haven't heard back yet.
Thanks you, I did request his personnel records from the archives but was informed that his records were lost in the 1974 fire. You info has helped some, but still looking. Anytthing you can tell is much appreciated. Thanks again, you are being helpful. Richard
I heard back from my friend & it seems your dad was not in the 145th Infantry. That leaves the 148th. Hopefully the 37th Div Assn will be able to confirm.
These were the only 2 newspaper clippings that I could find concerning SSgt. Otto J. Ferneisen. It does mention that he was wounded. The Daily Journal Vineland, New Jersey 21 Jul 1945, Sat • Page 5 Courier-Post Camden, New Jersey 20 Jul 1945, Fri • Page 3
Nice to see the articles. Unfortunately, they only verify he was in the Army. They don't rule out his being WIA in April 1945, but don't confirm it either.
Richard, I have several family members who served in WWII and have yet to be able to get a personnel record due to the 1973 fire. What I have done in that situation is to get the Company Morning Reports for the unit or units with which they served. Morning Reports are Company level personnel reports that were completed every morning. These records are unit records, so they were held in a different location that the individual personnel records and were not affected by the 1973 fire. Morning Reports record any status changes of the personnel in the company. Morning Reports also include the date and location of the Company HQ, so you can know the approximate location of a soldier on any given day. I like to think of MRs as being the outline of a soldiers service providing the when, where and unit of the soldier's service. With that information, you can work on adding the what and how of their service by using unit records and histories. MRs will sometimes have descriptions of the Company activities for that day. The specificity of the descriptions can vary quite a bit from virtually nothing to detailed descriptions of combat activities. Therefore, I consider that aspect to be a bonus if there is any useful info. The problem with Morning Reports is that you cannot request copies from the NARA. The two options available are: 1) Going to the NARA in St. Louis and doing the research and copying yourself; 2) Hiring a researcher to do the work for you. So far, I have opted for #2 for all of the veterans I have researched. I would love to do it myself, but I have a long way to go before I can retire.
Right now, the NARA is closed to the pubic. No researchers will be able to access the Morning Reports until it reopens. Having said that and to answer your question, I and other members here have used Golden Arrow Research. I have used Geoff at GAR several times and find him to be very fair and reasonable, and very easy to work with. The GAR website has examples of the various types of records they retrieve, so you can download and look at them for free. The NARA has a list of many different types of military researchers on their website. I've never had the patience to go through the list to find the right researcher. Also, I've been happy with GAR, so I haven't been inclined to shop around.
Hi What is the ballpark amount researchers charge just to find out what Unit-Division that a person served with ?
Your only possibility would be working backwards from the 90th Field Artillery Battalion Morning Report on 13 April 1945 which should record his WIA. Most researchers like Golden Arrow a few years ago charged c. $400 for tracing and copying the relevant Morning Reports but I don't know if the St Louis National Personnel Records Center has reopened.