114th Infantry - Antitank unit

Hello Tommy776,

My grandfather served with the 114th anti tank infantry Company F. His name Archie J Sanville. Was curios if his name appears in the book. I to can not find a lot of info on his Company.

 

I'm not at home right now, but will check the rosters for the 114th when I get a chance. That's the most likely place to find his name. Usually, unless the soldier was KIA or received a MoH or DSC (see post #9 above), they aren't named in the text of the unit history.

 

Jsanville, I did find your grandfather listed in the roster for Company F, 114th Infantry. He was not listed in the Anti-tank Company. If you are able to find a copy of the 114th unit history, I think you would find it interesting. Amazon doesn't have a copy, but there is a picture of the cover. They come up on the major auction website from time to time.

 

Hello,

I've always known my great uncles died in WW2 and Korea, but never knew much of where or how. I was able to find out quite a bit on my uncle Manuel from the Korean War. I'm trying to find out more on my great uncle Joe who served with the 114th infantry. I recently visited their graves in El Paso Texas. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Mark Gonzalez
(626)434-5666
mrkus44@yahoo.com

 

Mark, we are always willing to help as much as we can. It would be helpful to us if you could tell us what you do know about your great uncle Joe's service, as well as the source of the information. That way, we won't be diverted looking for info you already have.

 

Thanks for replying. Well I know his name was Jose J. Ortiz born July 14, 1922 and he served with the 114th Infantry Regiment (US Army). He was killed on April 21st, 1945 in Wurttemburg, Germany. I found his interment card from Ft. Bill National Cemetery which states he was buried in St. Avold-Metz, France then transferred to Ft. Bliss. I would love to find what service medals he received from his service so I can build a shadow box in his honor for my memorial wall in my house.

 

If you haven't done so already, you should request a copy of his personnel file (OMPF) from the NARA. There was a fire in 1973 that destroyed or damaged much of the WWII personnel records, so don't be too surprised if you don't get much. It only costs about 47 cents to find out.

You can also request replacement medals from the NARA. They may only provide you with a list of medals, especially if someone else in your family has previously requested them. However, the list would serve your main purpose.

I would also suggest requesting his IDPF (Individual Deceased Personnel File).

I found your great uncle's memorial page on Findagrave.com. You will note that it says he was buried at Ft. Bliss National Cemetery in 1948. After WWII, the families were given the option of having their soldier buried in an American Military Cemetery overseas, or returned home for reburial. I tried to locate a copy of Headstone Application, but was not able to find it. Maybe someone else will successfully track it down.

I also found a listing in the NARA Electronic Enlistment records for WWII, which seems to be your great uncle. If that is him, then this is his listing (2nd from the top) on the casualty list for El Paso County, TX:

View attachment 24829

 

Here is his interment form:

 

Thanks, Steve. The ASN confirms that what I found was for Mark's great uncle.

The casualty list indicates he died of wounds (DOW). So, he may or may not have died the day he was wounded. His memorial page indicates he died at Gaildorf, Germany.

I have a copy of the 114th Infantry history. He is listed in the In Memoriam, Died of Wounds section. I also found him in the roster for Company K, 3rd Battalion: ORTIZ, JOSE T. (sic), Pfc., 1915 N. Virginia St., El Paso, Tex. I did check all the other company rosters to make sure that the middle initial was actually a typo. There was no other Jose Ortiz in the 114th Infantry.

At the beginning of April 1945, the 114th was attached to the US VI Corps for an upcoming offensive action. At 0600 on 19 April, the attack jumped off with the 1st & 2nd Battalioins of the 114th passing through elements of the 63d Infantry Division North of Westheim (probably Schwäbisch Hall), Germany, about 40 miles NE of Stuttgart. The 3d Battalion remained in reserve at Gottwalshausen. By 0830, 3d Bn was ordered to move to Westheim. The speed of the attack required the 3d Bn to move again to Kichelfeld (probably Michelfeld), and by the end of the day they were in Gaildorf. Not much changed for 3d Bn on the 20 April as there was a report of a large enemy column approaching Gaildorf from the East. However, the expected attack never materialized.

As far as I can tell, the 3d Battalion was in reserve for much if not all of the period 19-21 April 1945. There were mentions of sporadic small arms and artillery fire being a constant problem.

Mark, if you have not found it already, the efour4ever.com website has a lot of interesting information about the 44th Division and the 114th.

If you would like, I can scan the pages in the 114th history which show your great uncle's name. Just let me know.

There is also a 44th Division history book. Both are hard to find and can be very expensive. You can take the info from WorldCat to your local library. They may be able to get a copy of one or both books on loan for you:

With the 114th in the E.T.O.

Combat History, 44th Infantry Division, 1944-1945

 

My Dad was in the 114th and I have a letter from General Patch ( a commendation letter) and several pictures of German soldiers and there families. Would be happy to send you those!

 

Here are some things I found.... View attachment 25113

 

Great Seventh Army GO commendation of the 114th Infantry from LtG Patch. Thanks!

 

Well you just made my day! I just discovered this evening that my grandfather was in the same AT Company of the 114th Infantry Regiment that the poster above mentioned. I looked at your photos and there he was! I'm glad to have found this site and hope to learn more about his past that we never heard of. Thank you for sharing.

 

You are very welcome. I am very pleased that it helped you find your grandfather's unit. If you haven't done so yet, check out the 44th Division website that I linked to in post #30 above. It has a lot of information on the 114th Infantry's AT Company.