New to this forum. My dad was part of this group, Troop C. He was a D-Day survivor. He never spoke of his wartime experiences. I plan to write a family history book for my kids and grandkids. Consequently, a portion of that book will include my father's military exploits. He passed away in 1995. I have very few documents from his service time. No discharge papers, only his uniform with patches. I need guidance on where I can get his records to verify his involvement in the European Theater until his discharge. As you are well aware, the records in St. Louis, MO are no longer available due to the fire. If anyone has some uncomplicated and direct advice on where to inquire about my father's service, I would greatly appreciate the help.
You might try here: although these sources may not be as extensive could help. https://history.army.mil/reference/records.htm Or:: U.S. Army Center of Military History 102 Fourth Avenue, BLDG 35 (Collins Hall) Fort Lesley J. McNair, DC 20319-5060 CONTACT CMH: http://www.history.army.mil/inquire.html (only a percentage of Army units have current lineage and honors information compiled, some of which is posted to http://www.history.army.mil/html/forcestruc/lh.html)
You can find “some” information on the 24th Cavalry Reccon Squadron in this book: First United States Army - Report of Operations - 20 Oct 1943 to 1 Aug 1944 Here’s a link to the book in Fold3.com Page 1 WWII War Diaries Unfortunately Fold3.com is a subscription based service, so you’ll need to purchase a subscription to look at their information……If you happen to have a ANCESTRY.COM subscription, you can get a subscription to Fold3.com “cheaper”…..Ancestry owns Fold3.com I might have a copy of this Report in my files, if I find it I’ll post a link for you (so hopefully you won’t need a Fold3 subscription Here’s just 3 pages I found that mentions the Squadron and what they were doing on specific days
I found a link so that you can download the above (for free) and all the Annex’s to the report. The site is Princeton University. This site is where I download my copies. "First United States Army: Report of Operations, 1943 October 20-1944 August 1" (Item 27), circa 1945 - Finding Aids
US Army Manuals on “Cavalry Reconn Squadron Mechanized” FM2-20 and FM2-30, both dated 1944 Links to the above manuals you can download FM 2-20 Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop, Mechanized, 1944 : United States. War Department : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive FM 2-30 Cavalry Field Manual, Cavalry Mechanized Reconnaissance Squadron, 1943 : United States. War Department : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive
History of 24th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron Mechanized from 5 June 1944 through 28 June 1944 [plus 1-31 July 1944, inclusive]. You can download at this link World War II Operational Documents