Looking for explanation of MOS / Position, and Unit Assignment regarding family member.

One of my great-grandpas, Tec-5 Herman R. Diers, served with the United States Army from 5 Jan. 1944 to 19 Apr 1946 as an enlisted armour crewman. I have his full Separation Qualification Record page here and it states under his Assignments: 4 months, PVT, Armored Force Basic Training (521). 3 months, PVT, Medium Tank Crewman (2736). 6 months, PVT, Light Tank Driver (1736). 17 months, TEC-5, Tractor Driver, Amphibian (732).

Under Summary of Occupations:

"Tractor Driver, Amphibian:
Served with the 764th Amphibian Tractor Battalion in the continental United States. Operated gasoline-powered tractor, transporting military personnel and heavy equipment from Army vessels to points on land. Checked engine, hull, tracks, and equipment. Supervised loading, stowing, and bracing of cargo. Read compass and was instructed in rules of navigation. Also operated radio set on vehicle, sending and receiving messages. For 2 months was assigned as mail clerk with the 1908th Service Command Unit at Camp Cooke, California."

From spoken word before he passed he stated:

"I drove those ****** floating tanks all up and down Marina (California) and Fort Ord. I enjoyed the driving, but the waves and shore were quite difficult to deal with when you had an overloaded tank that could barely float. Besides that, I also enjoyed acting as a commander for the Sherman tank. I was too tall to fit in the drivers seat, but that turret gave me just enough space to move about and not lose my head. I avoided getting sent to Europe several times because I got married and took my honey moon times conveniently when the rest of my unit got shipped off. Never anything illegal or the like, just unfortunate timing. I escaped that shipping off three times in a row and because of that, got the nickname "Lucky" (a name he went by the rest of his life, both family, friends, and new acquaintances). I got out because the war ended and they didn't need anymore Army guys floating about, so they sent me home. I enjoyed being a postal clerk at my last spot in Cooke after having my fun in Fort Ord, so when I came back to the house in Salinas, I joined the United States Postal Service."

I would very much appreciate it if anyone could explain anything about his "tractor driver. amphibian" job, as he specifically stated that he drove both the turreted and open bay LVTs. He made it a point to state that he did in fact command a Sherman for a bit when at Fort Ord, California. We have a few photos of his unit's parade through Main Street, Salinas, California, and a news article about his unit's practice on the Salinas River, but I have never been able to find anything regarding the 764th Amphibian Tractor Battalion or the 1908th Service Command Unit despite having many surviving forms, pictures, and accounts from Fort Ord, the Army, and Lucky himself. As a note: he got his Tec-5 rating from completing the POST ADMINISTRATIVE SCHOOL, and USAFI, ELECTRICAL REFIGERATION COURSE.

Thank you!

 

Download the PDF file War Department Technical Manual TM 12-427 Military Occupational Classification of Enlisted Personnel.
Then you can go to where each of these MOS are described.
Page 68 for the MOS 521 Basic
Page 92 for the MOS 732 Tractor Driver, Amphibian
Page 126 for the MOS 1736 Light Tank Crewman
Page 128 for the MOS 2736 Medium Tank Crewman

I believe the 764h Amphibian Tractor Battalion was original organized as the 764th Tank Battalion, but was redesignated and equipped in early 1944. Several other tank battalions were also so redesignated. The 764th ATB did not serve overseas.

 

Hi
I’ve been doing some research on my dad’s time in the service- - I found this link to the Book of MOS very informative . Thank you

 

The 764th Tank Battalion (Light) was activated 24 October 1942 at Fort Benning, Georgia. On 3 August 1944, it was reorganized and redesignated as the 764th Amphibian Tractor Battalion. It was never deployed and was inactivated at Fort Ord on 20 February 1946.

Given he would have completed his Armor Basic in early May 1944, and given the 764th was always a Light Tank Battalion and he never would have crewed a Medium Tank M4 in it, the units he may have been initially assigned to as a Medium Tank Crewman are pretty numerous. If he "escaped" deployment though, he was not with the 764th at that time, since it never deployed.

Getting married or being on a honeymoon was unlikely to get him out of a deployment overseas and it is unlikely it happened three times. More likely, since he was a Basic Private (the term used for the lowest organizational rank at the time) fresh out of the Armor Basic School he was considered too inexperienced and was reassigned to a unit further back in the deployment queue. Furthermore, he probably was reassigned to the 764th after it was redesignated in August 1944, otherwise he would have talked about "Stuart light tanks", which limits the possibilities. He may have been assigned to the 662d Medium Tank Battalion at Fort Knox, which also never deployed, but otherwise I suspect it would have been a battalion on the west coast. Those would be the 710th Medium (deployed 15 June 44), the 713th Flamethrower (14 August 44), 716th Medium (2 June 44), and 775th Medium (28 May 44). The most likely would be the 662d, since the 710th, 716th, and 775th were likely already under deployment orders by the time he could have joined and the uniqueness of the 713th means he would probably have commented on its special role.

However, that is all speculation and he may have been assigned to a battalion scheduled for Europe, which considerably widens the possibilities. You would have to do some extensive digging to try to find out.

 

Oh, just noticed you mentioned he talked about driving both "turreted and open bay LVTs". The 764th was an Amphibian Tractor Battalion and had no Amphibian Tanks. So he was probably in an Amphibian Tank Battalion shortly before he was transferred to the 764th. The good possibilities there would be the 718th, 776th, and 780th. Given his recollections were accurate, then he was likely assigned to at least three different units, a Medium Tank Battalion, an Amphibian Tank Battalion, and an Amphibian Tractor Battalion.