Kenneth Cavanah
Earl Kenneth Cavanah (1924-2013) from Independence, Missouri, was drafted in 1943 and assigned to the 17th Airborne Division. After fighting in the Battle of the Bulge he was transferred to the 1st Battalion of the 194th Glider Infantry Regiment.
On March 24, 1945, his unit landed on LZ "S" close to the Issel River northeast of Wesel. In his letter, 20-year-old Kenny describes the glider borne assault and the fighting near Wesel, as well as his unit's advance until April 11, 1945. From mid-April onward, his regiment saw action in the Ruhr area. After the fighting had ended, the 194th GIR was stationed as an occupation force in the Duisburg and Mülheim/Ruhr area until June 1945. It should be noted that the letter at the beginning mentions the effects of the "non-fraternization policy" and towards the end Franz von Papen’s arrest in April 1945 is mentioned. Von Papen had joined a coalition government with Hitler as Vice-Chancellor on January 30th, 1933, and is regarded as one of the politicians who paved the way for the Nazi seizure of power. Kenny Cavanah’s letter and several private photographs are published here with the friendly permission of his son, Marty Cavanah.
Germany, May 23, 1945
"Dear Folks
I just finished writing Gail and Betty so I thought I better write you while I am in the mood. It is cloudy an cool again this morning so I got out that sweater that Ruth gave me for Christmas and have been wearing it.
I didn't do much this morning; cleaned up the house and had a run and was supposed to go take a shower but the truck didn't show up. We really have a swell place to take showers. Each man has a separate tiled room and there are also bath tubs if we want to take a bath.
We had a German woman come over this morning and wash and iron all of our clothes. She came over the other day and scrubbed the whole house for us. We are allowed to let them do that but we aren't allowed to talk to them at all.
We are allowed to write the things that happened to us while we were in combat so I am sending the dates and some of the things that happened. Be sure and save this.
March 19 we were in our Camp in Chalon France and we were notified that we were going to participate in a airborne operation. We rode in boxcars to our airfield and arrived there March 21. We got our first briefing that night and for the first time learned that we going to drop at Wesel.
March 22 and March 23 we just lay around, had briefings and loaded our gliders. They really fed us swell and we didn't have to do a bit of work. At our briefings they had maps and we studied them all the time. We knew where every man was supposed to go after we landed. The night of March 23 I didn't sleep much as I was kinda sweating it although I wasn't afraid as I really didn't know what to expect.
March 24 was D-Day. We got up at 3:30 had fried eggs but I wasn't very hungry. We walked to the gliders. It was about two miles and we were so loaded down that I just did make it. We took off at 9:00 AM. I was in the second glider but after we reached our rendezvous we were in the second echelon. We rode for three hours and was a pretty smooth ride but I got kinda sick. It wasn't bad till we hit the Rhine then we ran into a smoke screen and I could see black burst of flack all around us, then we cut loose and I could hear a machine gun firing. This is when I was really scared. I felt so helpless up in the air and not being able to fight back. I looked down and saw the field and it was so full of gliders that I didn't think we could find a spot to land in. We were headed straight for a wood at 120 m.p.h. and then the co-pilot grabbed the controls and banked the plane across a canal and we landed in a different field. We went through a couple of fences but it wasn't bad considering the way some of the other boys landed. We came right up to two German anti-aircraft guns and the Germans were still on the guns but a couple of Yanks had guns in their back. We went up and took our objective but had to be watchful as gliders were coming in all around us. We got about 20 soldiers out of the houses that we took and then we dug in for the night. We couldn’t dig very deep as we struck water so we got a parachute and lined our foxhole. We were doing ok till about midnight, when they came and got me and two other guys to go on a patrol. They thought some Heinies were going to come down a path and we were to mow them down as they came along. We laid out there all night but they never did show up.
March 25 we went up to a house and fried about 6 eggs and some ham. At 3:30 that afternoon we attacked, with two British tanks, and secured the unfinished autobahn. That was a pretty thrilling night. We were behind a big ditch and could just look over. It was real dark and we couldn’t see much but could hear Germans talking about 50 yards from us. We could also hear tanks moving around. One German half-track came rumbling up the road and our antitank gun knocked it out. It burned all night and shells were exploding from it all night. They injured one Heinie that was on the half-track and he laid out there and all hollered all night for help and it was really a spooky noise.
March 26. As soon as it got light I could see, with my binoculars, a couple of hay stacks and then they started moving so I guess they were tanks. We attacked this morning across a canal and had to wade water up to my thighs and did I ever hate to do that. It was kinda cold and raining and really miserable. We stopped at noon and dug in in a field. I went up to a house and got some canned cherries and other fruit. All night the sky was full of search lights and German anti-aircraft firing at our fighters.
March 27. Attacked with 5 tanks through woods. Turned out to be a 12 mile hike and I got pretty tired as I was carrying 250 rounds for the BAR, 160 for my rifle 3 rifle grenades, and 3 hand grenades. We got our first hot chow tonight and it sure was swell to see the cook again. From then on we got 1 or 2 meals a day.
March 28 - attacked all day and ran into quite a bit of artillery. We rode on tanks in the evening to a big gasoline dump and dug in for the third time that day. Was still raining and cold.
March 29 - trucks picked us up and rode to Dülmen. Stayed in Dülmen till April 1. Left Dülmen by truck and dug in on a hill about 12 miles from Münster.
April 2, got up at 3:30 and sat around till about 9:00 while the colonel went into Münster to see if they would surrender- There Germans said no, so we made a 12 mile road march in the rain. Attacked Münster at 4:15 pm with 15 British Churchill tanks. Dug in in the middle of town around 8:00 pm. I had to go out on a listening post and I played out in the rain all night and got soaked to the skin. Didn’t have any trouble so as soon as it got light we built a fire in a little hut to dry out our clothes. While we were sitting around the fire some Heinies were looking at us. We ran to the door and hollered halt but they kept running. We fired, hit one, captured one and two got away.
April 3, we searched out the town.
April 4, moved to outskirts of Münster and dug in. They made me the assistant squad leader for 3rd squad.
April 5, moved by truck to the Ruhr pocket, stayed in a town with the 1st Division.
April 6, attacked town on a big hill. Our platoon in first with 3rd squad in reserve. took town and dug in for the night.
April 7, attacked Warstein, took town and dug in, caught a lot of artillery and mortar taking town. Stayed in a house with a lot of nice hams in the basement so we ate pretty good.. Also found a wine cellar and had some good wine and champagne.
April 8 - attacked all day through woods along road. Caught a lot of artillery (105 mm). Brannon wooded.
April 9 - dug in along a road.
April 10 - long march through woods and met the 95th Division. Caught flak all night. 2nd Bn caught von Papen.
April 11 - truck ride to Unna and stayed all night in a SS barracks. I found a watch in one of the offices.
Well this is about as far as I can go for this time, as we can’t reveal anything else that has happened after this. I can tell you that we left from Boston to come overseas. We came over on the Wakefield and we docked in Liverpool. We trained in a place close to Swindon. We left England Christmas Eve and landed in France Christmas eve. I will write about the Bulge some other time when I get some dates on it.
Love, Kenny"