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Clinton Riddle, Company B ~

I was born in my parents home, six miles west of Sweetwater, Tennessee in Loudon County on February 24, 1921. I graduated from Sweetwater High School in 1941. I entered the Army on December 10, 1942. I had quit my job and enrolled in Anderson Aircraft School in Nashville, learning to build airplanes. We were told that we would not be drafted while in aircraft school, but they were drafting the boys out of the school and I came home after a week to await being drafted from my own county of McQinn. I entered the Army December 10, 1942. My basic training was at Camp Wheeler in Macon, Georgia. I had six weeks of regular training and six weeks of clerk school to be a general clerk. I learned to type and make morning reports for the Company. I had one week of review in basic training, ending with a 20 mile hike with full field pack.

I joined the 82nd Airborne Division in April, 1943. I was selected to go to OCS (Officer Candidate School) when I finished basic training, but was shipped out of Camp Wheeler before I had the chance to enroll. I was first placed in the MP section of the Division, but in a few days they discovered I was two inches too short and I was placed in the 325th. I had no glider training while at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina. We left Ft. Bragg on April 14, 1943, starting on our way to North Africa. We traveled by train to Camp Edwards, Mass. We stayed there until April 27 and moved to Brooklyn, New York and loaded on the ship Santa Rosa. We sailed April 29. We landed at Casablanca, North Africa on the morning of May 10, 1943. We moved by truck some 400 miles to Oujda, French Morocco to a place called Marina. They graded out a small landing strip in the sand and brought two gliders and I took my first 15 minute ride to qualify as a Gliderman. The training was very hard in this God-forsaken place. It was so hot and the living conditions were bad. Most of our days and nights were spent in running problems and parading for the VIP's.

Most of the fellows were ready to go home in the beginning while in Africa. It depends upon what time during the war you are talking about. Most of the boys I was with were from the north. They had been places and done things. I was a red-necked hillbilly from the hills of East Tennesse, who was not use to wearing shoes and one leg longer than the other from running around those hills, so I didn't have many friends for a long time. We had a lot of men killed and wounded with replacements coming into the company from time to time. You didn't dare get too close in friendship because they soon could be gone.

I served in every position in Company B at one time or another except as Mess Sergeant (they were not always on the front line). After I did not get to go to OCS back in the States I chose to turn down several battlefield promotions later in combat. I resolved to try to be the best soldier I could, just take care of myself and try to live to go home when the war was over. I worked most of the time as Company radioman and runner, Battalion runner, Regimental runner and for awhile was with the General at Headquarters. Some officers were sorry, while others were brave and showed good character. Captain Richard Gibson was one of the most non-fearing officers I ever followed. I had three or four killed and wounded that I served under.

During the landing at Salerno, Italy, we moved from the beach into the mountains just beyond Albanella. The enemy was soon turned back and we pulled back to the beach where we had landed and loaded on LCT's, and proceeded up the coast and landed at Red Beach. We relieved the Rangers on San Angaleo Mountain. It took us all night to climb up the mountain. It has been called the "Battle Above the Clouds." We came down from the mountain and continued to battle until the British reached us from the coast. We moved by truck into Naples and help set up the City Government. We were bombed several times each night. Most of my duties while in Naples was standing regular guard, and guard on water and bread lines to keep the people from fighting.

(While at Camp Scraptoft in England) we lived and slept in a tent city with eight men to a tent. Sleeping in a GI cot and under GI blankets. The ground was our floor with some wooden boards to walk on to stay out of the mud. In the early part of the year before going to Normandy we had a sheet metal stove set in the middle of the tent and were allowed a half bucket of coke and one bucket of coal to heat the tent. As for the sleeping, you would hope to have tent buddies that didn't snore. A typical day in camp while in England: Fall out of tents in the morning, have breakfast, dress and pack for a hike or run a field problem, maybe stand guard, eat lunch, go to the rifle range, return for evening meal, dress and go to Leicester for the night. My job was to carry the company radio, run messages, carry the company standard (colors) at head of the line when marching or for a parade. We spent this time in England to prepare for the invasion of Normandy. Sometimes we would go into town shopping, go to a show, write letters or even having a ball game once in awhile. In Africa we had been 40 miles from town, 12 miles from the nearest village and had nothing to do except to try to get a little rest when not preparing for the invasion of Sicily.

On the mission to Normandy I sat in the front seat and was able to observe the pilot and co-pilot's actions and hear what they had to say. I was able to look at all the vessels below in the English Channel. I also wrote some in my diary during the crossing until the tow plane ceased to operate. We used the British Horsa glider for the invasion of Normandy. Every glider that brought our company crashed on landing except the one I was riding. We cut the top out of a tree with the wing of the glider in landing and it hit the ground so hard that it damaged some of the equipment, including breaking the antennae off of my field radio. I was able to take an antennae off a "Walkie talkie" and put it on the big radio. This was the only communications with Battalion until we got another radio. In crossing the Channel the tow plane motors lost power. The glider overran the tow ship, causing slack in the tow rope. The tow plane pilot was able to start the motors again, by this time we were almost down. They cast six cases of tank mines out of the glider along with six GI cans of water preparing to land. When the motors fired up and gained power, the tow rope was around the landing wheels of the glider and almost caused us to crash. When we got in off the shore of Normandy for two-and-a-half or three minutes, the pilot had to find a landing place quick. The Germans had set up posts and mined them in the area we were supposed to have landed. The pilot picked out a small area surrounded by hedge-row and trees. We went for 33 days and nights without relief or replacements. Many were killed and wounded. Just a small number out of the company returned back to England to get replacements and prepare for the invasion of Holland. (Editor note: When the 325th was pulled out of Normandy on July 12, 1944 there were only 46 men left in Company B, which had gone into Normandy with approximately 150).
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