332nd Engineer General Service Regiment

332nd Engineer General Service Regiment or 332nd Engineer Regimenthttp://www.332ndEngineer.com/ was was activated as a Special Service Regiment in May 1942, as a unit in the United States Army. Later this unit was redesignated a General Service Regiment.

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The unit formed and trained at Camp Claiborne Louisiana, then transferred to Camp Kilmer, a (then) new Army camp named after the American journalist and poet Joyce Kilmer. The unit shipped overseas to England in mid-1942, initially to build bases for the coming troops in preparation for D-Day in World War 2.

Related Topics:
Joyce Kilmer - 1942 - D-Day - World War 2

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The commanding officer through the formation and most of the service during World War II was Colonel Helmer Swenholdt, a 1911 graduate of the University of Wisconsin.

Related Topics:
World War II - 1911 - University of Wisconsin

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This unit served with several of the Armies of World War 2 as is was part of ADSEC (Advanced Section, Communications Zone). ADSEC's mission was to support the U.S. First Army, U.S. Third Army, and U.S. Seventh Army acting in a support role building bridges and roads through France, Belgium and Germany.

Related Topics:
ADSEC - U.S. First Army - U.S. Third Army - U.S. Seventh Army

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The greatest accomplishment of the 332nd Engineer G. S. Regiment (as a member of ASDEC Engineer Group "A") was the construction of a permanent railway bridge 2,815 feet long over the Rhine River in the record time of six days, fifteen hours and twenty minutes. The site of this bridge was crossing the Rhine River between Duisburg and Rheinhausen, Germany. The railroad bridge was completed 8 May 1945 and was named the "Victory Bridge"http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Bunker/7676/duisberg.html.

Related Topics:
Duisburg - Rheinhausen

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Werner Von Braun visited the regimental headquarters on Friday, 29 Jun 1945 to tell of plans for the V-2 rocket which were buried near Bad Sachs, Germany. A nine man special detail was sent in a 2-1/2 ton GMC 6 X 6 truck to find the plans, which were successfully recovered.

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The regiment remained in Germany as part of the Army of Occupation (Germany) under the command of the U.S. Fifteenth Army, later being deactivated in 1949.

Related Topics:
Army of Occupation (Germany) - U.S. Fifteenth Army - 1949

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In June 1950 the unit was reactivated and sent overseas during the Korean War. It was again deactivated in August 1953.

Related Topics:
1950 - Korean War - 1953

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Another unit, 332nd Engineer Company (Dump Truck) is a reserve unit located in Kittanning, Pennsylvania. That unit recently returned from Iraqhttp://www.usarc.army.mil/99thrsc/332nd_engineer_company.htm.

Related Topics:
Pennsylvania - Iraq

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