549th Engineer Light Ponton Company
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The 549th Engineers Light Pontoon Company was a
combat engineer A combat engineer (also called pioneer or sapper) is a type of soldier who performs military engineering tasks in support of land forces combat operations. Combat engineers perform a variety of military engineering, Tunnel warfare, tunnel and l ...
company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members ...
of the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Operationally attached to the 1150th Engineer Combat Group, it served under XXI Corps of the Seventh Army in action in
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
and
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
in 1944 and 1945. The 549th was primarily a highly mobile
pontoon bridge A pontoon bridge (or ponton bridge), also known as a floating bridge, is a bridge that uses float (nautical), floats or shallow-draft (hull), draft boats to support a continuous deck for pedestrian and vehicle travel. The buoyancy of the support ...
construction unit, which also provided both M2 assault boats and a selection of infantry support bridging, ferries, and rafts. It was created on 14 January 1943, but was not committed troops until training began five months later at Camp Hood, Texas. The company was composed of black American troops and NCOs, with primarily white senior officers.549th Engineer Light Pontoon Company History
/ref> The 549th's bridge building, assault troop ferrying, and other combat capabilities were drawn on for the assault of
Saarbrücken Saarbrücken (; Rhenish Franconian: ''Sabrigge'' ; ; ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of cities and towns in Germany, city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken has 181,959 inhabitants and is Saarland's administrative, commerci ...
on the
Saar River The Saar (; ) is a river in northeastern France and western Germany, and a right tributary of the Moselle. It rises in the Vosges mountains on the border of Alsace and Lorraine and flows northwards into the Moselle near Trier. It has two headst ...
at the
Siegfried Line The Siegfried Line, known in German as the ''Westwall (= western bulwark)'', was a German defensive line built during the late 1930s. Started in 1936, opposite the French Maginot Line, it stretched more than from Kleve on the border with the ...
, the crossing of the
Main River The Main () is the longest tributary of the Rhine, one of the major European rivers. It rises as the White Main in the Fichtel Mountains of northeastern Bavaria and flows west through central Germany for to meet the Rhine below Rüsselsheim, ...
and capture of
Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is, after Nuremberg and Fürth, the Franconia#Towns and cities, third-largest city in Franconia located in the north of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. It sp ...
, and the
Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...
at Dillingen, then continued on towards Austria as three separate platoons. In the
European Theater of Operations The European Theater of Operations, United States Army (ETOUSA) was a Theater (warfare), theater of Operations responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the European theatre of World War II, from 1942 to 1945. It command ...
it was often just ahead or behind the 289th Engineer Combat Battalion during the months of March, April, and May 1945. At various points it detached a platoon to the 289th and traded an officer back and forth in April. On 1 April 1945, the detached 1st Platoon enjoyed Easter Dinner with the 289th at the Mudau Hotel in
Mudau Mudau is a municipality in the Neckar-Odenwald district, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. it has 4,833 inhabitants. Geography Mudau lies in the southeastern Odenwald mountains between the Neckar and Main rivers, 75 km southeast of Frankfurt ...
, Germany. By war's end its units were scattered throughout a fast-moving front that saw spearheads of U.S. troops spread throughout southern Germany and into borderlands of Austria and Italy. The 1st platoon went south from
Augsburg Augsburg ( , ; ; ) is a city in the Bavaria, Bavarian part of Swabia, Germany, around west of the Bavarian capital Munich. It is a College town, university town and the regional seat of the Swabia (administrative region), Swabia with a well ...
to Landsberg, where it bridged the Lech River before ending up on the
Chiemsee Chiemsee () is a freshwater lake in Bavaria, Germany, near Rosenheim. It is often called "the Bavarian Sea". The rivers Tiroler Achen and Prien (river), Prien flow into the lake from the south, and the river Alz flows out towards the north. The ...
in southeast Germany just miles from
Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...
, Austria. The Second platoon ended up in
Kufstein Kufstein (; ) is a town in the Austrian state of Tyrol, the administrative seat of Kufstein District. With a population of about 20,000 it is the second largest Tyrolean town after the state capital Innsbruck. The greatest landmark is Kufstein For ...
at the
Inn River The Inn (; ; ) is a river in Switzerland, Austria and Germany. The long river is a right tributary of the Danube, being the third largest tributary of the Danube by discharge. The highest point of its drainage basin is the summit of Piz Berni ...
in the Austrian
Tyrol Tyrol ( ; historically the Tyrole; ; ) is a historical region in the Alps of Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary, f ...
in support of the 12th Armored and 36th Infantry Divisions.Hammersen, Fredrick P. A., LTC, ''The End of the War''
"Further east, Combat Command A of the 12th Armored Division and the 142nd Infantry Regiment of the 36th Infantry Division (XXI Corps) captured Murnau on April 29th."
The 3rd Platoon bridged the
Saalach River The Saalach is a river in Austria and Germany, and a left tributary of the Salzach. Course The river begins, as the stream, in the Austrian state of Tyrol in the Kitzbühel Alps at the lake below the high Gamshag. From there it flows initi ...
at
Bad Reichenhall Bad Reichenhall (; Central Bavarian: ''Reichahoi'') is a spa town, and administrative center of the Berchtesgadener Land district in Upper Bavaria, Germany. It is located near Salzburg in a basin encircled by the Chiemgau Alps (including Mount Stau ...
to clear the way for the U.S. 101st Airborne and the
French First Army The First Army () was a field army of France that fought during World War I and World War II. It was also active during the Cold War. World War I On mobilization in August 1914, General Auguste Dubail was put in the charge of the First Army, ...
in their bids to be first to reach
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
's
Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
n retreat of
Berchtesgarden Berchtesgaden () is a municipality in the district Berchtesgadener Land, Bavaria, in southeastern Germany, near the border with Austria, south of Salzburg and southeast of Munich. It lies in the Berchtesgaden Alps. South of the town, the Berch ...
and capture
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...
's Berhof and Eagle's Nest.


History

By war's end the 549th's 2nd platoon had reached
Kufstein Kufstein (; ) is a town in the Austrian state of Tyrol, the administrative seat of Kufstein District. With a population of about 20,000 it is the second largest Tyrolean town after the state capital Innsbruck. The greatest landmark is Kufstein For ...
, Austria, where it had bridged the
Inn River The Inn (; ; ) is a river in Switzerland, Austria and Germany. The long river is a right tributary of the Danube, being the third largest tributary of the Danube by discharge. The highest point of its drainage basin is the summit of Piz Berni ...
in support of the 12th Armored Division in its race to be first to the
Brenner Pass The Brenner Pass ( , shortly ; ) is a mountain pass over the Alps which forms the Austria-Italy border, border between Italy and Austria. It is one of the principal passes of the Alps, major passes of the Eastern Alpine range and has the lowes ...
. The 1st platoon rested on the
Chiemsee Chiemsee () is a freshwater lake in Bavaria, Germany, near Rosenheim. It is often called "the Bavarian Sea". The rivers Tiroler Achen and Prien (river), Prien flow into the lake from the south, and the river Alz flows out towards the north. The ...
in southeast Germany, just miles from
Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...
, Austria. The 3rd platoon was the last to finish its mission, which was in support of the
101st Airborne Division The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) ("Screaming Eagles") is a light infantry division (military), division of the United States Army that specializes in air assault military operation, operations. The 101st is designed to plan, coordinat ...
and the
2nd Armored Division (France) The French 2nd Armored Division (), commanded by General Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque, Philippe Leclerc, fought during the final phases of World War II in the Western Front (World War II), Western Front for the liberation of France. The divi ...
of the
French First Army The First Army () was a field army of France that fought during World War I and World War II. It was also active during the Cold War. World War I On mobilization in August 1914, General Auguste Dubail was put in the charge of the First Army, ...
in their bids to capture the Nazi high command's retreat in the "
National Redoubt A national redoubt or national fortress is an area to which the (remnant) military forces of a nation can be withdrawn if the main battle has been lost or even earlier if defeat is considered inevitable. Typically, a region is chosen with a geogra ...
" of
Berchtesgarden Berchtesgaden () is a municipality in the district Berchtesgadener Land, Bavaria, in southeastern Germany, near the border with Austria, south of Salzburg and southeast of Munich. It lies in the Berchtesgaden Alps. South of the town, the Berch ...
. While attached to the 48th Engineer Combat Battalion it constructed three
Bailey bridge A Bailey bridge is a type of portable, Prefabrication, pre-fabricated, Truss Bridge, truss bridge. It was developed in 1940–1941 by the British Empire in World War II, British for military use during the World War II, Second World War and saw ...
s totaling 400 feet to open the road-net ahead of the competing divisions. According to the unit's history, "The last bridge, which totaled 200 feet in length, was completed on May 8 and the boys really proceeded to celebrate V-E Day 'royally' in Hitler's 'Nest'". Unit headquarters was still at Degerndorf when the news arrived that Germany had surrendered. Rumors were rife about where they would go next, some suggesting Italy, but on 13 May the 549th departed for
Oringen The O-Ringen (previously called the "Swedish 5 days") is an orienteering competition that takes place annually in different areas of Sweden. Orienteers from all over the world come to the competition. For orienteers around the world a trip to the ...
, Germany back toward the Rhine. There were no changes in assignment and attachments during the 549th's service in the
ETO ETO may refer to: Science and technology * Emitter turn off thyristor, a semiconductor device * Ethylene oxide, an organic compound * RUNX1T1, a gene * Efforts to Outcomes, software produced by Social Solutions Sports * ETO-SZESE Győr FKC, a Hung ...
. It remained assigned to the Sixth Army Group, Seventh Army, attached to the XXI Corps and assigned to the 1150th Engineer Combat Group for operational duty. A lot of hard work awaited the company when it reached Oringen on 13 May getting its vehicles and equipment ready to move closer to France and eventually the United States of America.


Capabilities

The 549th was primarily a bridge construction unit. As a combat engineers, though, they could be called upon to deliver a number of diverse services when needed. These included, but were not limited to: *Bridge (mobile, floating, fixed) *Conducting river crossings by pontoon/raft, motor-powered assault boats *Demolition *Placing/de-arming munitions, including mines *Port & harbor maintenance and rehabilitation, including beachheads: *Vehicle maintenance *Fighting as infantry when needed Primarily the units were devoted to the construction of various
pontoon bridge A pontoon bridge (or ponton bridge), also known as a floating bridge, is a bridge that uses float (nautical), floats or shallow-draft (hull), draft boats to support a continuous deck for pedestrian and vehicle travel. The buoyancy of the support ...
s and the deployment and operation of ferries, rafts, and
assault boat An assault boat is a boat used for landing in combat, specifically for inland waters. Their lightweight construction allows for them to be carried by multiple men on foot. They can either be paddled or fitted with an outboard motor for high-speed ...
s


Equipage

A Light Pontoon Bridge company was equipped with the M3 pneumatic bridge, which could handle all normal infantry division loads and could be reinforced to carry heavier loads. The pontoon bridge was supported by heavy inflatable pneumatic floats. It had two bridge platoons, each equipped with one unit of M3 pneumatic bridge, and a lightly equipped platoon which had one unit of footbridge and equipment for ferrying.Engineer Field Manual FM 5-5
/ref> Its equipment included: * Two units of pneumatic bridge equipment (M3) * Two units of footbridge (M1938) equipment * Four ferry set, No. 1, Infantry Support * Twelve raft, set No. 1, Infantry Support * Seventy assault boats (M2) Engineers were required to operate assault boats ferrying infantry troops and equipment in combat.


Awards

Twelve members of the 549th received awards for meritorious service in connection with the successful crossing of three rivers in Germany and the Alps:
NORMANDY BASE SECTION, France – At its first and last formation, 12 members of the 549th Engineer Light Pontoon Company were awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service in connection with the successful crossing of three rivers in Germany and the Alps. One of two colored pontoon bridge units in the ETO, the 549th in April, after ferrying assault troops across the Saar River„ erected 1084 feet of Bailey Bridge and Infantry foot bridge over the river. The men, who; had helped capture
Saarbrücken Saarbrücken (; Rhenish Franconian: ''Sabrigge'' ; ; ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of cities and towns in Germany, city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken has 181,959 inhabitants and is Saarland's administrative, commerci ...
, moved on to
Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is, after Nuremberg and Fürth, the Franconia#Towns and cities, third-largest city in Franconia located in the north of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. It sp ...
, which they helped subdue, and swinging southward, threw up 1400 feet of bridge over the
Main Main may refer to: Geography *Main River (disambiguation), multiple rivers with the same name *Ma'in, an ancient kingdom in modern-day Yemen * Main, Iran, a village in Fars Province *Spanish Main, the Caribbean coasts of mainland Spanish territ ...
and
Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...
Rivers. Under Constant Fire Then assigned the job of bridging the river at Würzburg, the pontoners worked three days and nights under constant fire erecting a 570-foot triple bridge, strong enough for the heaviest train load. Finally attached to the 12th Armored Division''549th Engineer Light Pontoon Company History'', p. 22
"The 1st and 2nd platoons were attached to the 286th Engineer Combat Battalion at this time, where they reinforced 140 feet of DS Bailey Bridge with four bays of DD in the center near Murnau and completed 80 feet of DS Bailey Bridge at Bad Telz (sic) /nowiki>Bad Tölz">Bad_Tölz.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Bad Tölz">/nowiki>Bad Tölz/nowiki>. Both of these projects were in general support of the 12th Armored Division, Combat Commands A and B." of General Patton's [sic] Seventh Army they worked through to Bad Reichenhall, Bad Reichenthal, Germany, where on Victory in Europe Day, V-E day they finished a 190-foot bridge, that proved a gateway for
French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...
and American troops. During its three campaigns, the company lost only one man, T/Sgt. Elmer Barrett of 2208 Dickinson St., Philadelphia, who was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal and Purple Heart.  The three officers and nine enlisted men who received the Bronze Star from Col. E. J. Dowling of the 1150th Engineer Combat Group were: 1st Sgt. Leon Wilburn. Florence Villa, Fla.; Sgt. Evan T. Guess, 711 Elm St., Madison. Ind.: S/Sgt. Weldon D. Bryant, NYC.; S/Sgt. Wilson R. Forney, Cornelius, NC.: PFC Johnnie D. Townsend. Chattanooga. Tenn.; T/4 Milton Green. Panama City, Fla.: S/ Sgt. Stanley J. Short, Pittsburgh; Cpl. Lawrence C. Cooke, Palatka, Fla.; Sgt. Daniel I. Poe, 2231 Tort St., Detroit; 1st Lt. John R. Hopkins, Florence. Ma.; 1st Lt. Robert A. Flynn, NYC.. and 1st Lt. George
''The Afro-American'', 25 August 1945, page 1-2


Campaign credit

*
Rhineland The Rhineland ( ; ; ; ) is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly Middle Rhine, its middle section. It is the main industrial heartland of Germany because of its many factories, and it has historic ties to the Holy ...
Department of the Army
''Unit Citation and Campaign Participation Credit Register'', p. 242
/ref> *
Central Europe Central Europe is a geographical region of Europe between Eastern Europe, Eastern, Southern Europe, Southern, Western Europe, Western and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Central Europe is known for its cultural diversity; however, countries in ...


See also

* XXI Corps * Seventh Army *
Sixth United States Army Group The 6th United States Army Group (also referred to as the Southern Group of Armies) was an Allied army group that fought in the European Theater of Operations during World War II. Made up of field armies from both the United States Army an ...
* 63rd Infantry * 70th Infantry * 289th Engineer Combat Battalion *
Operation Nordwind Operation Northwind () was the last major German offensive of World War II on the Western Front. Northwind was launched to support the German Ardennes offensive campaign in the Battle of the Bulge, which by late December 1944 had decisively ...
*
United States Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wo ...


Notes


References


External links


U.S. Army Center of Military History
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/19970607003407/http://www.history.army.mil/ , date=7 June 1997
World War II Regimental Histories at the Bangor Public Library
Engineering units and formations of the United States Army Military units and formations established in 1943