Notes about May, 1945

I'm going to begin my analysis of the month of May with a continuation of the quotation at the end of the month of April:

...After crossing the river the attack continued to the north. Bn assembled (1-2 May) in vicinity of Treviso and was attached to 85th INF Div as the Armor force of the various task forces continuing the attack to the north and northeast across the Po Valley and into the foothills of the Alps.  On 2 May all enemy troops in Italy and Austria surrendered.  The following days were spent moving north through German occupied rear areas, to secure the Austrian border.  Bn was attached to 91st Inf Div and moved to Manzano vicinity Trieste, where the territorial dispute between Marshall Tito and the Allied High Command was the major issue.  Bn was part of the Armored reserve under II crops.  Bn was relieved from 91st Inf Div and became Corps troops (11 June).  Balance of month spent in preparation for return to the states.

As the document points out, at the beginning of May the 757th was still marching full-steam ahead.  Vernon moved with the Battalion to connect to the 85th Infantry Div, and on May 2nd they started beating a path toward Austria.  Vernon doesn't make record of it, but the next couple of days were witness to some extreme fighting conditions as the 85th met very confused enemies.  Most simply surrendered, but a select few did misguidedly put forth valiant fights, and those poor individuals often met with very tragic outcomes as the Allies slaughtered their way to Austria.

Corresponding Scans (5/1/45-5/31/45)

May 1, 1945 - May 31, 1945

May

1945

1.) Went over to 85th sector + stayed with rear area for nite.
2.) Today we started in convoy at 12 p.m. with 85th to go to Austria. We traveled 43 miles + biv[..] on the road for the nite. A german [sic] general was captured + he surrendered all the troops in Italy. There is no more fighting in Italy.
3.) Today we traveled 57 miles thru the Alps + it was snowing + cold as hell. We reached a town + stayed over nite in german [sic] barracks + slept with them. Rumors are that war in Germany is over.
4.) We are near the border of Austria + german [sic] people live here. This morning we went in a german [sic] house + made our breakfast. The people were very nice + gave us plates to eat out of + let us use their frying pan. This town is full of germans who have surrendered. Expect to stay here tonite + go over the border tomorrow + start fighting again. It is still cold.

Notes about April, 1945 (Part 3 of 3)

After he was rested, Vernon woke up at 8AM on the morning of April 24, 1945, and traveled 15 miles North.  He was still most likely attached to the 91st Infantry Division.  While the 85th and 88th Infantry Divisions headed north to the town of Verona, the 91st headed North by Northeast to the town of Vicenza.  He then spent the next couple of days trying to cross the Po River.

The bridges over the Po had been deliberately destroyed by the Axis Forces.  As Vernon was attached to a tank Battalion, the solution was not to simply swim the river.  It took the army corps of engineers a couple days to cross the Po.  At 5:05 PM on April 26, 1945, Vernon and the 757th Tank finally crossed the Po.  He then travelled 15 miles north to the town of Legnago Italy, and slept for the night.

Records Disappeared in Fire

I received this letter today from the National Personnel Records Center:

March 12, 2010

RE: Veteran's Name: HOSCHETTE, VERNON P.
SSN/SN: 37274XXX
Request Number: 1-7351509XXX

Good News - Vernon listed in Online Database

I have made a few attempts to get Vernon recognized in online databases devoted to World War II combat veterans.  What I have found so far is that not only is Vernon not listed, but there seems to be no record of the 757th Tank Battalion whatsoever.

I received an email this morning from Allen Cooley at the World War II History Center in El Dorado, Kansas.  Outside of the "Vernon Hoschette: World War II Records" website I'm creating, Vernon and the 757th will now be listed in their database:

Notes about April, 1945 (Part 2 of 3)

On April 16th, 1945, months of planning culminated in the kick-off of the last Allied offensive in Italy.  Fascist Italy was not a serious competitor at this point in the war.  Mussolini had been at most a puppet ruler propped up by Hitler and his army.  When Allied soldiers marched into and occupied Rome in early June, 1944, his illusory control over Italy effectively disappeared.  But while the Italian Fascists had little power, the five remaining Italian divisions were working in conjunction with twenty-four German divisions, and giving the Allies one hell of a fight in Northern Italy.  And while technically the Allies had yet to suffer defeat at the hands of these divisions, their victories had cost the lives of tens of thousands of American lives.

The Axis forces had set up three lines of defense.  One "protected Bologna and blocked entry into the east-west Po Valley."  The second was a "defensive line along the Po River itself," and the third lay in the "Alpine foothills...dubbed the Adige Line after the river of the same name." (Source: Po Valley, 1945).  When the offensive began, Vernon was located in Loiano, just south of the first Axis defensive line in Bologna.