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Back in Polaroid time

My grandmother dug through the furniture and who knows where else she keeps it all, but she produced three albums and four boxes of photos tonight. I started her down this path by asking about a CD someone brought over several years ago that traced my grandfather’s family back to his grandfather through photographs.

It was essentially half an hour of people I didn’t know, mysterious black-and-white shots of people my grandmother knew as adults and then the later, questionable, hair and clothing styles of those later adults.

So we watched the disc and she named people and guessed at others. And then, somehow, we found ourselves in the back of the house. I was staring at pictures of my grandparents looking into a camera two decades younger than I am now. My wife was taking pictures of me from three decades ago. Suddenly we all felt so young, and so old. And it was all interesting and weird, except to see those that are gone, now, and to count them all up in your head.

I want to hear these stories and one day I want to ask a lot of questions about them, for posterity’s sake. Some of that information should continue on, somewhere, but I’m not sure if there’s much of an appetite for it. So it should be me that does it, then. And then my grandmother says “They’re all gone now, except for those two girls,” it breaks your heart a little to ask her to think about it.

On the other hand, the two times that I’ve started to dig into this a little bit, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a more real smile than when my grandmother is talking about her grandmother. It is worth it for that alone.

Anyway, some pictures.

That guy could straight up sing:

Stringbean, my grandmother said, always wore his pants like this. So he was fashion forward.

David Akeman and his wife were killed by burglars in their home in 1973. (One of their killers died in prison in 1973. The other was paroled just last month.)

But he could play that banjo, she insisted. No kidding. I picked this one because Porter Wagoner was my grandfather’s favorite, and Roger Miller shows up, he was one of my favorites:

If you hear the term clawhammer in a musical sense, this is the meaning. It is, now, considered the “old style” of banjo playing. (Earl Scruggs, who replaced Akeman in the great Bill Monroe band, is the pioneer of the “new” three-finger style.)

I don’t remember Akeman on Hee Haw reruns, but he was there. I’m sure we all laughed at his jokes, my grandparents and me, when the scarecrow was on camera. And now that entire show suddenly seems like a portal into a different time, my grandparents watching stars they’d grown up and were growing old with. Bright colors and bad puns beamed to their antennae, guest hosts and bad skits, all of the stuff in between hearing the songs they knew.

I’m even less certain why people collect head shots and autographs of politicians, but it makes the politicians happy. Once upon a time, at least, one of these was in a lot of homes in Alabama.

I wonder where my grandparents picked all of those up.

Here she is now. She figures she was about 18 or 19 in this picture.

“Let’s talk about this wallpaper,” I said.

“Let’s not,” she said.

She’s such a sweetheart.

family / history / maps — Comments Off
21
Dec 14

70th anniv – My great-grandfather’s war

This is the 70th anniversary of my great-grandfather’s service in Europe, so we’re moving through this map I made of Tonice’s time as a combat medic. Feel free to click around in the other thumbnails to catch up or read ahead.

Tonice was attached to the 137th Infantry Regiment, which fought in the famed 35th Division. We don’t know which company, or even which battalion, so this is only a regimental overview with some movements down to the company level.

So, then, for Dec. 21:

The 137th Infantry received orders that it would be relieved and was to assemble temporarily in the vicinity of Frauenberg, Habkirchen, and Neunkirch until ordered to move to an assembly area.

In the morning the 1st Battalion continued its defense of the Regimental sector. With a heavy artillery barrage, the enemy launched a heavy counterattack on the 1st Battalion positions. This attack was repulsed with heavy enemy losses.

The 2nd Battalion delivered harassing fire on all known and observed enemy targets.

The 3rd Battalion moved to its new assembly area in Richeling. The Regimental CP moved from Neunkirch to Remering. The Special Units cleared into Ballering at 1500.

The Battle of the Bulge was a hard, demanding, scary environment for most everyone. But there would be some rest coming up for these particular men in the next few days. Be sure to stick around for that.

This information is derived from the unit history, found here and here and from this unit overview. His quiet choice means that these markers are rough estimates and are meant only to be illustrative. Any errors are mine alone.

family / history / maps — Comments Off
20
Dec 14

70th anniv – My great-grandfather’s war

This is the 70th anniversary of my great-grandfather’s service in Europe, so I’m bringing back this map I made of Tonice’s time as a combat medic. He was attached to the 137th Infantry Regiment, which fought in the famed 35th Division. We don’t know which company, or even which battalion, so this is only a regimental overview with some movements down to the company level. We do know it was very, very cold that winter.

So, then, for Dec. 20:

The 1st Battalion was attacked repeatedly during the day, and Company B had two companies of SS troops infiltrate into its positions. This attack took place in the neck of the woods. The attack was held off by one squad of B Company until one friendly tank was brought up. Several enemy tanks made sorties toward the 1st Battalion positions, but direct fire drove them off.

The 2nd Battalion remained in position on the high ground near the woods and improved their positions during the day. Companies F, E, and G, in that order, were on the line. The Battalion received heavy enemy artillery fire on the ridge during the period. During one two and a half hour period, 1,000 rounds of artillery and mortar fire fell on the ridge and portions of the woods held by the Battalion.

The 3rd Battalion remained in Neunkirch and continued its reorganization and training for replacements. The Battalion was also placed on alert status.

This information is derived from the unit history, found here and here and from this unit overview. These markers are rough estimates and are meant only to be illustrative. Any errors are mine alone.

family / history / maps — Comments Off
19
Dec 14

70th anniv – My great-grandfather’s war

They’ve been under days of artillery and continuous fighting, and it isn’t stopping. Come along as we revisit Tonice’s time in Europe. He was a combat medic in the 137th Infantry Regiment, but we don’t know which company, or even which battalion. He never really told us much of anything about his experiences so this is only a regimental overview with a glimpse into what his time there was like.

So, then, for Dec. 19:

Frauenberg continued to receive terrific artillery and mortar fire. The enemy fired again and again at the Frauenberg – Habkirchen bridge, but never scored a hit.

The 1st Battalion continued to hold its position on the edge of the Breiterwald Woods and repelled numerous German counterattacks. Several enemy tanks fired on the 1st Battalion from a distance of 1,000 yards and were driven off by Yank artillery.

The 2nd Battalion also improved its positions and placed roadblocks and mine fields on its flanks. The Battalion Command Post was shelled heavily, but no casualties resulted.

The 3rd Battalion remained in Neunkirch and conducted training for its 67 new replacements who had not had much previous infantry training.

This information is derived from the unit history, found here and here and from this unit overview. These markers are rough estimates and are meant only to be illustrative. Any errors are mine alone.

family / history / maps — Comments Off
18
Dec 14

70th anniv – My great-grandfather’s war

Seven decades ago he was there. Thirteen years ago we got an inkling of where he was and what he did. Two years ago I put this map together. And on this, the 70th anniversary of Tonice’s time in Europe as a combat medic, I’m doing a bit of revisiting of what the 137th Infantry Regiment did. We don’t know which company, or even which battalion, so this is only a regimental overview with some movements down to the company level.

So, then, for Dec. 18:

The 137th was ordered to resume the attack. The enemy was unable to stop the assault of our forces and was driven back to the rear edge of the woods.

The 2nd Battalion of the 134th Infantry, attached to the 137th Infantry, attacked the enemy at the edge of Reinneimerald Woods, on the 137th’s right flank, just south of Bebelsheim.

The Regiment was ordered to stop its attack at 1830 and to consolidate its positions on the most favorable ground. At the conclusion of the day’s operations the 2nd Battalion of the 134th was at the edge of Reinneimerald Woods. The 137th’s 1st Battalion was holding all of the Breiterwald Woods and a small patch of woods near Bannholz. The 2nd Battalion had elements in Bliesmengen and east of the town, while the 3rd Battalion was held in reserve at Neunkirch.

You can click all of the pins in the map below to see more of the unit’s day-by-day notes.

This information is derived from the unit history, found here and here and from this unit overview. Any errors are mine alone.