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HomeMy WebLinkAbout John Atterbury, Brazos Valley Heroes One in ~ series of tributes to members of "The Greatest I~ Generation" who serv~d our country during World War II n ~~ At just about any Texas A&M athletic function, chances are you will see John Atterbury and his wife, Josie. There aren't many Aggies as loyal or supportive asAtterbury. He will be the first to tell you that A&M affected his life in a significant way, but he will also tell you that his experiences during World War II did as well. ~I was born in 1923 in Knox City, Texas, but our family lived in nearby Benjamin, Texas. I attended and graduated from Knox City High in 1941 and enteredA&M that fall. I remember sitting at my desk over my dl1lwing board in Mttchell Hall when i heard the news of PeaI1 Hartxlr.1 remember thinking that this would have an effect on the rest 01 my life. And tt did. "My class ~gned ROTC contracls and we became enlisted reserves in December 1942. In March 011943, we were called to active duty, but they allowed us to retum to scrool to finish lhjl , semester. I was sent to Camp Roberts in Calrtomia for Infantry basic and then back to A&M under the ASTP program to re-enter school and await an Des opening." . Atterbury was sent to Ft. Benning, Georgia, for intaiiiry oes and was awarded his commission as a Second Ueutenant In June 1944. After commissioning he and Josie were married. "I was assigned as a rtfIe platoon leader to Company A, 5th Infantry Regime", 71st Infantry Division. One 01 the Iieutenanls in Compeny B was a southem boy ftom Mississippi end heQot Into an argument with his men, who were mostly from the Northeast, over the Civil War. He was reassigned and I took over his platoon in Compeny B. Those men would become like part 01 my fami~." Atterbury and his men sailed for Europe out of New York Harbor in Jenuary 1945. "We sailed on this old Uberty ship and the water was realty rough. My commander said that the officers weren't allowed to get seasick I disobeyed ordel1l rtght away, I was so ~ck I couldnl eat anything until we were near France. "We were sent to relieve the 1 Ooth Division of the 7th Army near Bitche, France, which was near the Italian border. The first contact and action our division had with the Germans was by my platoon. My platoon was selected to seize a Gennan emplacement 600 yards in front of our lines - at night. 1 and all of my men had never been in combat before. To say we were a little nervous is an understatement. "The first thing we ran into was a dead soldier fro.m the lootl1 Division that was hung up in the wire. That didn't help our nerves. We were fortunate that the Germans decided, after some resistance, to leave the area. That is how my platoon earned our combat infantryman's ~ge." Atterbury and his platoon received a commendation from ttle - - - ~ commanding officer of the battalion for their action that night. "Some of tile other companies lost a lot of men in the minef~lds, but we were furtuoole. Atter we took the knoll end dug In, the next day we discovered that we had been left by the rest 01 our company and battalion. Rnding ourselves all alone was about as unsettling as our first mission the night before. ~ After ttlis we were assigned to Patton's Army and headed over the Siegfrted Une into Genneny end on to Austria. We had the Gennans on the run and had mostly skinnishes. We crossed the Danube and at a small town named Augburg, Gennany, we ran into Germen troops that were dug in. They had mortars iocated in the nelghbortng town and most of the casualties came !tom the mortll1l. We had captured eight Gennans and had them In the street in a group when one of their mortars hit in. the middle of them, tt ~lIed all 01 them." Atterbury end his platoon led the attack on Augberg. For his personal actions, Atterbury was awarded the Bronze S1ar end promoted to first lieutenant ~We halted at the Steyr River in Austria. An SS officer came across the river and volunteered his men to .ioin with us to fight the RussIans. We declined his offer. OVer 50,000 Germans and Hungarians came across ttle river and surrendered to us to avoid ttle Russians. ~ The war ended Ofl May 8, 1945, in Europe, and Atterbury and his men begen to train fur Japen, ~Before we were to leave for Japan, General Patton reviewed the troops and said his goodbyes to his anny. We thought tt was because a lot 01 us wouldnl be coming back, but I guess ttwasfor him, because he was ~lIed shortly thereafter in en auto accident "I came home in June 1946 end re1umed to MM, getting my degree in mechaniCal engineering in May 1947.1 went to work for Humble Oil and Refining Company and, except for a period of time in school atA&M to get my master's degree, I stayed wtth Humble, and laler Exxon, until I retired In 1986. We moved to College station and we have been attending Aggie games since. "Loo~ng backon that time, I think 01 my platoon. We developed a real dose relationship. With a few exceptions in my mind, I can still see all their faces just as we were back then. There are not many left now. ~ . II you know 01 a World War II veteran whose story needs to be told, contact Bill Young~n al(979) 260-7030. II you would like to add someone's name to the Brazos Valley Veterans . Memorial, names must be submitted by August 15, 2006 In order to.be engraved on the memorial by this year's Veterans Day obServance. .