HomeMy WebLinkAboutHenri F. Frank, Brazos Valley HeroesBy Bill Youngkin
Special to The Eagle
Henri F. Frank has a dual citizenship because his parents
are Dutch and because he was born in America. To be exact, he
was born in Mount Vernon, New York, on December 3, 1919.
But the citizenship he has always claimed is that of being a
red- blooded American.
According to Frank, "My brother and I were born in
the U.S. When I was a young boy, my parents moved back
to Holland for about 10 years before returning to the U.S. I
remember the whole time we were in Holland, I told everyone
I was an American and that I wanted to be a soldier when I
grew up.
"When my family moved back to the U.S., we lived on
Long Island, New York. About the time I was graduating
from high school, my principal asked me where I wanted to
go to school and I told him West Point. He explained that if
my parents didn't have a relationship with a congressman, I
needed to think about going somewhere else.
"He knew that my parents were Dutch and my chances
of getting into the U.S. Military Academy were limited. With
his guidance, I enrolled at Cornell University. At Cornell, I also
enrolled in their ROTC program. I graduated from Cornell in
1941 and received my commission as second lieutenant.
"I was assigned to Pine Camp, New York, nearWatertown,
New York, with the 4th Armored Division. I was visiting my
parents on Long Island the weekend of Pearl Harbor. I had
gone horseback riding with my dad. When we returned to
the stable the stable hand, who had a habit of drinking too
much on occasion, informed us of the attack by the Japanese
on Pearl Harbor. We thought he might have been drinking
again that day until we confirmed his news. I told my dad and
mother I must return to duty immediately, which I did. My
dad gave me his pistol to take with me on my return; I guess
he thought the Japanese were to be landing in New York.
"We trained in seriousness now. No one left the base
except the train. We went on maneuvers in Tullahoma,
Tennessee, and then to the deserts of California. For some
reason, the army sent me for training to be part of a language
team, I guess because of my background. I finally managed
to return to my unit before we were shipped overseas on
September 4,1944.
"We trained in England and then went to France to be
part of Patton's Third Army. We ended up on the southern end
of the Siegfried Line at Bitche, Germany. It was here that I was
wounded and received the Purple Heart.
"We were an artillery unit, and as an artillery officer
you were trained to prepare a shell report of enemy artillery
impacts. From the impact of the shell you could tell what
direction the shell came from and by the fragments, what
type of shell it was and therefore its range. This helped to
locate their artillery positions and helped to neutralize them.
"While near Bitche, we had an artillery barrage hit about
50 yards away. I was the junior officer present, so I went to
conduct the shell report. That was when they started shelling
again and in the same location. There was a tank track
depression about four inches deep. I tried to compress my body
into that track depression but couldn't quite make it. I was hit
in my hand, which I had on my helmet. It wasn't serious, but
was enough of a wound to earn me a Purple Heart."
Frank and his unit would be involved with the rescue of
the 101 st Airborne Division thafwas encircled by the Germans
at Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge. According to Frank,
"After we relieved Bastogne, we waited a few days and then
started the breakout. We started shelling the Germans with
every piece of artillery we had. We started at 3 a.m. on the
day of the breakout and didn't lift the firing until 6 a.m. When
we advanced, there was nothing but devastation, with dead
Germans lying like logs everywhere'
Frank, now a major, would command Task Force Frank
into and across Germany. As related by Frank, "Our task force
was two companies, one tank company and one infantry
company. Our job was to go as fast and as far as we could,
pushing the Germans in front of us. If we couldn't break
through, we went around. We ended up at Adorf, Yugoslavia,
when the war was over."
Frank came home to prepare to fight the Japanese, but
the atomic bomb ended that. Frank entered civilian life for
about six months and then went back into what he loved,
the army. It would be a career that would end after serving in
three wars -World War II, Korea and Vietnam. He retired a full
colonel in 1964. After retirement, he became involved in the
insurance business in Jackson, Mississippi, before moving to
Waldenbrook in Bryan a year ago.
As related by Frank, "I did what I did because it was
expected. We did what we were told, did it to the best of our
ability and we did it well"
If you want to have a name added to the
Veterans Memorial, for more information, to make
a contribution, or if you know a World War 11 veteran
whose story needs to be told, contact the BV11M at
www.bvvm.org or Bill Youngkin at (979) 260-7030.
The deadline for adding names to the memorial wall
for this year's Veteran's Day observance is August 15,
2008.