Collector .45 Posted July 10, 2019 Share #1 Posted July 10, 2019 Good morning, being a quiet day here, I thought that I would share one of my more recent finds. I picked up this shadow box a couple months ago as the price was right and there was a name attached to the items so research would be possible. I finally had some time this past week to pull it out and do some research into the recipient of these medals. This grouping is named to A*L*P*H*O*N*S*U*S J. C*A*L*I who hailed from New York. He enlisted in mid May of 1942 and served through the end of the war, being discharged on December 2nd, 1945. He was awarded the Bronze Star for actions on December 25th, 1944 'Christmas day none the less' in the vicinity of Bastogne Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge. I have attached a scan of the General Order containing the citation for the award. I have not been able to find much more on him as I have not had any serious amount of time lately. I did order his record through Geoff at Golden Arrow, but only a final pay voucher survived the infamous fire so really not much avaliable there. The one thing I am very curious about is the foreign decorations from Belgium. Its one of the reasons that I purchased the grouping. I am not well adept at research for foreign awards so if anyone has any suggestions, please let me know. The shadow box itself looks home-made to me. Almost everything is pinned to the back fabric. The back panel is held on with a few simple screws which allowed me to remove the frame and glass to get a decent picture. The bronze star is not named sadly but it does have a V for valor and an oak leaf cluster. I do feel confident that this box has been together for quite some time. There was some dust that had gathered in the bottom of the frame. Thanks - Henry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Collector .45 Posted July 10, 2019 Author Share #2 Posted July 10, 2019 General Orders containing the Citation for the Bronze Star. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Collector .45 Posted July 10, 2019 Author Share #3 Posted July 10, 2019 Lastly, his discharge document. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWIIinterviews Posted July 10, 2019 Share #4 Posted July 10, 2019 Very nice grouping, thanks for posting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermanus Posted July 10, 2019 Share #5 Posted July 10, 2019 The Belgian awards on the left and right side are the same: The War Cross (WW2 version) with bronze palm signifying a mention by the War Office. The middle one is The Military Decoration with the ribbon signifying military bravery. The palm is made of silver also indicating bravery in wartime. Perhaps some records exist in Belgium. I cannot help with that, not my cup of tea i'm afraid as I am from the Netherlands. I see there is no CIB in the group. Surely as an Infantryman he was awarded one I guess? Regards Herman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Collector .45 Posted July 13, 2019 Author Share #6 Posted July 13, 2019 The Belgian awards on the left and right side are the same: The War Cross (WW2 version) with bronze palm signifying a mention by the War Office. The middle one is The Military Decoration with the ribbon signifying military bravery. The palm is made of silver also indicating bravery in wartime. Perhaps some records exist in Belgium. I cannot help with that, not my cup of tea i'm afraid as I am from the Netherlands. I see there is no CIB in the group. Surely as an Infantryman he was awarded one I guess? Regards Herman Herman, Thanks for the info on identifying the medals. I'm going to have to look into records that might be avaliable concerning the Belgian awards. I did notice that a CIB is absent. I have been unable to find a full copy of his discharge document so we may never know if he qualified for one but my intuition tells me he did. - Henry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEAST Posted July 13, 2019 Share #7 Posted July 13, 2019 Herman, Thanks for the info on identifying the medals. I'm going to have to look into records that might be avaliable concerning the Belgian awards. I did notice that a CIB is absent. I have been unable to find a full copy of his discharge document so we may never know if he qualified for one but my intuition tells me he did. - Henry Henry, thats a really nice group. Did you receive a copy of his final pay document? IIRC, there is a line showing additional pay for a CIB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Collector .45 Posted July 13, 2019 Author Share #8 Posted July 13, 2019 Henry, thats a really nice group. Did you receive a copy of his final pay document? IIRC, there is a line showing additional pay for a CIB. Beast, I did receive a copy of it and I guess I didn't look at it too closely. It does show pay for Combat Infantry. - Henry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Collector .45 Posted December 14, 2019 Author Share #9 Posted December 14, 2019 I managed to get the full general order from the National Archives a couple weeks ago. Here is a better scan of it. Would anyone know or be able to check and see if he is listed as receiving these Belgian Decorations in the Index of Belgian Orders & Decorations Awarded to US Service Members During World War II by Brandon Wiegand? I have been unable to find a copy of the index. Looks like they are all out of print and nearly impossible to find. - Henry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Collector .45 Posted April 15, 2020 Author Share #10 Posted April 15, 2020 Here is a screen-shot of the Original Decree #1248 dated 26th. October 1945 from Belgian Army Records Director General of Human Resources showing him listed as being awarded these decorations. I also received an Official Attestation from the Belgian Minister of Defense documenting the award of the Military Cross Second Class with Palm and War Cross 1940 with Palm. - Henry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Collector .45 Posted December 26, 2020 Author Share #11 Posted December 26, 2020 Bringing this back up as today, 76 years ago in the vicinity of Bastogne Belgium, a young staff sergeant distinguished himself in combat during an attack of enemy infantry earning him a bronze star for his actions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermanus Posted December 26, 2020 Share #12 Posted December 26, 2020 Great group. And very nice that you found the Belgian records! Regards Herman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sorcerer1 Posted December 26, 2020 Share #13 Posted December 26, 2020 Very nice grouping indeed. Back in the late seventies, and through the eighties the vicinity of Marvie was our stomping ground for relics. Today the area has changed very drasticaly. I have nothing left of those artifacts( including M1 helmets) unfortunately, but do remember that in a small wood to the east of Marvie we found heaps of unused 60mm mortars rounds, surrounded by many foxholes. Only in 2014 a monument was erected to the defenders of Marvie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trevor Arendall Posted December 26, 2020 Share #14 Posted December 26, 2020 Very nice group! I always like to see foreign awards to Americans. Thanks for sharing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Collector .45 Posted December 25, 2021 Author Share #15 Posted December 25, 2021 Bringing this back to the top for the 77th anniversary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian R Posted December 25, 2021 Share #16 Posted December 25, 2021 Great group!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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