Fixed Bale 28th ID Painted Helmet

[captaxe]

All I can say is WOW !!!

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to present this.

 

I feel sane again.

 

You always go through some questioning when someone cast doubt as to somethings validity.

 

I started to think that I was told a tall tale.

 

Sort of lends credence to him carving a utensil as well.

 

Thanks

 

M

 

My pleasure M. And thank YOU for sharing all of these great groups and pieces of history. :thumbsup:

[LarryM3]

Well I'm ready to eat crow. Sometimes you stick your neck out and state your skepticism and end up getting your neck stepped on. Great information guys, you have added to my store of information.

 

Larry

[manayunkman]

Larry,

 

You were right to doubt it.

 

And look what has come of it...a great piece of information.

 

At least for me, as the helmet owner, it's very good news.

 

Had you said nothing the story would not be this exciting.

 

M

[19delta-uav]

The photos do not do this helmet justice. It is simply phenominal and the story really is awesome.

[Justin]

Looking at the helmet again it looks to be a Schlueter which is another bonus to this already fantastic helmet and story

[manayunkman]

Thanks too all.

 

I am glad you like it.

[Bugme]

I was reading this with skepticism about the story for the same reasons Larry already stated. But then we have captaxe and his history lesson. I'm glad Larry spoke first, I don't look as stupid then. :pinch: Seriously, this is one of those humbling bits of information that keep us all in the category of being students and keeps us from ever becoming the all seeing, all knowing and dreaded: "expert"

[manayunkman]

I was reading this with skepticism about the story for the same reasons Larry already stated. But then we have captaxe and his history lesson. I'm glad Larry spoke first, I don't look as stupid then. :pinch: Seriously, this is one of those humbling bits of information that keep us all in the category of being students and keeps us from ever becoming the all seeing, all knowing and dreaded: "expert"

 

To me it made a good day better.

 

Didn't bother me that there was a little speculation about the story. After all it was just a story.

 

M

[1944]

Thats a Great Looking 28th Div M1 "KeyStone" Helmet Set

you have got there Very Nice Set indeed :thumbsup:

[Theorywolf]

One for the books! Great story to go along with it! Sometimes just a little more info makes all the difference!!

 

Cheers,

 

Mike

[19delta-uav]

As the current owner of this phenomenal piece of history I've done a little more research and found that Mr. Uzemack's story as a POW is told in a book "In Enemy Hands: Personal Accounts of Those Taken Prisoner in World War II by Claire E. Swedberg" and offers the following as a teaser:

 

"In Enemy Hands" by Claire Swedberg.

Subtitled: "Personal Accounts Of those Taken Prisoner In World War II".

Stackpole Books, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, 1997.

 

"This book recounts the prison stories of five people, four men and one woman. During World War II, Oscar Smith and Robert Salmon were prisoners of the Japanese and their stories are exceedingly different. Edward Uzemack, an American, was captured by German forces during the Battle of the Bulge and he had to survive in a German POW camp until the end of the war in Europe. On the other side, Hermann Pfrengle was a young German who avoided the Red Army to be intentionally captured by American soldiers. Finally, the woman, Helga Wunsch, from what was called East Germany, was imprisoned by the Soviets for political reasons.

 

All of these stories illustrate Man's inhumanity to Man. The story of Oscar Smith was the hardest to read, not because of the writing but due to the difficult subject. Japanese culture did not inhibit inhumanity to prisoners of war. In fact, the second story, the case of the British subject, Robert Salmon, illustrates this point. The Western prisoners from Shanghai were under a Japanese Commandant who had studied in the United States and had been in the Japanese consulate in Seattle. (Page 100). The name of the Japanese commandant is never given in this book (as far as I could see). Undoubtedly the commandant's exposure to Western culture inhibited Japanese inhumanness and turned Salmon's incarceration into a term of boredom rather than a struggle to avoid starvation and to survive.

 

Edward Uzemack was a reporter for the "Chicago Tribune" until 1943, when, despite his poor vision, he was drafted into the United States Army. He ended up in the 28th division, the "Keystone Division", just in time to meet the Nazi thrust through the Ardennes, commonly known as the Battle of the bulge, 1944. Uzemack was captured and spent the rest of the war in German POW camps.

 

The young German boy, Hermann Pfrengle, had a similar story to that of Uzemack. The German, Pfrengle, led his young compatriots West, so as to surrender to the American Army. They all dreaded capture by the Red Army. The American Army, however, did not treat the young German POWs very well. Not only was food not available, but there was little water. Conditions for Pfrengle were just about as bad as those endured by the American POW, Uzemack. Pfrengle's ability in English allowed him to communicate with the American guards, which eventually resulted in the early release of the boy-soldiers.

 

Perhaps the most unjust imprisonment was that of the woman. The German, Helga Wunsch, was arrested by the Soviets as a spy when the war ended and imprisoned for eight years, despite her not being guilty of anything. Her treatment showed that inhumanity knows no political boundary.

 

Each story was gathered from personal interviews and original memoirs, and the writing is excellent. The author's emphasis, in my humble opinion, is on the individual's will to survive, in environments where cruelty and illogical conditions are commonplace, and the individual has done nothing to deserve such treatment."

 

I've ordered a copy and cannot wait to read it. I hope it talks about this very helmet!

[USMC-RECON0321]

Great helmet and update! Congrats. If this helmet decides to move care takers again, please put me on the list!! Hint hint...

 

Troy

[GITom1944]

I missed this post the first time around; I'm glad it got bumped. The history it's has seen put this helmet in its own league. I also agree with Justin's observation that this looks like a Schleuter (but given its unit marking and historical provenance, its manufacturer is probably its least notable attribute). What a great piece to have in your collection.

 

Tom

[manayunkman]

Can't wait to see what Claire has to say about him.

 

Somewhere are the hand written camp newspapers.

 

He had several of them that he did himself.

 

His handwriting was such that they looked like real newspapers.

 

He was very emotionally attached to them and kept them.

[fireguyfire]

Wow; thanks for sharing. Definitely expanded my knowledge base, and I love keeping the story of these vets alive by talking about them!

[shifty5580]

Very nice helmet and great story!

 

Shifty

[19delta-uav]

More research:

 

http://www.historynet.com/battle-of-hurtgen-forest.htm

 

Meanwhile, the 110th Infantry, operating in the woods to the south, reeled from a devastating bombardment. Ed Uzemack, a replacement, said: 'We spent the night in previously dug foxholes after being instructed to prepare to move out at dawn with only light combat packs. It was still fairly dark when we moved into an orchard and spread out. Despite orders not to, we lit cigarettes and smoked them with cupped hands to shield the glow. Suddenly, all hell broke loose. The Jerries had zeroed in on the orchard and were lobbing mortar shells and artillery fire in a continuous barrage that lasted about 45 minutes….

 

'A GI crawling ahead of me had both his legs blown off by a shell that landed on his limbs. Another shell hit so close to me that I could feel the heat on one side of me as it exploded, and my ear buzzed. I kept crawling toward where I thought the shells were coming from and eventually left the orchard with the survivors, mostly combat vets. A sergeant told me to round up the guys who had come with me as replacements. I told him I didn't even know who the hell they were, but I would do my best. Somehow I managed to find about half a dozen totally frightened replacements, and suddenly I realized I was just as scared as they were. But that morning we became combat vets.'

 

 

http://weaponsandwarfare.com/?cat=88&paged=3

 

As far as one can determine, the generals never inspected the area into which they dispatched troops. Not a single source whom this author interviewed recalls ever seeing any of them come forward to observe the killing grounds. Ed Uzemack mentioned getting a hand from the 28th Division CG, Norman Cota, when he left the assembly area, but that hardly put Cota in a position to appreciate what his troops faced. John Chernitsky, the antitank squad leader, complained that he never saw any of the brass near the front. The 28th’s assistant division commander, General Davis, was credited at First Army headquarters with having led men to safety but that occurred only after a disastrous attack and was not a substitute for careful inspection of the disputed turf. The same applies to the other divisional leaders. They compounded the problem with schedules that did not permit those expected to carry out the strategy to respond adequately.

 

A photo I just bought:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1943-Press-Photo-Ed-Uzemack-his-ration-book-/251055022540

 

 

A photo of Ed at the camp holding one of his newsletters:

 

http://www.indianamilitary.org/German%20PW%20Camps/Prisoner%20of%20War/PW%20Camps/Stalag%20IX-A%20Ziegenhain/UnUsed/TableOfPhotos.htm

 

Prisoners celebrating their liberation from Stalag IXA. The two men holding a copy of the camp newspaper are (left) John Dunn and Ed Uzemack. To the left of Uzemack is Denny Murray.

 

 

 

More to come

[Buckshot]

Great story and helmet. Thanks for sharing.

[19delta-uav]

I received the book; In Enemy Hands by Claire Swedberg today and couldn't put it down. The book contains Uzemack's 40 page account of his time in the Army, The battle of Hertgen Forrest, and the the battle of the bulge, and his time as a POW. The helmet and the origin of the carved spoon are mentioned in specific detail once on page 158....

 

"The Germans also made no effort to provide eating implements. Because most of the men had relinquished their mess equipment during their capture, it was up to their ingenuity to find a way to eat their daily soup. Uzemack thankfully had not used his helmet as a chamber pot during his travels, and was relieved to have it. The helmet became a useful bowl for his soup and served him for several months. Those who had left their helmets behind scrounged in the scrap pile in the camp for tin cans, flower pots, and any other containers they could find. Grimy fingers often served as utensils until a prisoner fashioned a crude fork and spoon from wood slats torn from the barrack walls"

 

Simply amazing to know this helmet was there for the gruesome battles, the hardships of starving as a POW, and liberation.

 

 

I am truly honored to own this helmet. And simply cannot believe the history and provenance behind it.

[manayunkman]

After 30 years picking in Pa. and over 1000 vet purchases, this was the only painted Divisional helmet I ever found from a WW2 vet.

 

And now to have all the provenance backed up makes this a very rare helmet.

 

To say the least I am very glad that you researched it, were able to ad significantly to the story and will take care of it.

[manayunkman]

I always loved this helmet.

[Justin]

I always loved this helmet.

It's very nice. Do you still own it?

[manayunkman]

It's gone 6 or 7 years now.

[anton67]

Great helmet.

If the new owner is here, maybe we will get an update.

[Pruttel]

Very nice and rare helmet.