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Great photo of a battle damaged WW II helmet


Championhilz
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Championhilz

I found this great photo while looking at the Life Magazine WW II collection. It shows Marine Ervin Bonow holding the helmet he was wearing when it was hit by a piece of shell during the battle of Hasting's Ridge on New Georgia. It's amazing he could survive a hit that shredded his helmet.

 

 

 

post-274-1244660902.jpg

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Ervin better stay away from crap games for a while, I think he's aready dipped pretty deep into his luck account. Dave

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Ervin better stay away from crap games for a while, I think he's aready dipped pretty deep into his luck account. Dave

 

Agreed. :blink:

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Got da Penny

Thats one "wicked" photo.

 

Here's my contribution to the thread .... Also, a LIFE photo.

 

 

post-633-1244667571.jpg

 

 

Carey

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Lucky 7th Armored

Amazing photos and such lucky men, but i dont think the fellow in post #5 was so lucky, RIP.

 

Haydn

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  • 5 years later...

here's a US M1 with battle damage from the Battle of Hue City , Vietnam War, looks like shrapnel damage from some type of explosion or possibly RPG.

post-1885-0-22892400-1433949704.jpg

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  • 8 months later...

Lets add this one, an unknown Leatherneck, by the looks of the terrain, on some tropical isle in the Central Pacific, in the Marshalls or Gilberts.

 

post-34986-0-54258800-1456633682.jpg

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I found this great photo while looking at the Life Magazine WW II collection. It shows Marine Ervin Bonow holding the helmet he was wearing when it was hit by a piece of shell during the battle of Hasting's Ridge on New Georgia. It's amazing he could survive a hit that shredded his helmet.

 

 

 

attachicon.gifErvin_Bo...ge__1943.jpg

NOT a Marine, a Dogface according to the YANK article this image came from

 

http://yankstories.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-five-day-attack-on-hastings-ridge.html

 

Photographer John Bushemi was KIA on Eneiwetok by Japanese mortar fire

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NOT a Marine, a Dogface according to the YANK article this image came from

 

http://yankstories.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-five-day-attack-on-hastings-ridge.html

 

Photographer John Bushemi was KIA on Eneiwetok by Japanese mortar fire

Right you are, he also was awarded a Silver Star, on New Gergia I gather by the 1943 date on his GO, can't find what division he was in, the 37th or 43rd Inf Div.

 

Bonow, Erwin A., USA - Awarded: SS - World War II

 

Bonow, Erwin A. HQ, U.S. Army Forces in the South Pacific Area, G.O. No. 482 (1943)

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Lets add this one, an unknown Leatherneck, by the looks of the terrain, on some tropical isle in the Central Pacific, in the Marshalls or Gilberts.

 

attachicon.gifPacific..jpg

 

 

That was a close shave for sure.

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That's a great photo of Bonow. He was a member of the 161st Infantry although I don't have any more history about him. Hastings ridge was named after a 161st Infantry Platoon Leader. The 161st was attached to the 43rd division during the early operations on New Georgia before the rest of the 25th Division landed and joined in the fight.

 

Peter

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  • 5 weeks later...

post-34986-0-81087700-1459822293.jpg

Charles Tyner USCG, Invasion of Southern France August 1944, his grade given is Fireman 1st Class, not sure on what vessel he served on.

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MastersMate

Found the photo in the October 1944 issue of the USN magazine "ALL HANDS" pg 41. not much more info than what you have.

 

The CG Historians web site has the complete CG history of operations in WW2 available on-line. A quick look at them tonight did not produce the photo in the histories of the Italy or Southern Franc invasion articles. The CG manned ship in the southern France invasions included the CGC Duane, transports Bayfield, Cephus, Samuel Chase, Joseph Dickman. The PCs 545 & 556 were also in the invasion task force.

 

Would that helmet be resting on the vertical helm station of the LCVP type craft ?? If it looks like it, Would place him in the boat division in one of the transports..

 

Dries up the info sources that I have.

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  • 1 month later...

A 327th Glider Inf GI with his holed helmet.

 

 

 

post-34986-0-95446400-1462509949.jpg

 

CAPTION: The symbol for the 327th Glider Infantry Regiment was a club (3-leaf clover). Ed Pieczatowski's helmet was shot off by a grenadier of the 17th SS Division Götz Von Berlichingen near Montmartin en Graignes, France, during the Normandy invasion. The bullet grazed Ed's skull and knocked him down. Here he is pointing to the evidence of his close escape from death, but we can also see the 327th stencil (Ed was in Company 'G').

 

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post-34986-0-64660500-1462945202.jpg

A ROK Marine in 1969 with a battle field pick up with a major bullet hole in the helmet.

 

How about that Vietnam graffiti he's got on his own helmet huh! Would love to know what it says.

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  • 2 months later...
  • 4 months later...

Now that's a lucky Soldier...

Pvt. R. N. Wolford of Los Angeles, miraculously escaped death when a shell landed within 20 feet away from his position. He suffered head and shoulder wounds, but the four pieces of steel that pierced his helmet were not fatal. 14 September 1943. 7th Infantry Regimental Aid Station (3rd Infantry Div) Sant'Agata, Sicily.

 

post-1885-0-00575300-1481942175_thumb.jpg

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