Philip M. Smith - Mother of the Company: Sgt. Percy M. Smiths World War II Reflections

MOTHER OF THE COMPANY

Williams-Ford Texas A&M

Military History Series

MOTHER OF THE COMPANY

Sgt. Percy M. Smiths World War II Reflections

Edited by Philip M. Smith

Texas A&M University Press

College Station

Copyright 2022 by Philip M. Smith

All rights reserved

First edition

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Smith, Percy M., 19141985, author. | Smith, Philip M. (Philip Matthew), editor.

Title: Mother of the company: Sgt. Percy M. Smiths World War II reflections / edited by Philip M. Smith.

Other titles: Williams-Ford Texas A&M University military history series.

Description: First edition. | College Station: Texas A&M University Press, [2022] | Series: Williams-Ford Texas A&M University military history series | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2022021590 (print) | LCCN 2022021591 (ebook) | ISBN 9781648430664 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781648430671 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Smith, Percy M., 19141985Correspondence. | World War, 19391945Personal narratives, American. | World War, 19391945CampaignsWestern Front. | United StatesArmed ForcesNon-commissioned officersCorrespondence. | LCGFT: Personal correspondence.

Classification: LCC D811 .S58224 2022 (print) | LCC D811 (ebook) | DDC 940.54/1273dc23/eng/20220513

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022021590

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022021591

Unless otherwise indicated, all photos are from the authors personal collection.

For his grandchildren,
Molly
Andrew
Lucy

One reason soldiers and sailors letters home are so little to be relied on by the historian of emotion and attitude is that they are composed largely to sustain the morale of the folks at home, to hint as little as possible of the real, worrisome circumstance of the writer. No one writes: Dear Mother, I am scared to death.

Paul Fussell, Wartime: Understanding and Behavior in the Second World War

CONTENTS

PREFACE

In early 1966, Warner Brothers released Battle of the Bulgestarring Henry Fonda and Robert Shaw. I was not yet old enough to drive, so my father drove my date and me and dropped us off at a theater to see the movie. Unknown to me, Dad parked, bought a ticket, and watched the movie from the back of the theater. At the end, he left quickly and picked us up at the curb. On the drive home, Dad said nothing about having been in the battle himself. He made no comments about the film. I knew he was a veteran of the war, but I had only vague notions of his wartime life. He did not talk about it. He did not boast, and he was never specific. I once heard my father say that what he did was done by thousands and thousands of others, and he had nothing to say that was important, nothing more than any other veteran. After reading this book, you might disagree with him.

In the spring of 1943, my father, Percy Smith, was drafted into the army. He left his wife and home in Jacksonville, Florida, for army training at Camp Shelby, Mississippi, entering service as a private. Within six months, he rose to the rank of first sergeant of a heavy weapons company in the 69th Infantry Division. At 5 feet, 6 inches tall and 120 pounds, Dad was not an intimidating physical presence, but he learned how to keep order, get results from his men, and satisfy the demands of the company commander.