Belgium Mar. 25.

Dear Mother & all,
       Well here I am on the move
again and this time it is Belgium.
This sure is a beautiful country.
It is pretty landscape and the
homes seem to be well kept up.
    The Belgium people keep there
homes very neat. I was in a cafe
tonight and also an ice cream
parlor. They have ice cream to
sell over here. It really tastes good
again for a change. It has been so
long since I have had good ice
cream.
     I rode up here on a truck
with a load of material. I drove
a few miles and was able to get
a very good view of the countryside.
There sure are a lot of German
equipment all the way that we
came up here. Also a lot of damage

done to the villages and towns.
It will take years to build some
of this country up again. But here
there doesn't seem to be very much
damage done.
        I received quite a few letters
before I came up here but just
didn't have time to answer very
many of them. I am tired out
tonight. We have been doing a
lot of hard work setting up a
new camp. I am looking for one
of the fellows to bring some mail
up with him tomorrow.
     While I was in France I wanted
to see Paris. I visited it quite a
few times and now I am looking
forward into getting into Brussels. I
guess I will have plenty to tell
you folks once I am back in the
good old U.S. again. Maybe someday

I will be able to catch up with
Harley. It seems as if he is always
just one country ahead of me. He
must be plenty busy now according
to the latest war news.
         Tell the rest I will write when
I can. Goodnight and goodbye for
now.
                           Love Ralph.


The next letter will be posted on April 1st.

Background Information (and comments):

• Here are some war events since Ralph's last letter:
• March 18: 1,250 US bombers attacks Berlin
• March 19:  Hitler issues “Nero Decree” for scorched-earth retreat—Germans to destroy factories, railroads, and bridges, but it is largely ignored. 
• March 20: US 70th Infantry division and 7th Armour division attack Saar (region of Germany)
• March 21: Allied bombers begin 4-day raid over Germany
• March 22: US 3rd Army crosses Rhine at Nierstein
• March 23: British 7th Black Watch crosses the Rhine
• March 24: Operation Varsity: In the largest one-day airborne operation of all time, British, US & Canadian paratroopers land east of the Rhine in Northern Germany

France. March 18.

Dear Mother & all,
      Received the letter of March
4th that all of you folks wrote
at Marie's. Gee I guess you
folks really had a big meal
that day. We don't have the
variety but I guess the food is
plenty wholesome and good for us.
We don't get to many of these
rations. We get more garrison
rations and not combat or field
rations.
    I am glad you folks all
received letters from me. I
haven't been doing to much
writing lately. I sure don't have
much news to write about. Our
weather has really been good.
         This letter was written by
everyone I guess. Harold and Myrl

even wrote to me. I believe it
is about the first time either
one of them have wrote to me.
Tell them they will have to
do a little more writing to me
from now on.
     Our mail has been rather
slow in comeing through lately.
I hope I get some other of my
back mail soon. I have sent
a box to Luella for all of the
girls. I am going to try and find
something nice for you and send
it. I have been looking around.
   I had a letter from Pearl Meyers.
She told me all about Armands
death. It seems as if he was
comeing over here to France when
there boat was hit Christmas
day. That channel sure is cold
and especially that time of year.

   From the news we hear on
the radio and read in the Stars
& Stripes it sounds as if rationing
is getting a good grip on things back
home. Then we read a lot about
this brownout. I haven't seen a
town lit up for almost two years
now. Sometimes I wish they could
send all the people that are
complaining right over here. Then
maybe they would dig in and try
to get this war over with faster.
   Well this is all for tonight.
Please write soon.
                            Love Ralph.


The next letter will be posted on March 25th.

Background Information (and comments):

• Harold was Ralph's oldest brother and Myrl was his only brother-in-law.
• Most of you probably have heard of  a brownout. Here is a definition:
• A situation in which the voltage in a power grid is reduced below its normal level but not entirely eliminated. (Compare blackout.)
• I looked up information about a ship that sank in the English Channel on Christmas 1944. It was the SS Leopoldville. There were 763 deaths of the 2200 soldiers aboard. Only 270 bodies were recovered. If you'd like to read an interesting article, here is a website that I found:

http://www.omaha.com/news/military/a-christmas-eve-tragedy-kept-secret-the-story-of-the/article_931e9ce5-0b1c-56e7-9f74-af0596d3cd05.html

• Here's an explanation of garrison rations vs. combat or field ration:

A garrison ration is the quantity and type of food served to a soldier when they are stationed somewhere. It is generally not the same as the rations fed to troops in combat or transit - usually termed combat rations, field rations, marching rations or some other task-specific term.

France. Mar. 8, 45

Dear Mother & all,
      I think I will drop you
a few lines in the middle of
the week this time. Last night
after I arrived back here to
camp from a trip I took I
found a letter of yours of Feb. 28.
One week is all it took in
comeing through. I think that
is very good.
     I had a chance to take a
trip so I went with one of
my buddies. I was in Reims
France. This is a very nice
city and it isn't damaged very
much. France can be proud
that her large cities aren't
wrecked. I guess they don't care
about the damage in Germany.

     Do you think Morgan Ford came
to this threate [sic] of operations? From the
sound of his address it does.
     I had a letter from Harley a sshort
while ago. I must write to him
tonight also. I guess the war
news sounds good to you folks
back home. I know it odes to
us fellows over here.
     I met with a little accident
this morning. While at work and
in the shop I banged my head
against a prop blade and cut
my nose open, right between
my eyes. It probably will leave
a scar just above the one I
received some time ago. I will
tell you about it when I am
home.
      I guess you folks did have

excitement around home Sunday.
I hope they are all better by now.
I see by the papers I received
today about the fire. Did our
men folks go to it?
     Has Freeman found out anymore
about his deferrement? I guess they
will have to keep a few farm
boys out or there won't be any
farming done.
     You were speaking of being able
to get a few bannas [sic] now. Gosh
I sure wish I knew where I could
get a few. It has been over two
years since I have tasted of one.
We have had a few oranges
to eat lately, and tonight we
had an apple apiece. They were
very good. After all I guess we
are getting what they are able to
send over here.

    I guess this is about all I
can think of for now. I guess
I have written quite a bit for
being in the middle of the week.
       The news just gave out about
the Yanks crossing the Rhine.
Maybe this war will son be
over.  Goodnight for now.
                                  Love Ralph.


The next letter will be posted on March 18th.

Background Information (and comments):

• Here is what I found about the Yanks crossing the Rhine from an article in Yank magazine (1945). For the complete article and photos, here is the site I used: 
• http://www.oldmagazinearticles.com/article-summary/WW2_first_Americans_to_cross_Rhine-river_Ludendorf_Bridge_27th_Armored__Division#.WqFBYSjwaUk
• "On March 7 the U.S. Army Ninth Armored Division rumbled into the Rhine village of Remagen for what it thought would be the climax of its seven-day drive across 40 miles of German territory. The tankmen and armored infantrymen expected to reach the banks of the Rhine and stop for a rest while the Allied high command completed plans for the crossing of that last barrier to the heart of Germany.
• The bridges spanning the Rhine at Cologne, Bonn, Coblenz had been blown by the retreating Germans.When the Ninth Armored reached Remagen it naturally looked for the blasted remains of Ludendorf bridge. Instead the three-span structure was still standing. The German engineers assigned to destroy it had apparently delayed their work too long.

Reims
Subprefecture and commune
City hall (hôtel de ville)
Coat of arms
Reims [show] Location within Grand Est region
Coordinates: 49°15′46″N 4°02′05″ECoordinates: 49°15′46″N 4°02′05″E
Country	France
Region	Grand Est
Department	Marne
Arrondissement	Reims
Canton	Reims-1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8and 9
Intercommunality	CU Grand Reims
Government
• Mayor (2014–2019)	Arnaud Robinet (LR)
Area1	46.9 km2 (18.1 sq mi)
Population (2014)2	186,971
• Density	4,000/km2 (10,000/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
INSEE/Postal code	51454 /51100
Elevation	80–135 m (262–443 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

• Reims (/riːmz/; also spelled Rheims; French: [ʁɛ̃s]), a city in the Grand Est region of France, lies 129 km (80 mi) east-northeast of Paris. 

France Mar. 4.

Dear Mother & all,
         The month of March is
already here and it is just about
the same as it -----  is in
Michigan. We are haveing cooler
weather now than we had in
Feb. We have had a lot of windy
days already. Tonight it is trying
to rain and a good rain wouldn't
do any harm over here either.
      Our mail has been very
slim in comeing through this
past week. Very little mail of
any description.
       I was in Paris one day last
but going there is getting stale
just as going to London did. Over
here in France a G.I isn't
suppose to eat in a civilian

restaurant. I would like to try
some of this French cooking some
time but food does seems a
little scarce. We can go into the
Red Cross and get coffee and donuts
or coke. I had some last week
it seemed good to get some coke
again.
    I haven't been writing very many
letters so don't be alarmed if you
don't hear from me very often.
Everything is ok. I guess the war
news makes things seem a little
brighter all over the world now.
They are on German soil now
and can cut loose as much as
they wish. While in France they
tried not to destroy too much.
     Tonight we had a stage show
here at the field. It was very good

and most of the cast could speak
a little English. Of course I have
been away from home so long
maybe I am getting use to this
broken English.
      Last week I did received three
letters one day. Yours Maries
and Lenores, all of Feb. 20. I guess
Lenore's brother sure is haveing
a stretch of bad luck lately.
I think the pictures you sent
me of Fred looks very much
like him. My buddy Glen Pyle
is from Iowa and I said I guess
we could grow corn in Mich
also. In your letter you said
Harley hadn't been hearing from me
lately. I write every week, but
there mail gets held up while
they are moveing up so fast.

   Those pictures I sent to Luella is
a town close by. I will send
some to you soon that shows
the town before it was bombed.
One would hardly know it was
the same place. There are worse
places over here than that. St Lo
was in some of the photos I sent
home. I don't know who I sent
them to.
        Well this is about all for
tonight. Hope to hear from all of
you soon.
                          Love Ralph.


The next letter will be posted on March 8th.

Background Information (and comments):

• Ralph remained good friends with Glen Pyle. They attended army reunions together and when I was about 10, we visited him and his family in Iowa.

• I had a collection of photos my dad sent with his letters (or brought home). They were separated from the letters and very few had captions. I kept his letters, but just before moving to Florida in 2013 and starting the blog in 2014, I donated most of his memorabilia to the Blissfield (MI) Historical Society. I am not sure if they have gone through it, displayed it, etc. If it's possible to retrieve some of the photos, I may check into it so that they can be shared in this blog. The photo at the end of this post is of St. Lo, but not any of the ones Ralph took.

• Here is some of the "good" war news: (cut & pasted from a website)
• 28 Feb 1945 Germany

• US Ninth Army achieved breakthrough near Erkelenz, Germany. ww2dbase [Main Article | TH]
• Soviet 2nd Byelorussian Front captured Neustettin, Germany (now Szczecinek, Poland). ww2dbase [Main Article | TH]
• 2 Mar 1945
• Elements of US Ninth Army reached the Rhine River at Neuss, Germany. To the north US Third Army captures Trier, Germany. ww2dbase [Main Article | TH]
• The RAF conducted its last major raid on Köln (Cologne), Germany with 858 aircraft; also on this date, one USAAF B-17 bomber attacked Köln as a target of opportunity. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]
• Colonel General Walter Weiß reported that his forces in the Danzig-Westpreußen region of Germany (occupied Danzig and Poland) were surrounded by Soviet troops. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]

• St. Lo (July 1944)