“D-Day,” the long anticipated Allied invasion of Europe, originally scheduled for today, is postponed due to poor weather. General Eisenhower and his staff hope for better weather tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Life Magazine features “The U.S. Infantry” in the cover story of its 5 June 1944 issue.
On the cover of this week’s LIFE are a few of the men who will make or break the coming invasion of Europe. They are the U.S. infantry – lean, hard, professional infighters, part of the biggest and best Army the U.S. has ever put in the field. Under the command of Lieut. General Omar N. Bradley (see pp. 100-112), they will be the ones to prove the fiber of this Army on D-day.
Folks back home in Millington, Michigan are thrilled to see Paul Farnum on the cover.
Since Paul is a Staff Sargent, the photo is clearly not recent or current. Another relative of Paul’s later researched the photo but was been unable to pin down the exact circumstances under which the photo was taken.
Paul’s 79th Infantry Division has been attached to the U.S. Army VII Corps along with the 4th, 90th, and 9th Infantry Divisions. The 9th Infantry Division saw action in the North African campaign of 1942. The remaining divisions in VII Corps, including the 79th, have no prior combat experience in WWII. They will soon be tested.
2 thoughts on “WWII Journal: Paul Farnum, 5 June 1944”
I am delighted to find information on the photo. The Staff Sergeant in the lower left corner is my brother Robert Ellsworth Fackler who was killed in France June 24, 1944. He was awarded the Silver star for gallantry. His remains were returned to the United States in early 1949 and interred in the Flagler Memorial Cemetery in Miami, Florida. His twin brother who was blind in one eye also served in a limited capacity for a year during the war.
I welcome any correspondence concerning this.
Thanks
I am delighted to find information on the photo. The Staff Sergeant in the lower left corner is my brother Robert Ellsworth Fackler who was killed in France June 24, 1944. He was awarded the Silver star for gallantry. His remains were returned to the United States in early 1949 and interred in the Flagler Memorial Cemetery in Miami, Florida. His twin brother who was blind in one eye also served in a limited capacity for a year during the war.
I welcome any correspondence concerning this.
Thanks