Remembering WWII

Clarence (Mac) McIlrath, my dad, served as a Technical Sergeant in the 301st Ordnance, Heavy Maintenance Company during WWII. His war time journey began at Fort Custer, Michigan. From there he traveled to Fort Jackson, South Carolina in the summer of 1943 for basic and technical training. Originally a Medium Maintenance Company, the 301st switched to Heavy Maintenance in May 1944 due to the need overseas. This change kept most of the men stateside for

several more months, with the exception of a few who were transfered to other companies.

My mother, Irene, made at least two trips to South Carolina while he was there, once with their son Charlie, and once with dad's brother Ray and his wife Eileen.

After several canceled 'red alerts', the 301st prepared for overseas movement and traveled by rail to Camp Shanks, New York on December 26 and 27, 1944. They left for England February 5, arriving in Liverpool February 16, 1945.

Clarence's brother Ed had been in England with the US Army Air Corp since 1943. With the assistance of the Red Cross, they were able to meet in London before the 301st was shipped to France. This picture was taken for the papers back home.

The journey of the 301st through England, France, Belgium, Holland and Germany is recounted in the official history of the 301st, and in the letters Clarence wrote to those back home. Several years after the war, my parents sorted through the mountain of letters they wrote to each other and, thankfully, saved a few. Through them we can peer into that now distant time and hear one soldier's thoughts on the sometimes confusing politics of war, and his struggles and discoveries as he made his way through foreign lands.