Where did my grandfather fight during WWII?

I know that he was in the Army.  He was  a Technician Fifth Grade 38 215 662 for the Battery A 400th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion.  His Enlisted Record and Report of Separation - Honorable Discharge shows that he served in the Siciian; Rome-Arno; Naples-Foggia; Rhineland GO 33 WD 45.  He received a EAME Campaign  Medal with 4 Bronze Stars and I Bronze Arrowhead; Good conduct medal; Victory Ribbon; 4 Overseas Service Bars.

I want to know more detail about the battles he was involved in, etc.

Parents
  • Dear Mr. Deneen,

     

    Thank you for posting your request on History Hub!

     

    We searched the National Archives Catalog and located the World War II Operations Reports, 1940-1948 in the Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1917 - 1985 (Record Group 407) that includes history-war diary (Sept.- 1943-Nov, 1945), report of operations (Jan-Mar. 1944), general orders (1943-45) and special orders (1943-45) of the 400th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion during WWII. For more information about these non-digitized records, please contact the National Archives at College Park - Textual Reference (RDT2) via email at archives2reference@nara.gov. We were unable to locate specific records of Battery A.  Records of lower echelon units sometimes were incorporated into the files of the battalion or regiment.

     

    We also located the Station Lists, 1942 - 1953 in the Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1917 - 1985 (Record Group 407) that include World War II. The lists are arranged by theater or command (such as European Theater of Operations) and thereunder by date. The lists are generally monthly or biweekly.  Each list is arranged by type of unit and thereunder in order by unit name or number.  The nearest town is listed for each unit. For more information about these non-digitized lists, please contact the National Archives at College Park - Textual Reference (RDT2) via email at archives2reference@nara.gov.

     

    Plus, we located Muster Rolls and Rosters, 11/1/1912 - 12/31/1943 and Morning Reports, ca. 1912 - 1946 for Army units that may include rosters and morning reports of the 400th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion. For more information about these records, please contact the National Archives at St. Louis (RL-SL) at stl.archives@nara.gov. Rosters for units serving in World War II from 1944 - 1946 were destroyed in accordance with Army disposition authorities.

     

    You may experience a delay in receiving an initial acknowledgment as well as a substantive response to your reference request from RDT2 and RL-SL. We apologize for this inconvenience and appreciate your understanding and patience as we balance mission-critical work and the safety of our staff during the pandemic. Please check NARA’s web page about COVID-19 updates for the latest information.

     

    If you haven’t done so already, we suggest that you request a copy of his Official Military Personnel File (OMPF). OMPFs and individual medical reports for enlisted men of the U.S. Army who were separated from the service after October 1912 and before 1960 are in the custody of NARA's National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis. In many cases where personnel records were destroyed in the 1973 fire, proof of service can be provided from other records such as morning reports, payrolls, and military orders, and a certificate of military service will be issued. Please complete a GSA Standard Form 180 and mail it to NARA's National Personnel Records Center, (Military Personnel Records), 1 Archives Drive, St. Louis, MO  63138-1002. In Section 1, Item 1, where it asks which items you are requesting, please check “Other” and specify that you want the entire file. If there is any information requested by the form that you do not know, you may omit it or provide estimates (such as for dates), but the more information you provide, the easier it will be to locate the correct file if it survived the fire. For more information see Official Military Personnel Files (OMPF), Archival Records Requests.

     

    We searched the Access to Archival Databases (AAD) and located the World War II Army Enlistment Records database that includes a file pertaining to your relative, though please note that there are gaps in these records. If you locate an entry for your grandfather, please use the information in this file when requesting a copy of his Official Military Personnel File (OMPF).

     

    Please be aware that NPRC is prioritizing the requests for separation documents needed by veterans and their dependents to prove eligibility for a variety of benefits. NPRC expects to eliminate this portion of the backlog by fall 2022, and restore their pre-pandemic response times of under ten days for these requests later this fall. It will take considerably longer to eliminate the backlog on other types of requests, such as genealogical requests for complete copies of records. For more information, please refer to Onsite Operations at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis.

     

    Lastly, you may wish to search the U.S. Army Center of Military History website for additional information and/or resources about the 400rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Gun Battalion during WWII. Also see the U.S. Army in World War II Series.

     

    We hope this is helpful. Best of luck with your family research!

     

Reply
  • Dear Mr. Deneen,

     

    Thank you for posting your request on History Hub!

     

    We searched the National Archives Catalog and located the World War II Operations Reports, 1940-1948 in the Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1917 - 1985 (Record Group 407) that includes history-war diary (Sept.- 1943-Nov, 1945), report of operations (Jan-Mar. 1944), general orders (1943-45) and special orders (1943-45) of the 400th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion during WWII. For more information about these non-digitized records, please contact the National Archives at College Park - Textual Reference (RDT2) via email at archives2reference@nara.gov. We were unable to locate specific records of Battery A.  Records of lower echelon units sometimes were incorporated into the files of the battalion or regiment.

     

    We also located the Station Lists, 1942 - 1953 in the Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1917 - 1985 (Record Group 407) that include World War II. The lists are arranged by theater or command (such as European Theater of Operations) and thereunder by date. The lists are generally monthly or biweekly.  Each list is arranged by type of unit and thereunder in order by unit name or number.  The nearest town is listed for each unit. For more information about these non-digitized lists, please contact the National Archives at College Park - Textual Reference (RDT2) via email at archives2reference@nara.gov.

     

    Plus, we located Muster Rolls and Rosters, 11/1/1912 - 12/31/1943 and Morning Reports, ca. 1912 - 1946 for Army units that may include rosters and morning reports of the 400th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion. For more information about these records, please contact the National Archives at St. Louis (RL-SL) at stl.archives@nara.gov. Rosters for units serving in World War II from 1944 - 1946 were destroyed in accordance with Army disposition authorities.

     

    You may experience a delay in receiving an initial acknowledgment as well as a substantive response to your reference request from RDT2 and RL-SL. We apologize for this inconvenience and appreciate your understanding and patience as we balance mission-critical work and the safety of our staff during the pandemic. Please check NARA’s web page about COVID-19 updates for the latest information.

     

    If you haven’t done so already, we suggest that you request a copy of his Official Military Personnel File (OMPF). OMPFs and individual medical reports for enlisted men of the U.S. Army who were separated from the service after October 1912 and before 1960 are in the custody of NARA's National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis. In many cases where personnel records were destroyed in the 1973 fire, proof of service can be provided from other records such as morning reports, payrolls, and military orders, and a certificate of military service will be issued. Please complete a GSA Standard Form 180 and mail it to NARA's National Personnel Records Center, (Military Personnel Records), 1 Archives Drive, St. Louis, MO  63138-1002. In Section 1, Item 1, where it asks which items you are requesting, please check “Other” and specify that you want the entire file. If there is any information requested by the form that you do not know, you may omit it or provide estimates (such as for dates), but the more information you provide, the easier it will be to locate the correct file if it survived the fire. For more information see Official Military Personnel Files (OMPF), Archival Records Requests.

     

    We searched the Access to Archival Databases (AAD) and located the World War II Army Enlistment Records database that includes a file pertaining to your relative, though please note that there are gaps in these records. If you locate an entry for your grandfather, please use the information in this file when requesting a copy of his Official Military Personnel File (OMPF).

     

    Please be aware that NPRC is prioritizing the requests for separation documents needed by veterans and their dependents to prove eligibility for a variety of benefits. NPRC expects to eliminate this portion of the backlog by fall 2022, and restore their pre-pandemic response times of under ten days for these requests later this fall. It will take considerably longer to eliminate the backlog on other types of requests, such as genealogical requests for complete copies of records. For more information, please refer to Onsite Operations at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis.

     

    Lastly, you may wish to search the U.S. Army Center of Military History website for additional information and/or resources about the 400rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Gun Battalion during WWII. Also see the U.S. Army in World War II Series.

     

    We hope this is helpful. Best of luck with your family research!

     

Children
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