4 Replies Latest reply on Apr 24, 2020 11:19 AM by Jason Atkinson

    Seeking Silver Star general order for George Cleveland

    Thomas Woolverton Newbie
    Thomas Woolverton Apr 22, 2020 1:52 PM

      Hello All, I am looking for a record for George Cleveland for receiving the Silver Star.  The information I have is:

       

      From the Society of the Fifth Division's web site:

      NAME Cleveland, George            

      RANK  PFC

      AWARD SSM

      5TH DIVISION UNIT 2nd Infantry

      GO# 70

      YEAR, 1945

      DATE 2 Nov 1944

      PLACE OF HEROISM Sanry-Sur-Neid, France

       

      The Hall of Valor Project web site

      Silver Star

      AWARDED FOR ACTIONS

      DURING World War II

      Service: Army

      Division: 5th Infantry Division

      GENERAL ORDERS:

      Headquarters, 5th Infantry Division, General Orders No. 70 (1945)

      CITATION:

      (UNCONFIRMED - Citation Needed): George Cleveland, United States Army, is reported to have been awarded the Silver Star under the below-listed General Orders for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action against the enemy while serving with the 5th Infantry Division during World War II.

       

      This is my Wife's uncle if relationships come into play in obtaining the documents.  I also have his Service Number if needed. Mostly I am looking for someone to point the way for me, I keep getting lost in the Archives website. Thank you for your time and efforts

        • Re: Seeking Silver Star general order for George Cleveland
          Jason Atkinson Pioneer
          Jason Atkinson Expert Apr 23, 2020 11:23 AM (in response to Thomas Woolverton)

          Dear Mr. Woolverton,

          Thank you for posting your request on History Hub!

           

          We searched the National Archives Catalog and located World War II Operations Reports, 1940-1948 in the Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1917-1981 (Record Group 407) that includes records of the 5th Infantry Division and may contain General Order No. 70 (1945). There are no privacy restrictions on these records and they are open to everyone. To request a search for the general order and to order copies if located, please contact National Archives at College Park - Textual Reference (RDT2) via email at archives2reference@nara.gov.

           

          However, please be advised that the National Archives and Records Administration has suspended reproduction and digitization services until further notice due to COVID-19. Copy orders will not be serviced until operations can resume safely. We apologize for any inconvenience. Once operations resume, document reproduction requests will be filled in the order in which they were received. 

           

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

          1 person found this helpful
          • Re: Seeking Silver Star general order for George Cleveland
            Thomas Woolverton Newbie
            Thomas Woolverton Apr 24, 2020 9:44 AM (in response to Thomas Woolverton)

            Thank you very much for your reply.  I will certainly follow up on where you pointed me to. I understand copies cannot be obtained now, but are searches being done?  Another question, if you are familiar with General Orders, will the action that earned George his Silver Star be described or only a general statement made? Again much thanks

              • Re: Seeking Silver Star general order for George Cleveland
                Elliot Schneider Pioneer
                Elliot Schneider Apr 24, 2020 10:36 AM (in response to Thomas Woolverton)

                Thomas,

                 

                There is a good chance depending on the unit if they decided to include a narrative. The only ones that I haven't seen a narrative for in most cases are purple hearts.

                 

                Thanks,

                 

                Elliot Schneider

                • Re: Seeking Silver Star general order for George Cleveland
                  Jason Atkinson Pioneer
                  Jason Atkinson Expert Apr 24, 2020 11:19 AM (in response to Thomas Woolverton)

                  Dear Mr. Woolverton,

                   

                  Thank you for posting your follow-up request on History Hub!

                   

                  Just to clarify the current situation, the NARA archival staff is teleworking and does not have physical access to the paper records.  Therefore, any requests for documents will have to go into a queue and the staff will address them as quickly as possible when the NARA buildings are reopened to the staff. At present, there is no timeline for when this will happen

                   

                  In regards to the likely contents of general order for awarding a Silver Star, there are instances when there is a full paragraph describing the specific actions for which a soldier was being awarded. Also, there are some that include only a generic statement stating that the following soldiers are awarded a Silver Star for “gallantry in action” or similar terminology, followed by the list of awardees. It all depends on who wrote the general order and/or how many received the award for the same action.

                   

                  We hope this is helpful.