Looking for information on 1st Lt. Jimmie W. Monteith

Dear Ms. Fowler,

Thank you for posting your request on History Hub!

The Medal of Honor Citation for Jimmie W. Monteith Jr. is available on the U.S. Army’s website.

In regards to the question about the ship, according to our records, in 1951 the Department of the Army destroyed all manifests, logs of vessels, and troop movement files of United States Army transports for World War II and most of the passenger lists.

We searched the World War II Enlistment Records on the National Archives’ Access to Archival Databases (AAD) and located the following entry for MONTEITH#JIMMIE#W#JR.

We suggest that you request a copy of his Official Military Personnel File (OMPF). OMPFs and individual medical reports for officers of the U.S. Army who were separated from the service after June 1917 and prior to 1958 are in the custody of NARA's National Personnel Records Center 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.  For more information see Official Military Personnel Files (OMPF), Archival Records Requests.

However, please note that due to the coronavirus public health emergency, the National Personnel Records Center is servicing only urgent requests related to homeless veterans, medical emergencies, and funerals which may be faxed to 314-801-0764.  We thank you for your patience and look forward to resuming normal operations when the public health emergency has ended.

You may be interested in his Individual Deceased Personnel File (IDPF). For the IDPFs from 1940-1976 of personnel with surnames that begin with M-Z,  please write to U.S. Army Human Resources Command, Casualty & Memorial Affairs Operations Division, ATTN: AHRC-PDC, 1600 Spearhead Division Avenue, Department 450, Fort Knox, KY 40122-5405.

Selective Service records for individuals who served after World War I and were born before 1960 are in the custody of the National Archives at St. Louis (RL-SL), P.O. Box 38757, St. Louis, MO 63138-0757. There are two types of records: cards and classification histories.  The individual Draft Registration Card (SSS Form 1) may contain information such as: name, Selective Service registration number, age, date and place of birth, ethnicity, place of residence at time of registration and basic physical description. The Classification History (SSS Form 102) may contain: name; date of birth; classification and date of mailing notice; date of appeal to the board; date and results of armed forces physical examination; entry into active duty or civilian work in lieu of induction (may include date, branch of service entered and mode of entry, such as enlisted or ordered); date of separation from active duty or civilian work; and general remarks. Please complete a Form NA-13172 to request a search of these records. His Draft Registration Card has been digitized and can be viewed through Ancestry.

We searched the National Archives Catalog and located Awards Files, ca. 1942 - ca. 1945 for the First Army in the Records of U.S. Army Operational, Tactical, and Support Organizations (World War II and Thereafter) (Record Group 338) that should contain his Medal of Honor File in Box 38. For information about these records, please contact the National Archives at College Park - Textual Reference (RDT2) via email at archives2reference@nara.gov.

We searched the National Archives Catalog and located Press Releases and Related Records, 1942 - 1945 in the Records of Headquarters Army Ground Forces (Record Group 337) that includes SIS Release B-636 regarding the presentation of the Medal of Honor to the mother of 1st Lt. Monteith.  For information about these records, please contact RDT2. This document has been digitized and can be viewed on Ancestry.

We also located Headstone Inscription and Interment Records for U.S. Military Cemeteries on Foreign Soil, 1942 - 1949 in the Records of the American Battle Monuments Commission, 1918–ca. 1995 (Record Group 117) which contains a card for him.  For information about this/these records, please contact RDT2. This card has been digitized and can be viewed through Ancestry.

Additionally, we 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 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. It may also include combat interviews of members of his unit. For information about these records, please contact RDT2.

Morning reports for Army units (from November 1, 1912 to 1959) and Air Force units (from September 1947 to June 30, 1966) are in the custody of the National Archives at St. Louis (RL-SL). For access to these records, please contact RL-SL via email at stl.archives@nara.gov. 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and pursuant to guidance received from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), NARA has adjusted its normal operations to balance the need of completing its mission-critical work while also adhering to the recommended social distancing for the safety of NARA staff. As a result of this re-prioritization of activities, you may experience a delay in receiving an initial acknowledgement as well as a substantive response to your reference request from RL-SL and RDT2. We apologize for this inconvenience and appreciate your understanding and patience.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Archives has partnered with Ancestry to make the vast majority of their NARA-digitized holdings freely available to the public. Anyone with Internet access may create an account, access NARA records, and use other Ancestry resources, such as their educational offerings and family tree-maker application. For more information see Ancestry’s announcement -- “Free At-Home Education Resources From Ancestry® and Access to Nearly 500M National Archives Records”.

We searched the Library of Congress’s Veterans History Project and located 55 collections relating to members of the 16th Infantry Regiment. Of these, at least 6 are for 3rd Battalion and at least one, the Oliver E. Mable Collection, is specifically for Company L, 3rd Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. There may be others that apply to 3rd Bn. and/or Company L but do not say so in the searchable metadata. Many of these collections contain oral histories and may contain other materials as well.

American D-Day.org contains transcriptions of many D-Day Documents as well as accounts by veterans, to include Captain John R. Armellino, commanding officer of L Company, 16th Infantry.

Tankbooks.com contains an interview of Vincent "Mike" McKinney who was in L Company, 16th Infantry on D-Day.

You also may wish to contact the following institutions:

• First Division Museum
• 16th Infantry Regiment Association
• 16th Infantry Regiment Historical Society
• Society of the 1st Infantry Division
• United States Army Center of Military History
• National World War II Museum
• U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center
• National Museum of the US Army
• National Infantry Museum & Soldier Center
  

We searched online and located The 16th Infantry, 1798-1946.  We also located multiple books about the 1st Infantry Division as a whole, and a 1st Infantry Division Reference Bibliography. The Dead and Those About to Die D-Day: The Big Red One at Omaha Beach includes information about L Company, 16th Infantry Regiment, to include multiple references to Lt. Montieth, and also includes some citations that may suggest further avenues for research.

We also located  "Jimmie Monteith: An American hero" by Clara B. Cox, Virginia Tech Magazine, vol. 31, no. 4, summer 2009. It is likely that there have been additional articles in Virginia Tech and Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets publications.

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

This is not really pertinent to your military questions, but if your are also interested in other aspects of his life, Ancestry also has entries for him in

U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900-1999

Virginia, Birth Records, 1912-2015, Delayed Birth Records, 1721-1911

1940 United States Federal Census

1930 United States Federal Census

1920 United States Federal Census

He is also mentioned in his father's obituary:

Richmond Times-Dispatch; Publication Date: 2 Aug 1942; Publication Place: Richmond, Virginia, United States of America; URL: https://www.newspapers.com/image/615690492/?article=481ae23c-25d5-4303-862b-ad587767a330&focus=0.6204812,0.040466897,0.73593855,0.25385386&xid=2378

These links all require paid subscriptions to access, except for the 1940 census which is currently available with a free subscription to Ancestry.