103rd Cactus Division

 DOUGLAS H. MERRILL

THIS IS THE HOUSE THAT DOUG, VERNON

SWANSON, JIM PRICE AND ZACK SIGLER 

WERE IN ON DECEMBER 2ND, 1944.

 THIS PICTURE IS HOW IT APPEARED WHEN

 D-COMPANY RETURNED TO SELESTAT
IN 1985.  THOUGH IT HAD BEEN

RECONSTRUCTED, SHRAPNEL MARKING WERE STILL VISIBLE ON THE STRUCTURE.

 DOUG, JIM PRICE AND D-COMPANY 

VETERANS & FAMILY ARE SHOWN 

STANDING OUTSIDE THE HOUSE.

(Notice the close proximity of the street to the 

house. The German Tanks were in the street at 

point blank range.)

  Letter written to 409^th

 Commander by Jim Price during his rehab at

Percy Jones Hospital

in 1945. This letter

credits Doug Merrill

for saving his life.

Click to read

 

ENTERED SERVICE FROM ANN ARBOR, MI.  REPORTED FOR BASIC TRAINING AT CAMP

 CLAIBORNE, LA. ON 11/19/42.  WAS ASSIGNED TO  1ST PLATOON, 2ND SECTION OF

D-COMPANY MACHINE GUNNERS.  PARTICIPATED IN LOUISIANA 3^RD ARMY MANEUEVERS

FROM SEPTEMBER 15^TH THROUGH NOVEMBER 15TH OF 1943. MOTOR MARCHED

FROM MERRYVILLE, LA TO CAMP HOWZE IN GAINESVILLE, TX.  LEFT CAMP HOWZE, BY

TRAIN, ON SEPTEMBER 14^TH AND ARRIVED AT CAMP SHANKS, NY ON SEPT. 28^TH. 

BOARDED USS MONTICELLO AND DEPLOYED FOR THE SOUTH OF FRANCE ON

OCT. 6^TH.  WEATHERED HURRICANE AND ROUGH SEAS BUT FINALLY ARRIVED AT

MARSEILLES, FRANCE ON OCTOBER 20^TH, 1944.  SPENT TWO WEEKS AT STAGING AREA

NEAR CALAS.  DEPARTED FOR THE FRONT ON NOV. 5^TH.  ARRIVED ON NOVEMBER 10^TH

AND RELIEVED THE 3d INFANTRY DIVISION IN THE VICINITY OF

EPINAL/CHARMOIS/DOCELLES.  COMMITTED TO BATTLE ON NOV. 11^TH AND FOUGHT

WAY THROUGH THE VOSGES MOUNTAINS AS PART OF LT. GENERAL ALEXANDER

PATCH’S 7^TH ARMY.  DOUG ACTED HEROICALLY AT SELESTAT IN STAYING BEHIND WITH

HIS TWO INJURED COMRADES AND HELPING THEM TO ESCAPE CAPTURE.  DOUG IS

CREDITED FOR SAVING THE LIFE OF JIM PRICE BY CARRYING HIM TO SAFETY. 

DOUG & JIM ARE TWO OF THE SIX THAT AVOIDED CAPTURE AT SELESTAT. 

DOUG CONTINUED TO FIGHT IN FRANCE AND GERMANY.  HE WAS PROMOTED TO

STAFF SERGEANT / SECTION LEADER.  DOUG RECEIVED WOUND BY MORTAR

SHRAPNEL ON 3/22/45 NEAR REISDORF, GERMANY.  THIS SAME MORTAR SHELL ALSO

WOUNDED AL SODMAN AND JACK DURRANCE.

 

SELESTAT

AROUND 3:15am ON dECEMBER 2^ND, 1944, 3 TO 6 GERMAN TANKS WITH

APPROXIMATELY 600 SUPPORTING INFANTRY ROLLED DOWN THE STREET IN FRONT

OF THE HOUSES THAT B & D cOMPANIES WERE OCCUPYING.  THE LEAD TANK WENT

PAST THE HOUSES, ONLY TO BLOW THE BRIDGE THAT HAD BEEN VACATED.  THE

GIs ESCAPE ROUTE WAS GONE AND THEY HAD NO ANTI-TANK WEAPONRY.  ONCE THE

BRIDGE WAS GONE, THE TANKS FOCUSED ON THE MACHINE GUNS IN THE HOUSES. 

tHEIR JOB WAS TO TAKE OUT THE MACHINE GUNS SO THEIR INFANTRY COULD

SWARM THE HOUSES.  THIS COULDN’T HAVE BEEN TOO DIFFICULT SINCE THE TANKS

WERE AT POINT BLANK RANGE.  THE FIRST 88 DESTROYED THEIR MACHINE GUN.  THIS

SHOT INSTANTLY KILLED SGT. VERNON SWANSON AND SERIOUSLY WOUNDED PFC

JIM PRICE AND T/SGT ZACK SIGLER.  DOUG WAS ONLY SHAKEN.  IT WAS NOW APPARENT

THAT THEY WOULD BECOME powS.   THEY KNEW THAT THE GERMAN TROOPS WOULD

SOON BE ON THEM.  THAT IS WHEN DOUG TOOK OVER.  INSTEAD OF MAKING AN

ATTEMPT FOR THE RIVER AND POTENTIAL SAFETY, HE CARRIED JIM PRICE TO THE

BASEMENT AND THE THREE PLAYED DEAD.  wHEN THE GERMANS CAME IN THE HOUSE,

THEY SURVEYED THE PREMISES, ASSUMED THE WORST AND LEFT.  HOWEVER, THEY

REMAINED OUTSIDE the house FOR SOME TIME. 

 

AT DAYBREAK, ASSUMED TO BE 3 OR 4 HOURS LATER, THE THREE BATTERED GIs HEADED

FOR THE RIVER AND SAFETY.  DOUG CARRIED JIM AND ZACK HOBBLED AS BEST HE

COULD.  ZACK COLLAPSED AT THE RIVER BANK AND DIED FROM SHOCK OR BLOOD LOSS.

 JIM SURVIVED, THANKS TO DOUG’S HEROICS, BUT LOST A LEG AS A RESULT OF

THE TANK BLAST.

   

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