The Forty Fools of Company C

I was one of them.

Here is the title page from my army unit.

After much training we found ourselves on the island of Angaur which is the southern most of the Palau Islands. My Army Division (the 81st) had landed on Angaur and in a week or so had the island under control. A Marine Division (the Old Breed, the 1st) had landed on the next island of the Palau chain, Peleliu. The Battle for Peleliu would be one of the Marines bloodiest Pacific battles.

The Marines asked for the assistance of some of the Army's demolition teams. The enemy was in many heavily built forts. I was on one of the  teams with a demolition rating. However it was strictly a volunteer force that our commanders requested. Forty men volunteered. After months of training we had seen very little fighting. We were young and restless. Some of the forty would die and some would get wounded. (I was shot in both legs) Here is some text from my Army unit history.

Sorry for the poor reproduction. The high lighted text says "The Forty Fools of Company C". I do not think many if them ever again volunteered to help the Marines.

I have so much respect for the Marines and the Army Infantry. They do every day what we Forty Fools did for a few weeks.