Black Gunners at Bastogne

Army,  Nov 2004  by Bell, Raymond E Jr

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As the 60th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge approaches, the name Bastogne still resonates. The 101st Airborne Division has rightfully received the lion's share of recognition for its defiant defense at the crossroads in December 1944. Its units were not the only ones to win the coveted Distinguished Unit Citation, however. The black 969th Field Artillery (FA) Battalion (155 mm Howitzer) also won it fighting side by side with paratroopers, glider infantrymen, white cannoneers and tankers in that grim struggle. On February 5, 1945, the black gunners pinned the gold-rimmed blue ribbon over the right pocket on their blouses.

On January 3, 1945, Maj. Gen. Maxwell D. Taylor, the division commander of the 101st, wrote Lt. Col. Hubert D. Barnes, commanding the 969th Field Artillery:

The officers and men of the 101st Airborne Division wish to express to your command their appreciation of the gallant support rendered by the 969th Field Artillery Battalion in the recent defense of Bastogne, Belgium. The success of this defense is attributable to the shoulder-to-shoulder cooperation of all units involved. This Division is proud to have shared the battlefield with your command. A recommendation for a unit citation of 969th Field Artillery Battalion is being forwarded by this Headquarters.

The Distinguished Unit Citation (DUC) awarded to the 969th was not the first earned by a black combat unit, but it was the first to be awarded. Yet there is more to the story of this conspicuous action than the awarding of the DUC to this black artillery battalion. The fact of the matter is that members of another black artillery battalion became eligible to wear the blue ribbon at the same time, yet the DUC was never awarded to the battalion itself. It is the saga of its gunners that has been eclipsed by the performance of other units at Bastogne.

The tale starts back on August 5, 1917, when the 333rd Field Artillery Regiment was constituted with two battalions and assigned to the 86th Division. After the war, the division was disbanded. Then at Camp Gruber, OkIa., on March 9, 1943, the artillery regiment was reactivated, but as two separate battalions manned by black soldiers and white officers. The former 1st Battalion of the 333rd retained the original designation while the former 2nd Battalion was designated the 969th Field Artillery Battalion. Both were armed with 155 mm howitzers.

On June 29, 1944, the 333rd Field Artillery Battalion (155 mm Howitzer) arrived on the European continent followed on July 9 by its sister battalion, the 969th. In October, the 969th marched to Bastogne, where in December it was to participate in the defense of the town. In the meantime, the 333rd FA Battalion had moved close to the German border with Belgium and emplaced its howitzers to support the 2nd Infantry Division, VIII Corps.

On December 16, the 333rd Field Artillery Battalion was in position to provide general support and reinforcing fires to the 590th Field Artillery Battalion of the newly arrived 106th Infantry Division. The 333rd had two observation posts (OPs) just over the German border in the vicinity of the small town of Bleialf while the howitzer batteries were located around the Belgian town of Schoenberg. The battalion fired both observed and unobserved missions, with the unobserved fires being intended to harass the enemy and interdict his movement. In addition, sometimes "time on. target" missions were fired in conjunction with 106th Division Artillery, that is, a high number of rounds were delivered to reach a particular target all at one time.

At 3:00 A.M. on the cold morning of December 16, German artillery fired a massive barrage on American positions near Bleialf. It soon became evident that the Germans were not just trying to inconvenience the Americans. For two and a half hours, German shells rained down on the positions of the 106th Infantry Division, as they did along the entire VIII Corps front. Then at 5:30 A.M., in the dark before dawn, German infantry of the 293rd Infantry Regiment of the 18th Volksgrenadier Division, supported by tanks, advanced on the American positions in the sector where the 333rd forward observers were situated.

The OP located within the town of Bleialf, which overlooked a portion of the Siegfried Line, or West Wall, was manned by 2nd Lt. Reginald W. Gibson. His team consisted of himself and three black soldiers, Technician Fifth Class J.C. Coleman, Pvt. Earnest Williams and Pvt. Samuel Hams. These four men plotted targets, directed fire, manned the radio and telephone, and maintained the team's vehicle and equipment. The other OP was manned by 1st Lt. Elmer R. King, who had four men with him, SSgt. Alfred E. Byers, Pvt. Otto Hughes, Pvt. Nathaniel Davis and Pvt. Willie Downs. At the headquarters of the 590th Field Artillery Battalion, the 333rd's liaison officer was Capt. John P. Horn, who had his driver, Technician Fifth Class Willie Richards, with him. When the action began, the 333rd stood to its howitzers and returned the German fire under the direction of these teams.