Posted on 08/26/2012 12:01:24 PM PDT by DogByte6RER
U.S. Paratroopers with Mohawks - World War II
To me, Clarence looks as if he might be of Indian descent.
I had no idea that this look went back that far, as I had never seen it other than in pictures of Indians from way back until the 1980s when teen started sporting the hairstyle.
The more I think about it, I am pretty sure that is an American flag flying from that flagpole. There are several more pics of the game around here somewhere but it would take me weeks to find them.
I can’t imagine an American flag if that was in the Russian sector.
Still, I hope you check with them. It might be interesting to see if they know any more about the game.
teen = teens
I don’t know about Clarence Ware ...
but, the Stars and Stripes story reads ...
“These weren’t model soldiers,” he said. “But they were guys who could get jobs done.”
More than 30 men rotated through the unit over the months (Jake) McNiece spent operating in France. The group became famous after a picture appeared in Stars and Stripes shortly before D-Day; the men sported mohawks and put on warpaint as they prepared for a mission.
The idea was McNiece’s, a tribute to his heritage and a way to energize the men for the danger ahead. Rumors about the unit began circulating as the newspaper and film of the men began making the rounds: They were all Indians, they were all convicts, they never bathed before battle.
The rumors became the basis for the more-famous movie. McNiece said he never regretted the indirect fame.
Well said. (I’m a woman, BTW.)
You never know. Things were pretty fluid in 1945.
Sent them the email. I’ll FReepmail you if I hear back.
‘Bout the same time frame for Miramar.
Thanks.
Not a problem. I was stationed in Berlin for almost 5 years. Great duty station.
When the Wall came down I was out and about visiting places I had only previously read about. It was quite a heady experience.
Hopefully we'll get a reply for your photo.
It wouldn’t surprise me at all if some of these guys WERE Mohawks.
That is a fascinating family story. Those were tough times.
My late wife’s family on her Father’s side went through a terrible battle with Indians in Texas. It was published in one of the Old West magazines.
They were also tough people.
From Wikipedia:
In 1775, Hamilton was appointed Lieutenant Governor and Superintendent of Indian Affairs at Fort Detroit, one of five newly created lieutenant governorships in the recently expanded Province of Quebec. The American Revolutionary War was already underway by the time Hamilton arrived at Detroit to assume his duties. Hamilton was in a difficult position: as a civil official, Hamilton had few regular troops at his command, and the natives of the region — French Canadians and American Indians — were not all supporters of the British regime. Normand Macleod, a local fur trader, acted as “town major” before Hamilton's arrival.
Hamilton became adept at diplomacy with American Indians, establishing good relations with local Indian leaders. Hamilton, an amateur artist, sketched portraits of many Native Americans while in Detroit, leaving what has been called the “earliest and largest collection of life portraits of Native Americans of the Upper Great Lakes.” When the war began, British officials initially determined not to enlist Indians as allies in the war effort, but in 1777 Hamilton received instructions to encourage Indian raids against the American frontier settlements of Virginia and Pennsylvania. This was a controversial policy because it was realised that civilian colonists would inevitably be killed in these raids. Hamilton attempted to limit civilian casualties by sending British officers and French-Canadian militia with the American Indian war parties. Nevertheless, hundreds of settlers in Kentucky and western Pennsylvania were killed and scalped by raiding parties during the war. In Detroit, Hamilton is alleged to have paid bounties for prisoners and scalps brought in by the Indians. He became hated by American settlers, who dubbed him the “Hair buyer General”.
In 1778, Virginia forces under Colonel George Rogers Clark captured several undermanned British posts in the Illinois country, including Fort Sackville at Vincennes. Hamilton set out from Detroit on 7 October 1778 to recapture the post, 600 miles away. His small force gathered American Indian allies along the way, and entered Vincennes on 17 December 1778, capturing Fort Sackville and the American commandant, Captain Leonard Helm. In February 1779, Colonel Clark returned to Vincennes in a surprise march, recapturing the outpost and taking Hamilton prisoner.
Because of his support of the Indian raids, the Virginians regarded Hamilton as a war criminal rather than a conventional prisoner of war. Clark sent Hamilton to Williamsburg, Virginia, where he was jailed and often kept in irons by Governor Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson finally granted Hamilton parole at the instructions of General George Washington. In early 1781, Hamilton was exchanged and traveled to London
Well said.
Still done, and for the right reasons. Just not here.
Indeed. But there's a bit more to the story:
At about 9:00 a.m. on February 24, Clark sent a message to the fort demanding Hamilton's surrender. Hamilton declined, and the firing continued for another two hours until Hamilton sent out his prisoner, Captain Helm, to offer terms. Clark sent Helm back with a demand of unconditional surrender within 30 minutes, or else he would storm the fort. Helm returned before the time had expired and presented Hamilton's proposal for a three-day truce. This too was rejected, but Clark agreed to meet Hamilton at the village church.
Before the meeting at the church, the most controversial incident in Clark's career occurred. Unaware that Clark had retaken Vincennes, a war party of Indians and French-Canadians came into town. There was a skirmish, and Clark's men captured six. Two of the prisoners were Frenchmen and were released at the request of the villagers and one of Clark's French followers. Clark decided to make an example of the remaining four Indian prisoners. They were made to sit down in view of the fort and then tomahawked to death; the bodies were scalped and then thrown into the river. Although Hamilton did not witness the executions, he later wrote that Clark had killed one or more of the Indians with his own hands. Some historians believe that Hamilton exaggerated because, after being imprisoned by the Americans for war crimes, he had motivation to make his captors seem even worse. Clark did not claim to have been one of the executioners, but he wrote about the killings without apology, believing them to be justifiable revenge for murdered Kentucky settlers and a means to intimidate Indians into stopping their raids.
Not real surprising I'm right. I'm originally from the Lawrenceville-Vincennes area. I grew up with the stories about Col Clark and his men.
Amusingly, if the riverboat with the artillery from Pittsburg had shown up on time, it might have been considered a naval victory.
BTTT … for June 6
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