Oral history of William Cato
Clemson University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives A video recording of an in-person interview conducted by Drew Richard with Staff Sergeant William Cato on November 21, 2012. Born on April 2, 1921, Cato enlisted in the United States Army Infantry before turning 21, convincing his reluctant parents to sign his enlistment papers.
Cato recounts his deployment to England and his role in D-Day operations, landing as a replacement infantryman shortly after the invasion. He describes combat in France and Belgium pushing through the Siegfried Line and the Argonne, Hurtgen, and Black Forests. He was nearly court-martialed for firing on fellow soldiers after mistaking their movements for enemy signaling. He was wounded by enemy artillery while helping his fellow soldiers on his way off the front line leading to his evacuation to England and, eventually, his return to the United States.
2012-11-21
Oral history of Harold Koeplin
Clemson University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives A video recording of an in-person interview conducted by Cole Hawkins with Harold Koeplin on November 19, 2013. Born on May 8, 1926, Koeplin was drafted into the United States Army in 1944. He was deployed to Europe in early 1945, arriving just in time to take part in the Battle of the Bulge.
Assigned as a rifleman in Company K, 120th Infantry Regiment, Koeplin fought in the Ardennes Forest and into the Rhineland. On March 24, 1945, while crossing the Rhine River, he was wounded by a mortar shell, along with a fellow soldier. Evacuated to a field hospital in France, he recovered as the war came to an end. After returning home, he pursued higher education at Michigan State University, where he joined ROTC and was commissioned. During the Korean War, he served stateside at Fort Lawton, Washington.
2013-11-19