WWII 2nd Army Maneuvers Remembered

The Wilson County Bicentennial Military Heritage Day will be September 11, 1999 in Lebanon, Tennessee. The day includes displays, an Army Band concert, battle reenactment, dinner for maneuver guests and a big band dance. The focus is on everyone who participated in the 2nd Army Maneuvers during WWII the largest maneuvers ever held.

Over 850,000 troops participated in the dress rehearsal for D-Day and other battles. The 2nd Army Maneuvers is headquartered in Lebanon at Cumberland University. Contact Lt. Col. Jim D. Henderson (USAF ret), 615-443-2809, fax 615-443-2844 or e-mail: [email protected]


One-on-one reunion

John Martz and Roland Bragg were members of Headquarters Company 2nd Battalion, 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 17th Airborne Division which fought in Europe during World War II.

Like many combat buddies, after the war they returned home and didn’t see each other again. Until a few months ago, when they had an opportunity to relive a special incident that bonded them for life.

Fifty years ago, during the Battle of the Bulge, Bragg drove a stolen German ambulance twenty miles to get the wounded Martz to an Allied hospital in Belgium. The story of Bragg’s heroic drive is recounted in The Bitter Woods, a book written by John Eisenhower, son of former president General Dwight David Eisenhower. “I’m forever grateful to Roland Bragg for saving my life,” said Martz, now 74 and living in Oceanside, California.

submitted by Joe Quade