Lt. Lawson Reichard’s WWII Diary – June 18, 1943 by Lt.Reichard (06/18/09).
Friday, June 18, 1943 Tunis, Tunisia, North Africa
June 18, 1943 Diary Page
The temperature tonight would never lead one to believe a person was in Africa. You need a field jacket and then you are a little uncomfortable. Ye gods, when I think of my previous ideas of Africa. Well we all live and learn. Today has been a little more interesting. I went out and had a talk with the Major and he said that we should set up our shops. There is a great deal of salvage work to be done now that the fighting is over. We will probably be working on everything from stoves to tanks. Of course they took those twenty men for driving trucks. We could spare them easily enough as they would be underfoot setting up our shops. We set up our big tents which sure come in handy. Today there was quite a bit of rumbling of big guns to the north east so I guess there is some big doings afoot. The radio announced this evening that the people in all the big cities of Italy had been warned to evacuate or suffer the consequences. I hope it isn’t just talk. If we fool around much longer it’s going to be too late. I wrote Ginnie & Dotty tonight. I sure wish I could get some letters. It’s been quite a while since I’ve seen one. The mail situation here is none to (sic) good anyway so I guess we shouldn’t expect too much. Tomorrow I probably will be swamped with letters to censor. We changed our A.P.O. number. The Kind of England visited Tunis this afternoon but I couldn’t get in to see him.
• “Radar” (Radio Detection and Ranging) became the official term for “Radiolocation.” (http://www.worldwar-2.net/timelines/war-in-europe/war-in-britain/war-in-britain-index-1943.htm)
• British Field Marshal Archibald Wavell was to become the viceroy of India with Gen. Claude Auchinleck becoming the commander in chief of India. A new East Asia command was to be established. (http://www.worldwar-2.net/timelines/asia-and-the-pacific/asian-mainland/asian-mainland-index-1943.htm)
British Field Marshal Archibald Wavell.
1943 Diary Recaps
January 1943 Recap: We first met Lt. Reichard in January, stationed at McClellan Air Base in Sacramento, where he was in charge of a motor pool unit. Expecting to be sent overseas, their orders were changed and they became restless to see action. Lt. Reichard’s sweetheart, Ginnie, would write frequently, and he would go to dinner and movies with local girls – Dorothy, in Sacramento, and Marie, when the unit moved to Gowen Field in Boise, Idaho. The men have spent their days in lectures, and physical demonstrations to try to keep sharp mentally and physically. But they are getting increasingly restless.
February 1943 Recap: The unit continues to be restless as they still haven’t any orders for overseas. The days are kept busy with lectures, physical demonstrations, and frequent hikes in the mountains above Boise. Lt. Reichard receives a promotion to Lieutenant First Class and continues to write to Ginnie back home, though her letters are becoming more infrequent. February 1943 comes to an end with the unit still feeling bored and discouraged.
March 1943 Recap: March brings uncertainties in weather and daily life to Gowen Field. Still no word about overseas orders, the outfit must now share quarters with another unit. There is now time to begin a photo album, collecting pictures from times with the outfit. Letters from Ginnie are becoming more infrequent but there is no shortage of dates with the local girls in Boise. March comes to an end with everyone in the outfit anxiously awaiting word of upcoming furloughs.
April 1943 Recap: Last minute furloughs come through, and Lt. Reichard returns home to Maryland for some time with his family on the farm. He and Ginnie have a chance to talk things over and hopefully save the relationship. Just before leaving Boise, the unit gets orders that a move will come at the end of April. April comes to an end with the men spending a week in Stockton, California getting ready to ship out. But where they are going remains a mystery.
May 1943 Recap: The long journey begins by train as the outfit travels cross country to Camp Shanks, New York, where they will prepare to head overseas. Lt. Reichard now knows the destination: Casablanca, Morocco in North Africa. After ensuring that all the supplies are in order, the outfit boards the “West Point”, the newest in troop carriers and heads to sea. Lt. Reichard spends many peaceful evenings enjoying the time at sea before landing in Morocco. May ends with the outfit setting up camp and adjusting to the customs of Morocco.
Lt. Reichard’s WWII Diary Project : On January 1, 2009, WorthPoint began a three year project following the life of a WWII soldier through the daily pages of his diary.To read about the inception of this project, or to add your own comments, click here.
Production Credits:
Diary transcription: Kathleen Long
Diary photos: Claudia Forbes
Video production: Alison Harder
Narration: Mountain Vista H.S. Theater Department
Jeremy Goldson, Department Chair; Bryan Smith – voice of Lt. Reichard
This entry was posted
on Thursday, June 18th, 2009 at 1:00 am and is filed under WWII Diary.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
