S Douglas Woodward

Going to War S Douglas Woodward

Lt. William C. Woodward, Sr. USA, Retired, served in the 919th Field Artillery in the 94th Division, alongside the 10th Armored Division, which joined General George Patton's Third Army during and after the Battle of the Bulge. He was personally at the forefront of the Battle of Butzdorf from 14 January to 1 March, 1945, where U. S. troops took heavy casualties. Woodward targeted artillery fire against German positions as Patton crossed the Saar River on his way to conquer the Rhineland. While flying in a Piper Cub nipping at the treetops, he targeted heavy artillery that destroyed a column of Panzer tanks. Woodward was a Forward Observer for the Artillery, one of the most dangerous duties in the Army, responsible for establishing observation posts on the edge of the frontlines of the enemy in order to call in shelling to annihilate the enemy. At one point, he led the artillery used by Patton to assault highly bunkered positions on the cliffs overlooking the Saar. Once the Third Army fought its way through Trier to Dusseldorf, the path was clear to make "the Mad Dash" across Germany. This would finish off the Third Reich and win back Europe for the Allies. His courageous combat achievements won him the Air Medal, Bronze Star, and the Purple Heart. The story Woodward tells not only covers the crossing of the Atlantic and the war preparation in the British Isles, he provides an account of the V-1 Buzz Bomb attack on London, the landing at Utah Beach several weeks after D-Day to entrap a large Nazi contingent protecting St. Nazaire, France, where Germany's most effective weapon, the U-Boat fleet, was harbored and serviced right up to the end of the War. We are fascinated by his stories of Paris. While there, he experienced some of the more memorable moments of American involvement in World War II. We witness his concern for civilians and displaced persons as he led efforts for their care once back in Germany. Finally, his last duty in Paris hints of a never-before revealed plan by FDR to indoctrinate U. S. officers in the virtues of the Soviets, paving the way for his vision to create an unified one-world government administered by the Allies. The conversational storytelling enables us to witness the war through the eyes of an Army officer whose bravery never wavered, concern for comrades remained steadfast, and personal compassion impacted many lives torn apart by the ravages of war and deprivation.