Owen Kitchens Collins enlisted in the Army on November 24, 1943. He was stationed at Fort Shelby in Mississippi for his training. His stay at Shelby was lengthened because he had to have surgery while he was there. After his training he remained at Shelby until he was sent to Europe. He left on July 24, 1944 and arrived in France on August 12, 1944. At the time Owen arrived in France as the Third Army was beginning its push through France.

From “History of the Third Infantry Division in World War II”

“It was decided to land two battalions of the 15th Infantry on initially on Yellow Beach (laying between Cap de St. Tropes and cap Carat, on the east side of the St. Tropez peninsula) and two battalions of the 7th Infantry on Red Beach (Gulf of Cavalire), using the 30th Infantry to land on Red Beach after it had been cleared with a mission of exploiting to the north and seizing objectives deep in the enemy’s rear…”

And so began Owen’s combat career. Over the next month, Patton’s Third Army marched through France, liberating village after village and city after city. The 30th Infantry met with resistance along the way and was involved in many battles. The first was the Battle of Brignoles on August 18 and 19. Then on August 27, 28 and 29 they were involved in another major battle when they, along with other Third Army Divisions advanced against Montelimar. All the way, the 30 Infantry met resistance. On September 5 through 8, the 30th Infantry was involved in the attack on Vesancin. In one month the Third Army reached Vesoul. The toll was devastating to the enemy forces. In Western France 20,000 enemy troops surrendered to a United States platoon. The French then joined the American forces.

The Third Army moved on to the mountains of the Vosges. They crossed the mountains through September and part of October. By November 11, the Allies reached the Meurthe River, with the 30th Infantry reaching the river at St. Die. From the Meurthe, the Third Army advanced through France to Strasbourg, meeting resistance all the way. In Strreasbourg, the weary troops had 15 days of much needed rest. Even during that time, they were still on the front lines and in contact with the German army.

Owen talked very little about his time in France. One story he did tell was about the day he took a house full of German soldiers. He shot a bazooka, so he advanced in front of the other men. On this day the order was given to advance, so he did. He did not know that the order had been cancelled. When he reached the house, he was alone. He knew he would be killed if he tried to escape, so he captured the house and all of the soldiers. He got a Silver Stars for this.

After the time at Strasbourg, the 3rd Division undertook what was to become the second greatest fight of the war in France. The 30th Infantry was the vanguard of this campaign that began on December 13. The mission was to clear out a pocket of enemy resistance that was being fortified and growing stronger each day. On December 15, the engagement was underway. On December 17th the Third Army forces entered Kaysersberg, the heart of the enemy position. It was a fierce battle. The enemy was composed of officer candidates that were fresh from school and fought with skill and determination. But they could not prevail.

Kaysersberg was taken in two days. On December 19, Company L had cleared its sector of Kaysersberg and was ordered to move up the hill south of town to join the 1st Battalion and reinforce its west flank. Preparations were underway for the final attack. At day break on the 20th, the 441st Flankwagons fired 4900 rounds of .50 caliber ammunition and 170 rounds of 37mm HE ammunition into the woods where the Germans were preparing their counterattack. The 30th Infantry, with the aide of this fire, shattered the counterattack before it got under way.

Owen was not able to take part in the battle on December 20. At dawn that morning, Owen and another soldier, Fredrick Svoboda, had been ordered to dig in down the hill, somewhat separated from the rest of his company. As they were digging, a German soldier came up behind them and they were captured. After being passed back through the line, from encampment to encampment, Owen was held in a French and Russian prison camp near Villingen. After a short time he was moved to Stalag 7 near Munich.

During the last months of the war, there was little food. The main stay of the diet was bread made with sawdust as filler. The prisoners were sent out daily to work cleaning up the bombed out buildings in the near buy town. Being the inventive man that he was, Owen rigged up a pair of long johns inside his coat and everyday filled them with potatoes. He would then watch and figure out where to get in line so he would not be searched. He smuggled potatoes in everyday to feed the men in his barracks. He even cooked them. He, and others had also brought in pieces of metal, etc. that he used to build small stoves that he used to cook the potatoes.

On April 29, 1945, the 14th Armored Division liberated Stalag 7. Owen traded cigarettes for a small Brownie Camera that one of the soldiers had. He took pictures of his prison camp, the liberating planes and his friends. One hundred and twenty thousand prisoners, including forty-five thousand Americans, were freed. The prisoners were airlifted from Landshut, Germany to LeHarve, France and then came home by boat, arriving in the US on May 31, 1945. He was discharged on November 8, 1945 at Fort McPherson, Georgia, not quite two years after his enlistment.

Dad was discharged on November 8, 1945 with a Silver Star, European-African-Middle Eastern Service Medal with two Bronze Stars, a Purple Heart with one Oak Leaf Cluster, World War II Victory Medal, Good Conduct Medal, AR600-68 Distinguished Unit Badge and an American Service Medal.

Owen had Alzheimer’s for years before his death on December 4, 1996. For about three months before his death he had shared his room with a man who also was in the later stages of Alzheimer’s. The day after his death his daughter went to his nursing home to get his things. His roommate’s family was there and the two families began talking about our dad’s lives. Owen’s daughter mentioned that her dad was a prisoner of war during WWII. The roommate’s daughter said, “My dad was also a prisoner of war in WWII.” Owen’s daughter told her that Owen was at Moosburg. The roommate’s daughter said her dad was a German prisoner in an English POW camp. There these two men were, over fifty years after they were prisoners of each other’s armies, sharing a room, old men, enemies no longer.

Owen K Collins Sr