Craft History of the KY Guard 1937 – 1962
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KENTUCKY NATIONAL GUARD HISTORY World War II – Berlin Crisis 1937 – 1962 Draft Manuscript Edited by COL (R) JOE CRAFT TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction .......................................................................... iii-iv CHAPTER ONE........................................................................1-22 Endnotes, Chapter 1 ..................................................... 23-27 CHAPTER TWO ..................................................................... 28-54 Endnotes, Chapter 2 ..................................................... 55-58 CHAPTER THREE .................................................................. 59-87 198th Field Artillery Battalion.......................................... 88-90 103rd Coast Artillery Battalion ........................................ 91-92 106th Coast Artillery Battalion ........................................ 93-94 End Notes, Chapter 3.................................................... 95-98 CHAPTER FOUR .................................................................. 99-127 End Notes, Chapter 4.................................................128-138 Appendix 4-a............................................................139-140 Appendix 4-b............................................................141-144 Appendix 4-c ............................................................145-147 Appendix 4-d............................................................148-149 Appendix 4-e............................................................150-151 CHAPTER FIVE ..................................................................152-171 End Notes, Chapter 5.................................................172-177 Appendix 5...............................................................178-182 CHAPTER SIX....................................................................183-195 Overview .................................................................196-208 Endnotes, Chapter 6 ..................................................209-216 Appendix 6...............................................................217-219 CHAPTER SEVEN ...............................................................220-230 Sturgis and Clay ......................................................231-239 Eastern Kentucky Floods ............................................240-243 Prestonsburg Bus Accident .........................................244-253 Eastern Ky. Coal Strike ..............................................254-255 Endnotes, Chapter 7 ..................................................256-259 Notes, Sturgis and Clay..............................................260-262 Notes, Flooding.........................................................263-264 Notes, Bus Accident...................................................265-268 Notes, Coal Strike ........................................................... 269 Appendix 7...............................................................270-274 CHAPTER EIGHT................................................................275-281 The Berlin Crisis........................................................282-287 Endnotes, Chapter 8 ..................................................288-289 Notes on Berlin .........................................................290-291 Bibliography ....................................................................292-297 i INTRODUCTION In July of 1939 the Military History of Kentucky was published. This book, a Federal Writer’s Project of the Works Progress Administration for the State of Kentucky, is a comprehensive history which begins with the first settlements in Kentucky County, Virginia, and ends with the recession of flood waters in the early summer of 1937. The activities of our state militia have not been chronicled since. Which is not to say there has been no history to relate. To the contrary, the Kentucky National Guard has performed state active duty under adverse circumstances during election disturbances, coal strikes, riots, and demonstrations. Kentucky National Guardsmen have performed federal active service in defense of the nation as well. Company D of the 192nd Tank Battalion, an organization from Harrodsburg, helped defend the Philippine Islands at the start of World War II. Despite being undermanned, poorly armed, and deprived of supplies, especially food and medicine, these soldiers upset the Japanese timetable and allowed the United States Defense Forces four desperately needed months to rebuild after the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. Following the fall of the Philippines, several men from Company D were forced to participate in the “death march” out of Bataan. Many of them survived roughly three and one-half years as prisoners of war in Japanese concentration camps. Company D was not the only unit to fight valiantly in the Philippines. The 149th Infantry and 138th Field Artillery Regiments, as well as other units of the Kentucky National Guard, participated as part of the 38th Infantry Division in the emancipation of the Philippines, earning the appellation “Avengers of Bataan.” Kentucky Guardsmen have also seen action in the nation’s two “political” conflicts. In Korea, the 623rd Field Artillery Battalion, composed of units from Glasgow, Monticello, Tompkinsville, Campbellsville and Springfield, provided artillery cover for Marine units under siege and earned the Navy unit commendation medal and the Republic of Korea Unit citation medal. The 2nd Battalion of the 138th Field Artillery Battalion, with men from Carrollton and Bardstown, gained distinction as the only Kentucky National Guard unit to serve in Vietnam. The battalion’s yearlong tour of duty was marked by a bloody, two- hour firefight at Fire Base Tomahawk near Phu Bai in the early morning hours of June 16, 1969. Clearly, Kentucky has a distinguished military tradition, and the compilation of a recent history has been neglected for too long. The purpose of this writing is to chronicle the activities of the Kentucky National Guard since June of 1937 to assist those interested in military or Kentucky history. ii CHAPTER ONE (1937 – 1940) The first orders issued to Kentucky National Guardsmen in the late summer of 1937 summoned the 123rd Cavalry Regiment to annual field training at Fort Knox from July 18 to August 1. Infantry, artillery, and special units trained from August 8-22. Selected marksmen competed in the National Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio, from August 26 to September 11.1 The Harlan County sheriff, five deputies and thirty-one county officials were arrested on Election Day, November 2, 1937, for violating state election laws. Complaints from both Democratic and Republican party officials prompted Governor Albert B. Chandler to order three units of the Kentucky National Guard to Harlan County for state active duty. A total of six officers and 110 Guardsmen were dispatched from Company A, Harlan, Company C, Barbourville, and the 38th Military Police Company of Jackson with instructions to safeguard the ballot boxes. Some candidates had hired private deputies to monitor the ballot boxes after the election. A dispute erupted between National Guardsmen and police when police tried to remove ballot boxes from the courthouse. They objected to the Harlan Guardsmen supervising the private deputies, arguing that there were too many Harlan residents overseeing an election already in dispute. The police left without the ballot boxes. The next morning, the Harlan unit was replaced by the Jackson and Barbourville units.2 Lieutenant O. J. Wilson of Barbourville’s Company C drove to a roadhouse on November 7 to advise members of his company that they had been relieved from duty. Before he could enter, a Harlan County deputy sheriff who resented the presence of the National Guard pistol-whipped him with a .45-caliber revolver. Lieutenant Wilson managed to drive himself to a nearby hospital for treatment. An arrest warrant was issued charging Deputy Frank White with assault and battery with intent to kill. On December 7, the emergency was declared over and all troops were relieved from duty.3 On 20 April 1938, 65 officers and 730 Guardsmen were ordered to state active duty for Derby Day at Louisville’s Churchill Downs (May 7). Lieutenant Colonel George Chescheir was designated commanding officer.4 In an annual detail Guardsmen looked upon with varying degrees of enthusiasm, units assisted local authorities in handling the massive Derby crowd and assisting unruly spectators from the stadium. The 123rd Cavalry attended annual field training at Fort Knox from July 17- 31. Other units attended camp from August 7-21. Again, selected marksmen represented Kentucky at the National Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio, from August 21 to September 10.5 Citing several irregularities, a Special Circuit Court judge invalidated the 1937 Harlan County elections for county attorney, jailer, sheriff, and coroner. The State Court of Appeals upheld the ruling. A special election was slated for November 8 of the following year. As a precaution, Harlan’s Company A was 1 activated on November 3 at the request of the Harlan mayor. On Election Day, troops were stationed at the courthouse with instructions to safeguard the ballot boxes. Despite military presence, eight people were killed and several more wounded in the bloodiest Kentucky election since 1933, when 18 people were killed in Harlan County election disputes. The violence delayed vote tabulations. As tabulators convened the next morning, a bullet tore through the courthouse, striking a woman in the arm.