I was WIA friday 13th Nov 2009 in Wardack Afghan, as an Enlisted Marine infantry on an advisory team, and 10th Mountain rescued me and evac me, I am alive today , becuase 10th Mnt, "Alpha" company saved my life. the only surivor of a 5 man vehicle IED. 10th Mnt holds a special place in my heart. Semper Fi.. i never forget to them thank you, as long as i live.
@@guntech59 Wardack Afghanistan 2009 Nov.. they where there and were from Ny Ft Drum i think.. apache Company ..was good people.. i have nothing but thanx and honor for them
I'm the son of a 10th Mountain trooper. Tales of the 10th in WWII were part of my family culture. My dad told me that when the 87th Regiment reached the Po River, they didn't have any boats. While searching for boats, they ran into an engineer unit that was bringing boats to the river for the 87th Division. At first the engineers wouldn't give them the boats, but the 10th Mountain soldiers convinced the engineers that they were the "87th" the engineers were looking for. And with that little numerical misunderstanding, the 10th was first across the PO.
@@kristoffermangila They didn't steal them as much as delay them. The engineers use the boats to perform an "assault river crossing", where they shuttle the attacking troops across the river, but they always retain control of the boats. If anything, it would have been the engineers who were unhappy because they most likely still had to turn around and perform another crossing for the 87th. - A former combat engineer.
As a vet, he must have felt bad for each of the mules that were worked to death so the troops could reach their goals. We often don't think much about the horses and mules that died in wars. Although the German army of the Second World War is thought to be a mechanized army, it actually relied upon horses to a great deal, many of which were killed during the war.
The 10th had their own medical and support staff. My mom was a Sergeant in the 10th's medical support unit. She passed some years ago, but was a proud WW-II Vet until the end.
When I taught World War II I invited retired teachers who had served to come to class. Two of them, a Marine rifleman and a B-17 ball turret gunner, were glad to share their stories with my students. Each came several times. A third, who'd served in the 10th, only came once. It was very clear that, even 40 years after the war, he was very uncomfortable talking about his experiences. Having his best friend die in his arms left its mark. This was a fitting homage to the 10th. Great job as usual, Lance!
My father was in combat in northern Italy with 10th and was always hesitant to talk about his experiences in shooting a BAR at other people and having them shooting back. North of Leadville, Colorado at Tennessee Pass is a large stone with names of many men in 10th killed in action...when I first saw that memorial stone in 1970s, I understood better why Dad wanted to minimize memories of combat. Thank you very much for this video.
My father was was in the Tenth NOT a skier. He fought in the mountains in Italy between battles he lead a mule to bring supplies forward. The officer that picked him said you're from S Dakota "Yes Sir" it gets cold there "Yes Sir" you just volunteered for the Tenth Div. He walked from the port in Florence to Venice and fought in the Po valley. He was commended and given the Bronze star for his fighting in the Po river crossing.
My dad had lots of stories about the donkeys too! Dad joined as a replacement office just before the crossing. He was in 86-H. He earned a Bronze star too. Not sure why they put Dad in the 10th, except he grew up in South Bend, Indiana in the snow belt, and he knew how to ski and did a lot of outdoors hiking and climbing. Dad never had to ski with the 10th either. Your dad sounds like an incredible person!
Those pack animals were likely trained at Fort Robinson, the army's last remount station, at the southern reaches of the black hills near Crawford, Nebraska.
My father was a member of the 101st, trained at Hale. I moved to Colorado from Philly in '75. Dad and I first (re)visited the area back in the 70's, as we approached the Pando Valley and the actual camp site he started telling me where everything was located, buildings, training areas, skiing areas on the mountain, etc. Many photo's he took back at Hale during the war survived and verified everything he said. We visited again in the 90's a month before he passed. I think his experiences here defined his life afterwards, certainly helped to shape my life as a long time member of the Ski Patrol, and outdoor skills instructor. Thanks for posting this, we must never forget their sacrifices.
@@waggtech4883 Spent many days patrolling at Cooper, but as a visiting member of a backcountry ski patrol. Ski Cooper is/was one of my favorite areas with tons of BC to explore.
People came back from Afghanistan sporting their spiffy new 10th MD combat patch. No one was wearing our brigade patch as the combat patch. The brigade commander visited us from Iraq. I saw it coming, a few days later he had ordered us to wear our brigade patch as our combat patch. Weeks later when I was transferring to Fort Livingroom I noted no one had made the switch. Not even the officers. My company commander was still proudly displaying his 10th MD combat patch.
As a Fiinish-American-mom’s parents were Finnish I was so pleased to see you touch on the Finn’s and the Winter War. I was even more pleased to see the photo of Simo Hayha, the most famous sniper in the world. Russians called him White Death. Simo was credited in single handedly killing over 500 Russian soldiers…with iron sights, no scope , no spotter…often in -45 F degree weather. He had scores more kills by machine gun… He’s a hero by any account and highly revered by the Finn’s… Your story on the 10th? Outstanding! Thank you very much. My dad invaded Saipan, our second D-Day…
My old division, though the modern iteration of the 10th Mountain. I was stationed at Fort Drum, NY for six years as an AH-64 Apache attack helicopter mechanic/crew chief with the 10th Mountains Combat Aviation Brigade
My utmost respect to the 10th Mt Division. I lived in far upstate NY for 10 years and often passed the exit for Fort Drum on my way home from visiting family in PA. I moved back to PA after those 10 years, but my attention was still arrested by this title coming up in the youtube feed. I must tell you I once had work as a technician building 'boards' in electronics for Apaches and other military. I was outraged when our shop closed and they sent our jobs overseas. Outraged. Our troops should only be supported by those of our own country, for who loves them better than we Americans?
Thank you for the lesson. While stationed atvFt Lewis Washington in the mid 1980s, I had the necessity to employ a lawyer for a civilian legal entanglement. The gentleman who was well into his 80s at the time had numerous certificates and awards for skiing on his office walls. One of them was from the 10th Mountain Division. He had been one of the 10th Mountain Divisions ski instructors. He related the story that in order to get tp Camp Hale in Colorado some of the units Road Marched from Ft Bliss to Camp Hale as part of their training. Unfortunately due to the passage of time his name escapes my memory. I do remember it was February when I met him the first time and even in his 80s, he was going skiing that weekend.
I learned a bit about 10th Mtn Div while training at the US Army Mountain Warfare School at Camp Ethan Allen, VT. That school was probably the best Army school I attended. No yelling or horseshit. The instructors came out, greeted us, told us to ruck up with our ropes & gear, and we walked.....up......and up......and up. Great course. I wished I completed the winter phase as well.
Well told. 52 years a Colorado skier and ski industry rep. here and I owe my love and life in skiing to these men and their insight so long ago. Thanks for your service gents, and thanks for remembering this history History Guy.
These men and their "Army Ranger" counter parts are the base upon which ALL of our "special forces" have been built. But for men like these men, the war in Europe would have been far more costly. Another great video about OUR great history.
I have a 10th Mountain story. I was a scout in the 3rd ACR in 1985, down in El Paso. During Border Star 85 the 10th Mountain came down to fight us. The 10th is the experimental division in the US Army, so they had those cool FAVs, Fast Attack Vehicles - those sand rail dune buggies with guns. Unfortunately for them the FAVs rode too close to the ground, so they couldn't see over the sage brush dunes without stopping and and standing on their vehicles. They were so low when I spotted them all you could see was their antennas moving around. They rode right through our POV point before I even saw a FAV itself. It must have been 40 feet away, LOL. We clobbered them, of course. I don't care how good your soldiers are, you can't fight cav with light infantry. Its suicide. Incidentally this exercise is the reason the US army doesnt use FAVs anymore. The 10th lost that bad. Its not a bad reflection on the 10th. Whoever decided to send a light infantry unit against a heavy US army cav unit is the foolish one. In the 80s a cav unit was even stronger than an equivalent sized heavy tank equipped armor unit. Cav units have an equal number of tanks, plus one scout vehicle per tank, plus double the training budget. The US army have reorganized cav units since then (separating the scouts from the tankers into different platoons making the units weaker), mostly so they can use the scouts as police in the middle east.
I also served in the 3rd ACR from 90-94. Went to the Gulf War. Got out and went into the Missouri National Guard. On my last deployment to Afghanistan our unit served under the 10th Mountain. Had the honor of wearing the combat patch.
My friend was in the 10th Mountain and unfortunately lost his life in Iraq on mother's day 2005 due to an IED. Everyone misses him dearly but he's one of the reasons I eventually enlisted when I was older. Spc Nicolas E. Messmer. Gone but certainly not forgotten.
I was honored to support 10th Mountain Division units in Somalia, 1992-1993. A park in my hometown memorialized a WWII Soldier who was KIA in Italy. "Climb To Glory."
The dude with the 'tache is my dad, helping load or unload a mule with an American! When we were very young, the old man had me and my brother trying to spot him in the war movies.
I feel fortunate to have spent some time with Senator Dole in 1988 while working for his campaign during the NH primary. He met with his fellow veterans of the 10th Mountain. He had one Hell of a sense of humor.
He had gone in as a replacement jr officer, and always joked about the irony of a Kansas boy who had “never seen a mountain” in the 10 mountain division. His story is in this episode: Ninety Day Wonders: US Army Officer Candidate School ruclips.net/video/qAEDFsfHQfs/видео.html
@@TheHistoryGuyChannel @swampyankee Sen. Bob Dole got 10th veterans good tickets up front for the ceremonies when the WWII memorial was opened in 2004. It was a horrible hot humid day, but I took my parents - Dad was 81 yrs old and still in great shape. Mom had just had a hip fracture and we pushed her in a wheelchair. Later, I've had the honor of doing some work with Senator Elizabeth Dole and talked with her about our common experience with 10th soldiers, and both were replacement officers too. Such a nice person and he did have a great sense of humor!
When I was in 18th airborne Corps, the 10th mountain division was the most squared away of all the divisions of the 18th airborne Corps, including 82nd, 101st and 24th mechanized. They’re probably the best division you’ve never heard of.
This is awesome, My great uncle Buck was a member of the 10th during WW2. He spoke Lakota, so he was a radio operator and also did weapons maintenance & gear repairs for them. I'm not sure if he actually saw combat, he'd never talk about it. He only said "it's not worth hearing, it'll only give you nightmares" I was 8yrs old the last time I saw him, that was back in 1984 when we visited after it was safe to be around mount st. helens after the eruption. Uncle Buck was pretty cool, I kept in contact with him until he passed away in 1990.
Thank you for this episode. My father in law, Leroy Moon of Uniontown, Pennsylvania, was extremely proud of his time with the 10th Mountain Division. He trained near Leadville, Colorado and spent time in the Italy campaigns. One of his favorite memories was the long troop ship sail back to the United States packed in with hundreds of fellow Americans. He said they played a lot of cards and smoked quite a few cigarettes. Thanks to all who served. Thanks to everyone preserving their stories.
My dad was on one of those ships too - they were being sent back to train to fight in the Pacific, but while they were on the ship, The Bomb was dropped and the war was over. He always said they kind of got one on the rest of the troops - they thought they were going to be the first to go back to battle while their fellow soldiers were still in Italy, but in the end they got to go home first! He said you wouldn't have believe the noise on that ship when they learned the news that the war was over!
My Uncle served in the 10th Mtn in Ft Drum during WW2. He was from Binghamton NY. Created his own ski hill after the war. Had a rope loop tow. lift. Right there in Binghamton.
John Tweedy was a member of the 10th in its early days of training and after the war he and other veterans of the unit formed the ski resort in Vail. In 1969 John and his wife, the former Penny Chenery, who was the daughter of Christopher Chenery, owner of Meadow Stables in Virginia, were given the opportunity to name one of the stable's home breds and chose the name Riva Ridge after the division's first significant triumph. Within a couple of years, Mr. Chenery's health was failing and there was pressure to sell the financially stressed farm. But Riva Ridge was the champion two year old which allowed them to move forward. In 1972 he won the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes followed a year later by his stable mate, Secretariat.
My parents bought the Chenery house in Pelham in '72, Riva Ridge's great year. My father was a 10th Mountain veteran (85M) but I never realized that Mr. Tweedy was, too. Needless to say, we cheered like mad that year, and, of course, for Secretariat the next year. Thanks for this.
My son is currently in the 10th mountain up at Fort Drum! we are very proud of him and he’s doing a great job with the second battalion 22nd infantry. I was army for 28 years and because of my MOS, was never able to get to Fort Drum
My dad came in as a replacement officer just before the 10th crossed the Po river. He didn't have the benefit of the training at Camp Hale, but thankfully the snow was gone by that time in April. He earned a Bronze Star. He made lifelong friends in the 10th, and he became very involved in the 10th Mtn Association veterans group, serving as president of the Arizona chapter. He was very proud of his service and we were so proud of him. Dad didn't talk about his service a lot when we were growing up. He wore his army jacket and hat a lot when he worked outside or went hunting etc. As adults we asked questions and he told us more about it. His stories were riveting. And he was so impressed with what his fellow soldiers had done at Mt. Belvedere and Riva Ridge etc. before he joined them. He was very humble about his service. He had a footlocker that had all sorts of interesting things. When he got older, he developed Alzheimer's disease. But the songs of the 10th (90 pounds of Rucksack!) he could remember until very late stages of the disease. He responded to military marching music, and we would march around the house for exercise. I took a trip to Italy and traced his path in WWII (he and Mom had gone on one of the reunion trips and I'll always regret not going with them). I made a video about my trip and how he reacted when I got home and told him about it if you'd like to watch it. ruclips.net/video/kquZ0KLKzQE/видео.html The 10th Mtn Division was an incredible outfit that ended the war in Italy and a few days later the Nazi's surrendered in all of Europe. Thank you for honoring them with this history and tribute. They deserve to be remembered. I've found that many of the current day 10th soldiers don't know any history about those guys in WWII. They should know they come from a long line of incredible soldiers.
My father was in the 10th. 86C company and they were on the assault on Riva (pronounced Reeva) Ridge. He climbed in 1945 and again in 1995 to commemorate the 50th anniversary. He climbed the same route up the cliffs both times. We came up with him from the back side, on the route the Germans used to the top of Riva Ridge in 2000. His and other veterans' stories were impressive, to say the least.
I have loved your chat and watched you whenever I could for a long long time. I said it once and I’ll say it again, I wish you had been my history teacher! The stories of history help it all come together in my mind. If I had known you earlier, you might’ve changed the entire course of my life. I wanted to be a history teacher in the worst way. You so much.
I was on the planning cell in the fall of 1984 to reactivate the 10th MTN. We used their history to name many roads and facilities. The current divisions moto, "Climb to Glory" respond, "To the Top".
@@guntech59the Division should honor the efforts of units and individuals in their more recent history. They have butter bar Louie’s and peach fuzz Privates that were born after the beginning of GWOT.
Another son of a 10th Mountaineer here. My Dad taught me to ski the way he learned, i.e., snowplowing as if I had 80# of gear on my back! Dad died just three years ago at 97.
As always, a very interesting and informative episode. My wife and I had rented a condo in Avon, Colorado several years ago. Avon is just west of Vail on I-70. We spent a lot of time in Vail on our vacation. As I read about the area, I learned that all the development of Vail and the ski area had happened after WWII. That’s when I first learned of the 10th Mountain Division. I was amazed at the leadership these soldiers had provided, both during and after the war. Because I love anything related to WWII, we drove to the site of Camp Hale. While you can still see the foundations of buildings and the road network, most of the camp was sold and removed after the war. The foresight of the leaders in the US and the brave ski troops from Finland, that provided the inspiration of forming the division, is truly remarkable.
My Dad's proudest association was he served with the 87th Regiment/10th Mtn Div from the start, Ft. Lewis, Camp Hale, climbed Mt St. Helens in the 40s, through Kiska and Italy. Thanks for your remembering this unique group of heros
Bob “Luggy” Lunstroth was a mentor of mine. He told me his Germany /Italy stories. And here they are on your vid! We logged together in Snoqualmie Wa. for 15 years. In the 90s. Volant skis in Colorado made a 10th Mt. Division commemorative stainless steel ski. Made in USA and members of the division got a great discount. Luggy bought me a pair. I still ski on them. Luggy, Miss you ol freind. Another well done vid!
Thank you for this story. My dad was a member of the 10th Mountain from 1944 until the wars end. He was in the Po River Valley campaign and also at Lake Garda.
I was in the ID Army National Guard, 116th Combat Engineer Battalion in the mid through all of the 1990s. For several years, we were attached to the 6th ID up in Ft. Richardson, AK. Funny enough, a lot of winter gear used by the 10th Mtn Division was still in use until then with just minimal updates. The biggest change was clothing, thankfully! The new clothing and gear (esp sleeping bags) would almost melt you, they were that good. Thankfully. Mountain and Winter warfare was actually great, we were doing what most of the Army wasn't. I still use my combat boots today!
Lance (THG) As a member of The National Ski Patrol (NSP) for 38 years and counting, I would say that you did an excelent job describing how normal citizens banded together for the war effort. When I was a NSP candidate, we were taught this history and we were evaluated on the organizations history as a part of our training. Charles Minot "Minnie" Dole and how the NSP assisted in forming and training the 10th Mountain Division is defenitly "Histroy that Deserves to Be Remembered" Thanks Again!
It is an unusual unit in that the First Special Service Force was created to fight the same kinds of Arctic and mountain battles the 10th Mountain was. Now the FSSF was also half Canadian and had sponsorship from the Commonwealth and I suspect that is why the US Army decided to create the 10th Mountain. They basically ended up fighting in Italy in a similar role as the FSSF did. The FSSF was the prototype for the Delta Force and Green Berets. Both the 10th and FSSF were created for the same sort of fighting and God Bless Em for the battles they fought
I was a CBT Engineer stationed with the 562nd.Engineer Co. Alaska.I was given the opportunity to train as a cross county skier pulling a RKO.Supporting the 172nd Infantry Brigade.Was involved with a live fire maneuver and sent a head of the infantry to remove practice mines.That experience gave me more than just appreciation for what the 10th did in Italy.
Grew up in Colorado in the 50’s and 60’s. Tenth Mountain Division has an enormous legacy including backcountry huts and ski resorts. I learned rock climbing from a 10th Mountain veteran. Amazing guy.
When skiing around New England in the 1980's - 1990's every once in a while we would see a group of hardy older men skiing. We found out they were WW II veterans from the 10th Mountain Div. having a little reunion on the snow. Still solid skiers, never in flashy clothes, but with functional older clothes and equipment. At the time, I didn't realize these were the last few left that could ski. Thanks to the History Guy, we can all remember the Greatest Generation of Skiers in the 10th Mountain Div.
My Dad was in the 10th Mtn Division. For him and his buddies it was life changing. All the side notes in this presentation are true and significant. Also included was Mammoth Mountain ski area starting in its' early days. Much of what that area was and became was due to the influence of these men. Also of great note is the National Ski Patrol System. (I hope the NSPS is covered in this channel.) Thanks History Guy. The material in this presentation means a great deal to my family and many friends.
I am traveling in Italy this week and just west of the area where the 10th mountain division did the assault. The terrain here is very steep. There is ton of history to explore here.
From the tribal areas in eastern Afghanistan, to Baghdad when the Civil War kicked off, to Kurdistan in northern Iraq, in the first Delta Company since WWII, I have some stories and lots of friends with stories. Check out Not a Good Day to Die...1-87 and the 10th's mission and battles in the opening of the war on terror and Operation Anaconda. To The Top!
The US Army's first mountain and ski troops were the 1st Special Service Force, popularly know after the war as the the Devil's Brigade. This joint American-Canadian regimental size force preceded the 10th Mountain Division. Their cold-weather training, initially intended for use in a suicide commando operation in Norway, came in handy during the Aleutian Campaign and in Italy from 1943-44. They were redeployed for the invasion of southern France, augmented by what was left of the three seriously mauled Ranger battalions previously commanded by William Darby. This left the US with no mountain troops in Italy aside from the much feared French Moroccan goumiers who were equally regarded for their skill and courage in combat as they were for their atrocities committed during their off-duty time. This situation improved greatly with the arrival of the 10th Mountain Division in late 1944. Had the 10th been available in 1943 to fight alongside the 1st SSF and Darby's Rangers, what a difference it could have made in the Italian campaign. As a postscript it should be noted that Colonel Darby became assistant division commander of the 10th Mountain Division, but was killed in action on 30 April 1945. He reportedly was the only U.S. officer honored with a posthumous promotion to General during World War II. Rangers lead the way.
My father in law worked as a civilian at Camp Carson. Once a month they flew him to Camp Hale in a light plane. An unforgettable experience and a little scary.
My great uncle, James Hilley of Calhoun Falls, South Carolina, fought with the 10th Mountain Division. Along with 24 other soldiers, he drowned in Lake Garda when a sudden storm swamped their DUKW during a crossing. As well as I remember, only one soldier survived the incident.
The 10th has a wonderful monument in Thompson Park, Watertown NY. Not far from their base, Fort Drum, in the scenic and frightfully cold and snowy Jefferson County NY.
The owner of the company I use to work for was in the 10th Mountain Division. After the war he went back to Denver to work then take over his father's orthodontic manufacturing company Rocky Mountain Orthodontics. Martin Brusse was a great guy, he would walk around the plant talking with the workers.
The Colorado History Museum in Denver has a section dedicated to the 10th. I also learned from talking to some of the WWII veterans that although they trained on skis at Camp Hale, there was only a single recon patrol on skis (as mentioned in the video). Many of the ski runs in Colorado (especially in Vail) are named after the WWII objectives they assaulted.
The Colorado Trail passes through Camp Hale. Hiking that trail you can see just a sampling of the phenomenal number of things the veterans of that division have created in the area. A huge service to many that might never know the history.
Nicely reported! My dad was artillery in the 10th in Italy, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal. He was in the "artillery rear", on the front, and also behind the lines, and always seemed to be at the kinetic point of the spear (although he didn't say it that way; I discovered this over many years of asking questions and listening to his war stories told only to myself). He was on Riva Ridge (pronounced "Reev-uh"), and crossed the Po under direct arty fire. He almost lost his life many times but the closest shave was on Lake Garda in a night crossing of DUKWs. I report on it in my RUclips channel, BTW. The TMD led the Spring Offensive in North Italy, after having boldly cut through the Apennine Mountains in a way only mountain troops could. The British in charge of the offensive designed it with themselves in the lead, but when the 10th tore forward into the Po, they led everybody and to hell with the orders. Cutting the German tanks off at the Po allowed the Brit 8th to advance (look at a map). Dad was behind the lines a couple of times on scouting missions and with TF Darby, and was nearly killed on the same day and the same place where Darby was killed. Legacy: only mountain and ski troops ever of divisional size in the US Army, generated surprise offensive power in the mountains, achieving a surprise vertical assault in winter, first across the Po and the vanguard of the 15th Army Group in the Spring Offensive. The German general, von Veitinghoff, asked to surrender the whole Italian front to MG Hays commanding the 10th, as an honorarium, and did so. Mark Clark wrote in his book how they bugged a chateau full of Nazis only days after the war, and when they got drunk they only had praise for the offensive momentum of the TMD. In the longest ground campaign in the West, the Italian campaign, the 10th MTN DIV racked up more medals-per-day and more casualties-per-day than the other vaunted and praiseworthy divisions of the US. In a campaign replete with special forces type units - rangers, airborne, the Hermann Goering Division, Otto Skorzeny's commandoes, Brit commandoes, Gurkhas, gebirgsjäger, fallschirmjäger, OSS - the list is long because it was a campaign of both regular troops and very elite troops - the 10th deserves a place of pride as perhaps the best trained and having proven their merit in two short, bloody campaigns that were decisive on a theater level. THG has given a great report here because he rightly points out that the 10ths' unique training made the difference, and I'd like to emphasize that the TMD trained themselves in mountain warfare, not the army. The army just cannot train mountain warfare because it's too specialized, and so the guys who came from the sports of skiing and climbing told the army to shove it, and formed their own training protocol. The army didn't like it, but the proof was in the pudding. There we go: my 2 cents. I just subscribed here.
Another contribution to the post war ski industry and mountaineering was the availability of cheap Army surplus gear, particularly skis and nylon ropes.
Thank you so much for what you do. Along with remembrance comes meaning for what happened. Along with meaning comes the concomitant justification for the decisions that were made and the actions that were taken. The results of those actions lead to what we have today, with our many thanks.
My Dad was a MP with the 10th @ Camp Hale and in Italy. Dad's MP Unit brought Gen Hays and his command into the battle grounds. He was at Riva Ridge and Mount Belvedere and they chased the Germans into the Dolomite's. Dad received a Bronze Star for Meritorious Service in Combat. He turned us all into Skiers so far 3 Generations.
1:09 Simo Häyhä (December 17, 1905 - April 1, 2002) was a Finnish soldier. He has the highest recorded number of confirmed sniper kills in any major war.[2] The Russian soldiers began to call him as "White Death". He had over 500 confirmed kills during Winter war, which lasted only 105 days. cite Wikipedia.
WE ARE THE 10TH MOUNTAIN INFANTRY, WITH A GLORIOUS HISTORY ON OUR OWN TWO FEET, ALL OUR FOES WE’LL DEFEAT, LIGHT FIGHTERS MARCHING ON TO VICTORY. WE GO WHERE OTHERS DARE NOT GO, THROUGH THE HEAT OR COLD OR SNOW, WE ARE PROUD TO BE IN THE ARMY OF THE FREE. CLIMB TO GLORY, MOUNTAIN INFANTRY. CLIMB TO GLORY, THE LIGHT INFANTRY
The episodes and Stories by the History Guy. Are too my opinion & POV fantastic intriguing & just mind bending & boggling but very informative & thus too myself very helpful as always. Thank You again.
The 10th existed during the cold war as an Army Reserve battalion in Colorado. I served in C Co. 3/87 Inf. in Grand Junction, CO. A & B companies were on the front range (eastern Colorado) and D company was in Durango.
Bob Dole was wounded, not 'injured'. I've read both that he was wounds were from artiliery and also from a sniper's bullet. I suspect it were the former. Nice work, THG.
Really cool that you mentioned the Studebaker Weasels. A correction is nessiaary. They were originally designated as T-28, but the final product was the M-29 and amphibious ones were M29C. Love your content and keep up the great vids!👍
In this part of the video I remember when my 2nd duty station was at FORT GORDON in Augusta Georgia and in the spring and such months we had maneuvers on base. I was attached to the 67th signal corp,Charlie company and in the winter b and c companies were sent to FORT DRUM IN1978-79 and back then we lived in very old barracks and it was very cold,so the Army issued us special winter gear, and year's later my nephew was stationed there as a helicopter mechanic but the 10th is a active division only deployed in extreme cold conditions.and I remember that there was nothing there and it's in WATERTOWN which is a very small town small population so the more of the time I spent it on base going to the NCO club to bite my time, but it's good to know the history of FORT DRUM and I was never curious about FORT DRUM, BUT it's good to know some 40 year's ago.
My uncle was in the 10th as a combat engineer. He had fought from 1939 in Engilish radar stations to N. Africa, to Scicily, to Anzio, and all the way up to the Po. He said he had to put in the bridge over the Po with no training, as the designated unit fled upon the first German shelling event. He ended up being one of the first Americans to leave Europe due to his "points". His stories were incredible, but, sadly, never written down as his wife refuse to allow him to tell them. His own children did not hear the stories he told me. He watched the partisans string up Mussolini. He took out Tiger tanks dug into hill top villages by observing they did not have enough machine guns. You could run up to them and attached spider charges, a la Saving Private Ryan.. Today's Americans are clueless as to what was sacrificed to give them our country today.
You should have said this was the WWII history of the 10th. Since their reactivation in 1984 (if I remember correctly), they carry forward the WWII legacy of adaptability and tenacity in a number of humanitarian assistance, peacekeeping, and wartime deployments. I still scratch my head about Regan’s decision to post them at FTNY, a post flatter than Fort Bliss! They do get plenty of cold though!
I am also the son of a 10th Mountain Division trooper. My Father even tried to re-enlist for the Korean War, but the Army Recruiter told him that he had done his duty, and he should go home and eat dinner with his family every evening, and sleep in his own bed every night. So he went next door and enlisted in the Navy! We lived in Detroit, so my Dad was assigned to the Great Lakes Patrol Boat station on Belle Isle. I remember him in his white uniform, and sometimes in his Blues, walking down the sidewalk to the bus stop for his trip to his Duty Station. And, you know what? He ate dinner at home with his family every evening, and slept in his own bed every night!
I was WIA friday 13th Nov 2009 in Wardack Afghan, as an Enlisted Marine infantry on an advisory team, and 10th Mountain rescued me and evac me, I am alive today , becuase 10th Mnt, "Alpha" company saved my life. the only surivor of a 5 man vehicle IED. 10th Mnt holds a special place in my heart. Semper Fi.. i never forget to them thank you, as long as i live.
God bless you Marine!
Thank you for your service. I am glad you made it back home.
I retired from 2/22 Inf Bn, part of the 1st Bde, 10th MTN. Do you have any more info than 'Alpha Company'.
@@guntech59 Wardack Afghanistan 2009 Nov.. they where there and were from Ny Ft Drum i think.. apache Company ..was good people.. i have nothing but thanx and honor for them
Thank you - and them too! God bless you and keep you.
I'm the son of a 10th Mountain trooper. Tales of the 10th in WWII were part of my family culture. My dad told me that when the 87th Regiment reached the Po River, they didn't have any boats. While searching for boats, they ran into an engineer unit that was bringing boats to the river for the 87th Division. At first the engineers wouldn't give them the boats, but the 10th Mountain soldiers convinced the engineers that they were the "87th" the engineers were looking for. And with that little numerical misunderstanding, the 10th was first across the PO.
Crafty boys... the 87th probably wasn't happy about the 10th Mountain stealing their boats to cross the Po!
Probably happy they did so they didn’t have to go
@@kristoffermangila They didn't steal them as much as delay them. The engineers use the boats to perform an "assault river crossing", where they shuttle the attacking troops across the river, but they always retain control of the boats. If anything, it would have been the engineers who were unhappy because they most likely still had to turn around and perform another crossing for the 87th. - A former combat engineer.
The 87th was the 10th Mountain. 😊
My grandfather was a 10th Mountain vet! Trained at Camp Hale, CO. Thanks for doing this episode!
I am grateful to your grandfather for his service. A part of the Greatest Generation. ❤️🇺🇸🙏
Same :D
As a vet, he must have felt bad for each of the mules that were worked to death so the troops could reach their goals. We often don't think much about the horses and mules that died in wars. Although the German army of the Second World War is thought to be a mechanized army, it actually relied upon horses to a great deal, many of which were killed during the war.
The 10th had their own medical and support staff. My mom was a Sergeant in the 10th's medical support unit. She passed some years ago, but was a proud WW-II Vet until the end.
When I taught World War II I invited retired teachers who had served to come to class. Two of them, a Marine rifleman and a B-17 ball turret gunner, were glad to share their stories with my students. Each came several times. A third, who'd served in the 10th, only came once. It was very clear that, even 40 years after the war, he was very uncomfortable talking about his experiences. Having his best friend die in his arms left its mark.
This was a fitting homage to the 10th. Great job as usual, Lance!
My father was in combat in northern Italy with 10th and was always hesitant to talk about his experiences in shooting a BAR at other people and having them shooting back. North of Leadville, Colorado at Tennessee Pass is a large stone with names of many men in 10th killed in action...when I first saw that memorial stone in 1970s, I understood better why Dad wanted to minimize memories of combat. Thank you very much for this video.
MY father was in the 10th MOUNTAIN DIV.- NEVER talked about it until his last years-then only recounting the human stories.
My Great Uncle was one of the founding members. He was born in Finland and later moved to the US.
My father was was in the Tenth NOT a skier. He fought in the mountains in Italy between battles he lead a mule to bring supplies forward. The officer that picked him said you're from S Dakota "Yes Sir" it gets cold there "Yes Sir" you just volunteered for the Tenth Div. He walked from the port in Florence to Venice and fought in the Po valley. He was commended and given the Bronze star for his fighting in the Po river crossing.
My dad had lots of stories about the donkeys too! Dad joined as a replacement office just before the crossing. He was in 86-H. He earned a Bronze star too. Not sure why they put Dad in the 10th, except he grew up in South Bend, Indiana in the snow belt, and he knew how to ski and did a lot of outdoors hiking and climbing. Dad never had to ski with the 10th either. Your dad sounds like an incredible person!
My dad is from S. Dakota/ N. Dakota. He was originally supposed to work with the mules and ended up to be a Medic.
Those pack animals were likely trained at Fort Robinson, the army's last remount station, at the southern reaches of the black hills near Crawford, Nebraska.
My father was a member of the 101st, trained at Hale. I moved to Colorado from Philly in '75. Dad and I first (re)visited the area back in the 70's, as we approached the Pando Valley and the actual camp site he started telling me where everything was located, buildings, training areas, skiing areas on the mountain, etc. Many photo's he took back at Hale during the war survived and verified everything he said. We visited again in the 90's a month before he passed. I think his experiences here defined his life afterwards, certainly helped to shape my life as a long time member of the Ski Patrol, and outdoor skills instructor. Thanks for posting this, we must never forget their sacrifices.
I think the same thing about my dad - his experience with the 10th really shaped who he was and his life in so many ways!
Ski Patrol at Ski Cooper?
@@waggtech4883 Spent many days patrolling at Cooper, but as a visiting member of a backcountry ski patrol. Ski Cooper is/was one of my favorite areas with tons of BC to explore.
People came back from Afghanistan sporting their spiffy new 10th MD combat patch. No one was wearing our brigade patch as the combat patch. The brigade commander visited us from Iraq. I saw it coming, a few days later he had ordered us to wear our brigade patch as our combat patch. Weeks later when I was transferring to Fort Livingroom I noted no one had made the switch. Not even the officers. My company commander was still proudly displaying his 10th MD combat patch.
As a Fiinish-American-mom’s parents were Finnish I was so pleased to see you touch on the Finn’s and the Winter War. I was even more pleased to see the photo of Simo Hayha, the most famous sniper in the world. Russians called him White Death. Simo was credited in single handedly killing over 500 Russian soldiers…with iron sights, no scope , no spotter…often in -45 F degree weather. He had scores more kills by machine gun…
He’s a hero by any account and highly revered by the Finn’s…
Your story on the 10th? Outstanding! Thank you very much. My dad invaded Saipan, our second D-Day…
My old division, though the modern iteration of the 10th Mountain. I was stationed at Fort Drum, NY for six years as an AH-64 Apache attack helicopter mechanic/crew chief with the 10th Mountains Combat Aviation Brigade
My utmost respect to the 10th Mt Division. I lived in far upstate NY for 10 years and often passed the exit for Fort Drum on my way home from visiting family
in PA. I moved back to PA after those 10 years, but my attention was still arrested by this title coming up in the youtube feed. I must tell you I once had work as a technician building 'boards' in electronics for Apaches and other military. I was outraged when our shop closed and they sent our jobs overseas. Outraged. Our troops should only be supported by those of our own country, for who loves them better than we Americans?
Thank you for your service! My dad was in the 10th in WWII. He enjoyed meeting "current day" 10th soldiers.
Thank you for the lesson.
While stationed atvFt Lewis Washington in the mid 1980s, I had the necessity to employ a lawyer for a civilian legal entanglement.
The gentleman who was well into his 80s at the time had numerous certificates and awards for skiing on his office walls.
One of them was from the 10th Mountain Division.
He had been one of the 10th Mountain Divisions ski instructors.
He related the story that in order to get tp Camp Hale in Colorado some of the units Road Marched from Ft Bliss to Camp Hale as part of their training.
Unfortunately due to the passage of time his name escapes my memory.
I do remember it was February when I met him the first time and even in his 80s, he was going skiing that weekend.
I learned a bit about 10th Mtn Div while training at the US Army Mountain Warfare School at Camp Ethan Allen, VT. That school was probably the best Army school I attended. No yelling or horseshit. The instructors came out, greeted us, told us to ruck up with our ropes & gear, and we walked.....up......and up......and up. Great course. I wished I completed the winter phase as well.
Well told. 52 years a Colorado skier and ski industry rep. here and I owe my love and life in skiing to these men and their insight so long ago. Thanks for your service gents, and thanks for remembering this history History Guy.
These men and their "Army Ranger" counter parts are the base upon which ALL of our "special forces" have been built. But for men like these men, the war in Europe would have been far more costly.
Another great video about OUR great history.
Climb to Glory! 10th MTN, 1994-1996.
Thank you for your service
To the top!
Thank you for your service!
I have a 10th Mountain story. I was a scout in the 3rd ACR in 1985, down in El Paso. During Border Star 85 the 10th Mountain came down to fight us. The 10th is the experimental division in the US Army, so they had those cool FAVs, Fast Attack Vehicles - those sand rail dune buggies with guns. Unfortunately for them the FAVs rode too close to the ground, so they couldn't see over the sage brush dunes without stopping and and standing on their vehicles. They were so low when I spotted them all you could see was their antennas moving around. They rode right through our POV point before I even saw a FAV itself. It must have been 40 feet away, LOL. We clobbered them, of course. I don't care how good your soldiers are, you can't fight cav with light infantry. Its suicide. Incidentally this exercise is the reason the US army doesnt use FAVs anymore. The 10th lost that bad. Its not a bad reflection on the 10th. Whoever decided to send a light infantry unit against a heavy US army cav unit is the foolish one. In the 80s a cav unit was even stronger than an equivalent sized heavy tank equipped armor unit. Cav units have an equal number of tanks, plus one scout vehicle per tank, plus double the training budget. The US army have reorganized cav units since then (separating the scouts from the tankers into different platoons making the units weaker), mostly so they can use the scouts as police in the middle east.
We saw the FAV's running thru the Pines at Lakehurst
Again it's the antenna you see first
3rd ACR destroyed anyone they face in the 80s
I also served in the 3rd ACR from 90-94. Went to the Gulf War. Got out and went into the Missouri National Guard. On my last deployment to Afghanistan our unit served under the 10th Mountain. Had the honor of wearing the combat patch.
My friend was in the 10th Mountain and unfortunately lost his life in Iraq on mother's day 2005 due to an IED. Everyone misses him dearly but he's one of the reasons I eventually enlisted when I was older. Spc Nicolas E. Messmer. Gone but certainly not forgotten.
I was honored to support 10th Mountain Division units in Somalia, 1992-1993. A park in my hometown memorialized a WWII Soldier who was KIA in Italy. "Climb To Glory."
The dude with the 'tache is my dad, helping load or unload a mule with an American! When we were very young, the old man had me and my brother trying to spot him in the war movies.
Thank you very much.
❤
That's so cool!!
I feel fortunate to have spent some time with Senator Dole in 1988 while working for his campaign during the NH primary. He met with his fellow veterans of the 10th Mountain. He had one Hell of a sense of humor.
He had gone in as a replacement jr officer, and always joked about the irony of a Kansas boy who had “never seen a mountain” in the 10 mountain division. His story is in this episode: Ninety Day Wonders: US Army Officer Candidate School
ruclips.net/video/qAEDFsfHQfs/видео.html
@@TheHistoryGuyChannel @swampyankee Sen. Bob Dole got 10th veterans good tickets up front for the ceremonies when the WWII memorial was opened in 2004. It was a horrible hot humid day, but I took my parents - Dad was 81 yrs old and still in great shape. Mom had just had a hip fracture and we pushed her in a wheelchair. Later, I've had the honor of doing some work with Senator Elizabeth Dole and talked with her about our common experience with 10th soldiers, and both were replacement officers too. Such a nice person and he did have a great sense of humor!
When I was in 18th airborne Corps, the 10th mountain division was the most squared away of all the divisions of the 18th airborne Corps, including 82nd, 101st and 24th mechanized. They’re probably the best division you’ve never heard of.
Thanks for featuring the "Winter War." As a Finnish American it was great to see. Sisu!
This is awesome, My great uncle Buck was a member of the 10th during WW2. He spoke Lakota, so he was a radio operator and also did weapons maintenance & gear repairs for them. I'm not sure if he actually saw combat, he'd never talk about it. He only said "it's not worth hearing, it'll only give you nightmares" I was 8yrs old the last time I saw him, that was back in 1984 when we visited after it was safe to be around mount st. helens after the eruption. Uncle Buck was pretty cool, I kept in contact with him until he passed away in 1990.
Thank you for this episode.
My father in law, Leroy Moon of Uniontown, Pennsylvania, was extremely proud of his time with the 10th Mountain Division. He trained near Leadville, Colorado and spent time in the Italy campaigns. One of his favorite memories was the long troop ship sail back to the United States packed in with hundreds of fellow Americans. He said they played a lot of cards and smoked quite a few cigarettes.
Thanks to all who served.
Thanks to everyone preserving their stories.
My dad was on one of those ships too - they were being sent back to train to fight in the Pacific, but while they were on the ship, The Bomb was dropped and the war was over. He always said they kind of got one on the rest of the troops - they thought they were going to be the first to go back to battle while their fellow soldiers were still in Italy, but in the end they got to go home first! He said you wouldn't have believe the noise on that ship when they learned the news that the war was over!
As a native Coloradan, skier and avid history buff, I can unequivocally state that this is my favorite episode!
As a 10th Mountain Vet Climb to Glory and Our Country not Ourselves
My Uncle served in the 10th Mtn in Ft Drum during WW2.
He was from Binghamton NY.
Created his own ski hill after the war.
Had a rope loop tow. lift. Right there in Binghamton.
From the Binghamton area my self. Was this hill on the Southside off Hawthorne Road?
The Greatest Generation. I am so grateful to them. I am also grateful for those men and women who serve in our military today! Thank you. ❤️🇺🇸🙏
John Tweedy was a member of the 10th in its early days of training and after the war he and other veterans of the unit formed the ski resort in Vail. In 1969 John and his wife, the former Penny Chenery, who was the daughter of Christopher Chenery, owner of Meadow Stables in Virginia, were given the opportunity to name one of the stable's home breds and chose the name Riva Ridge after the division's first significant triumph. Within a couple of years, Mr. Chenery's health was failing and there was pressure to sell the financially stressed farm. But Riva Ridge was the champion two year old which allowed them to move forward. In 1972 he won the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes followed a year later by his stable mate, Secretariat.
So that's why Riva Ridge was named as such!
My parents bought the Chenery house in Pelham in '72, Riva Ridge's great year. My father was a 10th Mountain veteran (85M) but I never realized that Mr. Tweedy was, too. Needless to say, we cheered like mad that year, and, of course, for Secretariat the next year. Thanks for this.
My son is currently in the 10th mountain up at Fort Drum! we are very proud of him and he’s doing a great job with the second battalion 22nd infantry.
I was army for 28 years and because of my MOS, was never able to get to Fort Drum
I retired from 2/22 Inf. That was a long time ago though.
@@guntech59
Hoorah!!!! Thanks for your service Sir!
Climb to glory…
My dad came in as a replacement officer just before the 10th crossed the Po river. He didn't have the benefit of the training at Camp Hale, but thankfully the snow was gone by that time in April. He earned a Bronze Star. He made lifelong friends in the 10th, and he became very involved in the 10th Mtn Association veterans group, serving as president of the Arizona chapter. He was very proud of his service and we were so proud of him. Dad didn't talk about his service a lot when we were growing up. He wore his army jacket and hat a lot when he worked outside or went hunting etc. As adults we asked questions and he told us more about it. His stories were riveting. And he was so impressed with what his fellow soldiers had done at Mt. Belvedere and Riva Ridge etc. before he joined them. He was very humble about his service. He had a footlocker that had all sorts of interesting things. When he got older, he developed Alzheimer's disease. But the songs of the 10th (90 pounds of Rucksack!) he could remember until very late stages of the disease. He responded to military marching music, and we would march around the house for exercise. I took a trip to Italy and traced his path in WWII (he and Mom had gone on one of the reunion trips and I'll always regret not going with them). I made a video about my trip and how he reacted when I got home and told him about it if you'd like to watch it. ruclips.net/video/kquZ0KLKzQE/видео.html The 10th Mtn Division was an incredible outfit that ended the war in Italy and a few days later the Nazi's surrendered in all of Europe. Thank you for honoring them with this history and tribute. They deserve to be remembered. I've found that many of the current day 10th soldiers don't know any history about those guys in WWII. They should know they come from a long line of incredible soldiers.
My father was in the 10th. 86C company and they were on the assault on Riva (pronounced Reeva) Ridge. He climbed in 1945 and again in 1995 to commemorate the 50th anniversary. He climbed the same route up the cliffs both times. We came up with him from the back side, on the route the Germans used to the top of Riva Ridge in 2000. His and other veterans' stories were impressive, to say the least.
Now located at Fort Drum, Watertown, NY
Born in Watertown, NY raised on Ft. Drum dad was 10th MNT. I joined after high school and was stationed at Drum for six years. Climb to Glory!
I have loved your chat and watched you whenever I could for a long long time. I said it once and I’ll say it again, I wish you had been my history teacher! The stories of history help it all come together in my mind. If I had known you earlier, you might’ve changed the entire course of my life. I wanted to be a history teacher in the worst way. You so much.
Former Mountain Soldier myself here, thanks for doing this THG!
I was 10th Mountain during GWOT. I hated but loved every minute of it
I was on the planning cell in the fall of 1984 to reactivate the 10th MTN. We used their history to name many roads and facilities. The current divisions moto, "Climb to Glory" respond, "To the Top".
There are many streets here named after places in Italy and Camp Hale. Some have been renamed after places in the 10th's more recent history though.
@@guntech59the Division should honor the efforts of units and individuals in their more recent history. They have butter bar Louie’s and peach fuzz Privates that were born after the beginning of GWOT.
Another son of a 10th Mountaineer here. My Dad taught me to ski the way he learned, i.e., snowplowing as if I had 80# of gear on my back! Dad died just three years ago at 97.
As always, a very interesting and informative episode.
My wife and I had rented a condo in Avon, Colorado several years ago. Avon is just west of Vail on I-70. We spent a lot of time in Vail on our vacation.
As I read about the area, I learned that all the development of Vail and the ski area had happened after WWII. That’s when I first learned of the 10th Mountain Division. I was amazed at the leadership these soldiers had provided, both during and after the war.
Because I love anything related to WWII, we drove to the site of Camp Hale. While you can still see the foundations of buildings and the road network, most of the camp was sold and removed after the war.
The foresight of the leaders in the US and the brave ski troops from Finland, that provided the inspiration of forming the division, is truly remarkable.
My Dad's proudest association was he served with the 87th Regiment/10th Mtn Div from the start, Ft. Lewis, Camp Hale, climbed Mt St. Helens in the 40s, through Kiska and Italy. Thanks for your remembering this unique group of heros
The 1/87 Infantry Battalion and 2/87 Infantry Battalion are still part of the 10th Mountain Division.
Bob “Luggy” Lunstroth was a mentor of mine. He told me his Germany /Italy stories. And here they are on your vid! We logged together in Snoqualmie Wa. for 15 years.
In the 90s. Volant skis in Colorado made a 10th Mt. Division commemorative stainless steel ski. Made in USA and members of the division got a great discount. Luggy bought me a pair. I still ski on them. Luggy, Miss you ol freind.
Another well done vid!
My Grandad was an original 10th mountain. I have a pair of those skis!!
Thanks!
Thank you!
My oldest son was a forward observer in the 10th Mountain in Afghanistan. Being a former Marine from a spec ops battalion, he was ready for anything.
Thank you for this story. My dad was a member of the 10th Mountain from 1944 until the wars end. He was in the Po River Valley campaign and also at Lake Garda.
I was in 10th MTN at Fort Drum, 4-31st Inf. They named a ton of streets there after people and places you mention here.
I was in the ID Army National Guard, 116th Combat Engineer Battalion in the mid through all of the 1990s. For several years, we were attached to the 6th ID up in Ft. Richardson, AK. Funny enough, a lot of winter gear used by the 10th Mtn Division was still in use until then with just minimal updates. The biggest change was clothing, thankfully! The new clothing and gear (esp sleeping bags) would almost melt you, they were that good. Thankfully. Mountain and Winter warfare was actually great, we were doing what most of the Army wasn't. I still use my combat boots today!
Would have been cool if there was some info on how the 10th ended up on Fort Drum in NY
3/14 infantry 10th Mtn 1988-1991. Miss those guys...
Lance (THG) As a member of The National Ski Patrol (NSP) for 38 years and counting, I would say that you did an excelent job describing how normal citizens banded together for the war effort. When I was a NSP candidate, we were taught this history and we were evaluated on the organizations history as a part of our training. Charles Minot "Minnie" Dole and how the NSP assisted in forming and training the 10th Mountain Division is defenitly "Histroy that Deserves to Be Remembered" Thanks Again!
It is an unusual unit in that the First Special Service Force was created to fight the same kinds of Arctic and mountain battles the 10th Mountain was. Now the FSSF was also half Canadian and had sponsorship from the Commonwealth and I suspect that is why the US Army decided to create the 10th Mountain. They basically ended up fighting in Italy in a similar role as the FSSF did. The FSSF was the prototype for the Delta Force and Green Berets. Both the 10th and FSSF were created for the same sort of fighting and God Bless Em for the battles they fought
My father was in the 10th Mt Div during WWII. He trained at Camp Hale and served in Northern Italy.
My high school buddy joined 10th Mountain way back when in 1988. He said it was cold in New York. Good to learn about his unit.
I was a CBT Engineer stationed with the 562nd.Engineer Co. Alaska.I was given the opportunity to train as a cross county skier pulling a RKO.Supporting the 172nd Infantry Brigade.Was involved with a live fire maneuver and sent a head of the infantry to remove practice mines.That experience gave me more than just appreciation for what the 10th did in Italy.
Grew up in Colorado in the 50’s and 60’s. Tenth Mountain Division has an enormous legacy including backcountry huts and ski resorts. I learned rock climbing from a 10th Mountain veteran. Amazing guy.
Good Wednesday morning History Guy and everyone watching...
Thank you. Hope that you have a wonderful day as well.
When skiing around New England in the 1980's - 1990's every once in a while we would see a group of hardy older men skiing. We found out they were WW II veterans from the 10th Mountain Div. having a little reunion on the snow. Still solid skiers, never in flashy clothes, but with functional older clothes and equipment. At the time, I didn't realize these were the last few left that could ski. Thanks to the History Guy, we can all remember the Greatest Generation of Skiers in the 10th Mountain Div.
Back in the Saddle Again Naturally
My grandson just was released from the 10th Mt. He was stationed at Ft. Polk Louisiana.
My Dad was in the 10th Mtn Division. For him and his buddies it was life changing. All the side notes in this presentation are true and significant. Also included was Mammoth Mountain ski area starting in its' early days. Much of what that area was and became was due to the influence of these men.
Also of great note is the National Ski Patrol System. (I hope the NSPS is covered in this channel.)
Thanks History Guy. The material in this presentation means a great deal to my family and many friends.
I am traveling in Italy this week and just west of the area where the 10th mountain division did the assault. The terrain here is very steep. There is ton of history to explore here.
Thank you, THG, for informing us about a lesser-known detail of the WW2.
From the tribal areas in eastern Afghanistan, to Baghdad when the Civil War kicked off, to Kurdistan in northern Iraq, in the first Delta Company since WWII, I have some stories and lots of friends with stories. Check out Not a Good Day to Die...1-87 and the 10th's mission and battles in the opening of the war on terror and Operation Anaconda. To The Top!
Sounds like the 10th Mountain was shorted on Medals of Honor. I'll bet there were way more than one instance that deserved it.
Agree!
My old man was the supplies guy to the Italian frontlines.
His guys were Basuto, their homeland it a riot of up and down mountains!
The US Army's first mountain and ski troops were the 1st Special Service Force, popularly know after the war as the the Devil's Brigade. This joint American-Canadian regimental size force preceded the 10th Mountain Division. Their cold-weather training, initially intended for use in a suicide commando operation in Norway, came in handy during the Aleutian Campaign and in Italy from 1943-44. They were redeployed for the invasion of southern France, augmented by what was left of the three seriously mauled Ranger battalions previously commanded by William Darby. This left the US with no mountain troops in Italy aside from the much feared French Moroccan goumiers who were equally regarded for their skill and courage in combat as they were for their atrocities committed during their off-duty time. This situation improved greatly with the arrival of the 10th Mountain Division in late 1944. Had the 10th been available in 1943 to fight alongside the 1st SSF and Darby's Rangers, what a difference it could have made in the Italian campaign. As a postscript it should be noted that Colonel Darby became assistant division commander of the 10th Mountain Division, but was killed in action on 30 April 1945. He reportedly was the only U.S. officer honored with a posthumous promotion to General during World War II. Rangers lead the way.
My father in law worked as a civilian at Camp Carson. Once a month they flew him to Camp Hale in a light plane. An unforgettable experience and a little scary.
My great uncle, James Hilley of Calhoun Falls, South Carolina, fought with the 10th Mountain Division. Along with 24 other soldiers, he drowned in Lake Garda when a sudden storm swamped their DUKW during a crossing. As well as I remember, only one soldier survived the incident.
The 10th has a wonderful monument in Thompson Park, Watertown NY. Not far from their base, Fort Drum, in the scenic and frightfully cold and snowy Jefferson County NY.
35 years in Colorado. I spent much quality time in the hut system run by the 10 Mountain Trail Association. 😍
THANK YOU!!! For finally doing a story on the 10th Mountain. To The Top! Demon32, 1-87IN, OEFIV, OIFIV, OIFVII
The owner of the company I use to work for was in the 10th Mountain Division. After the war he went back to Denver to work then take over his father's orthodontic manufacturing company Rocky Mountain Orthodontics. Martin Brusse was a great guy, he would walk around the plant talking with the workers.
The Colorado History Museum in Denver has a section dedicated to the 10th. I also learned from talking to some of the WWII veterans that although they trained on skis at Camp Hale, there was only a single recon patrol on skis (as mentioned in the video). Many of the ski runs in Colorado (especially in Vail) are named after the WWII objectives they assaulted.
The Colorado Trail passes through Camp Hale. Hiking that trail you can see just a sampling of the phenomenal number of things the veterans of that division have created in the area. A huge service to many that might never know the history.
Nicely reported! My dad was artillery in the 10th in Italy, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal. He was in the "artillery rear", on the front, and also behind the lines, and always seemed to be at the kinetic point of the spear (although he didn't say it that way; I discovered this over many years of asking questions and listening to his war stories told only to myself). He was on Riva Ridge (pronounced "Reev-uh"), and crossed the Po under direct arty fire. He almost lost his life many times but the closest shave was on Lake Garda in a night crossing of DUKWs. I report on it in my RUclips channel, BTW. The TMD led the Spring Offensive in North Italy, after having boldly cut through the Apennine Mountains in a way only mountain troops could. The British in charge of the offensive designed it with themselves in the lead, but when the 10th tore forward into the Po, they led everybody and to hell with the orders. Cutting the German tanks off at the Po allowed the Brit 8th to advance (look at a map). Dad was behind the lines a couple of times on scouting missions and with TF Darby, and was nearly killed on the same day and the same place where Darby was killed. Legacy: only mountain and ski troops ever of divisional size in the US Army, generated surprise offensive power in the mountains, achieving a surprise vertical assault in winter, first across the Po and the vanguard of the 15th Army Group in the Spring Offensive. The German general, von Veitinghoff, asked to surrender the whole Italian front to MG Hays commanding the 10th, as an honorarium, and did so. Mark Clark wrote in his book how they bugged a chateau full of Nazis only days after the war, and when they got drunk they only had praise for the offensive momentum of the TMD. In the longest ground campaign in the West, the Italian campaign, the 10th MTN DIV racked up more medals-per-day and more casualties-per-day than the other vaunted and praiseworthy divisions of the US. In a campaign replete with special forces type units - rangers, airborne, the Hermann Goering Division, Otto Skorzeny's commandoes, Brit commandoes, Gurkhas, gebirgsjäger, fallschirmjäger, OSS - the list is long because it was a campaign of both regular troops and very elite troops - the 10th deserves a place of pride as perhaps the best trained and having proven their merit in two short, bloody campaigns that were decisive on a theater level. THG has given a great report here because he rightly points out that the 10ths' unique training made the difference, and I'd like to emphasize that the TMD trained themselves in mountain warfare, not the army. The army just cannot train mountain warfare because it's too specialized, and so the guys who came from the sports of skiing and climbing told the army to shove it, and formed their own training protocol. The army didn't like it, but the proof was in the pudding. There we go: my 2 cents. I just subscribed here.
Another contribution to the post war ski industry and mountaineering was the availability of cheap Army surplus gear, particularly skis and nylon ropes.
Thank you so much for what you do. Along with remembrance comes meaning for what happened. Along with meaning comes the concomitant justification for the decisions that were made and the actions that were taken. The results of those actions lead to what we have today, with our many thanks.
My grandfather was a medium artillery gunner in the Po Valley, 1944.
My Dad was a MP with the 10th @ Camp Hale and in Italy. Dad's MP Unit brought Gen Hays and his command into the battle grounds. He was at Riva Ridge and Mount Belvedere and they chased the Germans into the Dolomite's. Dad received a Bronze Star for Meritorious Service in Combat. He turned us all into Skiers so far 3 Generations.
The Colorado History museum in Denver has a great exhibit on the 10th mountain division with lots of personal stories and artifacts.
Definitely appreciate this bit of history. Gracias!
Has the achievements of the 10th Mountain Division been made into a film? It would be very good.
The 10 Mountain Division trains at Fort Drum in New York State too.
1:09 Simo Häyhä (December 17, 1905 - April 1, 2002) was a Finnish soldier. He has the highest recorded number of confirmed sniper kills in any major war.[2] The Russian soldiers began to call him as "White Death". He had over 500 confirmed kills during Winter war, which lasted only 105 days.
cite Wikipedia.
Thank you to all those that served and currently serve.
WE ARE THE 10TH MOUNTAIN INFANTRY,
WITH A GLORIOUS HISTORY
ON OUR OWN TWO FEET,
ALL OUR FOES WE’LL DEFEAT,
LIGHT FIGHTERS MARCHING ON TO VICTORY.
WE GO WHERE OTHERS DARE NOT GO,
THROUGH THE HEAT OR COLD OR SNOW,
WE ARE PROUD TO BE IN THE ARMY OF THE FREE.
CLIMB TO GLORY, MOUNTAIN INFANTRY.
CLIMB TO GLORY, THE LIGHT INFANTRY
The episodes and Stories by the History Guy. Are too my opinion & POV fantastic intriguing & just mind bending & boggling but very informative & thus too myself very helpful as always. Thank You again.
The 10th existed during the cold war as an Army Reserve battalion in Colorado. I served in C Co. 3/87 Inf. in Grand Junction, CO. A & B companies were on the front range (eastern Colorado) and D company was in Durango.
Thanks!
@@cardeja12 thank you!
I was wondering what those half pint sized bren carriers were called, weasel very apt.
Bob Dole was wounded, not 'injured'. I've read both that he was wounds were from artiliery and also from a sniper's bullet. I suspect it were the former. Nice work, THG.
Excellent research on a little know chapter of WWII. Thanks History Guy!
Really cool that you mentioned the Studebaker Weasels. A correction is nessiaary. They were originally designated as T-28, but the final product was the M-29 and amphibious ones were M29C.
Love your content and keep up the great vids!👍
In this part of the video I remember when my 2nd duty station was at FORT GORDON in Augusta Georgia and in the spring and such months we had maneuvers on base. I was attached to the 67th signal corp,Charlie company and in the winter b and c companies were sent to FORT DRUM IN1978-79 and back then we lived in very old barracks and it was very cold,so the Army issued us special winter gear, and year's later my nephew was stationed there as a helicopter mechanic but the 10th is a active division only deployed in extreme cold conditions.and I remember that there was nothing there and it's in WATERTOWN which is a very small town small population so the more of the time I spent it on base going to the NCO club to bite my time, but it's good to know the history of FORT DRUM and I was never curious about FORT DRUM, BUT it's good to know some 40 year's ago.
Always a delight to fall across The History Guy.
My uncle was in the 10th as a combat engineer. He had fought from 1939 in Engilish radar stations to N. Africa, to Scicily, to Anzio, and all the way up to the Po. He said he had to put in the bridge over the Po with no training, as the designated unit fled upon the first German shelling event.
He ended up being one of the first Americans to leave Europe due to his "points". His stories were incredible, but, sadly, never written down as his wife refuse to allow him to tell them. His own children did not hear the stories he told me. He watched the partisans string up Mussolini. He took out Tiger tanks dug into hill top villages by observing they did not have enough machine guns. You could run up to them and attached spider charges, a la Saving Private Ryan..
Today's Americans are clueless as to what was sacrificed to give them our country today.
You should have said this was the WWII history of the 10th. Since their reactivation in 1984 (if I remember correctly), they carry forward the WWII legacy of adaptability and tenacity in a number of humanitarian assistance, peacekeeping, and wartime deployments. I still scratch my head about Regan’s decision to post them at FTNY, a post flatter than Fort Bliss! They do get plenty of cold though!
Today's 10th Mountain Div is HQ's at Ft. Drum in NY. I knew a bunch of 10th troopers from my ski patrol days at Gore and Whiteface. Ski!
My grandfather was in the 10th Mountain Division. He was wounded in action in Italy.
I am also the son of a 10th Mountain Division trooper. My Father even tried to re-enlist for the Korean War, but the Army Recruiter told him that he had done his duty, and he should go home and eat dinner with his family every evening, and sleep in his own bed every night. So he went next door and enlisted in the Navy! We lived in Detroit, so my Dad was assigned to the Great Lakes Patrol Boat station on Belle Isle. I remember him in his white uniform, and sometimes in his Blues, walking down the sidewalk to the bus stop for his trip to his Duty Station. And, you know what? He ate dinner at home with his family every evening, and slept in his own bed every night!