Quartermasters in World War II
In the European Theater of World War II, steady streams of supplies greatly helped the Allied forces to push the Nazi forces back on several occasions. Quartermasters distributed food, guns, ammunition, and all other sorts of rations throughout encampments, and sometimes even
fought where needed. Without the bravery and fortitude of quartermasters and supply runners, the Allied forces would have been greatly crippled in World War II.
Many quartermasters and supply runners started their careers in the Quartermaster School in Philadelphia. Once there, they were grouped into officer or cadet training, depending on their aptitude for command and their intelligence. Officers were put through a rigorous six-week battle training session as well as an eleven-week academic training session that would prepare them for command in the field. Previously, the rigidity of this training would have only been reserved for infantrymen, but the level of fighting had progressed beyond basic training techniques. For regular cadet training, less time was given for academic training and more time was given for military training. While officers would be commanding supply trains, the cadets would be the ones who actually transported supplies and distributed them throughout many trenches. After around fifteen to seventeen weeks of rigorous training, both officers and cadets were sent out to various battlefronts to bring supplies to the troops stationed there (Cobb 1)
According to one account of a quartermaster,
"…the Quartermaster cadre bore the burden of maintaining the daily requirements of the division cadre, consisting of approximately 2,500 officers and enlisted men, in addition to effecting the receipt, issue, and transportation of hundreds of Quartermaster items, representing many tons of initial issue equipment stocked by the technical service at the station prior to and during activation,” (O’Hair 1).
Supply trucks ran from seaside harbors inland, transporting hundreds of thousands of pounds of food, water, guns, and ammunition across Europe. Often, shipyards were so crowded that supplies were dumped helter-skelter all around the dock, to be sorted out by the supply runners. Trucks were constantly coming to and leaving the shipyard, headed inland to the battlefront. Smoothly running supply trains and drops were essential to the success of General George S. Patton's offensive in northern France, where the Third Army Patton commanded covered over 600 miles in just two weeks (Wiki 1)
For the truck drivers, who also distributed the supplies to the troops once they arrived, rations were often scarce. Extra food rations were given to soldiers first, so if there were any shortages the drivers were hit the hardest. Long drives left no room for errors in rationing, so hunting and other survival skills were a must. Many drivers learned to hunt and fish during their stint in World War II, creating a generation of hunting, fishing, and general wildlife enthusiasts.
Quartermasters and supply runners, in addition to delivering supplies across Europe to needy troops, fought in small arms battles and helped to defend some important areas against the Nazi forces. Especially in the small town of Gouvy on the western flank of the Ardennes Forest, the 89th Quartermaster Railhead Company held off German troops for slightly over four days with minimal outside help. As on member of the company wrote,
"Garrisoned chiefly by truck drivers, clerks, and laborers of the 89th Quartermaster Railhead Company which manned its ration dump, Gouvy held out against artillery fire, tank attacks, and infantry sorties for four days. Although constantly under enemy fire, the men never ceased to issue rations to all units whose trucks were able to enter Gouvy, and most of them alternately passed out ration cans and small-arms fire," (Gouvy 1)
Two American soldiers sustained wounds during that four day period, but more than seventy German soldiers were wounded or killed by the stubborn quartermaster company. After being ordered to abandon Gouvy, some quartermasters still served as infantrymen within a tank division, helping to flush out German raiding parties as well as servicing turrets of the tanks.
As shown by the bravery of the quartermaster troops in the town of Gouvy, the Allied forces were greatly aided by the efficiency and hard work of quartermasters and supply runners in World War II. Owing to the hardships encountered in Quartermaster School and in the field, quartermasters and supply runners came out of World War II with a hearty sense of accomplishment, important life lessons learned, and skills that they would use for the rest of their life. After learning to hunt, fish, and orienteer in the forests and countryside of Europe, a large percentage of these brave men became avid outdoorsmen. Because of this interest in nature, the next generation of children may have benefited and learned to respect and love the world around them more. General George S. Patton once said, "Accept the challenges so that you may feel the exhilaration of victory." Because of the challenges that quartermasters and supply runners faced, the Allied forces felt the exhilaration of victory in World War II.
Works Cited
Colonel Lloyd L. Cobb, Q.M.C., "The Quartermaster School", The Quartermaster Review. Army Quartermaster Museum, May-June 1946. http://www.qmmuseum.lee.army.mil/WWII/qm_school.htm
"George S. Patton & Normandy". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Patton#Normandy
Lt. Col. John E. O’Hair, "Experience of an Infantry Quartermaster", Army Quartermaster Museum. http://www.qmmuseum.lee.army.mil/WWII/division_qm.htm
The Quartermaster Review. "The Garrison of Gouvy". Army Quartermaster Museum, March-April 1945. http://www.qmmuseum.lee.army.mil/WWII/gouvy.htm