<Begin Segment 20>

TI: What was it like when you landed on the ground?

SK: Landed in Italy actually, Naples. Naples was bombarded so it was quite a bit busted up, but we were taken to a place, oh, about a few miles away from Naples itself, anyway, it's barracked in a university building. From there we were given passes so I went to Pompeii and looked around. From there we were transported by train or trucks. I don't remember, but beyond Rome to a place called Civitavecchia. That's when we joined together with the 100 Battalion. So the 100 Battalion is one battalion. When we left Shelby, the first battalion -- we had three battalion: 1st Battalion, 2nd Battalion and 3rd Battalion. So the 1st Battalion was kind of broken up and the men were sent over to the 2nd and 3rd Battalion. So I guess this was all planned because when we went to Italy, then the 100th became our 1st Battalion.

TI: And did some of the men from the 1st Battalion go to the 100th also, too, as replacements?

SK: Yes, that's right. Well, even before that, even before, during training, there was a call for replacement for the 100, and I remember one of our guys went and no sooner he went, we got report that he was killed. We felt bad, but that's what happened. Many of our guys went as replacement. And, of course, as I said, 100th became the 1st Battalion and then the 2nd Battalion was intact, 3rd Battalion was intact, so we made the regiment. But the 100th kept its designation as the 100th Battalion, it's separate, right? So the whole thing was the regiment.

<End Segment 20> - Copyright © 1998 Densho. All Rights Reserved.