Activation On 13 February 1942, the 82nd Division was converted from a "square" to a "triangular" division on paper prior to being ordered to active duty, and the 328th Infantry was relieved from assignment to the division and concurrently allotted to the
Army of the United States as an inactive unit. The 328th Infantry was assigned as a subordinate unit of the
26th Infantry Division on 27 January 1943. It was ordered into active federal service on 12 February 1943 and began training at
Fort Jackson,
South Carolina, with Colonel William F. Bigelow as its commander. Training continued at several locations in the eastern United States until August 1944, to include:
Camp Gordon,
Georgia;
Camp Campbell,
Kentucky; 1944’s
Tennessee Maneuvers; and
Camp Shanks,
New York.
Combat in France The regiment departed for France by ship in late August, and disembarked at
Utah Beach on September 7 and 8. After remaining in a reserve staging area until early October to complete additional training and receive equipment and supplies, the regiment began combat operations as part of the 26th Infantry Division. The division was assigned to
Third U.S. Army, and entered combat near
Port-sur-Seille. On October 8, the 328th Infantry augmented the
80th Infantry Division’s attacks on
Clémery and nearby Bénicourt. After a motor march to
Bezange-la-Grande, near
Nancy, units of the 328th Infantry took part in combat near
Vic-sur-Seille, then relieved the
104th Infantry Regiment in defensive positions near the
Moncourt Woods. In November, the regiment took part in combat as the Third Army resumed the offensive, taking part in engagements
Bezange-la-Petite, the Moncourt woods, and the town of Moncourt, which the 328th Infantry captured from the
Germans. In combat near
Wuisse on November 12, regimental commander Colonel Ben R. Jacobs was wounded and evacuated. Jacobs returned to the unit on November 18, and the next day it resumed offensive operations, capturing the towns and cities of
Kerprich-aux-Bois,
Guebestroff,
Dieuze,
Munster,
Givrycourt,
Vittersbourg, and
Honskirch by November 27.
Belgium and Luxembourg In early December, the 328th Infantry advanced on the
Siegfried Line, cleared the woods between Honskirch and
Herbitzheim, and captured Herbitzheim. On December 6, the regiment captured
Weidesheim and
Bining. On December 13, the regiment was relieved by units of the
87th Infantry Division and moved to
Metz for rest and re-equipping. On December 17, 1944, during the
Battle of the Bulge, soldiers from the
Waffen-SS gunned down 84 American prisoners at the Baugnez crossroads near the town of
Malmedy. When news of the killings spread among American forces, it aroused great anger among frontline troops. The 328th Infantry Regiment issued orders that "no SS troops or paratroopers will be taken prisoner but will be shot on sight." On December 20, 1944, the 328th moved from Metz to
Arlon in
Belgium as part of Third Army’s change of direction from east to north in order to respond to the German offensive known as the
Battle of the Bulge. On December 23, the 328th Infantry attacked the Germans in the vicinity of the
Arsdorf Forest in
Luxembourg and captured
Wahl and Brattert. Between December 24 and 26, the regiment cleared and occupied Arsdorf, Kuborn,
Neunhausen,
Eschdorf,
Insenborn,
Bonnal, and Lultzhausen. On December 27, Colonel Jacobs was evacuated because of ill health, and temporarily replaced by his executive officer, Paul Hamilton. On January 3, 3rd Battalion, 328th Infantry was attached to the 101st Infantry regiment for an assault on some nearby woods, after which the 328th Infantry relieved the 101st Infantry in its defensive positions. On January 10, the regiment resumed the offensive, and seized the high ground overlooking the
Wiltz River, after which it relieved the
90th Infantry Division near
Doncols. The 328th Infantry attached on January 14 and captured Grummelscheid and
Brachtenbach. On the 22nd, the regiment captured Selscheid,
Knaphoscheid, and Kleinhoscheid. From January 24 to 26, the 328th Infantry advanced to the
Clerve River, secured crossings, and secured the towns of
Fischbach, Kochery, and
Urspelt. On January 26, the regiment seized its objectives overlooking the
Siegfried Line, was relieved by units of the
6th Armored Division, and established the regimental command post at
Überherrn.
Fighting in Germany On February 12, the 328th Infantry relieved the
101st Infantry Regiment at
Saarlautern and resumed offensive activities. An attack near Saarlautern captured 10 German soldiers, after which the regiment continued fighting in Saarlautern and nearby Fraulautern through February 24. On February 24 and 25, the 328th Infantry was relieved by the 101st Infantry. After resting and reorganizing, on March 5 the regiment conducted a motor march to
Serrig,
Germany, where on March 6 it relieved the 301st Infantry Regiment, a unit of the
94th Infantry Division. On March 13, the 328th Infantry resumed the offensive. Hamilton was evacuated because of illness and replaced as commander by Lieutenant Colonel Aloysius O'Flaherty. On March 16 and 17, the regiment captured six more towns. On March 23, the regiment took over the
Mainz sector of the American lines from units of the
90th Infantry Division. On March 25, the 328th Infantry was relieved by the
16th Cavalry Group, moved to
Oppenheim, and crossed the
Rhine. On March 26, the regiment was attached to the
4th Armored Division, and took part in establishing a defensive line along the
Main River. Back on the offensive on March 28, the regiment captured five more German towns by the 29th. On March 30, the 328th captured 12 more towns as the Allied offensive into Germany continued to gather momentum. On April 1, the 328th Infantry advanced through eight more towns as German resistance became sporadic. On April 4, the regiment cleared the North Fulda Woods of German resistance and captured four nearby towns. After capturing 12 more towns and cities on April 4 and 5, on April 7 the 328th Infantry relieved the 101st Infantry Regiment near Suhl. Resuming the offense on April 8, the 328th captured 15 more towns by April 15, and reached its objective near the towns of
Tettau and
Neuenbau. On April 18, the regiment was relieved by units of the
90th Infantry Division, then was transported to Berner. On April 19, the 328th Infantry attacked behind the 11th Armored Division's advance and captured five more towns. On 24 April 1945, a reconnaissance patrol from Company I engaged German defenders near
Nittenau, Germany. During the engagement, enemy forces deployed tanks and machine guns against the patrol. The unit returned to friendly lines without loss and brought back 42 prisoners of war. Sergeant James G. O’Brien was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for his actions during the mission. On the 25th, soldiers of the 328th captured German field marshal
Ewald von Kleist. On April 26, resistance in the towns of
Egg an der Günz and
Metten fell to the 328th's advance, and on the 27th the regiment cleared the town of
Deggendorf. The regiment cleared 11 more towns of German resistance between April 28 and 30.
Final combat in Austria On May 2, the 328th Infantry defeated resistance in the towns of
Kelberg and
Bad Peterstal-Griesbach. Attached to the
11th Armored Division for combat operations on May 5, the regiment advanced into
Austria and took part in clearing
Urfahr and
Linz of enemy resistance. On May 8, Germany surrendered unconditionally. By the time the regiment ended its combat operations, Colonel Dwight T. Colley, formerly the regiment's executive officer had been appointed as its commander. Following Germany's surrender, the 328th Infantry Regiment performed post-war occupation duty in
Linz.
Casualties During its World War II service, the 328th Infantry sustained 489 killed in action and 64 who died of their wounds. 630 were seriously wounded, with another 20 seriously injured. 1,287 were slightly wounded, with 536 categorized as slightly injured. Twenty 328th Infantry Regiment soldiers were listed as missing in action at the end of the war.
Honors and decorations The regiment's World War II campaign participation credit included
Northern France,
Ardennes,
Rhineland, and
Central Europe. Soldiers of the 328th Infantry Regiment received one
Medal of Honor, nine
Distinguished Service Crosses, and 189
Silver Stars. The recipient of the Medal of Honor was
Alfred L. Wilson, a medic who was wounded in combat at
Bezange-la-Petite in November 1944, but refused to be evacuated and continued to treat the wounded until he fell unconscious. Wilson later died as a result of his wounds, and his heroism was credited with saving the lives of at least 10 soldiers. ==Post-World War II==