"The mission of D Btry was to protect the south Rapido River Crossing from air attack on the morning of 21 Jan 44. The orders were to have the guns in place at daybreak. The troops involved in this crossing were the 143rd Reg. of the 36th Div. and a platoon of the 19th Engineers."

"Having the gunds in place means digging a gun pit with sandbagged sides to protect the gun and crew. It was also advisable to have slit trenches nearby for individual use in case of mortar or artillery fire. All in all, a lot of dirty work."

"Officers and sergeants who participated in the mission wer Capt. Maxfield, C.O.; Lt. Grady, Ex. Off.; and 1st Sgt. Donahue. First Platoon with 40mm AA guns 1, 2, 3, &4; Lt. Robertson, C.O. ; Sgt. Ferguson, Plat. Sgt.; and Sergeants Breshears, Stearns, Kitchen and Chichester in charge of the gun sections. Second Platoon with guns 5, 6k 7k &8; Lt. Miller, C.O.; Sgt. Kinsey, Plat. Sgt.; and sergeants Prybuski, Schoeten, Ziglar, and Bunse in charge of the gun sections."

"Sgt. Ferguson served as Lt. in charge of the hearvy machine gun platoon and Sgt. Stearns as Lt. in charge of the heavy mortar Platoon later in the war when Btry D was converted to Co. E, 473rd Reg."

"The Rapido River Crossing event started on the evening of 20 Jan 44, D Btry moved its gun sections in convoy from the bivouac area of S Pietro south to highway #6, west to the S. Vittore Jct., south to the Express Rd. (old R.R. bed) and a short distance on the Express Rd. The side of the Express Rd. was used as a temporary parking area. This was a total distance of about four (4) miles."

"Sometime after dark, probably around 2100 hours, the convoy proceeded to the south Rapido crossing area. It took three hours to go three miles. D Btry's route left the Express Rd. about a mile and a quarter west of the S. Vittore Rd. Jct. Here the route followed a narrow rock-paved country road in a west/southwest direction. Guides were placed at road intersections to direct the gun trucks. As Executive Officer, I followed in the rear. Loaded Engineering vehicles and equipment going to the crossing area added to the traffic conjestion. Returning ambulances at times blocked the road. The only alternate to a complete traffic stalemate was to cut the adjoining trees and improvise a bypass into the adjacent muddy field. fortunately, the route chosen for D Brty had only 2/3 of a mile section with these conditions."

"At 2255 hours there was a heavy artillery barrage. I thought "the infantry is getting ready to cross", but the barrage stopped some 5 minutes later. Not much preparation for a crossing. The 56th Div. artillery consisted of two btrys equipped with French made (straight trail) 75mm (3") guns and one btry of American 105mm (4.2") guns (split trail). The Corp artillery was 155mm rifles (Long Toms). American 205mm rifles and 240mm howitzers were not available to support the crossing. These guns did arrive later in March. The principal support for the Infantry was the Div. 4.2" ; and 81mm mortars."

"The 2nd platoon's guns 5, 6, 7, &8 were in place and ready for manual operation at daylight, 21 Jan 44. The 1st platoon's guns were in bivouac 1000 yds. from the river crossing. Telephone lines were in place from the Brty. C.P. to each operational gun position and Platoon C.P. Phone communications were established with the 19the Eng. Fwd C.P. where Lt. Robertson reported frequently the infantry's progress in securing both river banks of the south crossing."

"On 21 Jan 44, the 2nd Platoons guns were relocated closer, about 1000 yds plus away from the river (Refer to map for exact gun locations). The 1st Platoon's guns were still in bivouac, but ready to move on a moment's notice."

"While there was no rain, fog limited visability at best to 300 yards during the first two days of fighting with some clearing on the third day (22nd)."