Falley, Marvin, Cpl

Constituted 5 May 1942 in the Army of the United States as the 424th Infantry Regiment and assigned to the 106th Infantry Division. Activated 15 March 1943 at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. Moved to the 2nd Army #5 Tennessee Maneuver area on 24 January 194h and Camp Atterbury, Indiana on 28 March 1944. Staged at Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts on 12 October 1944, sent to Jersey City, New Jersey on 19 October 1944 and departed the New York Port of Embarkation on 21 October 1944. Arrived in England on 28 October 1944.

Committed to combat in the European Theater of Operations and landed in France on 5 December 1944. Crossed into Belgium on 10 December 1944 and stationed at Winterspelt. On 16 December 1944 the German Army unleashed its Ardennes Counteroffensive (The Battle of the Bulge).

By 19 December the 424th was the last effective regiment of the 106th Infantry Division, the 422d and 423rd Regiments having surrendered to the German Army in the Schoenberg sector of Belgium. The 424th was pushed back across the Our River, losing most of its equipment, and joined other divisional remnants to hold St. Vith on 20-21 December 1944. From 24-30 December the Regiment was attached to the 7th Armored Division and participated in heavy combat around Manhay.

It was then withdrawn to Anthisnes, Belgium. The unit took over the defense of the Wanne-Wanneranval region on 9 January 1945. After helping to clear Ennal, it assembled at Stavelot on 18 January 1945 and was again attached to the 7th Armored Division (23-28 January 1945).

It fought at Meyerode and around St Vith. The unit was then attached to the 99th Infantry Division (5-9 February 1945). It advanced along the high ground between the Berk and Simmer Rivers until it reached the Olds on 7 March 1945.

Withdrawn from the line, given a security mission along the Rhine River until 16 March 1945 when it reentered France. Entered Germany on 25 April 1945. The unit was at Ingelheim, Germany at the end of World WWII (15 August 1945 location).

Returned to the United States via the New York Port of Embarkation on 5 October 1945 and inactivated on 6 October 1945 at Camp Shanks, New York

424TH COMBAT INFANTRY REGIMENT 106th Infantry Division

CAMPAIGNS WORLD WWII:
Ardennes-Alsace (Battle of the Bulge) - Rhineland - Central Europe

DECORATIONS:
BELGIAN FOURRAGERE 1940 (424th Infantry cited per DA GO 45, 1950)
Cited in the ORDER OF THE DAY of the Belgian Army for action in the ARDENNES (424th Infantry cited per DA GO 43, 1950). Cited in the ORDER OF THE DAY of the Belgian Army for action at ST VITH (424th Infantry cited per DA GO 43, 1950).

“NO MATTER THE ODDS”
From a 106th Infantry Division News Letter - ETTLINGEN, GERMANY 1945:
The Regimental Crest which is displayed in the local Red Cross Club game room was designed by Cpl Harold Boye, it has been submitted to the War Department for official confirmation.
The huge, bronze colored Lion, symbolizes the feats of the “Fighting Lion” Division and the 424th Regiment in particular. The Lion is flanked by a Wermacht Eagle for contact with the enemy in Germany, and a pine tree to show the winter campaign. Beneath the sprawling lion are two rows of dragon teeth while creasing the center of the crest is a huge red flash of lightning to depict the speed of the Ardennes thrust in the 106th Sector. The design is mounted on a blue background, emblematic of the foot infantry, and bears the inscription “Quantum Nulla Materia” which means “No Matter the Odds.”

The 99th Infantry Division was formed in 1942 and deployed overseas in 1944. The "Checkerboard" or "Battle Babies" division landed at the French port of Le Havre and proceeded northeast to Belgium. During the heavy fighting in the Battle of the Bulge, the unit suffered many casualties, yet tenaciously held its defensive position. In March 1945, the 99th advanced into the Rhineland, crossing the Rhine River at Remagen on March 11. After fighting in the Ruhr area, the unit moved southward into Bavaria, where it was located at the end of the war.

On May 3–4, 1945, as the 99th moved deeper into Bavaria, it liberated one of a number of Dachau subcamps near the town of Mühldorf. The unit reported on May 4, that it had "liberated 3 labor camps and 1 concentration camp." The concentration camp was one of the "forest camps" (Waldlager) tied to the Mühldorf camp complex. The 99th Infantry's report stated that 1,500 Jews were "living under terrible conditions and approximately 600 required hospitalization due to starvation and disease."

The 99th Infantry Division was recognized as a liberating unit by the US Army's Center of Military History and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1992.

Casualty figures for the 99th Infantry Division, European theater of operations
Total battle casualties: 6,553
Total deaths in battle: 1,168

Division nickname
The 99th Infantry Division, the "Checkerboard" division, gained its nickname from the division's insignia. The insignia was devised upon the 99th's formation in 1942, when the division was headquartered in the city of Pittsburgh. The blue and white checkerboard in the division's insignia is taken from the coat of arms of William Pitt, for whom Pittsburgh is named. The division was also known as the "Battle Babies" during 1945, a sobriquet coined by a United Press correspondent when the division was first mentioned in press reports during the Battle of the Bulge.