When I in-processed at the 287th personnel office, they said that I was going to be assigned to the 2nd Battalion. Whoa! That's in Iceland! I asked if there were any levees for Korea instead, the clerk checked and said that he would assign me to the 1st Battalion for subsequent duty in Korea.
While waiting for orders, I met several other men who were also on the same order for assignment to AFFE (Armed Forces Far East). Note their "MOS O/S" (Months overseas). They had from 28 to 42 months service in Korea before and during the war. As I recall, they all had been POWs. SFC Pera and PFC Eldridge had been there when the war started.
SFC Pera used his POW back pay to buy a brand new Ford. A new Ford car in 1954: $1548-$2415. He asked us if we'd like to drive from Devens to Fort Lewis with him. We agreed and headed for Fort Lewis. The car had no radio, no air, an unpadded dash, a steering column that could impale the driver on it if an accident happened, no turn signals (you stuck your left arm out the window to signal when you turned or slowed down) and other safety features that we now take for granted.
in 1954. pay for an E2 was $101, E3 was $118, E6 was $183 and E7 was $214. i wonder what the poverty level was in those days.
We drove non-stop with only short gas, food and piss calls from Massachusetts to Washington State. The driver and co-pilot switched jobs during their shift and the two in the back seat"tried" to sleep until their driving shift started.
We took US Route 20 which took us from Fort Devens through Springfield and Pittsfield, MA; Albany and Buffalo, NY; Erie, PA; Cleveland and Toledo, OH; Elkhart and South Bend, IN; Chicago and Rockford, IL; Dubuque and Sioux City, IA; South Sioux City and Chadron, NB; Casper and Cody, WY; Billings, Butte and Missoula, MT; Coeur d'Alene, ID; and Spokane to Tacoma and finally to Fort Lewis.
No big deal you say? In 1954, there were no interstates. The building of them was just beginning. The entire trip was on single lane roads with oncoming traffic that went right through every downtown city mentioned and multitudes of small towns all with numerous red lights and stop signs.
When we made pit stops, gas was $.21 per gallon. They checked your oil, checked the air in your tires and cleaned your windshields.
There were no few fast food restaurants so we'd stop at grocery stores and pick up sandwich makings, chips and treats. For example, bread was $.17, American cheese: $.55 lb, catsup (2) 14.oz bottles: $.25. McDonald's, the largest fast-food chain in the world did not appear until 1954. Burger King's first restaurant was opened in 1954. Kentucky Fried Chicken KFC opened in 1952, but there were very few of them in 1954. Beer was $.15 a can and we'd pick up some, but only the off duty back seat guys could drink them.
The open road speed limits were 50 miles or under. We probably averaged 35 MPH. At that speed for 23 hours we covered about 800 miles each day. We did stop at a cheap motel in the middle of the trip to shave and take showers.
The 3,141 mile trip took us 6 days. Today, on the Interstates, it could be done in under 3 days.
We reported in to personnel at Fort Lewis on time. SFC Pera sold his car for a considerable loss to a GI that worked at Fort Lewis.
I've asked myself many times, "Why didn't you just take the train?".
