Quartermaster Supply Operations - US Army Combined Arms Center ...

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For each armored division, 1.5 cordiany - or a to-
tal of 17.5 companies for the I3 armored
divisions in tho 12th h y Group.
For each irsantry division, tvuo oonpnies - or
n totaZ of 64 companies lor the 32 inidintry
divisions in th6 12th Arlr;. Group.
b. At no time, howev~r, were 103 COinEbniea sssiknea
to the group. In Se,tember 1944, the 12th Amy Grcug hfla h total
of 30 service oampcnios, of which i9 were assiLaed to tno
First US Army, 14 to the Third US Army and five to the ldnth
US Army. It was COIlSiderQd that a mininun of 19 cor&pnibs for
each arniy was reguired for operations in libexted territory
and 25 for o$eratiana in Oefllany.4 Towards &he lbttav 3hRsas
of the Camkaim each of the three armies wllich croavcd thc;
Rhino River had ap-jroxioiataly 25 companies assi~nud.3
c. AllOaQtion of Quartermastar Service car~p”ms
within the 6th Amy Group was liriited. In the initial lending
in Southern France in &Lust 1944, the Seventh US Arw,r vJGs hondicappcd
in labor operations on the bencha due to the small nunber
of sorvioe companies available. Throuehout. this campaijn
tho Continental Advance Section and The Dolta Base Section of
the Southern Lines of Cammudoation dependea heairiiy on Italian
service units, prisoqer of w&r labor unittl, and, to e 1hiteU
degree, on civilian labor.12,14
63. Method of -mploynenti.
a. The Quarte,mastsr Service Corn$" was normallj
employed in thu guropean heater of Operations t o perfortu &Qnera1
labor and kuard duty, sopervise prisoners cnd prisoner of
war labor, and to suppLement or replace uopot suyply and railhead
cohlpanies in suppl;. oyerations.2
b. typical cxanple of the asoianment of service
companies was that of the First US Army on 7 liarch 194.5 with
a total of 21 companies available:6
(I) ~uartermsterdeDot oderations - 7
(2) One to each of threc corp~ - 3
(3 ) Cometery work - 2
(h) Solid fuel labor -1.
15) class I11 ogerations - 1
(6) Si,pal supply operations - c
(7) Ordnance depot operations - 4
(8) &&inoer depot ojerations - 2
At other t‘mes connanies were assimned to auUUcnt labor at
hospitals,+ operat; or supplement railheads ana trookheads,lO
and supplement personnel De Lravea registration companies for
field operatsons.
c. In the ComunLoations Zone serviou Collpanifis
were utalized primarily to buard and 6.tpperviue workin& prison-
ers of war. As oporationa ppocxessed dee&eP inside NrrJanY,
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