William "Bill" J Couts
(Extracts taken from interviews and emails exchanges)
" I was eighteen years old when I was drafted into the Army, coming from Ohio.
Before going to the service I worked on the railroad.
I was in the « Tough Ombres » 90th Division 358th regiment, and was on the front lines from the day I landed.
My Rank was Private 1st Class, however I was acting Corporal & sergeant several times.
Training in Wales has been made with real ammo « we were not kiddin' … ! ».
I landed on Utah Beach June 8th, l944. I was in combat June l7th until Nov. l7th, when I was wounded the last time (he was injured three times).
I was a Rifleman with an M1 rifle, also I had a grenade launcher, which I could shot from my rifle.
We were told the jerries were though & rough, but for my 19 yo, nothing was scary ... ! By example I have tried to be the last out of the barrack for the gas training.
My 1st contact with the French people was a old men looking like “the reich boss”, we asked him to stay apart and go back to his own house.
Just arrived in Utah, i was a bit scary but no time to really realize, we were told to go out of the boat very quickly. We almost immediatly heavy artillery noise.
One night we’ve been trapped among a German position, we could even heard them talking. We reach to take their attention away and flew back to our lines.
I have brought back a much more heavier comrade whose leg was only limbs left. I have reached because i was scary ... But many friends suffered from nervous breakdown.
In the Falaise Gape I was a volunteer that went in to a city big church & bring the prisoners out to our side. I carried one young German back to my Co
I think the German soldiers were there, just as I was, because they were told to fight for their country. The Germans put up a good fight, some did not want to fight anymore than I did but some were means.
The French people were very friendly & helpful, they even offered us slices of bread when we passed on a bakery !
He always had my shovel, during artillery shellings “we could have dig with our own hands”
The chow was very poor, we always had K rations, those things made me ill ... as much as i could i have trade it for scrambled eggs ...
On the chow lines, we were only each time given a single slice of bread , when one time i have asked for more the cleck told me “be satisfied with this one, this is the only one you’ll be given !”
When I was wounded the last time (2 bullets in right ankle, near Metz), I was sent to England to a hospital before coming back to U.S.A
I was brought back in the USA for January 1st 1945, i was happy to see snowing back there than being on the frontline
He had been in the hospital in U.S.A, in Kentucky & Virginia for nine months
After the war i went back to civilian life to be a truck driver, thus although the army medic told me that i would never drive anymore .. Tough ombres ...
