145th Engineer Combat Battalion

This information is taken from the official U.S. Army history of the 145th Engineer Combat Battalion and was obtained from the National Archives by Capt. Peter Greenwalt, a commanding officer in the battalion.

Under Patton's Third Army, the 145th ECB was part of the 1137th Engineer Group that included two other battalions, the 188th and 249th. During the Battle of the Bulge, the 145th was first in support of the 80th Infantry Division on the right flank of the Third Army. They next supported the 35th Infantry Division and both were headquarted at Tintange. After that, they were in support of the 90th Infantry Division and when the Battle of the Bulge ended they were in support of the 6th Cavalry. The latter three were all in the zone of the 4th Armored Division. At one point, one of the companies of the 145th was in support of the 249th and the 17th Airborne.

Throughout the Battle of the Bulge, the 145th's activities included engineer work, particularly keeping roads open and cleared of rubble and mines, bridge work and supplying their own security. At times, they laid mines at the front. When the battle was over, the unit was at Wiltz. They then began preparing for the attack of the West Wall, sometime referred to as the Siegfried Line, as part of the Third Army's resumption of the drive to the Rhine.

If any veteran of the 145th wishes to add to this history with their own personal experiences, please e-mail Ryan Smith at rsmith0322@verizon.net