I can't find any information on my uncle's WWII unit. He landed at
Normandy in early July, a month after D-Day and pushed through to
Cherbourg. He said he was, at least for one period, "captain and
company commander" of the (Army) 817th Ordnance Base Depot Company. He
was also in Paris and in Cardiff, Wales. His name is John J. Schwob,
the sweetest guy you could ever imagine, and I would appreciate any
help you can give me in tracing hs unit's history and whether there is
a way to seek members of his unit.
Gratefully, his niece, Gina Einig.
P.S. my Dad is gone now and this is the only veteran I can do this
service for in my family.

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Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 28 Apr 2004 17:54 PDT

Would you happen to know if your uncle was stationed in Texarkana, TX
before shipping out overseas?

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Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 29 Apr 2004 07:55 PDT

While I'm looking into your question, you may want to check out this site:

http://www.postalhistory.com/xq/asp.results/task./y1./y2./searchtype./dt./cc./cd./ct./cs.fr-ps/ts./group.20/pagenum.31/Postal+History.htm

It's a Postal History site that offers actual envelopes, postcards etc
that went through the mails.  This page specializes in military
mailings.  Note the listing for:

U.S. A.P.O.'s
U.S. Army Postal Service A.P.O. 562 11-19-1944 Cherbourg, France 817th
Ordinance Base Depot Company 6c Monoplane Airmail Envelope Crease.
Marking fine. AP00562441119
$2.50

Note, too, the misspelling of "Ordnance" -- you can purchase it for
$2.50, if interested.

I'll let you know what else turns up.  

pafalafa-ga

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Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 29 Apr 2004 07:55 PDT

P.S.  Don't forget to let me know about Texarkana....!

One link you might try: http://carlisle-www.army.mil/library/

This i an "ask the reference librarian" service of the US Army War College.

I hope you find your answers!

J