Pieces of Haig Derderian’s hidden life in World War 2 keep popping up in my basement.
One day I’ll find letters in pristine condition that he sent from 1942-1945 to his parents in Detroit while serving for the U.S. Army. Another day I’ll find his Purple Heart that he was awarded after being injured fighting the Nazis in Germany in April 1945.
While I never met my father-in-law, Haig, — who passed away in 1990 — I’ve learned an enormous amount of information about him from his well-documented notes, writings, photos, and mementos that he saved during his 73-year life. They are stored in a number of secure, plastic crates in mine and my wife’s basement.
My current passion (call it an obsession!) is delving into the life of him as a soldier serving in the 714th Tank Battalion, Company B, in the 12th Armored Division, nicknamed the Hellcats. My wife, Sue, said he refused to talk about the war with anyone, so she and her mom, Shirley, knew very little.
They did, however, together attend a number of 12th Armored Division reunions that were held over the years throughout the country, including Kentucky, Tennessee, South Carolina, and a number of other states. Haig documented the reunions with photos that include him and Army veterans whom he served with, plus their spouses.
Haig and the 12th Armored Division left the United States on Sept. 20th, 1944 in a fleet of the U.S. Navy’s warships, and arrived in Southhampton, England, 12 days later. They stayed in England until Nov. 11th, when units and battalions began heading to France.
Haig’s 714th Tank Battalion arrived on the shores near Cropus, France on Nov. 21st. After assembling there for a week, they stormed eastward through France and into Germany battling the Nazis for 5 months. The Hellcats did it with speed, precision, and ferocity and overwhelmed the retreating German forces.
But it came with a steep price. One in 3 Hellcats became a casualty by either suffering an injury or dying in battle. Haig was one of those casualties when he sustained an injury after a nearby mine exploded and blistering shrapnel sliced into his arm. He would receive a Purple Heart because of his injuries. Read that story here.
This week in the basement of Haig’s collections, I found 7 fascinating wartime photos. On the back of each photo, he documented what was in the photos. He did an incredible job preserving history and documenting it. I can’t fathom what would have happened if someone else had gotten possession of these artifacts and had just tossed the contents out thinking that it was useless junk.
I’ll post these photos that I found and relay, in Haig’s words, what he wrote on the back.
As I find more of Haig’s writings, photos, and mementos that he left behind, I’ll continue to document his story from the war in my blog.
In April, however, I’m heading to France and Germany to conduct research for a book that I’m writing about Haig, the 714th Tank Battalion, and the 12th Armored Division’s trek through Europe in World War 2. I already have some interviews set up with historians and plan to drive the exact route through small towns that Haig and his battalion took from France to Nuremberg.
