Paris Goes To War

War came Paris, Texas on December 7, 1941. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent declarations of war of the Axis countries of Japan, Germany and Italy against The United States brought World War II literally to the doorsteps of Paris.

The U.S. response to war hit Paris like a tidal wave and the results were everlasting.

This small East Texas town responded as hundreds of small towns across America did. Its sons, daughters and citizens joined the war effort.

But Paris began to develop its own uniqueness with the opening of Camp Maxey just a few miles north of the city limits in 1942. Two major divisions, the 102d Infantry Division and the 99th Infantry Division, trained there. It is estimated that over 200,000 troops and civilians trained and worked at Camp Maxey during its short 4 years of existance.

Camp Maxey was also selected as a site, as were many other training camp sites in Texas, to house German prisoners-of-war. More than 6,000 Germans were hosted there until well after the last shots of anger were fired in Europe in 1945.

Paris, as was the whole country, was like a stirred pot. The young men and women who came to Camp Maxey to train spent their leaves in town. Many of them met, courted, and married local men and women. Likewise, Paris sons and daughters who left were meeting their future spouses. The long historic ties that had held Paris together as a tight community were stretched around the world.

To and from Paris the letters streamed in and out from friends and families: from the battle fronts, from far-away hometowns, from Washington D.C., to Europe, to The Pacific and literally all points of the globe.

Sad news of soldiers being killed, exciting news of the birth of a new baby, common news about town gossip all swirlled around this small town of Paris. Paris was making its contribution to march the country toward victory.

In 1941 Paris Goes To War.


How To Add A Story & Pictures To Paris Goes To War

If you have stories, pictures or items of interest to contribute to these web pages, please email them to steelyfamilias@yahoo.com. You can send written articles in doc or pdf formats and pictures are preferred in jpg format. Contributions will be posted according the their relevance to Paris, Lamar County, Camp Maxey and World War II. All contributions may be used on these blog web pages as well as any future publications that may appear on the subject.

Monday, July 30, 2018

In Memory of Robert T. "Doc" Kauth, Trained at Camp Maxey, 2nd Infantry Division, 5 Battle Stars, Silver Star, Bronze Star, Purple Heart






Robert T. "Doc" Kauth, D.D.S. of West Bend, died peacefully at Kathy’s Hospice surrounded by his family on Sunday June 24, 2007 at 87 years of age.

Bob was the sweetheart and loving husband to Elaine, his wife of 64 years.
Bob will by deeply missed by his wife and five children, Mike (Ellen) of Menomonee Falls, Kathy (Bob) Dums of Denton N.C., Patti (Dave) Bavlnka of Sun Prairie, Jon (Kay) of West Bend and Arleen "Dolly" (Tom) Steepy of Colgate.

Bob was born Aug. 5, 1919 to the late Dr. Philip M. Kauth and Mabel (nee Roddy) Kauth in the family home in Slinger.

Bob lived in Slinger until 1929 when the family moved to West Bend. He attended Holy Angles School and later graduated from West Bend High School in 1938.

Bob earned a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from St. Norbert College in 1942. While in college he was active in R.O.T.C. and entered the United States Army as a second lieutenant upon his graduation.

He met his wife Elaine (nee Ewalt) of Green Bay while he was attending St. Norbert’s and they were married Jan. 23, 1943 at Camp Maxey in Paris, Texas.

During World War II, Bob served in the United States Army Company A, 9th Infantry Regi-ment, 2nd Infantry Division (Indian Head).

Bob participated in the European Theater and landed on Omaha Beach in Normandy, France on June 7, 1944.

He also fought in Northern France, Rhineland, Battle of the Bulge in the Ardennes of Belgium and Germany.

He was discharged with honors in 1946 as a first lieutenant with five battle stars, a Bronze Star, a Silver Star, the Purple Heart and Oak Leaf Cluster.

2nd Infantry Division

Attached to the 1st American Army, the 2nd ID landed in Normandy on June 7, 1944 in Saint-Laurent-sur-Mer on the beach of Omaha and immediately began the fighting. 

Commanded by General Robertson, the division freed the village of Trévières on 10 June 1944 and then the forest of Cerisy before seizing and defending the 192, commanding the road to Saint-Lô. It crosses the Vire and then penetrates Brittany in August 1944 when it is the seat of Brest.

On December 11, 1944, the 2nd Indianhead was ordered to seize the barriers on the Roer as part of the Battle of the Hürtgen Forest. Following the German counter-offensive in the Ardennes, the division was forced to withdraw to Elsenborn before resuming the offensive from February 1945 onwards. It seized Gemünden on 4 March 1945, reached the Rhine on 9 March and then Breisig on 10 March before assuring custody of the Remagen bridge from 12 to 20 March 1945.

After crossing the Rhine on 21 March, the division seized many German cities such as Göttingen on 8 April, Merseburg on 15 April and Leipzig on 18 April. It reached the Czech frontier on 4 May 1945: on 8 May, the date of the Allied victory in Europe, it was the seat of Pilsen.

The 2nd Infantry Division then returns to the United States and resumes training in Texas from July 22, 1945 until its projection in Japan. But the Japanese signed the armistice before the division was deployed. 3,031 soldiers of the division were killed in action during the Second World War, 457 died as a result of their injuries and 12,785 were wounded.
During World War II, six Soldiers of the 2d Infantry Division were awarded the Medal of Honor.

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