ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THIS LISTING:
The soldier in this book was a officer in charge of five light tanks. They belonged to the VII Corps and were the 24th Reconnaissance, Troop F. This unit was assigned to different units during it's combat. Int he beginning of the war they used M-5 Stuart tanks. Later after the Battle of the Bulge they were issued M-24 Chaffee tanks. The soldier letters are filled with graphic details of his combat. The book is a little different in it's set up. The book is filled with letters. Half are from the soldier and half are by his daughter, written after his death. The daughter's letters are a comparison of her life to his war time experiences., like she is answering his letters. For example, His letter talks about killing a bunch of Germans and running over a wounded soldier with his tank on purpose. while her answer letter talks about the guilt she felt working for a company that advertised cigarettes which killed a lot of people. His may talk of hard living conditions and she will mention her vacation to the beach. The soldier stayed in the military and made general. (Far below is a write up of the 24th's combat actions.)
Dear Dad chronicles the journey of General Judson F. Miller’s experiences in WW II as a 2nd Lieutenant commanding a tank platoon of 20 men and five tanks. Landing in France in mid-July 1944, he fought across Europe, surviving the Hurtgen Forest as well as the Battle of the Bulge. After the war ended, he remained on occupation duty. We are drawn into his personal accounting of the war through his letters home. More than 60 letters, never before published, take us into the realities of the coming of age that molded him as a man and his 34-year Army career which would include wars in Korea and Vietnam. (Only WW II is in this book)
In a unique and touching perspective, his letters are intertwined with correspondence written by his oldest daughter to him after his death. She shares the grief of losing her father as well as the regret of not being able to finish reading his war letters with him while he still lived. She captivates the reader with compelling family stories and childhood confessions of humor, tragedy, and love that resonate with us all.
I pulled this combat history of the 24th from the internet:
24th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, Mechanized Active as 2d Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment (HorseMechanized) as of November 1939; regiment redesignated 4th Cavalry Regiment (Mechanized) 16 April 1942, squadron
redesignated 2d (Tentative) Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron. Squadron redesignated as 24th Cavalry
Reconnaissance Squadron on 21 December 1943. Arrived UK 15 December 1943. Landed piecemeal in Normandy
beginning on D-Day. Participated in battle for Cherbourg. Attached the 2d Armored Division during Normandy breakout.
Protected south flank of VII Corps during drive across France, entered Belgium on 3 September and Germany on 14
September with 4th Cavalry Group. Held sections along Siegfried Line until 10 November. Committed to Hürtgen Forest
23 November-13 December. Joined Battle of the Bulge on 23 December. 4th Cavalry Group attached to 84th Infantry
Division for counterattack on 3 January 1945. Crossed the Roer River on 25 February. Crossed Rhine at Bonn, helped
seal Ruhr Pocket in late March and early April. Advanced into Harz Mountains, where offensive operations ended on 22
April.