The story of Headquarters Company, 3^rd Bn. under Capt. Frederick Cramer, is the story of its men and more specifically the story of its platoons.  Each with their missions, contributed to the total, and all had the primary mission of helping the Battalion in every way possible.

The Staff, and the Headquarters section were responsible for the planning and carrying out of all operations, and throughout the campaign moved closely behind the Rifle Companies.  So close that one dark night, a German Officer not knowing a certain town had been occupied, tried to find refuge in the Battalion CP.  And it was the Headquarters section which arranged for showers, and church services, and PX rations. and saw to it that men got out of the Line for passes.

The AT Platoon was originally formed into bazooka teams.  Later they got back their 57's, firing them initially at Kinderburen, knocking out an enemy OP and along with the TD's, forcing a Tiger Tank to turn fall.  The next day, machine gun nests located in houses along the Moselle were blasted, and the Platoon learned that they had fired more rounds of 57mm ammo than any other Platoon in the Third Army. Beyond the Rhine there were few occasions for AT work, but there was some firing here and there, notably in the outskirts of Chemnitz.

The A&P Platoon was in the thick of things from the word go, starting off on the banks of the Sauer, clearing a road leading to a Chateau occupied by "I" Company.  Beyond the Sauer, the Platoon climbed the Echternach hill carrying satchels of explosives to help the Doughs blasting the pillboxes.  This was a climb made in those days on the hands and knees, losing three feet for every one gained in the soft mud.  The initial bridge-building assignment for the Platoon came just outside of Irrel.  Here, a field of Shoe Mines were encountered, but in a few hours the field was cleared and the bridge was up.  The biggest tasks were mine-sweeping and hauling ammunition.  But the Platoon even managed to do some capturing, taking one town with mine-sweepers.  The Platoon had been told to sweep a certain road leading into the town of Trabin, which was at the time, still in enemy hands.  At ten o'clock at night, the Platoon moved out, and by 0530 had entered the town, where they waited until daylight.  At 0800. they moved into the town and took it along with twenty eight prisoners and were treated to breakfast coffee by the Burgomeister.

For the Communications platoon, the chief headache was wire, until the advances became so rapid that wire couldn't be put in, and then the radio section went into action.  The Platoon received a Commendation from the Regimental Commander for the work done when the 3^rd Bn Radio section acted as a relay station between the 1^st and 2^nd Battalions and Regimental Headquarters.  But Commendations cannot possibly tell the whole story of the hours and hours of never ending work involved.

There was work indeed for everyone.  And it was all done expertly and rapidly.  Headquarters Company was definitely in there punching.