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Third Armored Division Association Records (Digital Surrogates)

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Digital Surrogates from the Third Armored Division Association Records (1941 - 1945, 1993) contain digitized copies of log books, pictures, newsletters, newspaper clippings and newspapers' typewritten transcriptions, concerning the 3rd Armored Division's history, members, military campaigns and accomplishments, recreational activities, and cartoons about soldier's daily situations. Digitized newsletters include the 36th Armored Infantry Regiment's Spearhead newsletter and the 3rd Armored Division's The Ozark Red newsletter. Digitized pictures show the 32nd Regiment D Company and personal files of veterans Lee Garrett (member of the First Battalion, 32nd Armored Regiment) and Hanford Counts (of the 33rd Armored Regiment). Materials also contain excerpts from Anthony Hufnagel's Oral History about World War II training and combat.

In 2023, the 3rd Armored Division Association Archives received a donation of over 800 digitized photos from Jim Grimes. Most, if not all, of the photos were taken by or feature his father, John S. Grimes (1916-2006), when he was a sergeant in the 3rd Armored during World War II. Subjects include training, visits home, and the Battle of the Bulge.

Additional digitized material is available upon request, containing digitized after action reports; Periodic reports; Battalion operation journals; war diaries; narrative reports; and typewritten historic reports, related with operations of the 3rd Armored Division, the 32nd and 33rd Armored Regiments, the 486th Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion, and the 703rd Tank Destroyer Battalion. Digitized materials include articles and memoirs of John T Jones about the Paderborn battle (March 29th - April 3rd 1945); a history of the 143rd Armored Signal Company; the "History of the 36th Armored Infantry Regiment. 3rd Armored division" by Haynes W. Dugan, covering the years 1941-1945; the report "The battle of Mons. 1- 4 September 1944", by 1st Lt Fred L Hadsel; and oversized maps of Germany and Central Europe. Most documents were originally marked as classified in 1945 and then were marked as declassified in 1973 and 1989. Digitized materials also include a series of handwritten personal correspondence, pictures, and clippings of Veteran Melvin Lieurance.

Digital surrogates of audiovisual materials are also available upon request. These materials include digitized video recordings concerning activities and journeys of the 899th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 9th Infantry Division, First Army (1945); 3rd Armored Division, Rocket Barrage and Attack Push Off; Mausbach, Germany (Nov. 15, 1944); 3rd Armored Division, Tank Air Support (Nov. 1944); Third Armored Division in Europe (1944-45); Lafayette G. Pool Hall Dedication, Fort Knox, KY (July 1, 1993); digitized audio recording of Ted Malone's Westinghouse Radio Overseas Broadcast in France (July 14, 1944); digitized oral history interviews.

This collection is managed by the University of Illinois Archives and does not feature precise descriptive information for each item. Discover its contents by browsing the folders and files. For more information, contact an archivist at illiarch@illinois.edu.