>... The point here is not to "show off" or make it look like I'm the
worlds greatest >researcher but to show that research is a great deal of
hard work and, for every >question you find the answer for, you will come up
with five more questions!
***** Colin comments - Agreed. The obvious answer is not always the correct
one. The truth may be staring you in the face or hiding from you. For
example in trying to identify the markings for the Universal Carrier wreck
found in Normandy - the archival military documents provided only a partial
answer. Already readers of the list have different interpretations of what
the markings mean. Trying to confirm which was the senior battalion in the
7th Canadian Infantry Brigade for example provided several different
answers. The truth lurks out there (e.g. in regimental museums and history
books which due to distances and limited print runs are often inaccessible).
There is great danger in jumping to conclusions - been there, done that,
still do it, though I try not to. Having uncovered dozens of wartime vehicle
markings on vehicles, I know that one's first impressions of what the
marking is as it starts to appear are often wrong. I recall thinking that a
marking I was uncovering on my C15A CMP in Saskatchewan was definitely the
ears of a Panda Bear (well ... that is what it looked like!) but upon
further work, turned out to be the number 88 on a RCEME arm of service
background.
> I should also state that for every correct answer you find along
the way you will >probably find several wrong ones.
***** In a 'secret' Canadian Army list of "VEHICLE MARKINGS FIELD UNITS
FIRST CDN ARMY "dated 10 June 44 one at first thinks that one has hit the
jackpot for the D-Day invasion markings, until one looks for the 3rd
Canadian Division that landed on the Canadian beach JUNO (one of the 5 D-Day
main beaches - SWORD, JUNO, GOLD, OMAHA and UTAH) The 3 Cdn Div was under
command of British 1 Corps in British 2nd Army. Later that summer, more
Canadian formations were brouight over to France and First Canadian Army
took on a presence there. The reference quoted unfortunately does not show
the units that went ashore on D-Day. This list has an error in it - a small
typographical error. The Royal Regiment of Canada (R REGT C) is listed in
the numerical section as R REGT R.
>This is why it is important not to just accept the
> "facts" published in all the books as the gospel truth. ....
****** For example, MANY collectors believe that since most Canadian
vehicles in W.W. II in North West Europe had War Department numbers starting
"CM42..." that the 42 referred to the year. Not so. John Marchant in the UK
obtained a copy of the 1944 official British list of WD numbers covering
over 6 million numbers. It unfortunately does not list them one by one, with
vehicle sn (wouldn't that be nice!) but it does list the WD numbers in
batches, usually with the contract number, manufacturer, and generic model
e.g.
M.4589425 Contract SM.2252 Bantam Car 5-cwt 4 x 4
["Car 5-cwt " was the British and Canadian official term for the 1/4 ton
jeep.] Only one vehicle on that contract. There is also reference to Cat.
Ref. "1" in both cases but I have not yet deciphered this catalogue
reference. ]
M.4611716 to 4611775 SM.2262 Bantam. Car 5-cwt. 4 x 4
[for a photo of M4611716 from this contrract see THE JEEP by Bart Vanderveen
p. 11 - complete with a Vickers MMG mounted in Britiah Airborne service with
a Ford GP (?) behind it. Three round rubber rests for the absent
windshield]
Canada was assigned several numbers from this list including the 4 million,
two hundred thousand to 4,299,999 range.
>...after a week of going through every Lend-Lease file I could find there
(there are >thousands of pages of documents) I could confirm that England,
Poland, Brazil,
> China, Netherlands, Canada and Australia all received Ford GP's. ...
***** I have finally found photos of a Canadian GP. Reg Hodgson's earlier
research had indicated the loss of Canada's GPs due to enemy action
(possibly on a torpedoed ship???). One however travelled across Canada on a
special Army train along with a Valentine tank, 8 Cwt 4 x 2 etc. One of the
soldiers assigned to the train luckily took photos. Ironically, it was
possibly the most photographed jeep in Canada as it was on a tour of the
country (I have the agenda for Western Canada) so every local newspaper
probably photographed it - yet those photos have not surfaced. We found ONE
published photo of the GP in a magazine.
In the book " Essential Military Jeep" Graham Scott ....He states
"Taking off the windscreens allowed Jeeps to be stacked one on top another
for transportation, the wheels resting on the mudguards of the vehicle
below". Wow, I knew the jeep fenders were strong but stacking another jeep
on them? Any of you want to try this with your MB/GPW. Hey it's in a book,
it's got to be OK, right?...
***** JEEP JEEP JEEP by Yasuo Ohtsuka has two photos of jeeps stacked this
way - apparently as experiments. Page 22. Upper photo jeep still has
windshield. Jeeps (top one is a 1942 Willys MB, probably BRT) are British
army and appear to be Airborne forces modified. Bottom photo shows US Fleet
marine Forces experimenting. The British Airborne forces follow-up element
which came over by sea tended to stack their 10 cwt Light Weight (i.e.
"Airborne") trialers piggyback on the backs of their jeeps on board ship to
save space. One can see this in photos on the ships going over to the
Normandy beaches. The USAAF experinmented in 1946 stacking jeeps inside
aircraft. Photo in JEEP JEEP JEEP p. 26.
I am just trying to prove my original point. Verify your data and seek the
truth. ....
**** I agree! I also realize that when you think you know the truth, you
still may not...
Jim Gilmore MVPA # 5843
Member Ist Michigan AOD Chapter MVPA
Great Lakes Chapter MVPA
Ohio Motor Pool Chapter MVPA
Red Ball Chapter MVPA
Ontario Military Vehicle Association
Midwest Military Vehicle Assocation
-------------------------------------------------------------------
2656 Wiethoff, Inkster, Mi. 48141
313-561-8826 voice 313-730-1652 fax
-------------------------------------------------------------------
****** Colin Macgregor Stevens
MVPA Member 954 (since 1977)
& member B Coy 1 Canadian Parachute Battalion (Living History)
Pitt Meadows, British Columbia, Canada
E-mail: colin@pacdat.net
Personal web site: http://bcoy1cpb.pacdat.net
1944 Willys MB
1942 BSA airborne bicycles (2)
===
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