| Original caption: “This dead German soldier was one of the ‘last stand’ defenders of German-held Cherbourg. Captain Earl Topley, who led one of the first outfits into the fallen city, blamed him for killing three of his boys.” Captain Earl J. Topley (May 10, 1903 – March 9, 1974), of Saint Paul, Minnesota, 297th Engineer Battalion, at Une Rue Armand-Le-Véel in Cherbourg. He’s staring at a soldaten wearing Zeltbahn 31, a camouflage triangle half-tent covering. The soldaten has been killed by a blast, most likely a grenade or mortar round, that has severely injured his leg. Blood covers the door and ground. Out of view, at the cafe at Cinq Rue Armand-Le-Véel, another soldaten was killed. That Gefreiter (“Private First Class”) had an Eierhandgranate neununddreißig (“Egg Hand Grenade Model Thirty-Nine”) in his hand when American soldiers found him. On June 24, 1944, the 297th Engineer Battalion was put on a 15-minute alert, to join the final drive on Cherbourg. In the early morning of June 26, orders came to the 297th Engineer Battalion’s Command Post at Saint Joseph 8 miles (13 kilometers) south of Cherbourg directing Colonel Julian P. Fox Junior (September 17, 1911 – October 29, 1977) to have B Company drive into Cherbourg as soon as the city fell. The new Command Post was set up at 23-24 Rue de Paris — Avenue de Paris, Route D900 today — in Fortress Cherbourg. B Company was the 1st to enter the city, a patrol was then sent south to the railroads to reconnoiter. B Company’s 1st patrols were pinned down by Nazi German holdouts; they had 88 millimeter (3.46-inch) guns that were still firing, covered by machine gun nests. The patrols from B Company reached the railroads without difficulty, but upon their arrival on the rail tracks, they spotted a German aid station. A machine gun that was protecting the aid station opened fire, killing Private Adam P. “Eddie” Krawczyk (December 23, 1924 – June 26, 1944) and wounding Private 1st Class Charles R. “Joe” Lawrence (February 28, 1923 – August 18, 1962) and Private Melvin W. Pritchard (February 4, 1923 – May 18, 1982) while they were running for cover. These were the men Topley referred to when interviewed by reporters; he may not have known 2 of his men would eventually survive their wounds. Corporal Philip F. Sidoti (???? – ????) and Private 1st Class Antonio J. Forte (July 25, 1921 – October 18, 2008) carried Private Pritchard to safety to a wooden shack. The rest of the patrol were hiding in a house in which they found shelter. Germans were targeting the building and opened fire on the rest of the patrol. Miraculously Gerald Williams (???? – ????) was blown through the wall without any wounds. Sergeant Edward T. Reeves (December 17, 1925 – January 27, 1978) and Private 1st Class Seymour Glasel (December 14, 1924 – August 15, 2016) were seriously wounded by the explosion; they eventually recovered. Corporal William J. Yarian (September 2. 1924 – June 27, 1944) and Technician 5th Class John W. Saari (February 20, 1913 – June 27, 1944) were killed by an artillery blast, when an 88 millimeter gun opened fire on their shelter. The dead body of Private Krawczyk was still lying out on the street, but his fellow members of B Company didn’t want to leave him. A patrol of the 2nd Platoon, B Company, composed of Lieutenant Robert E. Bevis (???? – ????), Private 1st-Class William Monroe (November 21, 1913 – December 6, 1983), and Technician 5th Class Victor A. Grib (February 11, 1911 – September 3, 1989), went to the railroads and rescued Krawczyk. For this heroic action all of them were awarded the Silver Star. For the work accomplished by patrol under Lieutenant Mack Clark Junior’s (March 25, 1925 – March 25, 2006) command, Private Edward D. Carson (October 17, 1919 – October 11, 1997), Private John R. Welz (April 10, 1922 – May 11, 2009), Corporal Sidoti, Private 1st-Class Forte, and Lieutenant Wolf (???? – ????) were awarded the Bronze Star. Private Krawczyk received the Bronze Star posthumously for his actions in Cherbourg. Just at the corner of Rue de Paris, men found the entrance to a huge underground fortress. It was the German military storehouse. The cellar was full of Hennessy and Martell cognac, champagnes, wines and Calvados. The 297th Engineers and other units stocked up before the order was given to destroy the fortress. Topley was made a Lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers in September 1942, joining from the Minnesota National Guard. He, along with 2 other Engineers, was awarded the Soldier’s Medal for extinguishing a burning ammunition truck in Montebourg on June 21, 1944. He worked on the Saturn Rocket Stage II in Seal Beach, California, after the war. Photo by Technician 5th Class Leander P. Zwick Junior (June 10, 1921 – January 4, 1987) of the 165th Signal Photo Company. | |
| Image Filename | wwii0637.jpg |
| Image Size | 1.02 MB |
| Image Dimensions | 2920 x 2364 |
| Photographer | |
| Photographer Title | United States Army Signal Corps |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | June 27, 1944 |
| Location | |
| City | Cherbourg |
| State or Province | Normandy |
| Country | France |
| Archive | National Archives and Records Administration |
| Record Number | NWDNS-111-SC-193970 |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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