| Original caption: “Bombing campaign. Two assault guns were knocked out by Ninth Air Force fighter-bombers near Mödrath, Germany, to ease the advance of the First Army to Cologne. Infantrymen, one with a top hat picked up in a nearby town, sit on the disabled vehicle resting on the rim of the crater made by a bomb.” 2 Sturmgeschütz III Sonderkraftfahrzeug 142/1 (“Assault Gun III Special Vehicle 142/1”) knocked out and abandoned near Mödrath during the United States 1st Army’s advance on Cologne. The Sturmgeschütz III was the most produced Nazi German armored fighting vehicle. In a picture accompanying an article on souvenir hunting, Acme Photos depicted a GI in a top hat plucking a chicken. “Plucking Away In Style – After a fierce three-day battle for Mödrath, Germany, men of C Company, First Battalion, Eighth Infantry Division, United States First Army, settled down for a well-earned rest. Sergeant James A. Laningham [(January 6, 1918 – May 21, 2003)], of Strafford, Alabama, wears a top hat he found in the ruins of the town as he cleans a chicken for the Yank’s next meal.” Victor O. Jones (September 14, 1905 – April 21, 1970), Boston Globe War Correspondent, attached to the United States 84th Infantry Division, 1st Army, reported on March 1, 1945: “Yesterday’s task force-first time the doughfeet had run into large bodies of German civilians in the heat of battle. The Yanks ignored the Germans entirely. Souvenir hunting is a popular pastime among United States Army personnel. Certain items every doughfoot wants to bring back as a souvenir to take home are Nazi flags, etc. In another class, fall cameras, field glasses, et cetera, which the soldier himself can use. There’s still another subdivision of souvenirs, notably bicycles, which are much in demand. But German property gets the worst beating from doughfoot clowning. Top hats, store dummies, umbrellas, mandolins, walking sticks, Prince Albert coats, or anything else that will make the soldier the life of the party for a few minutes are in great demand.” Associated Press War Correspondent Harold V. “Hal” Boyle (July 24, 1911 – April 1, 1974), attached to the United States 1st Army, crossed the Rhine with the troops. On March 10, 1945, he filed this report: “An officer in an open jeep holds a woman’s umbrella over his head with one hand to keep off the rain while he studies a map. Several soldiers forget the somber things to come for the moment and wear silk top hats found in some bombed-out ruins. Veterans stretch out in trucks and catch some badly needed sleep.” 9th Tactical Air Command carried out heavy attacks in the interdiction campaign on October 28-29, 1944. On the 1st day, 231 aircraft were dispatched, and on the 2nd day, an additional 303 were sent. 5 bridges were destroyed, 4 on the line from Ahrdorf to Remagen, and 1 between Norvenich and Mödrath, west of Cologne. Damage in varying degrees was done to 3 other bridges in the latter area and to 5 in the former area. Cuts were made at 11 specified points on October 28 and at 18 points on October 29. Further attacks on the Mödrath Railroad Marshalling Yards were carried out on November 2, 1944, and February 2-3, 1945, by Martin B-26 Marauders of the 9th Air Force. On February 28, 1945, 1st Army Headquarters issued a letter of instructions in conformity with the plan of operations issued by 12th Army Group 5 days previously. The letter stated that the United Kingdom Royal Army 21st Army Group, which included the 9th United States Army, would continue its operations along the lower reaches of the Rhine north of Düsseldorf. It also described the plan for the 3rd Army to drive eastwards to Coblenz simultaneously with the 2nd stage of the 1st Army attack. Right and left boundaries of the 1st Army were to remain unchanged, except that the right (south) boundary was to be extended from the neighborhood of Ahrdorf eastwards along the right (south) bank of the Ahr River. The current boundary between 7th and III Corps was extended generally east from Mod-rath to include the towns of Gleuel—Hermulheim, Rondorf, and Rodenkirchen in the zone of the VII Corps. The current boundary along the Roer River between 1st and V Corps was extended from the Schwammenauel Dam southeast to the road junction 2 miles from the dam, northeast to the southern edge of Burvenich, thence east to the south edge of Enzen, thence southeast to the western edge of Billig. The operation was to be divided into 3 stages. During Stage 1, VII Corps would force a crossing of the Erft River north of Mödrath and seize the high ground northwest of Cologne, and continue to protect the flank of the 9th Army. III Corps was to secure a bridgehead at Heimbach and, advancing northeast, seize the line of the Erft River from the outskirts of Mödrath to the whole town limits of Euskirchen. The V Corps was to maintain an aggressive defense from Gemund south to the boundary of the 1st Army. During Stage 2, VII Corps was to continue protecting the flank of the 9th Army and invest Cologne from the north and northwest. III Corps was to launch a strong attack on a narrow front from the Zulpich-Euskirchen area, converging with the attack of the 3rd Army in the Ahrweiler area. The V Corps was to attack either near the completion of Stage 1 or at the beginning of Stage 2, as directed by army headquarters, and establish a bridgehead across the Erft River northeast of Gemund. After the construction of suitable bridges at Gemund, the 2nd Infantry Division and 7th Armored Division were to assist the advance of III Corps and protect the southern flank of that Corps from Gemund to Euskirchen. Orders from 1st Army headquarters to initiate Stage 2 of the operation on all corps fronts might be expected to be issued when VI Corps was prepared to move southeast toward Cologne and when III Corps was ready to launch its coordinated attack from the Zulpich-Euskirchen area southeast toward Ahrweiler. During Stage 3, which also would be initiated upon army order, VII Corps and III Corps were to advance to the Rhine within their respective zones of action, and V Corps was to prepare for further advance to the east. The United Press reported on the capitulation of Mödrath on February 28, 1945: “Germans Make Stand at Mödrath – Paris, Feb. 28 (United Press) — American tanks and troops rammed across the Erft River line at three points within sight of the Rhine today and were locked in a furious battle for Mödrath, six and a half miles [(10.4 kilometers)] from Cologne.” “The Erft River, the last water barrier before the Rhine, was breached at three points directly west and west-southwest of Cologne by armored task forces of two and perhaps three American First Army divisions. One assault column hurdled the Erft on the main Dueren-Cologne Highway, while two others swept across the river on either side of the road.” “Mödrath Entered” “So swift was the attack that one highway bridge across the Erft was captured intact by Yank infantrymen. The retreating enemy blew up a second bridge nearby. Riflemen of the American Eighth Division shot their way into the streets of Mödrath after a wild fight for the river crossing. Dug in behind a high railroad embankment overlooking the river, the Germans poured a murderous stream of gunfire into the Americans in a futile attempt to prevent a breakthrough. The Yanks charged recklessly into the enemy fire. They crossed in assault boats at some points, splashed through the shallows on foot in others, and even swam the river to get at the enemy.” “Germans Rally” “The Germans rallied swiftly, however, and at last reports were fighting desperately from house to house for the east bank town of Mödrath. German armored units moved up from the Rhine to meet the attack, and American staff officers predicted that the battle now joined would settle the fate of Cologne.” “The 104th ‘Timberwolf’ and Eighth Infantry Divisions already were across the Erft in force, and field dispatches indicated that units of the First Infantry Division also were moving in on the Eighth’s southern flank below Mödrath. Elements of the First Infantry Division speared seven miles southeast of Duren to capture Gladbach. To the north, the American Ninth Army, operating under a security blackout, was rolling up the German defenses on the western fringe of the Ruhr Valley against slightly stiffened enemy resistance, and Düsseldorf was reported under direct artillery fire.” “At the southern end of the Allied offensive front, Lieutenant General George S. Patton’s [(November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945)] United States Third Army forces captured the pivotal road center of Bitburg in a drive apparently aimed at the Moselle Valley and the central reaches of the Rhine.” The old town of Mödrath, like hundreds of other German communities, was destroyed by open-cut lignite mining to meet the huge 20th-century demand for brown coal, 1 of the world’s most polluting fuels. The residents of Mödrath were removed in 1956, the mine closed in the 1980s, and the area is being recultivated. The only building remaining is Burg Mödrath, which was previously a maternity home before World War II. | |
| Image Filename | wwii0979.jpg |
| Image Size | 687.01 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 2900 x 2322 |
| Photographer | |
| Photographer Title | United States Army Signal Corps |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | March 1, 1945 |
| Location | |
| City | Mödrath |
| State or Province | North Rhine-Westphalia |
| Country | Germany |
| Archive | National Archives and Records Administration |
| Record Number | NRE-338-FTL(EF)-2802(9) |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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