Timeline

 

Below is a timeline of Marv's military experiences interspersed with historical (italics) and likely events.

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• December 7, 1941: Japan bombed the American fleet in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and the United States entered the war.

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• August 22, 1942: Marv entered the Enlisted Reserve Corps, at 20 years of age, while a student, according to his Enlisted Reserve Corps Identification Card.  

  • By this time, Marv had graduated from Cass Technical High School, Detroit, and completed one year of college at Wayne State University, Detroit.

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• March 31, 1943: Marv sent his first post card enroute on a train in Huntington, Indiana, to his family in Detroit.  (He dated it March 31, 1943.)

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• April 1, 1943: Marv reported to the Scott Field Induction Center, Illinois, and entered into Active Service at 20 years of age (7 days before turning 21), according to his Honorable Discharge.

  • By this time, Marv had "studied fine arts at Wayne University for 2 years," according to his Separation Qualification Record.

  • From Scott Field it's most likely that Marv was sent directly to Fort McClellen, Alabama.

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• July 12, 1943: Marv sent a postcard from Fort McClellan, Alabama to his family in Detroit. He dated it July 12, 1943.

  • While at Fort McClellan, Marv underwent basic training, according to his Military Occupational Assignment listed on his Separation Qualification Record.

  • While at Fort McClellan, Marv trained to become a field lineman, based on Military Occupational Assignments listed on his Separation Qualification Record.

  • While at Fort McClellan, Marv was in a "wire platoon," according to his August 16, 1943 letter.

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• August 15, 1943: Marv left Fort McClellan, Alabama at 9:00 a.m. by train for Camp Shenanao, Pennsylvania, according to his August 16, 1943 letter.

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• August 16, 1943: Marv arrived at Camp Shenango, Pennsylvania, at 1:00 p.m., according to his August 16, 1943 letter. 

  • From Camp Shenango, which was a WW II Military Personnel Replacement Depot, it's likely that Marv was sent directly by train to one of the two largest embarkation camps under the New York Port of Embarkation command: Camp Shanks  (Orangetown, New York) or (less likely) Camp Kilmer (Stelton, New Jersey).  

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• September 8, 1943: The surrender of Italy to the Allies was announced.

 

• September 9, 1943. The invasion of mainland Italy began at Salerno (Operation Avalanche).

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• September 21, 1943: Marv departed U.S. for the European Theater of Operations, according to his Honorable Discharge.

  • From Camp Shanks (or from Camp Kilmer), it's likely that Marv moved by rail to Jersey City, New Jersey to board a ferryboat for the embarkation piers to transfer to troop transports bound for the European Theater of Operations as did most troops stationed at either Camp Shanks or Camp Kilmer. 

  • If Marv was stationed at an embarkation camp under the New York Port of Embarkation command, it's likely that he boarded a troop transport ship at one of its ten terminals, such as the North River, Manhattan Terminal, the principal troop embarkation with seven piers to which troops were brought by ferry connecting rail terminals serving embarkation camps.

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• September 28, 1943: Marv arrived overseas, according to his Honorable Discharge.

  • It's likely that Marv landed by ship at Oran, Algeria (North Africa), a staging and training area for troops entering Italy during the initial mainland Italy invasion (Operation Avalanche, Sept 9, 1943) and its follow-up, before he entered Italy.
     

• October 1943:  From North Africa, Marv traveled to Italy and fought in the Naples-Foggia Campaign.  I have not been able to determine the route that he traveled to Italy nor the date that he arrived in Italy. 

  • The first scenario is that if Marv traveled to Italy via the same route as did the 34th Division, which landed in Italy before Marv arrived overseas, he would have traveled by ship from Oran, Algeria, to a port in the Gulf of Salerno near Paestrum, Italy.

  • The second scenario  is that Marv traveled by ship from Oran, Algeria, directly to the Port of Naples, which became functional in just one week after the Battle of Naples (Sept 27-30, 1943).  From there, he would have traveled by truck to meet up with his unit.

    • Note: I read where a unit (935th Field Artillery Battery) traveled from Oran to Salerno, arriving on Oct 11, 1943; therefore, the port in Salerno was still being used.

  • The third scenario is that Marv traveled by truck from Oran, Algeria, to Tunisia and from Tunisia by ship to the Port of Naples, as other troops did, such as the 141st Field Artillery Battalion, which landed in Oran on Sept. 2, 1943, left Oran on Oct 10 and traveled 935 miles by truck to Tunisia, arriving 10 days later on Nov. 9).  During this trip, the Battalion held practices with the new Howiters they received.  From Tunisia, the 141st traveled by ship to the Port of Naples, a trip that took two days and one night.

    • Note: I don't think that Marv traveled this route because he did not travel with his full Division (the 34th Infantry Division was already in Italy) and because of the length of time it would have taken after a stay in Oran to travel by truck to Tunisia, then by ship to Italy, and then by truck to meet up with his Division, all before he was wounded.  

 

• November 28, 1943: Marv sent a V-mail Christmas Card from Italy to his family in Detroit.   It was dated November 28, 1943, c/o Postmaster New York, New York.

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• December 6, 1943: Marv sent a Western Union Christmas Telegram from Italy to his family in Detroit.  It was date-stamped December 6, 1943.

 

• December 8, 1943: Marv was wounded in Italy, according to his Honorable Discharge.

  • According to his March 16, 1946 Award of Disability Compensation or Pension, he was awarded pension on account of disability from the following conditions resulting from the following conditions: "Nerve injury, for weakness of forearm and hand secondary to gunshot wounds left elbow.  Gunshot wound left thigh and right knee."  According to Marv's Dec. 10, 1943 V-Mail letter to his family, he also had shrapnel wounds.

  • Based on Marv's assigned division (34th Infantry Division), his assigned infantry (135th Infantry Regiment), and troop movements and attacks, it's likely that Marv was wounded on Mount Pantano, Italy.

  • The following excerpt from Fifth Army At the Winter Line: 15 November 1943 - 15 January 1944 provides a good idea about what it was like around the time Marv was wounded on Mount Pantano: 

"From 5 to 9 December the troops of the 34th Division were occupied in consolidating positions and patrolling [Mount Pantano].  Enemy activity was confined to intermittent interdictory and harassing fire from artillery and mortars. Artillery concentrations hit in the Mount Pantano area late on the 6th and again on the night of 7/8 December, when the 135th Infantry received heavy enemy shelling every four or five minutes. During 8 and 9 December relief of the entire 34th Division was begun by the 2d Moroccan Infantry Division..."

• Based on the extent of Marv's wounds and a description of how a wounded soldier from the 2d Moroccan Infantry Division was removed from Mount Pantano in Fifth Army At the Winter Line: 15 November 1943 - 15 January 1944, it's likely Marv was carried on a litter "down the difficult slopes of Mount Pantano to the village of Pantano where casualties could be evacuated to hospitals."

• Based on reports of how wounded soldiers were treated, it's likely that Marv traveled from the village of Pantano to a nearby Evacuation Hospital, such as the one that was near Alife, Italy, which was the closest Evaluation Hospital to Pantano

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• December 10, 1943: Marv sent a V-Mail Letter to his family in Detroit informing them he had been injured. (It was dated December 10, 1943, c/o Postmaster New York, New York.)

  • The letter does not indicate the location from where it was sent, other than from an unnamed hospital (name was blackened out) APO 34 (the APO number 34 was assigned to the 34th Infantry Division). It was likely a mobile hospital, which was part of the chain of evacuation for wartime medical treatment before being admitted to a fix hospital such as the 33d General Hospital, Bizerte, Tunisia.

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• December 30, 1943: The Adjutant General sent a Western Union Telegram to Marv's mother informing her that Marv was slightly wounded in action in Italy.  (It was date-stamped December 30, 1943.)​

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• December 30, 1943:  ​Marv sent a Happy New Year Card to his family from 33rd General Hospital, Bizerte, Tunisia.

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• January 17, 1944:  The Battle for Cassino began.

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• January 22, 1944: The Battle of Anzio began.

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• February 8, 1944: Marv sent Valentine Card to his mother.  Return address: Pvt D M Corgiat 16083986, 2628th Hos. Sec APO 689 C/O Postmaster New York, N.Y.  Cancellation stamp: U.A. Army Postal Service A.P.O. 424.

 

• February 17, 1944: Marv was awarded a Purple Heart for wounds received in action on December 8, 1943, in Italy, according to his Honorable Discharge and List of Purple Heart Awardees issued by 33d General Hospital, February 17, 1944.

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• March 4, 1944: Letter from The Adjutant General's Office was sent to Marv's mother stating that on January 31, 1944, Marv "was making normal improvement."

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• March 14, 1944: Letter from The Adjutant General's Office was sent to Marv's mother stating that on February 15, 1944, Marv "was making normal improvement."

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• March 19, 1944: Letter from The Adjutant General's Office was sent to Marv's mother stating that on February 29, 1944, Marv "continued to make normal improvement."

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• March 19, 1944: Marv arrived from being overseas at the Charleston Port of Embarkation, South Carolina, according to his Patient's Identification Tag and was admitted to Stark General Hospital.

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• March 23, 1944: Marv sent a Western Union Telegram to his mother requesting she wire $25 to Stark General Hospital.

 

• March 29, 1944: Marv arrived by train at the Army's Percy Jones General Hospital, Battle Creek, Michigan, according to a newspaper article.

  • Note: I cannot find a record of when he was discharged, but it was probably around October 1944; therefore, he would have been at Percy Jones Army Hospital about 6 months.  NF

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• March 30, 1944: Letter from The Adjutant General's Office was sent to Marv's mother stating that Marv "has been evacuated from the theater of action."  There were not details about Marv's physical condition.

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• April 9, 1945: Marv was one of the guests of honor at a Detroit Free Press-WJR Radio Program, "In Our Opinion," which featured five wounded veterans of World War II who talked about their experiences, according to articles pasted into the scrapbook kept by his mother and Detroit Free Press online articles about the event.

  • Unfortunately, a radio recording of the interviews does not exist  My guess is that it is because the broadcast took place out of the studio.  (Radio recordings that were done in the studio by the same broadcaster during this time period are available at the University of Michigan.)

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• June 6, 1944: D-Day at Normandy, the Allied Invasion of Europe.

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• September 1944: Marv was discharged from hospitalization (Source: Consultation and Request form, Jan. 9, 1945 (sic--should be Jan. 9, 1946): "Hospitalized to Sept. 44." ).

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• October 3, 1944: Marv's Honor Pass, Percy Jones General Hospital, Advanced Reconditioning Section, Fort Custer, Michigan, which stated he was a trainee of the installation and was entitled to leave the Post when off duty to a distance of no more than 60 miles from the organization, expired on October 3, 1944.  

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• November 1944: Marv sent a postcard from Camp Atterbury, Indiana, where he was stationed after Percy Jones Army Hospital, to his family in Detroit.  

  • Note: While I don't have the exact date that Marv was at Camp Atterbury, given the above Honor Pass at  Percy Jones General Hospital (expired October 3, 1944) and given Marv's date of discharge from the Army (Feb. 6, 1946), he was likely at Camp Atterbury about 16 months. 

  • Marv held the following military occupations, which were likely at Camp Atterbury (for details, scroll down to "Military Occupations Specialties."

    • Instructor, Arts & Crafts, 12 months

    • Orientation Specialist 1 month​

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• May 8, 1945: V-E Day (Victory in Europe), Germany signed the unconditional surrender of all German forces.

 

• May 1945: Marv was sent to Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Virginia, for a 4-week course for educational recondition.  (Note: I am in the process of confirming date.  NF)

 

• June 14, 1945: Marv married Ilse Irmgard (“Irma”) Matchull.

  • Marv and Irma met at the U.S.O. in Indianapolis, where Irma volunteered.  Camp Atterbury is about 35 miles south of Indianapolis.  Marv used to take the bus from Camp Atterbury to visit Irma.

  • According to Irma, the couple honeymooned in Chicago for about a week.

  • According to a newspaper article pasted in a scrapbook that was kept by Marv's mother, after their honeymoon, the couple visited Detroit where his mother hosted a party for the newly weds.  Afterwards, they returned to Camp Atterbury. 

  • Irma told her daughters that after she was married and while Marv was at Camp Atterbury, she worked in the officer's club dining area and used to speak in German with the German prisoners who worked in the kitchen area.  

    • Background: Irma was born in Germany (former East Germany).  When she was 3 years of age, she and her family immigrated to Indianapolis.  She spoke fluent German as a child and young adult. 

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• September 2, 1945: The Japanese surrendered, marking the official end of World War II.

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• September 6-7, 1945: Marv received a medical Consultation Request and Report because of "old injury L. upper forearms & nerve palsy -- now has some extensor tendon dysfunction of L. thumb."  

  • Note: Form states Marv's grade is Private First Class."

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• December 1945: Marv was sent to Fort Knox, Kentucky, to do some teaching.

 

• January 9, 1946: Marv received a medical Consultation Request and Report because of "Pain in Left hip radiating to Left ankle." ​

  • Note: The handwritten date on this form is January 9, 1945.  I believe the year is incorrect and should have been "1946" because (1) this form states that Marv's grade is now Corporal and (2) this form (Form No. 8-40, 21 June 1944) supersedes the form that was used to write up Marv's Sept. 6, 1944 Consultation and Request (Form No. E-1, 31 May 1939).  

 

• Feb. 6, 1946: Marv was honorably discharged from Army (24 years old) at the Separation Center, Fort Sheridan, Illinois, according to his Honorable Discharge.  

 

• March 16, 1946: Marv received an Award of Disability Compensation Pension effective Feb. 6, 1946.

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Military Occupational Specialties

​Marv held the following Military Occupational Assignments, according to his Separation Qualification Record.  The number following the job title is the Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) code.

• PVT INF BASIC (521) 3 Months

  • To view job description, click here.

  • Marv was assigned to this occupation while stationed at Fort McClellan (Alabama). 

• PVT FIELD LINEMAN (641) 3 Months

  • To view job description, click here.

  • Marv was trained as a lineman while at Fort McClellan (Alabama) and was assigned to this occupation while he was overseas.

• CPL INSTRUCTOR ARTS & CRAFTS (296) 12 Months

  • To view job description, click here. 

  • Marv was assigned to this occupation while at Camp Atterbury (Indiana).  The following description of "Instructor for Arts and Crafts" was entered on his Separation Qualification Record:

    • "Worked in a hospital rehabilitation program, instructor for arts and crafts for about a year."  This would have been while Marv was at Camp Atterbury (Indiana), where he was stationed for about 15 months, following his 6-month stay at Percy Jones Army Hospital (Battle Creek, Michigan).

• ORIENTATION SPECIALIST (274) 1 Month

  • To view job description, click here.  

  • Marv was assigned to this occupation while at Camp Atterbury (Indiana).  The following description of "Orientation Specialist" was entered on his Separation Qualification Record:

    • "Was working at a separation center, Camp Atterbury, Indiana.  Men were brought to orientation building where they were given a lecture on the process to be gone through.  Collected data for the lecture and helped to prepare it."

  • This was likely Marv's last assignment at Camp Atterbury because according to Honorable Discharge Form Instructions,  Box 30 ("ORIENTATION SPECIALIST") was what Marv did in the last unit assigned to, which is shown in Box 6 ("1550 RECOND PROGRAM"). 

  • It seems likely that Marv was trained to be an Orientation Specialist at Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Virginia because:

    • According to Marv's Separation Qualification Record, Marv attended a "school for personnel services, Lexington, Va for a 4 week course for educational reconditioning."  

    • According to family memory, Marv spent some time at Washington and Lee University after returning from overseas (family is confirming that he wrote about this in his May 1945 letters to his soon-to-be wife, Irma).  

    • It seems probable that the 4-week course for educational reconditioning, Lexington, Va., was at Washington and Lee University and it was for Marv to become an Orientation Specialist.

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Epilogue

• After Marv was discharged from the Army, he and his wife, Irma, moved to Detroit where Marv completed his bachelor's degree at Wayne State University, thanks to the G.I. Bill.  

  • Marv had lived in Detroit since he was 7 years of age when his family moved from Frontenac, Kansas, to Detroit so that his dad, who had been a coal miner, could get a job in an auto-factory.

• After Marv graduated from college, he worked as a special education teacher and an art teacher in several Detroit elementary schools.  

• In 1953, Marv and Irma moved from Detroit to Birmingham (now Beverly Hills), Michigan, where they raised their three daughters, Susan, Nancy, and Joni.

• After getting his master's degree at Wayne State University, Marv worked as an assistant principal and principal in several Detroit elementary schools.

• In the late 1960s, Marv left the Detroit school system to work as a middle school principal in West Bloomfield, Michigan.  He was a principal of both Abbott Middle School and Orchard Lake Middle School over a span of fifteen years.  

• Marv died on March 8, 1984, aged 61, prior to retirement.   

  • The West Bloomfield school system held him in such high regard that on December 4, 1984, the Abbott Middle School Media Center was named  "Domenic Corgiat Media Center." 

• His wife, Irma, died on May 19, 2014, aged 90, in Vista, California.

• Marv and Irma are buried next to each other in Acacia Park Cemetery, Beverly Hills, Michigan.