This is what the forum is all about; putting people together who have common threads. I am delighted you are able to get to know each other and to discover more information through this exchange. Your father's would be proud.

Just today came across this forum. Donald you asked about a person named Lightfoot with the 1058th.

I was with the 1058th from late 1944 when the group was being assembled in Porthcawl, Wales until it was disbanded in the Phillipines in late 1946. I have a listing of home addresses of the group, which is not dated, but must be over 65 years old by now. Probably some 300 names on the list.

I do remember a Sgt. Lightfoot; William V. Lightfoot, address: Gen. Delivery, Sewanee, Tenn. Your father, Virgil A Rhyne, is on the list living at 6924 Plymouth, University City, MO. Also mentioned in this forum and on the list was Walter M. P. Curlock, living at 303 North Broadway, Sayre, Oklahoma. I do not specifically remember these two.

Memorable events were the days while camped just south of London while the unit was engaged in the construction of concrete docks to be floated over to France and enduring the almost daily "Buzz Bomb" and V2 Missile attacks; then to Granville, France clearing debris and installation of new cranes; The train journey from Cherbourg to Remochamps on the infamous "40 and 8's"; The Remagen Bridge and it's tragic collapse and loss of men; Neuweid, and the construction of the Captain Arthur Francis Gullo Memorial Bridge in memory of the engineering officer killed in the collapse of the Ludendorff Bridge; the German surrender and the long voyage from Marsielle, France via the Panama Canal to Luzon, Phillipines. Japan's surrender and the return from Manila to San Francisco in late December 1945,

Walt

Dear Walt:

How very wonderful to have you as a member. Always a pleasure and an honor to have another WWII veteran, especially an engineer, join our ranks. Kind of partial to the name WALT, for that was my father's name.

We look forward to talking with you. Thank you for sharing some memories with us. Can't imagine seeing that bridge collapse. Brings chills to the bones.

Warmly,

Marion

Sir, it is good to have you aboard! Were you ever in Subic Bay? I am in the Marines and we just did an exercise there in October. I doubt there is any place in the Philippines (or any place in the Pacific for that matter) that would be recognizable, however.

My pictures are here:

< https://picasaweb.google.com/104745627018165888181/PHIBLEX?noredirect=1 #>

Walt: Thank you for responding to our inquiries. I also have a list of the names and addresses of the 1058th my Dad left me. My Dad's name is Walter N.P. Curlock. He passed away in Dec 1991 (age 71) in Las Vegas, NV. He had lived there since 1962. I found out through some old letters the guys called him 'Rusty'. A few of his buddies were Sgt. Carl J. Campbell from South Carolina; Robert Sherrow from Indiana; Charles O. Gaston from Missouri; Ray Gillihan from Texas; Herbert Johnson from California; Henry Albertson from Kansas, to name a few I know of. I appreciated very much your story of the history of the 1058th, where they started out from and some of the places along the way. I have tried to find out some of the information you wrote about but have 'hit' alot of dead ends. Apparently, all of the records of the 1058th were distroyed in a fire many years ago. I would appreciate any more information you can give me such as your participation in The Battle of the Bulge and if you were in Hurtgen Forrest, etc.

Thank you so much for sharing your story with us.

Saundra

Hi Walt,

I have just joined the forum,my fathers name was William Edward Luhrs a staff sergeant with the 1058 engineers .

He met my mother in Porthcawl in 1944.Its a long story ,My question is did you know him by any chance.

I am now 67 years old and trying to fill in some blank spaces.

My father died in 1959. sadly I never got to know .

Kind Regards

John.

John:

Was so nice talking with you on the phone last night. Always great to get a friendly call from jolly ol' England.

As promised, I will gather all the links I suggested last night and send them to you via email.

All the best to you. Can't wait till you get a chance to talk with Walt.

Hi Marion,Great talking to you,Looking forward to your email with researchers details.I phoned NARA Maryland re; unit details

but just got endless recorded messages.

I am also hoping to talk to Walt in the near future.

Kind Regards

John.

Just sent you an email this morning John. All the best. Let me know if you have any questions.

Received this letter and photos

 

Dear all,

I like to share a photo of George N. Chandler with you. Thank you for your research and sharing his photo with us.

Best wishes,
Astrid van Erp

Thank you for sharing T5 George Chandler memorial with us. My father, Walter N. Curlock, T4, 1058th PC & R Group, was welding on the Ludendorf Bridge when it collapsed and fell into the Rhine River. My father injured his back badly, but he told me although he was in shock at the time, he never-the-less searched up and down the river trying to find his buddies who had fell into the raging river after the collapse if the bridge. It was a traumatic time for all those involved.

I can't even imagine what they went through that day. It's the stuff that makes up nightmares!

Looks like this area has been quiet for a while.  But for anyone out there my father, Donald Sloan, was a Master Sargent in the 1058 PC&R .  His photo album from WWII starts with pictures  from Wales, then on to Cherbourg, Remouchamps, Remagen, Antwerp, Marseilles and ends with the Philippines.    I was elated to find this site since for years I was unable to find out anything about the 1058 PC&R.  This site has helped me put the puzzle together in a way that makes a more complete picture. Now the stories I heard growing up can be put in some order.    

Wonderful news and welcome to our forum. So glad you found us. Delighted that I could help you tie up some loose ends. 

On 7/25/2018 at 5:22 PM, C Sloan said:

Looks like this area has been quiet for a while.  But for anyone out there my father, Donald Sloan, was a Master Sargent in the 1058 PC&R .  His photo album from WWII starts with pictures  from Wales, then on to Cherbourg, Remouchamps, Remagen, Antwerp, Marseilles and ends with the Philippines.    I was elated to find this site since for years I was unable to find out anything about the 1058 PC&R.  This site has helped me put the puzzle together in a way that makes a more complete picture. Now the stories I heard growing up can be put in some order.    

Glad to hear from you. My father, Walter N.P. Curlock was with the 1058th PC &R Group throughout. I have quite a bit of info on the 1058th as I hired a researcher 2 years ago to retrieve the units reports and all other pertinent information on the 1058th PC & R Group. They were involved in many battles and campaigns most notable was the Battle of the Bulge and the repair and ultimate collapse of the Ludendoroff Bridge at Remagen.  I have many pictures but cannot identify where some were taken. You can read about the Ludendorff Bridge along with videos on Utube and various newspaper articles published in Stars and Stripes which I have if you would like could email them to you.

I too have some stories and would enjoy trading them with you as my father passed in 1991 and didn't talk much about his experiences in WWII.

One reason you cannot find out much about the 1058th is because they were often attached to other units.