William Siebert Greer was born in 1921 in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. His father provided for his family by farming. It was a poor existence during the Depression, but the family did not realize it. It was only later in life that Greer would come to realize exactly how tough the times were. When Pearl Harbor was bombed, Greer was working at Camp Crowder in southwest Missouri. He was working as a carpenter and helping to build an Army camp. It was a Sunday when the attack occurred [Annotator’s Note: Sunday, 7 December 1941]. Greer was entering the movie theater in Joplin [Annotator’s Note: Joplin, Missouri]. He and his brother-in-law were told that the Japs [Annotator’s Note: a derogatory term for Japanese] bombed Pearl Harbor. Greer had no idea where Pearl Harbor was located. He had been educated enough to know where Hawaii was but had never heard of Pearl Harbor. Greer would be drafted as a result of the United States entry into the war. He was working at the time and making a dollar to a dollar and a quarter an hour. He did not plan to go into the service until they were ready for him. When he received the call, he went. Greer entered service on 5 August 1943.

William Greer had complications with his draft board registration. He moved several times and did not follow-up by changing from his original Texarkana, Texas draft board registration to the new locations. He began training for the Merchant Marines in Anaheim, California. He knew he could make some money there. It never crossed his mind to have his draft status changed. Meanwhile, his Texas draft board sent him a letter calling him in for consideration for induction. Greer contacted them to let them know that he had joined the Maritime Service. He actually was in school on Catalina Island. The Navy was providing the training and uniforms. The trainee uniforms had no stripes but had a red pilot wheel on the cuff and collar. The Texas draft board responded that Greer better take quick action or he could be a lot of trouble with the government. Greer decided that he better get into the service as quickly as he could. He went to the local Anaheim draft board at the city hall and requested immediate induction in the Army or wherever they would take him. The local draft board complied with his request. Greer left for Army basic training the next morning. His first base was Fort MacArthur at San Pedro. Shortly afterwards, he was sent by train for further training at Camp Van Dorn, Mississippi. It was near a little town named Centreville. He became a member of the Combat Engineers in the 63rd Division. After basic training, he was shipped to Fort Dix, New Jersey which was a port for replacements. He was assigned to the 315th Combat Engineers, 90th Infantry Division [Annotator's Note: 315th Engineer Combat Battalion, 90th Infantry Division]. His overseas bound troopship was loaded and pulled out in the dark. Troops were all kept below. When daylight came more ships could be seen that were added to the convoy. After departure and the start of the voyage, Greer’s ship had to return to New York Harbor due to engine problems. The men were kept on the ship even though some of them lived nearby. No one liked being restrained on the ship. After five days, the ship left again. The men had been on the ship for 21 days before landing in Liverpool.

William Greer was sent to a small camp in England [Annotator’s Note: after his deployment across the Atlantic Ocean]. It seemed to him that only his one company [Annotator's Note: Company A, 315th Engineer Combat Battalion, 90th Infantry Division] was based in the camp. England was like the photographs he had seen in his history books. It looked like it did in the past. There was little bomb damage where he was based, but when he was sent on a detail that took him through Birmingham, he saw the heavy impact of German bombing. Some of the ancient buildings had been terribly destroyed. Up until that time, he had no idea where Birmingham, England was. He was more familiar with Birmingham, Alabama. On 5 June [Annotator’s Note: 5 June 1944], he boarded a ship to go to Normandy. It was night when he went on the ship. The next morning, the men could look through portholes and see the ships surrounding them in the English Channel. The ship would travel a bit and then stop. When the men looked out the porthole, they could see more and more ships joining them in the convoy. The men were told in the early morning that paratroopers had started landing. The invasion was underway. There was never an indication of what beach they would land on.

William Greer and his outfit [Annotator’s Note: Company A, 315th Engineer Combat Battalion, 90th Infantry Division] landed on Utah Beach. His outfit climbed the bluff and saw the pillboxes that had been demolished. Formerly involved in construction, he took note of the huge amount of reinforcing steel that was used to build the structures. Moving on to St. Mere Église, he saw numerous dead Germans on the road off the beach and all the way to the town. Tanks and other vehicles had just run over the fatalities. The most demoralizing thing that is impossible to explain is the scent of war. There was destruction everywhere. He saw uprooted vegetation, and dead livestock, and humans. The stench was the worst aspect of the war. The outfit kept advancing. They reached St. Lo and then areas beyond. Greer and his platoon were fighting with the infantry. He was hit while in an apple orchard that had a hedgerow in front with a road beside it. Following up the side of the road, there were enemy small arms and machine guns as well as mortars firing on the Americans. That was when he was hit. He went over the hedgerow and saw a dead German. There were small ditches on both sides of the hedgerow. A lieutenant was being reprimanded for getting the troops into the dangerous situation. The squad leader was being told to find a way out of the predicament. The lieutenant was scared to death. The look on his face was memorable to Greer. With his blond hair and little white mustache, he looked like his face was white all over, too. [Annotator’s Note: Greer chuckles at the memory] After Greer told the lieutenant that he was wounded, the officer responded that everyone was on their own to find their way out of there. The sergeant got after the lieutenant. There was a soldier of Mexican descent. He was a scout who had never been hit. Greer and the scout teamed up to exit the area. They started out on the road and did not get very far before a machine gun opened up on them. Both men were running down the road and managed not to get hit before going around a corner and finding cover. It was then that Greer realized how bad he had been hit. [Annotator’s Note: Greer does not explain the details of his wound.] Going to the side of the road in a ditch, he laid down. A medic came by and bandaged Greer and then gave him a shot of morphine. The medic told Greer to remain where he was and someone would come by to assist him. Ajeep arrived and stopped by Greer. He was told to leave his rifle behind and get in the jeep. Greer did not want to leave his weapon behind. He refused to do so. The medics in the jeep were wearing the red cross and debated with Greer about carrying his weapon. The lieutenant and his driver finally acquiesced and allowed Greer to place his rifle on the floor of the jeep. Greer was driven to an aid station while he was going in and out of consciousness. The tent was filled with injured men. Some were in really bad shape. Greer does not know how long he was there.

William Greer was wounded in Normandy. He was removed from the beaches in a landing craft. The craft could carry an ambulance in it. Greer was placed in a hospital in England. He was relocated to another hospital to treat his chest and nerve injuries. He had to have an operation to help him recover. Greer stayed there until his infection and his healing had improved. He hurt badly during the recovery process, but he finally healed. After exiting the hospital, he talked to his surgeon who was a major. The officer informed Greer that he would be ZI’ed [Annotator’s Note: unsure what he is reffering to]. This made Greer very happy. He was sent back to the United States. He landed in Staten Island and was sent to the old Kennedy General Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee around Christmas time [Annotator's Note: Christmas 1944]. The men were told that anyone wanting a 30 day furlough for Christmas could get one but if they stayed in the hospital, they could get a quicker discharge. Greer stayed and was discharged on 30 December 1944.

William Greer saw combat and was wounded in Normandy, France shortly after troops exited Utah Beach. His squad leader had the back of his head blown off. Greer used the officer’s body as cover as he fired on a German he had seen. Not knowing if he hit the enemy, Greer got up and ran through the hedgerow. That was when he told his lieutenant that he had been wounded. Greer carried an M1 rifle in combat and felt it was a great weapon. Looking back on his service, Greer knows it made an impact on his life. There are unforgettable things that come to mind even though some of them would be better to leave behind. He has learned to live with those tough memories that are hard to talk about. Greer always wanted to be a rancher and raise cattle. His service did not change that. In visiting The National WWII Museum, he feels that its mission is worthwhile. Many young people do not know what D-Day or other war details are about. The only introduction many have to the war is what they see in the movies. It was a war that had to be fought and won. Greer was told in basic training that it would be the last war. Instead, there have been other wars since. When Greer was in Anaheim, California and heard about the North Koreans invading South Korea, he learned it was a police action to send our troops in to help a place he had never heard of before. His first thought was here we go again, after all those promises of no more wars.