amd6547
Member
My father enlisted in an Ohio National Guard Unit prior to WWII.
It was a cavalry unit which still had horses...half horse, half armored cars.
The unit photo shown was taken shortly before the unit was nationalized and became the 107th cavalry.
He trained in different parts of the country, including participating in the large pre-war maneuvers in Louisiana.
One training mission was at Ft Hood Texas, which he described as "hell".
While at Ft Hood, he had a local knifemaker make him this knife. He said it was made from a file.
He carried it all through the war in Europe, where he fought at the battle of Falaise Gap....and on to Germany.
Originally, it had a stag in the center of the leather washer grip. That broke in the 1960's, and he filled it with plastic wood.
The sheath has the wire pistol belt hanger, and his name stamped in the leather.
When I was a kid, my family would go for hikes in the Cleveland Metroparks. Dad would park near the road, strap on this knife, and lead us to a brush covered woods. He would pull this knife, and cut a trail for us to follow single file...something that would get you arrested today.
Oh..in the unit photo, that is dad kneeling in front, over his crossed saber Cav emblem. And, those are White scout cars, not half tracks in the pic...made in Cleveland.
It was a cavalry unit which still had horses...half horse, half armored cars.
The unit photo shown was taken shortly before the unit was nationalized and became the 107th cavalry.
He trained in different parts of the country, including participating in the large pre-war maneuvers in Louisiana.
One training mission was at Ft Hood Texas, which he described as "hell".
While at Ft Hood, he had a local knifemaker make him this knife. He said it was made from a file.
He carried it all through the war in Europe, where he fought at the battle of Falaise Gap....and on to Germany.
Originally, it had a stag in the center of the leather washer grip. That broke in the 1960's, and he filled it with plastic wood.
The sheath has the wire pistol belt hanger, and his name stamped in the leather.
When I was a kid, my family would go for hikes in the Cleveland Metroparks. Dad would park near the road, strap on this knife, and lead us to a brush covered woods. He would pull this knife, and cut a trail for us to follow single file...something that would get you arrested today.
Oh..in the unit photo, that is dad kneeling in front, over his crossed saber Cav emblem. And, those are White scout cars, not half tracks in the pic...made in Cleveland.
Last edited:
