I have written this document as I lived it. I was very proud to have been part of this World War II Invasion of France at Utah Beach. Since the initial landing I have visited  Europe five times.

My army unit was 5 BN. HDQ.  8th Infantry Regiment, 4th Inf (Ivy) Division. This mostly describes the action of the 8th Infantry Regiment of the 4th Inf  Division, D-Day, June 6, 1944.

From civilian life to military life then to army life--this included combat and amphibious training--then from the United States to England for more training in the first week of June. Troops were put aboard the USS Troop ship Bayfield.  During the early morning hours of June 6th, the troops were to board an LCVP (Landing Craft) by a rope ladder and then to meet 20 other landing crafts for a rendezvous to make up the second wave, which was supposed to land on the coast of France at 6:40 AM. The coxswain never found the other LCVPs as it was still dark and clouded. The troops were so sea sick and started screaming and threatening to throw the coxswain over board if he didn’t get us to the beach.  He obliged by throwing the motor into high speed and heading for the beach.  The second wave we were supposed to be with was scheduled to land at 7:40 AM but the coxswain dumped us off at about 6:15 AM. There was absolutely no resistance from the Germans as there was not even one to greet us.  Had they been on their guard they could have wiped out all 30 of us.

We noticed some activity going on down the beach and decided to take a walk in that direction.  We learned later that it was some frogmen who were neutralizing the underwater explosives, not realizing that that part of the beach could be mined also. It was best to back track back to where we had landed. 

After the third and fourth waves arrived with some several hundred more troops and equipment, the Germans began to realize that something was happening that was not in their favor. All hell broke out and it lasted all the way to Cherbourg, France. The sea port at Cherbourg had a well-established beach head had been won and captured, in less than 35 to 50 days.