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7830th
Signal Service Company
. . . .
Looking for more information from military/civilian
personnel assigned to or associated with the U.S. Army
in Germany from 1945 to 1989. If you have any
stories or thoughts on the subject, please contact me .
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Company
History |
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1954 |
(Source: Material
found at the USAREUR Military History Office, early 1980s) |
The 7830th Signal
Service Company is located (1954) at Turenne Kaserne, Zweibrücken.
The Company's MISSION:
- to provide security for four highly classified operational outposts
located near:
Battweiler
Bärenhütte
Dietrichingen
Contwig
- to perform maintenance and light construction on approximately 106
miles of aerially suspended Spiral-4 communications lines from the
outposts to operations and headquarters;
- to provide logistical support for the 9571st TSU (SCRU) attached.
ORGANIZATION (1954):
Commanding Officer
Headquarters (Pltn)
Personnel Section
Supply Section
Motor Section
Operations & Training (Pltn)
Wire Section
Dog (Guard) Section
Security Pltn |
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If you have more
information on the history or organization of the 7830th Signal Service
Company, please contact me . |
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MISCELLANEOUS
UNIT INFORMATION:
On Arne Mahlum's Field Station Augsburg website, the 7830th Sig Sv
Pltn is listed as being stationed at Herzogenaurach in 1949 and 1950.
Another entry states that the 7830th is attached to the 52nd Signal
Service Detachment. Don't know if that is operationally or for admin
only.
In a guestbook entry on the 38th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron
website, the 7830th is mentioned with location at Zweibrücken,
1955-56
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(Source: Email
from Ben Marberry, 7830th Sig Svc Co, 1954-56) |
I served with
the 7830th Signal Service Company in
Zweibrucken, Germany 1954 thru 1956. Sometime during about '55 the
name of the Unit was changed to Signal Service Company 7830th A.U.
I have been unable to find any mention of this outfit on any webpage.
We provided guards for 4 fenced in outposts located about 10 miles
from the post. We were never told what we were guarding, but rumor
was it was some short of communications equipment. We also had contact
with a "secret" outfit and it was called, I believe, the 9571st also
located at Zweibrucken.
I arrived in Germany in August of 1954. We caught a train to Zweibrucken
for processing to other units in Europe. I believe at that time, all
US Army personnel were processed through Zweibrucken. During the formation
the next morning, long before daylight, a somewhat short, red haired,
freckle faced SFC was calling the roll. When he got to my name, he
stopped and ordered me to "front and center". His name was Sgt. Charles
O. Farris and he had been one of my High School ROTC instructors at
South Side High School in Memphis, TN. That night he picked me up
at the billets we were in and invited me to dinner at the Enlisted
Men's Club on post. I was introduced to Parkbrau beer and Champaign
and a huge steak to celebrate our reunion. Sgt. Farris was also assigned
to C&A (Classification & Assignment) and offered me an assignment
anywhere in Europe that had a need for my MOS, Military Police. He
said about the best duty in Germany was right there at Zweibrucken
with the "secret" signal outfit stationed there. He did not know anything
about their activities, but stated from what he had heard it was a
good outfit. That's how I came to join the 7830th Signal Service Company.
We were a small company, about 80 men as I recall. At that time our
C.O. was Captain Winfield A. Sprague and the exec. was 1st Leut. Donald
Pomeroy. I believe our First Sgt. was Warren Gannaway. The Company's
mission, as I understood it, was to furnish guards for 4 outposts
located just a few miles from Zweibrucken. We had a line platoon that
maintained the communication wire from each outpost to the 9571st.
We used EE-8 Field Phones for commo. Each outpost was manned by a
Corporal of the Guard, three guards and a cook. One guard at each
post was a dog handler and assigned a German Police guard dog. We
lived in a nice little two room house, the back room with cots and
the front room with a kitchen, dining table and chairs and a sort
of recliner. We walked the perimeter 4 hours on and 8 hours off. If
you happened to have an understanding Corp. of the Guard, he would
occasionally take a turn walking a tour. We manned the posts 24/7
365 days a year.
I spent one Christmas and one Thanksgiving on outpost duty. Now the
big mystery to all of us was; what in the hell were we guarding ?
I spent two years, off and on, walking around the outpost guarding
a little wooden shack, about the size of an outdoor toilet, surrounded
by chain link fence with a locked gate. The bad part was the cold
winter nights, below freezing, snow on the ground, walking with the
dog from 4 a.m. -- 8 a.m.
The good part was when we were relieved from that tour, we had 2 1/2
days off. Passes both days and the Company was very generous with
3 day passes. Every one knew that, in the parlance of the day, we
had it made and didn't want to do anything that might jeopardize staying
with the 7830th.
I have some pictures of that time and when I gather them together,
maybe you can post them on your site. Some of the men I remember were
SFC Tony Stec, Sgt. Vernon Duke, Spec. David Brown, Spec. Danny Thomas,
"Shaky" Hansen, Don Miller and many whose names escape me right now.
In April of '91, just after the first Gulf War, I went back to Germany
for a short visit. I went alone and spent most of my time in Zweibrucken,
just driving around and trying to find old landmarks. The post was
still manned at that time, and our billets were now manned by female
soldiers ! What a change and how welcome they would have been in 1954.
I know that most veterans remember fondly their time in the military
and sometimes their memory is very "selective". But any man that was
in the 7830th during the time period of '54, '55, and '56, KNEW they
truly had it made. |
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