I’ve previously written about my father’s military service during World War II in Italy. (The blog ElvinCoxWW2.com is dedicated to his experiences.) My wife Sharon and I recently traveled to Rome, Anzio, and Civitavecchia where he was involved in intense fighting in 1944, and we visited the grave of one of my father’s friends, Jesse Smith, at the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery in Netunno, Italy. Jesse was killed by a mortar shell at Anzio on April 22, 1944.
My father knew Jesse and his brother since they were boys playing in the local baseball leagues. In March 1944, Dad and Jesse ran into each other in Naples where they were among the troops waiting to be sent to Anzio. They were both assigned to Company I, 133rd Regiment, 34th Infantry Division (the Red Bulls) and arrived at Anzio on March 26, 1944. They joined a Division that had taken heavy losses and were mired in a stalemate on the Anzio beachhead. Jesse was killed by a mortar shell.
The Allies broke out of a months long stalemate on May 23, 1944 and chased the Nazis to Rome. Dad was one of the first soldiers to enter the city, a day before the newsreel footage showed the people cheering the Americans on the streets. While the cheering continued, the 34th Red Bulls were among the infantry and armored divisions pursuing the Nazis as they retreated from Rome. Dad was severely wounded in battle on June 8, 1944, near Civitavecchia. Several of his close friends were also wounded or killed there.
Most people are unaware that the Anzio campaign resulted in approximately 7000 troop casualties, and another 36,000 were either wounded or missing. This is more than the casualties on D-Day. Visiting the cemetery where the sea of crosses lies is a humbling experience, as it provides perspective on the sacrifices made to ensure our liberty. As Sharon rightly said, every American should visit a military cemetery at some point.
Forebears and Kinfolks 
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