Located in the Manche County, the purpose of Utah Beach was to take Cherbourg and its harbor in deep-water. That was the job of the VII Corps under the command of General Joseph Collins. But before to take Cherbourg, a bridgehead had to be opened and secured.

The 4^th Infantry Division also known as “Ivy Division” was commanded by General Raymond O. Barton, will have the privilege to be the first one to open the doors of freedom at Utah Beach. The 4^th Infantry Division was composed of the 8^th Infantry Regiment, 12^th Infantry Regiment, 22^nd Infantry Regiment landing its troops on Utah Beach on D-Day in two sectors: “Tare Green” and “Uncle Red”.

The mission? Take control of four causeways running from the coastline to the country side and do the connection with airborne troops.

At 0540am on D-Day Nevada and Entreprise battleships and supporting vessels started to open fire onto the coastline, and continued until just before the touchdown of the first wave. The first wave had loaded into landing crafts around 0400am then circled for two hours and by 0600am, boys had a rendezvous with history.

On their way to the coastline to prevent a friendly fire, a black smoke was fired from a special projector attached to the landing boats to inform the destroyers that they were about to land. At this moment, the moral of the soldiers was fine. Supporting landing crafts at the rear provided a machine gun covering fire, trying to protect the first wave and to destroy floating mines.

Boys soon left their boats, still having to walk through the water, and some of them had Mohawk haircuts.

“E” and “F” Companies of the 2^nd Battalion of the 8^th Infantry Regiment were the first elements of the 4^th Division to set up foot on shore at 0630am on time and went down “Causeway 2”. The morale of the boys was very high as they reached the shore, an attitude no doubt aided by the absence of opposition from the Germans at that moment. Indeed, the aerial and naval bombardments completely silenced WN5. When “E” Company reached the dunes, couple of them waved their rifles and yelled “God damnit, we are on French soil”.

Troops of the 4^th Infantry Division landing at Utah Beach on June 6^th - ©CombatReels.com

There was a little machine gun fire and some artillery airburst from a 88mm gun set up at the crossroad just back of the dune. Lieutenant-Colonel Carlton O. MacNeely, CO of the battalion was initially schedueld to land at 0700am but decided otherwise and came early, at 0645am. In fact, Lieutenant-Colonel MacNeely wanted to take control of the Duplex Drive Tanks whom were late too. As he left his LCVP, “G” and H” Companies were just reaching the beach.

Captain Robert C. Crisson from “C” Company of the 1^st Battalion was supposed to land at 0630am too, but was late and didn’t know exactly when he landed. As no opposition was encountered most of his men continued joking and kidding each other and had to be reminded not to expose themselves.

After landing, “C” Company reached sand dunes, in search of the “mud fort”. A non-commissioned Officer yelled “Dammit, Captain, there is no mud fort down there”.

Note: “Mud fort” it's the name given to a German strongpoint made of earth and mud.

The division was initially scheduled to land between “Causeway 3” and “Causeway 4”, in front of the village of Saint-Martin-de-Varreville protected by WN07, WN08, WN09 and WN10. Due to the weather conditions landing crafts found themselves pushed two miles south and the first wave stormed Utah Beach in front of “Causeway 2” codenamed Road U5.

Understanding that the boys landed at the wrong place, they had to adapt themselves and started to clean out the enemy positions and houses behind the dunes, one by one.

8^th Infantry Regiment

“E” and “F” Companies let by Lieutenant-Colonel MacNeely went straight in, on the road behind the beach meeting continuous but light small arms fire. “G” Company commanded by Captain James W. Haley went south along the beach making its way toward “Causeway 1” at Beauguillot but had to face enemy booby traps and mines. Captain George L. Mabry, S-3 of the unit, stumbled over a trip wire and exploded a mine but miraculously survived without injury. “G” Company had been ordered to go as far as coordinates 448913, but Lieutenant-Colonel McNeely sent a message to Captain Haley to swing west, inland at coordinates 450934 to join the rest of the battalion in Poupeville.

Precisely, “B” Company cleaned up “Fort la Madeleine” with the support of one section of “C” Company while the other echelon of Charlie was taking “Fort U5” without meeting almost no opposition. Only small arm fire was received coming from the houses along “Causeway 2” but Germans quickly surrendered.

While the first bullets were fired by the boys of the 4^th Infantry Division, a private ran up to Captain Crisson and told him: “I have got two women over here….in a ditch”; Captain Crisson: “What the hell are you doing with two women in a ditch?”; Private then said: “I don’t want them to get shot.”

The two civilians plus a French farmer were taken somewhere else, into a safer spot. 

Note: Command Post was set up in the church at coordinates 444969.

In the meantime, the German artillery was opening fire from higher ground, in the direction of La Rivière across the swamps. Naval and tank fire were then requested but tanks didn’t open fire because of friendly troops in the aera (2^nd Battalion were the friendly troops).

Captain Crisson proceeded then inland with two front observers and a runner were spotted by a machine gunner who didn’t wait long before to open fire. This was without counting on the German artillery which was pouring everywhere. While the enemy machine gunner was opening fire at Captain Ross’s party, a shell fell couple of yards in front of the boys, wounding the Captain and killing the two front observers.

Note: The runner was not hurt.

It took couple of minutes for Captain Crisson and his runner to recover from the blast, by 0830am “C” Company led by its Captain was marching north through La Madeleine. Being wounded,Captain Crisson was not able to continue and was evacuated. Most of casualties encountered were made from 88mm guns or mines.

Note: Captain Crisson arrived at the Aid Station set up in a field next to the church of La Madeleine by 1200pm and was evacuated on an LCT to an LST which had a hospital with army personnel and in attendance where he remained for three to four days off the beach. While on the LCT, Captain Crisson has seen a German officer with his wife made prisoners whom tried to get a stateroom for them.

The entire 1^st Battalion regrouped at the east of Poupeville at the crossroad at coordinates 4489387 (see map below).

©IGNMap.com2024

In the meantime, a private from “E” Company had made contact with a paratrooper of the 101^st Airborne Division at Beauguillot and others in Poupeville. Everyone in the 1^st Battalion continued following the road to Le Ham Hubert, where they met the “big guy” Colonel James A. Van Fleet in command of the 8^th Infantry Regiment. Colonel Van Fleet ordered his outfit to go to Sainte-Marie-du-Mont then Le Bout de la Ville. This was made by meeting scattered resistance.

12^th Infantry Regiment 

At 1130am on D-Day the first assault waves of the 12^th Infantry Regiment led by Colonel Russel P. Reeder, Jr. were abording their landing crafts making the last adjustments of their equipment. The coastline was might be almost secured, it was possible to see in their eyes that they were anxious, all of them grinned nervously at one another and it was possible to see in their eyes “This is it, at last”.

The 12^th was about to set up foot on the ground of France for the first time, as the ramps opened, the true meaning of the war “Death and Destruction” arose. German strongpoints were completely gone, barbed wire was twisted apart, but American and German bodies layed done in the holes made by the shelling.

Causeway 2 codenamed U5 was getting jammed by the amount of equipment, and men had to walk through inundated fields on both sides. Advancing eastward two miles inland the sound of the first German machine guns was heard. Hedge lined meadow, sunken roads, rocky upward slopes suddenly began to spit enemy fire. Fear and doubt melted into one unanimous passion of hate. “Let’s get the bastards” was the motto.

Being in France since 1940, Germans knew perfectly out to defend each piece of grounds, using the hedgerows. Sometime these hedgerows were 11 to 13 feet high and provided a very good cover for the enemy, and one or two snipers were able to stop one company.

Captain Irving Gray, Commanding Officer of “B” Company was the first officer casualty, a sniper bullet went through his shoulder, even as the blood stained his shirt, he found the strength to grab is M1 Carbine and killed him. Being now under the command of Lieutenant Pearcy (AAR Spelling) “B”, Company reached the west of Beuzeville-au-Plain where an enemy strongpoint set up at a crossroad welcomed them. It consisted of infantry troops and a 75mm antitank gun.

Lieutenant Johnson with a party went forward, destroyed the 75mm gun. Ignoring the instant sniper fire, Baker kept forward destroying an ammunition dump on its way.

As the light of the day disappeared, a full moon took over in the sky acting as a beacon for the continuous stream of glider towing American planes. German tracer orange bullets gave light through the hedgerows, their machine guns sounded like tireless woodpeckers in response of the M1's Garand. 1^st Battalion bivouacked southwest of Beuzeville-au-Plain with the 2^nd Battalion on its left and the 3^rd in reserve.

 22^nd Infantry Regiment

Between 1000am and 1030am the first elements of the regiment were setting foot on shore at Utah Beach, before to head to “Causeway 4” codenamed Road S9.  Roads U5 and T7 were still congested by enemy artillery. Walking through the swamps as their brothers of the 8^th and 12^th Infantry Regiments, with water at waist deep, full of ditches and holes, boys frequently dropped into the water over their heads. With enemy machine gun fire coming from the beach, most of the time boys had to duck completely under the water and to wait for the gunner to reload. It took them seven hours to walk 2 miles advancing northeastward.

Boys of the 22nd Infantry Regiment setting foot on Utah - ©CombatReels.com

1^st and 2^nd Battalions crossed Road T7 passing at the rear of the 3^rd Battalion of the 8^th Infantry Regiment and joined Road S9 near Saint-German-de-Varreville but didn’t reach the village itself. 

Causeway 2 - Road U5

By 0900am, vehicles arrived in large numbers. The original traffic plan counted on the use of Road U5 and Road T7 but due to the landing at "Causeway 2", Road T7 couldn’t be used anymore because of the German artillery set up further inland. All of vehicles had to move on “Causeway 2”, fortunately there was no obstruction on this road except a small bridge at coordinates 437953. There was a destroyed tank at that location, the bridge was protected by an antitank gun, the first tank whom reached it was knocked out. The other tanks of the 70^th Tank Battalion took down the strongpoint and pushed the disabled tank into the swamp.

As it was necessary to cross the creek, the 1106^th Engineer Group came into action at 1130am to put in place a bailey bridge. In the meantime, many vehicles and their drivers were waiting to move finally inland, the dunes becoming a huge parking area something had to be done as the artillery was still operating. All of the fields from “Causeway 1” codenamed Road V1 to “Causeway 2” were turned in a huge assembly area from 1100am to 0500pm.

1106^th Engineer Group parked its vehicles on both sides of the road and unloaded pontoon equipment in the middle of Causeway 2 with antiaircraft halftrack as a support. Being narrow and practically without shoulders in most places, large vehicles had difficulty in passing. Two tanks and at least one 2 ½ ton truck in attempting to pass obstructions ran partly off the road and were stuck in the swamp. Their crews then held up all traffic for considerable time while they maneuvered other vehicles into position to tow them out. In the case of one 2 ½ ton truck which was following the vehicles towing an antitank gun, the gun was uncoupled, the towing vehicle maneuvered during a period of ten or fifteen minutes into position to tow out the stuck truck and then still longer maneuvered to pass these vehicles so that the gun could be picked up again. There were two or three MPs on duty on the causeway but these were quite insufficient to prevent these jams at every point where they occurred.

German artillery only fired onto the beach causing a lot of casualties but none a single round was dropped onto the parking areas.

Note: “Causeway 2” or Road U5 was jammed with vehicles, almost bumper to bumper, in addition to foot troops.