Lieutenant Colonel Kenneth C Reed
Kenneth Clarke Reed was born on May 9th, 1898 in Arlington, Massachusetts to Herbert Reed and Caroline Clark. He was soon followed by a brother the next year. Kenneth attended local schools and graduated in 1916 yet decided not to pursue a college degree. Instead he worked locally until the United States entered World War One raging abroad in April 1917.
WW1
Kenneth did not get drafted until May 20th, 1918, shortly before the first US units in Europe saw combat. Towering at an impressive 6’2”, he completed basic training and was assigned to Battery F, 302nd Field Artillery Regiment, 76th Infantry Division in June as a Corporal by the time they were alerted to go overseas. After a full divisional review, Battery F boarded the SS Port Lincoln on July 16th, 1918 and shipped off to Europe. They arrived in Liverpool, England on the 31st, made their way to Le Havre, France, then by train to Bordeaux. Cpl Reed and the regiment were billeted there in August to receive new artillery pieces and to be trained with the trucks to carry them. After this was completed, they marched to Camp de Souge for four weeks of gunnery practice. Finally, on October 30th, the regiment moved out by train to the battle line near St. Remy which was completed on November 3rd. The move did not go unnoticed, and the regiment was seriously shelled by German gas. Gas mask training was extensive and serious loss of life was avoided. At midnight on the 6th, Cpl Reed’s regiment fired their first shell at the enemy and the first shell fired by American made artillery during the war. For the next few days, the 302nd delivered harassing fire in support of the Meuse-Argonne offensive including artillery support for the 33rd Division’s advance until the Armistice ended the war on November 11th, stopping Reed’s relatively short war. The regiment returned to France until Reed finally boarded a ship and arrived home on May 3rd, 1919 and was discharged four days later.
Kenneth returned to his home city and became a salesman for lumber briefly before meeting and marrying Margaret McVeigh in 1925. They welcomed a daughter into the world the following year. His experience with trucks and mechanics prior to and during WW1 led him into the automobile industry in the late 1920s, eventually landing a job at Read Motor Company. When WW2 broke out in 1939, Reed was in his forties and the US was not particularly eager to join the Allies. That all changed after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.
WW2
With the US military rapidly expanding to go to war, there was a serious need for support and logistical units to keep the front line soldiers moving. The National Automotive Dealers Association was contacted by the US government to provide men for Ordnance Regiments as it was easier to convert automotive factory workers into units rather than train men from the ground up. They agreed. As a result, Reed was commissioned into the US Army on October 10th, 1942 as a Major and became part of Company F, 304th Ordnance Base Regiment along with his company. These regiments were established and trained at Camp Sutton, North Carolina on how to repair military vehicles and other crucial equipment. Later on, the entire Ordnance Regiment system was reworked, and Reed’s unit became the 3111th Ordnance Base Armored Vehicle Maintenance Company, 611th Ordnance Base Automotive Maintenance Battalion by 1944. Their specialty was now tracked vehicles and tanks. As the Allies prepared to push into France, Major Reed and his battalion shipped out to Britain and resided at Warminster Wiltshire by March of 1944 through November preparing for movement into France. This was completed by early 1945 and in time to support the Rhineland campaign. As US troops pushed into the heart of Germany and Central Europe, men of the 3111st were busy cannibalizing, repairing, and sourcing parts for damaged armored vehicles to send back into action. When Germany announced their surrender in May, Lieutenant Colonel Reed’s unit became part of the occupational force and was stationed at the Butzbach Ordnance Depot. Hundreds of vehicles were brought here from battlefields all across Europe for repairs that kept them busy well into October and November when they finally were able to return to the United States. Reed’s second war ended when he was discharged on December 30th, 1945 and he returned to Arlington for the 2nd time and to the car industry. He sadly passed away on June 28th, 1974 in Lexington.
WW1
Kenneth did not get drafted until May 20th, 1918, shortly before the first US units in Europe saw combat. Towering at an impressive 6’2”, he completed basic training and was assigned to Battery F, 302nd Field Artillery Regiment, 76th Infantry Division in June as a Corporal by the time they were alerted to go overseas. After a full divisional review, Battery F boarded the SS Port Lincoln on July 16th, 1918 and shipped off to Europe. They arrived in Liverpool, England on the 31st, made their way to Le Havre, France, then by train to Bordeaux. Cpl Reed and the regiment were billeted there in August to receive new artillery pieces and to be trained with the trucks to carry them. After this was completed, they marched to Camp de Souge for four weeks of gunnery practice. Finally, on October 30th, the regiment moved out by train to the battle line near St. Remy which was completed on November 3rd. The move did not go unnoticed, and the regiment was seriously shelled by German gas. Gas mask training was extensive and serious loss of life was avoided. At midnight on the 6th, Cpl Reed’s regiment fired their first shell at the enemy and the first shell fired by American made artillery during the war. For the next few days, the 302nd delivered harassing fire in support of the Meuse-Argonne offensive including artillery support for the 33rd Division’s advance until the Armistice ended the war on November 11th, stopping Reed’s relatively short war. The regiment returned to France until Reed finally boarded a ship and arrived home on May 3rd, 1919 and was discharged four days later.
Kenneth returned to his home city and became a salesman for lumber briefly before meeting and marrying Margaret McVeigh in 1925. They welcomed a daughter into the world the following year. His experience with trucks and mechanics prior to and during WW1 led him into the automobile industry in the late 1920s, eventually landing a job at Read Motor Company. When WW2 broke out in 1939, Reed was in his forties and the US was not particularly eager to join the Allies. That all changed after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.
WW2
With the US military rapidly expanding to go to war, there was a serious need for support and logistical units to keep the front line soldiers moving. The National Automotive Dealers Association was contacted by the US government to provide men for Ordnance Regiments as it was easier to convert automotive factory workers into units rather than train men from the ground up. They agreed. As a result, Reed was commissioned into the US Army on October 10th, 1942 as a Major and became part of Company F, 304th Ordnance Base Regiment along with his company. These regiments were established and trained at Camp Sutton, North Carolina on how to repair military vehicles and other crucial equipment. Later on, the entire Ordnance Regiment system was reworked, and Reed’s unit became the 3111th Ordnance Base Armored Vehicle Maintenance Company, 611th Ordnance Base Automotive Maintenance Battalion by 1944. Their specialty was now tracked vehicles and tanks. As the Allies prepared to push into France, Major Reed and his battalion shipped out to Britain and resided at Warminster Wiltshire by March of 1944 through November preparing for movement into France. This was completed by early 1945 and in time to support the Rhineland campaign. As US troops pushed into the heart of Germany and Central Europe, men of the 3111st were busy cannibalizing, repairing, and sourcing parts for damaged armored vehicles to send back into action. When Germany announced their surrender in May, Lieutenant Colonel Reed’s unit became part of the occupational force and was stationed at the Butzbach Ordnance Depot. Hundreds of vehicles were brought here from battlefields all across Europe for repairs that kept them busy well into October and November when they finally were able to return to the United States. Reed’s second war ended when he was discharged on December 30th, 1945 and he returned to Arlington for the 2nd time and to the car industry. He sadly passed away on June 28th, 1974 in Lexington.