Glen Willard Hauck was in the Army three years, nine months and 23 days.
He was taking his physical on Pearl Harbor day … if you could breathe that day you were accepted. His basic training was at Camp Roberts, Calif. Glen ended up in the hospital there, where he had surgery for a hernia and appendicitis.
From Camp Roberts he went to the 134th Infantry Regiment, which was a National Guard outfit from Nebraska. He later went to a combat intelligence school at Ojai, Calif. Glen said, “I had guard duty up and down the whole coast of California.”
Everyone in the Army was eventually sent to Camp Rucker, Ala. There, Glen was transferred to a chemical warfare company, which meant he had to take basic training all over again. From Camp Rucker, he went overseas with the 224th Chemical Service Platoon. Glen left the United States through Vancouver Barracks, which is across the Columbia River from Portland, Oregon.
They left at night aboard a Liberty ship and sailed down the Columbia River to the Pacific Ocean. They were on the ship for 29 days. They landed at Finch Haven in New Guinea. Glen was there for a short while preparing for the invasion of Leyte in the Philippines. Glen also made the landing on Luzon. He eventually ended up as a truck driver hauling four point two ammunition day and night. He was overseas a year and a half and upon his return he had enough points for a discharge when the war was over.
It took him nine days to get back to the States from the Philippines. Upon landing at Los Angeles, the men were immediately put on a troop train and sent to Fort Logan for their discharge. Glen never obtained a higher rank than a corporal.
Editor’s note: Mr. Hauck’s photo and military history were inadvertently omitted from the “Tribute to Our Troops” book honoring Rio Blanco County veterans. We sincerely regret the omission.
