Casualties

By unofficial counts, the 103d Infantry Division suffered a total of 6.762 casualties during its brief history of combat during World War II. This number includes the 848 Cactus men who paid the ultimate price for freedom.

Thanks to the efforts of former Association President B. Melton Wright, and a number of volunteers, the following is a consolidated, searchable, database of all identified casualties incurred by the 103d Infantry Division (Cactus) during its period of combat. The period of combat was relative short, when compared to other U.S. Army Divisions who fought in WWII, however, this was a most intense period between November, 1944 and VE-Day in Europe, May 8, 1945. The 103d Infantry Division did something that even Napoleon dismissed as suicidal; they fought a fierce defensive element of the German Army through the Vosges Mountains during one of the harshest winters experienced in that area in decades.

Special thanks is extended to those who assisted Mel Wright in the effort to put these reports together. These volunteers were:

Jim Enzor, Company B, 409th for obtaining copies of the original After Action Reports. John Poole, Company C, 409th, Cranston Rogers, Company G, 409th, and James White, Company B, 409th for transferring the copies of original archive records into computer records that allowed compilation of this report. Richard "Dick" Ball, Battery B, 382d Field Artillery, Raymond "Red" Barrett, Battery B, 382d Field Artillery, and Michael Toohig, Company B, 411th for spending hours of their time at the NARA gathering copies of the original Casualty Reports to make this report possible. Also, a special thanks goes out to Kenneth Schlessinger and his staff of wonderful people at the NARA who were gracious and helpful to us in our effort to obtain these reports. Gloria McLeod, widow of Harry McLeod, Company G, 411th, spent many hours transferring the data for the 411th Infantry Regiment into computer records. And, no recognition would be complete without recognizing Thelma Wright for her patience and understanding over the countless hours spent by Mel in compiling the data for this report. As in World War II, the 103d proves again that dedicated team work can accomplish the mission and Call to Duty.

Without the assistance of these dedicated people, the following reports would not have been possible.

Casualty Report Including MIA & POW Information By Date Excel PDF

Casualty Report Including MIA & POW Information By Name Excel PDF

Casualty Report Including MIA & POW Information By Unit Excel PDF

During the six months of combat the 103d Infantry Division was engaged in some fierce battles with a determined enemy. There were some particularly bloody days for the Cactus Division. The worst days were (in order):

Date

15 March 1945

16 November 1944

21 March 1945

1 December 1944

16 March 1945

25 January 1945

19 January 1945

15 December 1944

19 December 1944

20 March 1945

Battle Deaths