Honor Page 3

History of the SIXTH INFANTRY REGIMENT

Sent by DON DECKER
U.S. Army, 16^th Constabulary Squadron (Sep), Troop B, 1948-1950

-The text is taken out of a booklet from Oct. 16, 1951, Celebration of the 6^th Inf. Reg. -Organizations Day in Berlin-

Born in the stormy years of the formation of the United States, nurtured on the soul-filling ideals which were to make our country great, reaching maturity to fight in every great conflict since the War of 1812, the Sixth Infantry Colors now unfurl in battered city of Berlin, - outpost of freedom - , 105 miles behind the Iron Curtain.
Three regiments have held the designation 6^th Infantry since 1798. The first 6^th Infantry was constituted 16 July, 1798, and discharged 14 May, 1800. The second 6^th Infantry was constituted 12 April, 1808, and consolidated with the 16^th, 22^nd, 23^rd and 32^nd to form the 2^nd Infantry. The third 6^th Infantry was constituted as the 11^th Infantry by Act of Congress on 11 January, 1812, and was organized in March of that year in Vermont, New Hampshire and Connecticut, participating in the Battles of Canada, Chippewa and Lundy's Lane in the War of 1812.

The Act of Congress of 3 March, 1815, brought about a consolidation of the 11^th Infantry, then stationed at Sacketts Harbor, New York, with the 25^th and 37^th at the same station, the 27^th at Sandy Hook, New Jersey, and the 29^th at Plattsburg, New York. The regiment has borne the number SIX since that time.

The earliest of the eleven Indian campaigns to credit of the Sixth was Dakota 1823, fought in August, 1823, when six companies took part in an attack on the Arickaree Towns on the Missouri River. Two other campaigns against the Indians, -the Black Hawks at Bad Axe River in 1832 and the Seminoles at Lake Okeechobee-, prepared the Sixth for its part in the Mexican War.

At the outbreak of hostilities in 1846 the Sixth was poised on the Mexican border. Battle honors were won for the battles of Vera Cruz, Cerro Gordo, Churubusco, Molino del Rey and Chapultepec.

After July, 1848, the Regiment's mission was the West, protecting supply trains, scouting and engaging the Indians. In March, 1862, the Regiment was committed to battle again, this time fighting through the course of the Civil War, earning seven additional streamers for the battles of Peninsula, Manassas, Antietam, Virginia 1862, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. Stationed in the Department of the South until 1869 when some of the companies moved westward again, the Sixth again prepared for battle.

After about 20 years of battles with Indians and garrison duty in the West, the Sixth became part of the forces that fought in Cuba during the Spanish-American War, participating in the battle for Santiago. It sailed then to the Philippine Islands to quell the Philippine Insurrection in the battles of Negros 1899 and Panay 1900, remaining in the Islands until May, 1902.

In France in World War I the Regiment trained under the 26^th Division in the Toul-Boucq area before joining their 5^th Division for battle in the Anould Sector, in June, 1918. Battle honors won include Alsace, Lorraine, St. Mihiel and the Meuse-Argonne offensive.

Training between WWI and WWII with the 5^th and 6^th Division, the Regiment was picked to become a part of the First Armored Division on 15 July, 1940, when it was redesignated 6^th Infantry (Armored), later broken into separate battalions and redesignated 6^th, 11^th and 14^th Armored Infantry Battalions. The battles of WWII were Algeria-French Morocco, Tunisia, Naples-Foggia, Rome-Arno, North Appenines, Po Valley and Anzio.

On 1 May, 1946, the Regiment became a part of the United States Constabulary forces, designated the 11^th, 12^th and 14^th Constabulary Squadrons. After service with the 1^st Armored Division and the United States Constabulary the Regiment again was redesignated with its original name, -the SIXTH INFANTRY-, at reactivation in Berlin on 16 October, 1950. Since reactivation, first under command of Brigadier General (then Colonel) Oliver W. Hughes and now under command of Colonel P.D. Ginder, the Regiment has emerged a sharp, well trained outfit, proud of its past deeds and ready at a moment's notice for anything.

With the RECON PLATOON in Berlin

by Grant Shelby Jackson,
-3^rd Batt., 6^th Inf. and 4^th Batt., 18^th Inf., (later 4^th Batt., 6^th Inf.)-

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Veteran Grant Jackson passed away November 2009
REST in PEACE, Grant!
Thank you, for your outstanding service in Berlin!
I do not forget you! - Reinhard -
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Hello, Reinhard, my name is Grant S. Jackson. and I have recorded some of my Berlin memories for you. I'm proud to say like our famous president John F. Kennedy once did, "I AM A BERLINER".

I served two tours in Berlin; with Recon Platoon, 3^rd Battalion, 6^th Infantry, Jan 1966- Dec 1968, and with Recon Platoon, 4^th Battalion, 18^th Infantry, later, 4^th Battalion, 6^th Infantry, Sep 1971-Sep 1974. As a scout, I patroled along the Wall and in East Berlin. Because I was a very aggressive patrol leader during my first tour I was assigned there a second time.

I will tell of my first tour. While stationed in Korea in 1964, a buddy Harold Mauko, who had been stationed in Berlin, constantly talked about how good and exciting Berlin duty was. He always said that if I got orders for Germany, pray that it would be Berlin. A couple of years later at Fort Riley, Kansas, the unit clerk told me that I was on orders to go overseas. I asked if it was Vietnam. He informed me that it was #APO NY-09742. I asked around the company where was #APO-09742. No one had heard of it. That night I dreamed that it was Berlin. Next morning I rushed to the post office to learn where that APO was. When the postal clerk told me it was Berlin I almost fainted. I relocated my family to Illinois to join me in July and reported to Berlin on 6 January 1966 after prosessing thru 21^st Replacement Company in Frankfurt.

I arrived in Frankfurt 4 January 1966 with orders for 3^rd Bn. 6^th Inf. Everything I'd heard about Berlin was good so I was very excited to be in Frankfurt and looking forward to proceeding to Berlin. However, I had to process thru the 21^st Replacement Co. in Frankfurt like everyone else assigned to Germany. Everything was new to me and I was extremely excited about what I was seeing. Those of us assigned to Berlin were taken to the Hauptbahnhof (main railway station) and assigned compartments on the Duty Train. Before long I saw a Berlin MP. He was immaculate, from the heels of his gleaming, perfectly bloused boots to his snowy white cap. As the train got under way to Helmstedt, he and another MP moved about the train chatting with us and answering questions. After stopping at Helmstedt and with the excitement of crossing the "Iron Curtain" we were exhausted and went to sleep; waking up as the train pulled into the Berlin RTO. My impressions of the MPs let me know that Berlin Brigade was a unit built on MORALE, ESPRIT, PROFIENCY and DISCIPLINE: all US Army's "indicators of leadership."

I don't recall the procedure for processing into Berlin Brigade after arriving at Berlin RTO, but do remember arriving at Combat Support Company, 3/6 Inf. The first Sgt was Don L. Patrick, a sharp, stern, no bull shit soldier. Later, I found him to be a good, compassinate man and a soldier in every way who looked out for his troopers. I was taken down to Recon Platoon which was in the basement of the building just to the left of the guard shack at McNair, across from the motor pools. I believe the street was Goerzallee -- the main street in front of McNair. I was assigned a room on the second floor looking down on the bus stop. I was immediately impressed that most of the guys in Recon used flags of communist countries as dust covers on their beds. When on patrol in East Berlin they'd go to the flag store and buy communist flags. Because Berlin's Recon troops were considered elite, company commanders and first sergeants cut a little slack on things like that. I was restricted to McNair Barracks for 14 days -- the longest two weeks of my life. Before I could go on patrol I attended TM 19 school run by G2 BB to learn all of the rules of patrolling -sector sector- (2-G4), -sector zonal- (2-G6) and East Berlin patrols (2-G2). I found TM 19 school to be very informative and exciting.

I settled into the unit and was taking intense training; preparing to be a patrol leader on the Wall and in East Berlin. I learned to identify all East German and Soviet vehicles and weapons, the uniform markings, and train markings. When to use force and what force to use was constantly instructed so as not to create incidents. The guys in the barracks took me under their wings also. Competition between Berlin Brigade's three recon platoons was keen and each platoon wanted to be considered the best by G2. Every day I would be taught the dos and don'ts of patrol members. Items would be placed under a blanket which was then jerked away. I needed to discribe each item in detail. We did this over and over until I could write a complete report on the items I had seen. They also prepared me to go out on the town. As we looked out the window at the bus stop below they would tell me how to be accepted or rejected by beautiful frauleins that got on or off the buses. I was told that to say "zie haven sherna biena nie legs" was alright, if I saw a girl with nice breast that were bouncing as she walked, it may be all right to say "swap-swap." I may get a smile or a frown. But I should never, ever whistle at a fraulein as it was considered a gross insult in Germany and I would quickly be told to save my whistle for my dog.

After two weeks of intense TM 19 training and looking out the window at the lovely ladies I was excited about going on patrol and seeing the Strasse. Time finally came for my first Wall patrol and I was allowed to go down to the Hauptstrasse (district of Schoeneberg). I was eager to do both but went on pass before my first patrol. The guys had been telling me about Berlin's downtown bars. I'd heard, even before I left the States, that coats and ties were mandatory when going on pass. That rule changed a few months later but I had suits and sport coats anyway.

Bars welcomed anyone. White soldiers usually went to the Haendeleck and KBS and black soldiers to the "International", "Cha Cha", "Blue Mirror" (moms), or "Stingray" on Columbiadamm. When the bars closed, black and white GIs all gathered at the Sportpalast bar. The "International" was owned by a fellow known as Doug Seward and the "Blue Mirror" was owned by his former wife Ruth. The "Cha Cha" soon became my favorite.

I can't remember if my first patrol was a 2G4 (wall) or 2G6 (sector zonal) but one battalion was in "the Zone" (West Germany) for winter training so the other two battalions filled in and pulled its patrols. We kept 2G4 and 2G6 patrols out from dawn to dusk and an American patrol was in East Berlin 24 hours a day. Following four hour of patrol, a car came out of the East and another car went in. East Berlin patrols were in Ford sedans with a four man crew consisting of a car commander, driver, recorder, and observer. Wall patrols were two M151 jeeps (a squad); three men per jeep. Each man was armed with an M14 rifle, the patrol leader also had a 45. cal. pistol. Jeeps had M60 machine guns on pedastel mounts. Each jeep had 500 rds of M60 ammo and each rifle 40 rds of life ammo. Weapons were not loaded but most patrol leaders loaded their pistols when preparing for patrol. Instructions were, if East German or Soviet soldiers fired into West Berlin we should return fire.

Before long I was into patrol routine and adjusting to the social aspects of Berlin. I quickly realized that I really liked Berliners; their humor and compasssion was apparent along with their appreciation of American soldiers. I always got a kick out of the kids as they ran after us or peddled madly on their bikes to catch us on patrol and yell "Ami, Ami." They'd give us flowers in the summer time or plums from their trees. We'd make sure to have chewing gum or candy to give to them.

I fell in love with the ladies at Konditoreien (pastry shops) on our patrol routes. We often stopped at meat shops to get Kaese, Schinken und Broetchen (cheese, ham and bread). Soon, I began to love the smell of pastry and Wurst shops with all of the different sausages. I also fell in love with the wine, bier and cognac. A bottle of cognac and two cokes were 10 Marks and a Schultheiss or Berliner Kindl was one Mark and 20 Pfennigs. Then there was the "Schwarzer Kater" shnaps. I would go down town with 50 DM and return with 30 DM. As months passed I came to love Berlin more and more. The quality of soldiers assigned there was exceptual and the leadership was outstanding. Most officers and senior NCOs looked out for their troops. The Brigade was so elite we were all proud and happy to be in Berlin.

My family arrived in July 1966 and I obtained excellent quarters at 12 Taylorstrasse ("BB" Housing Area) where my family became very comfortable. On my days off, after pulling night patrols in East Berlin, I took my baby daughter Kathy to the "Cha Cha" and sat her up on the bar. People would give her marks and call her "eine kleine puppelein." Whenever I waxed my car, hikers would hold her and play with her. I took my children to the homes of wonderful people I'd met on patrol. Many of those great folks were invited into my home for dinner and parties -- so many beautiful ladies in Berlin!

It's often said that Berlin duty was unique. Yes, Berlin was and is unique in every way. Our training, emphasized combat in cities and riot control. We supported the German-American Volksfest and rotated biannually to West Germany for training. Other exclusive duties included pulling guard duty at Spandau Prison, waxing and polishing vehicles and gear for our annual "parade season." Next to the Presidential Honor Guard (1/3rd Infantry, Washington, DC) we were the most elite unit in the US Army. All of this made Berlin and Berlin Brigade unique.

I am so proud to say -- "I am Berliner!"

THANK YOU BERLIN!

Yours Grant Shelby Jackson

With the Police Intelligence Section,
Provost Marshal Office, Berlin Brigade

The following article was submitted by Chief Warrant Officer 3 (Retired),

STEVEN VOLK,

who served on active duty for 20 years as a special agent for the US Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID),
then became a DOD civilian GS-12 CID supervisory special agent for another 10 years of civil service.

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In the late 1960s I was assigned duties as the NCOIC (Non Commissioned Officer-in-Charge) of the then newly created Police Intelligence Section, Provost Marshal Office (PMO) of the Berlin Brigade.

The Intelligence Section was to support the provost marshal (LTC Russell E. Parmenter) in his monitoring of civil disturbances in Berlin, with its chief purpose intended to monitoring, reporting and analysis of dissident activities and potential dissident threats against US Forces personnel and installations in Berlin, which threatened to undermine the safety and security of the Berlin command.

The officer charged with setting up the Intelligence Section was Deputy Provost Marshal (DPM), MAJ Robert L. Owens. It was he who selected me for this position. Prior to his assignment as the DPM, MAJ Owens had been a lead instructor in a program known by the acronym SEADOC, which was commissioned to assist chiefs of police, senior police officers, National Guard commanders, army officers (down to major), ways to better prepare law enforcement agencies to deal with the violent radical and anti-war riots. Before becoming lead instructor in SEADOC, MAJ Owens was chief counter insurgency instructor. He was assigned to the Berlin Brigade on the request of the Berlin Commandant, who visited Fort Gordon to get guidance as to how to handle violence in Berlin. Bob (MAJ Owens) was a professional in every way. He often took an active part in gathering intelligence during violent demonstrations and attending subversive meetings. Noteworthy is that Bob's first assignment to Berlin was as an enlisted man in October of 1947 (a year before I was born) where he was an MP with Co B., 759^th MP Battalion, Roosevelt Barracks on Gardeschuetzenweg. Bob and I are still in contact with one another.

Of course I felt honored having been chosen for this job, but I was young, naïve and lacked experience in intelligence operations, which evoked feelings of anxiety that I couldn't properly accomplish the mission. Since the Intelligence Section was new to the operations of the PMO, there was very little in the way of written doctrine for me to use as a guide to set up operations and get underway toward accomplishing this mission; but in MAJ Owens I had a caring and determined teacher as good as they come. Little did I realize then that this was to be but the beginning of what would become a lasting and much rewarding career in criminal investigation, much of which was focused on terrorism counter action.

The Intelligence Section was called into being during the height of the anti Vietnam War demonstrations around the world, including in Berlin. The radical left was openly critical of the US-led war in Vietnam, when at the time B-52s were carpet-bombing the Vietnamese countryside. During the nearly weekly massive antiwar demonstrations, protestors expressed their anti-US sentiments through propaganda campaigns, and later by physical attacks against US Army, its soldiers and even dependents. Starting in the late 1960s, radicalism grew from widespread civil disobedience to fanatical acts of violence in 1972 when terrorists of the left-wing German Baader-Meinhof-Gang, later the self-proclaimed Red Army Faction (RAF), exploded bombs killing US soldiers in Heidelberg and Frankfurt, and then launched a murder spree of German politicians and business leaders.

The day-to-day duties of the Police Intelligence Section included compiling and cataloging information from German police reports, US intelligence reports, local newspapers and other sources. Points of interest ranged from bars and trouble spots to subversive groups and individuals. This part of the job was at times boring, but an important component when considering the whole of the intent and purpose of the Intelligence Section.

In addition to the routine office work, the job also required that I and those assisting me worked long hours and many weekends out "on the street" infiltrating radical elements to gain information. Covert activities included attending subversive meetings by radical groups that openly encouraged hostility against the USA. The militants made it their goal to revolutionize otherwise peaceful protest rallies into violent demonstrations culminating in running battles with the Berlin police. Predictably, these acts of violence resulted in physical injuries of protestors, passersby and police forces.

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MAJ Robert Owens LTC Russell Parmenter

The Intelligence Section would deploy numerous teams (2-3 men per team) to mingle with the activists with the basic mission to move with the riot mass and look for, e.g. damages inflicted, identify the various groups, size of the groups, license numbers, etc. After the event the teams adjourned to the PMO where a comprehensive report chronicled the teams' observations. The report was staffed through the Chief of Staff of the Berlin Brigade to the Commanding General.

It is understood that when violence-seeking radicals meet head-on with police formations people inevitably get hurt. These were also the peak intense periods during demonstrations where surveillance team members with an imprudent curiosity in getting the job done stood a very good chance of being acquainted with the business end of the legendary "Schlagstock", the dreaded German police truncheon made of pliable hard rubber, of which the riot police made liberal use of. I was slow to react one time, and became personally acquainted with the Schlagstock. It hurt!

I remember one occasion when I was at the Henry Ford auditorium of the Free University in Berlin to attend a talk given, among other radicals, by a member of the Black Panther movement. He was invited to address the German radical SDS (Students for a Democratic Society) and spoke about tactics used by radicals in the United States when fighting with the police. I remember some tense moments during this two-hour lecture when selected undercover police operatives were exposed and in a not nice way asked to leave the premises. Of course this could just have been a ruse to make unwanted visitors (like me) feel unwelcome. I was not exposed.

On my departure the mission of the Police Intelligence Section was assumed by the CIA. As MAJ Owens had observed in the mid 1960s while teaching counter insurgency operations at the US Army Military Police School, the military police intelligence shaded differently than civil police and military intelligence. Yes, we wanted criminal information but we needed to get into dissidents, terrorists, guerilla activities. Regular police intelligence was not geared for the higher levels of insurgent warfare and traditional military intelligence was not geared for this gray area, either. He saw the military police as being well adapted to this nebulous area in between crime and full scale war. The insurgency operations as we witness them today in Iraq clearly validate his observations of some 40 years ago.

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My time in Berlin was rewarding in so many respects, for which I am forever grateful. Over the years I have often traveled to Berlin for business or personal trips, and will continue to do so for as long as my health permits and God willing. I have several very dear friends now retired from the Berlin police, as well as close friends who were stationed with me at the PMO and CID in Berlin, with whom I remain in contact.

I consider Berlin my home just as sure as San Francisco is my home. I love the "Berliners" and the mentality of the well known "Berliner Schnauze" and am very happy to quote from a song, "Ich hab noch einen Koffer in Berlin" about man who "still has a suitcase in Berlin". I will always have several suitcases in Berlin.

Thank you, Reinhard, for this website and giving me this opportunity to add to your Honor Page with what I hope is an interesting snapshot of my time as a "Berlin soldier". I enjoy reading the entries in the guestbook and the interesting information and stories of personal experiences by former "Berlin soldiers".

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I am so proud to say -- "I am Berliner!" THANK YOU BERLIN!

I am so proud to say -- "I am Berliner!"

THANK YOU BERLIN!