Hear the story of the U.S. 3rd Armored Division's historic and fateful armored drive to capture the German town of Paderborn and help close the southern part of the Ruhr Pocket from 25 March-1 April 1945.

Interwoven throughout the story are first hand accounts of soldiers who fought during the operation.

This episode is considered part 1 of two looking at two of the longest armored drives in U.S. military history.

Resources Related to the Topics Discussed in Today's Episode

• 3rd Armored Division History Foundation. This is an online archive of the U.S. Army's famous "Spearhead" Division that includes a very rich array of information about the Division's participation in WWII, the Cold War, and Desert Storm. http://www.3ad.com/

The following books were used to develop the story for this episode, most of them can be found online at your favorite book seller.

• Spearhead in the West

• Major General Maurice Rose: World War II's Greatest Forgotten Commander by Steven L. Ossad and Don R. Marsh

• Reflections of a World War II Infantryman by Malcolm L. "Buck" Marsh, Jr.

• Another Town, Another River: A Teenage Tank Gunner Comes of Age in Combat - 1945 by John P. Irwin

• The Incredible Year by Donald J. Willis

• Spearhead: An American Tank Gunner, His Enemy, and a Collision of Lives in World War II by Adam Makos

• Death Traps: The Survival of an American Armored Division in World War II by Belton Y. Cooper

If You Want to Support The Podcast

Help others find the podcast by writing a positive review on Apple Podcasts!