Walter Sheiman

Walter Sheiman was born in October 1922 in New York City. Before the war, he was employed at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, where he worked on handling the paperwork associated with the repairs of the damaged electrical system of the USS Iowa after Pearl Harbor. In December 1941, the age for draft registration was lowered from twenty-one to twenty; and, in December 1942, Sheiman was drafted. He was initially assigned to Fort Dix, where he found the transition from civilian life to military life difficult.

From Fort Dix, Sheiman was transferred to Georgia, and then Tennessee, for further training. He remembered that when he arrived at Georgia’s Fort Oglethorpe, near the Civil War Chickamauga battlefield, he thought it was a beautiful location. After six days, however, Sheiman was moved to Camp Forrest, Tennessee, where he was assigned to the 16^th Mechanized Cavalry. Like other Cavalry units, the 16^th had its component units reorganized and transferred, both in the United States and abroad. Sheiman was appointed as supply sergeant of the 16^th’s Troop B Reconnaissance Squadron.

In November 1944, Sheiman boarded the Queen Mary, a British liner converted to a troopship, and traveled to Scotland, where he and other soldiers boarded a train to England. On arrival, he found himself in a town amid a group of officers. There was a commotion as General George S. Patton, who Sheiman fondly called “my favorite general” because “he was a fighter” and “was my type of a guy” entered the room. Patton turned to him and asked, “are you being taken care of, soldier?” 

Sheiman returned to his unit but was advised that General Patton wanted to see him, as he had heard of his ability to speak German, a language he had studied in high school. Sheiman was subsequently appointed as an interpreter for his unit as well as for, on occasion, General Patton himself. According to Sheiman, “The movie Patton is not true in one respect: they show him with a lieutenant; they should show me as a sergeant”.

Patton’s army landed in France after D-Day and drove across the country and then into Germany. Sheiman began his service in France at “cigarette camp” Camp “Lucky Strike” between Cany and Saint-Valery. His unit, the 16th Squadron, was tasked with making enemy contact, as well as reporting back to headquarters about the disposition of German defenses. As the offensive progressed into Germany, his job as an interpreter was to go into a town and meet with the mayor to arrange for billeting troops. He was also at the Battle of the Bulge, which he described as “awful”.

Sheiman recalled that he “had the confidence of a young kid” which made his job easy for him. He was initially armed with a .30-06 caliber M-1 rifle but turned it in for the lighter weight .30 caliber carbine, although the cartridge the carbine was chambered for was less effective. On one occasion, Sheiman led several privates into a German town. He came across a local dentist who told him to take whatever he wanted from material left by fleeing Germans. Sheiman sorted through a pile of handguns, which included P-08 Lugers, P-38s and Mausers and took a Mauser pistol as a souvenir. He did not clarify for the interviewer whether it was a Mauser “broom handle” from the WWI era or the later and much smaller HSC model.

On another occasion, Sheiman was on a hill above a small town, where a woman was pointing out American soldiers for Germans to shoot, so he shot her. He recalled that: “I was shook up. I had never killed anybody before, but I felt that she was an informant”.

As the cavalrymen advanced, they saw dead horses and heard gunshots. As they neared Kassel, Patton heard a rumor that Hitler and a driver were in the area; he ordered Sheiman to accompany a group of five men detailed to capture Hitler or his driver. They captured a man they thought was the driver, but he would say nothing, so they beat him to a pulp. Needless to say, Hitler was nowhere in the area, but in his Berlin bunker.

An army on the move had a food choice of C-rations or K-rations. Sheiman’s mother would send him salami from a famous deli in New York, and as soon as it arrived his comrades all asked for a piece until he was left with a small portion. According to Sheiman, “it was buddy-buddy” policy to share.

After the conclusion of the war in Europe, Sheiman was sent back to the United States and thought he was likely to be reassigned to the invasion of Japan, but a voice came over the ship’s loudspeaker saying “Gentlemen, the war is over. The next stop of the USS Breckinridge is New York City.” The Japanese had surrendered. Sheiman was discharged at Camp Hood, Texas in November 1945. He was awarded the American Campaign Medal, the World War II Victory Medal, the European, African, Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with two bronze service stars and one Overseas Service Bar.

After the war, Sheiman went to Hunter College and then worked for the then-new United Nations for 37 years, until he retired at the age of 60. His retirement party was attended by the Secretary General of the United Nations. After retirement, Sheiman participated in organizations including Kiwanis, Jewish War Veterans, The Dance Club, and the Players Club.

Walter Sheiman passed away peacefully on January 12, 2020, at the age of 97.