CPL. Henry C. Schuppe
US Army
117th Chemical Impregnating Company
Africa/Italy ‘43-‘45
US Army
117th Chemical Impregnating Company
Africa/Italy ‘43-‘45
Henry Schuppe was born in Women’s Hospital on upper west side of Manhattan on March 23, 1923 at 3pm in the middle of a thunderstorm. His grandparents moved to New York from Germany in the late 1800’s. They met in night school, were married, and lived in the Hell’s Kitchen section of Manhattan. His grandfather was a machinist and worked in Manhattan. His grandmother feared his grandfather would get into fights with the predominantly Irish population, so they moved to Astoria.
In 1895 his grandparents decided to build a house (which Henry lives in today). They had been trying to have children but with no success and they thought it would be a waste of money to build a big house for only two people. As soon as they moved in, they proceeded to have 8 children, 7 of which lived. There are 3 bedrooms, each the size of a large closet. There is one bathroom with a tub but no shower.... and it remains that way to this day! Henry, having been strongly influenced by depression-era frugal relatives has made few changes, although the coal furnace has been replaced with a modern day furnace.
Henry grew up in the Bronx, in New York City. His mother worked in a bakery and his father was a carpenter. In 1929 the family moved to 23-70 29th St. in Astoria and lived on the 4th floor of a 4-story cold water flat. There was no elevator and no steam heat. Henry had to bring wood and coal up to the apartment to burn in a stove and then bring the ashes down. Henry remembered he didn’t have steam heat until 1940.
During the depression Henry remembers there was food to eat. His father was a carpenter and he managed to get a job “from an Italian fella” who rented apartments. Henry’s father would install new windows and handle general woodworking jobs. The job generated a steady income but not enough to pay the rent. They moved to a two story cold water flat on 38th St in Astoria for a lower rent. This apartment also did not have steam heat and they had to use a shared bathroom in the hallway. Eventually they moved back to 23-70 29thSt. but took an apartment in the back of the building for a cheaper rent. Henry thought the rent was $20/mo.
In June of 1942 Henry graduated from P.S. 85 in Astoria when Tony Bennett, the singer, was a freshman. He received his draft notice and reported to the Sportsman’s Palace on Lexington Ave. in Manhattan. He went for his physical and processing but did not have to report until June of 1943. In the meanwhile, Henry worked in Manhattan for National City Bank at 55 Wall Street in an entry level job paying $12.50 per week. He later found a job at Compton Advertising. He rode to work on the 2nd Ave “EL", which was later torn down to provide steel for the war (WW2). Henry recalled, “if you opened the windows on the train in the warm weather and closed your eyes, you always knew where you were by the aroma. There was the Fulton Fish market and the coffee roasting district, etc.”
In June of 1943 Henry reported for duty. He boarded a train but had no idea where he was headed. They had to keep the shades on the windows down to keep the heat out. Eventually the train came to a stop, and they lifted up the shades and saw a young boy walking by. The men yelled, “hey kid, where are we?” The boy replied, ‘Gadsden, Alabama’. Henry said, “You might as well have said we were up on the moon. Who the heck knew where Gadsden was?”
Camp Sibert was in Gadsden, Alabama and there he was assigned to the 115th Chemical Impregnating Company. There they slept in 2-man pup tents during training. After their training he was assigned to the First 117th Chemical Impregnation Company and his until headed to Camp Shanks in New York. After 4 days they shipped out on the USS Monterey on August 21, 1943. It took two weeks to get to Oran because they had to zig zag to avoid detection by German U-Boats. “It was a big convoy, a really big convoy.” They arrived in Oran Algeria on September 2nd. However, after the soldiers disembarked, the ships were sent on to India with all their equipment. “For a period of time, we became an orphaned unit. Henry remembers standing a lot of guard duty.
In June of '44 they left Oran and arrived in Naples, Italy on July 4th. Initially Henry had the assignment of guarding the boat that took the officers to Capri for their R&R. Later his unit moved on to Livorno. Henry’s commanding officers learned that he could type, and they assigned him a desk job behind the lines. There he met Fritz Buchholz from Norwalk CT who would become his life-long friend. They were both assigned to the same bunkhouse. Soon they learned that they both came from pre-depression, German immigrant families. They were kindred spirits with common values.
There wasn’t much combat in the Livorno area by the time Henry arrived. Henry recalled the Nisei troops as being “really tough fighters”. The Nisei were Japanese American troops who helped drive the Germans out of Italy.
The Allies were sending roughly 1,000 German POW’s to Henry’s base in Livorno. One day LT Riley came to Henry and said, "Hey Schuppe, tomorrow we’re getting 1,000 German POWs. You're German. I need you to speak to these guys. I want information." LT. Riley walked out leaving Henry scratching his head. He spoke very limited "household German", and he was wondering how he was going to get out of this jam. The next day Henry recalls, LT Riley coming to the supply depot and summoned Henry. The went outside and LT. Riley said, ‘Ok Schuppe, speak to them’. Henry was standing in front of the POWs wondering what to do and he decided to use common sense and he said, “hey, any you guys speak English?” Henry recalled, “LT Riley wasn't very happy until all the Germans started raising their hands.”
Henry recounted what he thought was one of the strangest things he saw in the war. “In the beginning, the Japanese Americans were guarding the Italian prisoners and later the Italian prisoners were guarding the German prisoners and by the end of the war the Germans were guarding the Germans”. One day Henry was working in the supply depot and a soldier in fatigues came in with a list of supplies he needed. Henry filled his order and as the solider turned to leave Henry saw two big letters on the back of his uniform; PW. Henry said to him, “Hey, are you a German prisoner of war?” The man replied “yes”. Henry said to him, “but you speak such perfect English.” The man replied, “I should. I was born in Yorkville (a section of Manhattan that was primarily German at that time). I went on vacation with my parents back to Germany and while we were there Hitler declared war and I couldn’t leave.”
After the Japanese surrendered in August of 1945 Henry returned to the US aboard the USS Lake Champlain. It arrived in Virginia at Camp Patrick Henry. He said the war was a big adventure for him. “Before the war if I ever went to Brooklyn, that was a big deal.” He recalled, "one time I got hooked up with these guys in my company when we were on leave. They were all looking for Italian women and they knew exactly where to go. That was quite an adventure." Before the war Henry played on a local baseball team called the Astoria Velox and they had a great hitter, Joe Spitalerri. Joe joined the Army and was captured during the Battle of the Bulge. Henry never saw him around Astoria after the war.
In 1958, Henry bought his grandparents’ house with the help of Clara, Henry’s aunt, and my great aunt. It seems Clara was always helping somebody out. Clara was the bookkeeper for the Steinway Piano Company. Henry also mentioned that Mrs. Helman lived in the neighborhood and sold her mayonnaise out of the back of her car in Astoria. Perhaps you have heard of her brand of mayonnaise.
When asked about his most vivid memory of WW2 Henry recalled, right before Thanksgiving the Captain blew the whistle and brought all of the troops together and he said, ‘if you hear your name, go get your stuff’. It turns out these guys were selected to replace the tired and wounded infantry in Rome. Henry's name wasn't called, and he was vey relieved. Three days later the captain blew his whistle and said, "if I call our name, get your stuff". Henry's name was called. When they all were gathered to receive further instruction, the captain said, "you're all going to Rome for 3 days for rest and recuperation." Again, Henry was relieved.
Henry had a career in advertising in Manhattan and has been an avid sports fan. He was always inventing different board games and keeping the box score for his beloved New York Mets. He has spent all of his years rooting for the Mets, the N.Y. Rangers and the Detroit Tigers. Henry was always the funniest guy in the room with witty stories and sometimes corny jokes. My love of baseball is due in large part to the 20+ Met games he took me to and the countless number of “dice baseball” games we played. He would always let me be the NY Mets and he would often catch me cheating……but he always let me win.
Now having just turned 100 years old Henry is truly The Man of the Century!
Thank you, Henry, for helping save the world and getting those German POWs to admit they could speak English.
In 1895 his grandparents decided to build a house (which Henry lives in today). They had been trying to have children but with no success and they thought it would be a waste of money to build a big house for only two people. As soon as they moved in, they proceeded to have 8 children, 7 of which lived. There are 3 bedrooms, each the size of a large closet. There is one bathroom with a tub but no shower.... and it remains that way to this day! Henry, having been strongly influenced by depression-era frugal relatives has made few changes, although the coal furnace has been replaced with a modern day furnace.
Henry grew up in the Bronx, in New York City. His mother worked in a bakery and his father was a carpenter. In 1929 the family moved to 23-70 29th St. in Astoria and lived on the 4th floor of a 4-story cold water flat. There was no elevator and no steam heat. Henry had to bring wood and coal up to the apartment to burn in a stove and then bring the ashes down. Henry remembered he didn’t have steam heat until 1940.
During the depression Henry remembers there was food to eat. His father was a carpenter and he managed to get a job “from an Italian fella” who rented apartments. Henry’s father would install new windows and handle general woodworking jobs. The job generated a steady income but not enough to pay the rent. They moved to a two story cold water flat on 38th St in Astoria for a lower rent. This apartment also did not have steam heat and they had to use a shared bathroom in the hallway. Eventually they moved back to 23-70 29thSt. but took an apartment in the back of the building for a cheaper rent. Henry thought the rent was $20/mo.
In June of 1942 Henry graduated from P.S. 85 in Astoria when Tony Bennett, the singer, was a freshman. He received his draft notice and reported to the Sportsman’s Palace on Lexington Ave. in Manhattan. He went for his physical and processing but did not have to report until June of 1943. In the meanwhile, Henry worked in Manhattan for National City Bank at 55 Wall Street in an entry level job paying $12.50 per week. He later found a job at Compton Advertising. He rode to work on the 2nd Ave “EL", which was later torn down to provide steel for the war (WW2). Henry recalled, “if you opened the windows on the train in the warm weather and closed your eyes, you always knew where you were by the aroma. There was the Fulton Fish market and the coffee roasting district, etc.”
In June of 1943 Henry reported for duty. He boarded a train but had no idea where he was headed. They had to keep the shades on the windows down to keep the heat out. Eventually the train came to a stop, and they lifted up the shades and saw a young boy walking by. The men yelled, “hey kid, where are we?” The boy replied, ‘Gadsden, Alabama’. Henry said, “You might as well have said we were up on the moon. Who the heck knew where Gadsden was?”
Camp Sibert was in Gadsden, Alabama and there he was assigned to the 115th Chemical Impregnating Company. There they slept in 2-man pup tents during training. After their training he was assigned to the First 117th Chemical Impregnation Company and his until headed to Camp Shanks in New York. After 4 days they shipped out on the USS Monterey on August 21, 1943. It took two weeks to get to Oran because they had to zig zag to avoid detection by German U-Boats. “It was a big convoy, a really big convoy.” They arrived in Oran Algeria on September 2nd. However, after the soldiers disembarked, the ships were sent on to India with all their equipment. “For a period of time, we became an orphaned unit. Henry remembers standing a lot of guard duty.
In June of '44 they left Oran and arrived in Naples, Italy on July 4th. Initially Henry had the assignment of guarding the boat that took the officers to Capri for their R&R. Later his unit moved on to Livorno. Henry’s commanding officers learned that he could type, and they assigned him a desk job behind the lines. There he met Fritz Buchholz from Norwalk CT who would become his life-long friend. They were both assigned to the same bunkhouse. Soon they learned that they both came from pre-depression, German immigrant families. They were kindred spirits with common values.
There wasn’t much combat in the Livorno area by the time Henry arrived. Henry recalled the Nisei troops as being “really tough fighters”. The Nisei were Japanese American troops who helped drive the Germans out of Italy.
The Allies were sending roughly 1,000 German POW’s to Henry’s base in Livorno. One day LT Riley came to Henry and said, "Hey Schuppe, tomorrow we’re getting 1,000 German POWs. You're German. I need you to speak to these guys. I want information." LT. Riley walked out leaving Henry scratching his head. He spoke very limited "household German", and he was wondering how he was going to get out of this jam. The next day Henry recalls, LT Riley coming to the supply depot and summoned Henry. The went outside and LT. Riley said, ‘Ok Schuppe, speak to them’. Henry was standing in front of the POWs wondering what to do and he decided to use common sense and he said, “hey, any you guys speak English?” Henry recalled, “LT Riley wasn't very happy until all the Germans started raising their hands.”
Henry recounted what he thought was one of the strangest things he saw in the war. “In the beginning, the Japanese Americans were guarding the Italian prisoners and later the Italian prisoners were guarding the German prisoners and by the end of the war the Germans were guarding the Germans”. One day Henry was working in the supply depot and a soldier in fatigues came in with a list of supplies he needed. Henry filled his order and as the solider turned to leave Henry saw two big letters on the back of his uniform; PW. Henry said to him, “Hey, are you a German prisoner of war?” The man replied “yes”. Henry said to him, “but you speak such perfect English.” The man replied, “I should. I was born in Yorkville (a section of Manhattan that was primarily German at that time). I went on vacation with my parents back to Germany and while we were there Hitler declared war and I couldn’t leave.”
After the Japanese surrendered in August of 1945 Henry returned to the US aboard the USS Lake Champlain. It arrived in Virginia at Camp Patrick Henry. He said the war was a big adventure for him. “Before the war if I ever went to Brooklyn, that was a big deal.” He recalled, "one time I got hooked up with these guys in my company when we were on leave. They were all looking for Italian women and they knew exactly where to go. That was quite an adventure." Before the war Henry played on a local baseball team called the Astoria Velox and they had a great hitter, Joe Spitalerri. Joe joined the Army and was captured during the Battle of the Bulge. Henry never saw him around Astoria after the war.
In 1958, Henry bought his grandparents’ house with the help of Clara, Henry’s aunt, and my great aunt. It seems Clara was always helping somebody out. Clara was the bookkeeper for the Steinway Piano Company. Henry also mentioned that Mrs. Helman lived in the neighborhood and sold her mayonnaise out of the back of her car in Astoria. Perhaps you have heard of her brand of mayonnaise.
When asked about his most vivid memory of WW2 Henry recalled, right before Thanksgiving the Captain blew the whistle and brought all of the troops together and he said, ‘if you hear your name, go get your stuff’. It turns out these guys were selected to replace the tired and wounded infantry in Rome. Henry's name wasn't called, and he was vey relieved. Three days later the captain blew his whistle and said, "if I call our name, get your stuff". Henry's name was called. When they all were gathered to receive further instruction, the captain said, "you're all going to Rome for 3 days for rest and recuperation." Again, Henry was relieved.
Henry had a career in advertising in Manhattan and has been an avid sports fan. He was always inventing different board games and keeping the box score for his beloved New York Mets. He has spent all of his years rooting for the Mets, the N.Y. Rangers and the Detroit Tigers. Henry was always the funniest guy in the room with witty stories and sometimes corny jokes. My love of baseball is due in large part to the 20+ Met games he took me to and the countless number of “dice baseball” games we played. He would always let me be the NY Mets and he would often catch me cheating……but he always let me win.
Now having just turned 100 years old Henry is truly The Man of the Century!
Thank you, Henry, for helping save the world and getting those German POWs to admit they could speak English.