Greenback A GI Remembers America and the War in Europe, 1941-45

"Greenback" is the remarkable story of ordinary men cast into extraordinary circumstances fighting a war thousands of miles from home. The author, Lewis Scheider, was one of those men. From induction on March 18th, 1944, the narrative follows Lewis through training at army bases across the United States, including Fort Bragg, Fort Jackson, Fort Sill, Camp Forrest, Fort Leonard Wood, and Camp Laguna in the California desert near the Mexican border. At Fort Jackson, Lewis was assigned to the ammunition section of C-Battery, 45th Field Artillery Battalion (code-named Greenback), 8th Infantry Division.

In this highly personal story, Lewis describes daily life of a GI preparing for and making his way through the challenges of war, illustrated by vignettes of the America he saw while hitchhiking from training camps across the country and the people and places he encountered in Northern Ireland and on patrols and short respites from the war in France, Luxembourg, and Germany.

In addition to the narrative and photographs, "Greenback" includes excerpts of newsletters, Nazi propaganda, a map, and other memorabilia that add to the story. For members of the Greatest Generation who are still alive, their children and grandchildren, and anyone who wonders what a GI's life was like on the ground in Northern France and western Germany during World War 2, "Greenback" is a compelling and poignant contribution to the history of the war.

Born on August 12, 1919 and growing up in Pleasantville, NY, a short train-ride north of New York City, Lewis Scheider was inducted into the US Army on March 18, 1941. He underwent training at several iconic army bases, including Fort Bragg, Fort Jackson, Fort Sill, and Fort Leonard Wood, and was assigned to the 45th Field Artillery Battalion of the 8th Infantry Division, where he was put in charge of C-Battery's security section. In addition to operating a Browning M2 .50 caliber machine to defend the battery, the position required patrolling the locale near the artillery, which led to experiences, including interactions with residents of the area, that most other GIs did not have. A photography enthusiast, Lewis took dozens of photographs portraying scenes and people he encountered along the way. He was also a lifelong collector of news articles and memorabilia relevant to his story. After the war, Lewis settled in Buffalo, NY, where he worked as the store manager for Howard H Baker & Company, a wholesaler and retailer of marine supplies- anything needed for motor and sailboats. He married in September 1946 and raised five children, retiring from Howard Baker in 1985. Over the years, Lewis continued his interest in the 8th Infantry Division's role in the European Theater during World War 2, acquiring books, other print items, and memorabilia at garage and estate sales, as well as conducting research at the local library and by accessing government resources, such as the National Archives and the Library of Congress, the old-fashioned way, by telephone and the US Mail. In the late 1980s, he wrote down the story of his wartime experiences using an electric typewriter and assembled the narrative, his photographs, and a variety of the print items into a loose-leaf binder, producing the memoir from which this book was created. Lewis died on February 17, 2015, at 95 years of age. Right to the end, he bore the disability and suffering of his last years like the same stolid, take-it-as-it-comes soldier readers will meet in his memoir.