Project background

Unidentified men from a platoon of Troop A pass a sign for St Pierre Eglise, at Hameau Gallis, Cotentin peninsula, on June 20 1944. Taken from footage shot by the US Army Signal Corps at the time, depicting the 4th Infantry Division moving into the Cotentin peninsula from Utah Beach. The story of how this image was identified is told on the Facebook project page here.

Beginnings

This project began when curiosity became obsession. It was January 2024 and, realising that June would see the 80th anniversary of D Day, I vaguely wondered who had liberated the town where I live.

The Ithaca Journal front page - June 22 1944. See full clipping on Newspapers.com. (Note: no mention of the 24th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron)

I live in St Pierre Eglise, on the Cotentin peninsula of Normandy. As a journalist/writer, but not a historian - and certainly not a military historian - at this point I knew nothing of who those men had been.

It took only minutes to learn that they were from the 24th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, Mechanized. And that they arrived on June 21st 1944. But who were they? Why had I never heard of this unit until now?

There was relatively little other information online and even less in the books to which I had access. And often the scant information that was online had been copied (including errors) from just one site.

Original records were needed and the first breakthrough came from employing professional researcher Sydney Soderberg. She scanned a trove of 600+ ‘After Action’ reports and other documents, in the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, and the squadron’s story began to unfold.

The ‘Square du 24th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron’ St Pierre Eglise - June 23 2024

aim

This website aims to be the definitive source of information on the 24th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, Mechanized. A place primarily for families of the men to see their fathers, uncles, grandfathers and great-grandfathers properly celebrated for their service.

Our archive of historical documents will also be made available, so that others can pick up the research or slot our findings into their own stories of the other units involved in the liberation of Europe with whom the squadron were variously attached.

Finally, a book to serve as a permanent record of a remarkable unit and the unsung heroes who made it achieve so much. The search for an agent who can help to secure a publisher begins in 2025.

Even after the book is complete, this site will remain as an always-expanding living memorial to the squadron. It is not yet known how many men served in the 24th Cav Recon, in total, so there will always be more stories to tell.

Work is ongoing to create a visual timeline of the squadron’s journey, from Britain to Germany.

It’s a non-profit venture, run by volunteer researchers and partly funded through public donations. Those help to cover the costs of various websites and other tools necessary for giving a fully comprehensive account of the squadron’s actions.