Lester Bruns Shoah Foundation Testimony

I, after I do this and I kneel down beside him, okay. All right, if you could hold that and I'm going to read it.

The date is July 10th, 1997. The interviewee is Lester Bruns, name at birth was Bruns. The interviewer is Miriam Karp. The city is Knoxville, Tennessee in the United States of America. And the interview is being conducted in English.

Ok, tapes rolling.

My name is Miriam Karp. I'm conducting an interview with Lester Bruns. In Knoxville, Tennessee, the United States of America on July 10th, 1997. Name and the spelling of your name.

Lester Bruns, L-E-S-T-E-R, B-R-U-N-S.

Do you have a middle name?

Yes, Eugene, E-U-G-E-N-E.

And do you go by Lester or any other names?

By Les.

Have you ever had any other nicknames?

No. That's the only nickname I had.

And where were you born?

In Rushville, Nebraska. You asked where I was born?

And how do you spell that?

R-U-S-H-V-I-L-L-E. And Nebraska N-E.

And when were you born?

July 22nd, 1924.

And how old are you now?

I am 73.

And what was your father's name?

Dan Bruns.

And where was he born?

In Rushville, Nebraska.

What about his parents?

His parents. I don't know where they were born. If they came over from Germany or if they were born in the U.S.

And what did your father do?

He was a farmer/rancher.

What kind of farming?

Well, wheat farming and cattle ranching.

How big was the ranch?

It was 1,380 acres. Grassland ranch.

What about the number of cattle?

A hundred head of cows and a hundred head of yearlings that he run.

What kind of cows were they?

Hereford.

What kind of man was your father?

He was about the same size of man as I am. I guess I don't know just what you mean by that.

What was your relationship like with your father?

It was real good. We didn't spend too much time away from the ranch because in those days we didn't travel very far. It was kind of an area where there wasn't a heavy population. North of Rushville, Nebraska.

What was your mother's name?

Delia. Delia Marie Bruns.

What was her maiden name?

Tiensvold.

And where was she from?

She was from... she was born at Rushville, Nebraska, but her ancestry was Norway.

And did you have sisters and brothers?

Yes. I had... there were six of us in the family, three brothers and two sisters.

And what are their names?

The oldest brother was Wayne, Harlow, and Marvin. Marvin was younger than I was. Sisters was Katherine and Jerene. They were both younger than I. Four boys and two girls.

And what was your religious background?

Lutheran.

And how important was religion in your family?

It was quite a strict religion. We had a religious family.

In what ways was it strict?

Well, I guess I didn't mean strict. I mean, we had religion and we knew, was taught it and knew it.

How often did you attend church?

At least twice a week. And twice a week, twice a month. Once every two weeks.

And where was the church?

Our ranch was so far from town, the weather conditions and everything, made it, whether we could go or not.

How long would winters last there?

Winters was usually started in fall, November to March. They were quite long. But they varied a lot. Some could be mild winters and some worse and that.

What do you remember about a particularly bad winter when you were growing up?

Since I got home from the war, I think the worst winter that I can remember was '49. It killed a lot of livestock. We had to have contractors come in with bulldozers to open things, roads, and get to buildings and people.

What kind of responsibilities did you have on the farm when you were a child or as you were growing up?

Going after the milk cows, milking cows and feeding hogs. And we had small fields where we raised feed for the cattle and livestock.

And how old were you when you first started helping out?

Well, I was six years old, I think, when I started doing chores and being responsible for things.

Where did you go to school?

It was about a mile and a half from the ranch. We rode ponies to the school. I can't think of the name of the school. Plain View, I believe it was.

How many years did you go there?

'Til I went through the 8th grade.

And then in the 8th grade, where did you go?

To the Rushville, town of Rushville High School.

And how many kids were in your class, do you think?

In the high school class, forty-some, forty-five, I think.

What would you do when you weren't helping out on the farm or going to school? What kinds of activities were you involved in?

Baseball, fishing, quite a little hunting.

What did you hunt for?

Coyotes and rabbits and squirrels. We lived along a creek. The name of the creek was Pat Creek. Plenty of water flowing through there.

What did you think about growing up on a farm and ranch?

I liked it. Plenty of activity most of the time, things to do.

And what did you think you were going to do when you grew up?

When I quit high school, I thought I was going to keep on farming and ranching. But I was called into the war instead, I guess.

And when was that? What was the date you were drafted?

In May of 1944.

And where did you go at first?

Went to Denver, Colorado. Logan, Fort Logan, Denver, Colorado. From there to Camp Robinson, Arkansas.

How long did you stay in Denver?

Only a few days. And then to Camp Robinson for six months training.

And what kind of training did you receive there?

It was ordnance, hauling freight, and equipment in the service.

And what was your rank when you finished that training?

It was private. The training was interrupted at D-Day time of June the 6th. The camp was transferred into all-infantry. After that, it was straight-infantry training.

And where did you go from Arkansas?

I went from Arkansas to Camp Gruber, Oklahoma. And that's where the 42nd Division was being formed.

And how long were you there?

From August, right there in August. I was there until November of '44.

And what was your rank at the end of November?

Private.

And what battalion were you in at that point?

I was in the 2nd Battalion of the 222nd Regiment of the 42nd Division.

And where did you go after Camp Gruber?

Went to Camp Kilmer, New Jersey. And we was alerted to be shipped overseas. We loaded on transport ships to be shipped across on Thanksgiving Day of 1944 in November.

You remember the name of the ship?

The B. Alexander.

And what was it like for you after living on an isolated farming ranch to travel to all these different places for training?

It was different. I mean, it was nothing you couldn't put up with or anything like that, but it was surely different, yes.

What about meeting all those new people?

Yes. It was being transferred and everything. You always had to adjust to new people wherever you went, new soldiers, or make new friends, and then you'd be transferred again.

What did you miss about home?

Well, I'd never been away from home, so I missed it all, I guess.

Did you correspond with people at home with your family?

Yes, with my own immediate family and, of course, the other uncles and aunts who lived nearby.

What was your opinion about going to war and going overseas?

Well, I just thought it was a thing that we knew it was bad enough that all had to be done, so we was prepared to go do it.

What did you know about the war by the time you left?

I didn't know. I knew at D-Day that it entered the continent of Europe, and there was plenty of war left to be done, is all I knew.

And where did you go when you shipped out? Where did you land?

In Marseille, France. It was 7th of December, 6th or 7th of December from Thanksgiving Day until the first part of December.

What was the crossing like?

The crossing was there were no storms or any bad weather interference. It was in a convoy. We had several times when small intercepting boats would move through with alert warnings of submarines, but nothing happened at that time.

Who were your friends on the ship?

The immediate friends was, you want 'em by name?

If you want, if you remember.

I remember last names. Crownover, Gates, Burleson, Buehlers. There was five or six of us that was kind of hung together.

And where were they from?

Washington, Indiana, New York. I just don't remember all.

What did you think about seeing the ocean?

Well, it was a large body of water, yeah. The ship traveling through the water was smooth. It was such a large transport ship that it wasn't rough or anything like that.

And what, what was at Marseille when you got there?

What was it like in Marseille? It was cold. We moved from Marseille port up to a higher mountain, and it was stormy and cold and windy. We lived in pup tents for a few days before we was transferred deeper into the continent.

And where did you go when you were transferred?

To the area near Strasbourg. Christmas Day we was in what was known as the Maginot Line was kind of a dug-in place. That's where we spent Christmas. And we wasn't to talk to anybody we didn't know because we were being infiltrated with espionage.

Were you aware of any instances of infiltration?

No. I wasn't.

What other kind of orders did they give you about talking to people or contact with civilians?

We wasn't to talk to anybody if we didn't know them because of the infiltration at that time.

And how long did you stay there?

Just a few days, and then we went on to Strasbourg area.

And how long did you stay there in Strasbourg?

Only a few days again, we was.

What was going on there at the time?

We was just billeted, and nothing was going on war wise, and then we was called to Gambsheim.

And approximately when would that have been when you moved to Gambsheim?

We moved to Gambsheim 5th of January. We didn't know we was going into battle. We was ordered to take Gambsheim the next morning. It had been January 6th. But we did take it, but their counterattack took us back out again.

What was that battle like, your first battle?

It was unbelievable. It was terrible with artillery and 88 shells. And I was blown unconscious, so I didn't get to go through all of it.

When was that? When did that happen?

With an 88 shell hitting close by. When I came to some troops had drug me to a rock wall, and there was another soldier there that was wounded. He gave me his rifle, and I went on and joined them again. Went into the town. Got clear down 'til we could see the Rhine River. When the counterattack hit us, next orders was to return to where we started that morning. Which we did; it was along the canal.

What were your casualties like in number?

I don't know the number, but there was quite heavy casualties, yes.

And what was your reaction to that first day of fighting and getting wounded?

Well, I didn't know. When we got back to the canal, Crownover said my face was all black. I got a tin plate, and I could see that it was kind of like powder burn. It was really black. Then I had no memory of anything until I was on the Moder River, which was almost two weeks later. I don't think I went to any medical center or anything. I don't have no recollection of an area there.

Where were you when you were moved to the Moder River? What town was near where you were?

Haguenau.

And how long did you stay there?

We was, I remember being on patrol at the Moder River the 20th of January, and the 25th, it was the Ardenne's attack there.

Could you describe what happened during that attack?

It was artillery again. Several of them was captured. I was one of them that got out.

How did you manage to escape?

My squad sergeant said that we're surrounded, we have to get out of here. As we turned to go, I heard some hollering of surrender, so I went into, it was wooded area, I went into the wooded area. I went a little ways, and I ran on to a sergeant that handled mortars. He was blind, and his face was kind of torn up. He was blinded, so he hung on to me, and I moved to the rear where I knew the kitchen came from. Right on to a TD tank back there, and a lieutenant that was in charge there took the wounded, took the wounded to go on to the jeep, and the rest of us wasn't willing to get on the tank, and we went to take an intersection back that we had lost. Again, we lost. They shot us off the tank or didn't hit us, but I mean, opened fire and we lost a tank, but I got on out. I was one of them that got out of E company. E company was 140 strong at the beginning of the battle, and it was 37 the last I knew.

What happened to the people who were captured?

One of my friends in Ferndale, Washington has told me about it. He said it was, they marched them real hard and strong, and him and another kid finally managed to escape just before the war ended. They captured most of our company that night. Killed, wounded and captured.

And what did your company do after that?

Moved back to an area near Nancy, France, and was there for, I think, two weeks or more while replacements came in and built the company back up.

And then where were you sent?

To the, to relieve the 45th Division at the Harz Mountains.

And what did you find when you got there?

It was online again, just running patrols into the Harz Mountains, and no, we didn't get any attacks there til the time that we was ordered to attack to go forward, and that was March 15th.

And when did the attack come on March 15th?

It was our orders to proceed and recapture territory, or I guess the final drive through to the end of the war. We never stopped after that.

And how long were you in the Harz Mountain region?

To cross the Harz Mountains, I think it was a week or more. Supplies was brought even to follow us through by mule and donkey. And we traveled by foot, of course.

How cold was it?

It was snow on the ground, and it wasn't below zero, but it was like 20 degrees, and snow and wet. Cold.

And where did you go from there?

From the Harz Mountains. Our trip was clear on through. I don't know exactly where we went, but we crossed the River Rhine at Worms, Germany. We was moved up and crossed over a pontoon bridge. The area was already taken and put back into action after we crossed the Rhine. The route went through Würzburg. I think that was the 4th of April. You can't keep track of dates very well. I mean, I couldn't because I was just going all the time, night and day. Crossed the river at Würzburg with the 2nd Battalion Rangers, volunteers, and we crossed ahead of the division to make a bridgehead. It was just all the way. Every town seemed like we had to fight for.

And what about losses in those battles?

Losses. All along there was plenty of loss. It was at Würzburg. We crossed in the night, moved up a short distance, like five blocks, and then was called back to the river so P-47 dive bombers could come in and take out an armored division. We was running into a German armored division. And after that bombing, we moved forward again.

What were the results of the bombing? What did you see?

Pardon?

What did you see of the results of the bombing?

They done only artillery guns. It was there and the tanks that they spotted. They done real good of destroying them.

And then from there, where did you go, from Würzburg?

To Schweinfurt, which was a ball-bearing factory. And then from there to, every place seemed like we had some loss and some fight. I mean, at Fürth and Nuremberg, we went through there. Then we was loaded on to a tank division. It was the 20th armored. And we were supposed to take a bridge intact at Donauwörth. We lost some tanks and some troops there at that. And we didn't get the bridge intact. It blown up when they seen us, when we approached it. That's usually where it usually went, I guess. Even the one at Würzburg, we were to take a bridge intact there, too. But they blew it before we could get to it.

We're going to stop here for tape-break.

What were the incidents up until that time where you felt most in danger, or most threatened, you personally?

Where I felt most in danger of.

What do you recall?

The Würzburg, when I went through Würzburg, was the most, I think, I don't know just how to, it was all the time, so I just don't know how to answer that.

Were there some specific times where you were most in danger that you can remember?

No, it was, we just had to fight our way all the time.

What did you think about as you were fighting?

It seemed like I was so full of fear I just fight back, I just, I didn't think about anything but fighting back.

What about the rare times where you got to rest or got some sleep?

It was, we were allowed to rest for from 10 to 30 minutes at a time, and we wouldn't leave until the next person with us was leaving with us. So, because we was so played out, we would just fall asleep, you know. Everybody would, was called to go, nobody left, 'til he left his only closest personnel would go with him. That's the way they rested. Then they went after Donauworth, when we rode the armor in there, we lost that bridge. But they started shuttling then with trucks, and weapons carriers would move some troops forward, and then they'd walk and then move some other troops forward, keep shuttling back and forth. By then I was squad leader, and I got replacements in my squad as we crossed the river at Donauworth. But before that day I lost some of them from running into machine gun fire and small arms fire. We got to the town of Rain, which is not too far from the Dachau concentration camp. From there we moved up to the concentration camp of Dachau.

What did you know about Dachau before you got there?

I didn't know anything about it. I just knew that whenever we hit resistance at the camp on the 28th of April, it was a concentration camp there. We would take it at daylight in the morning.

And had you heard that there was a concentration camp there?

Yes. When we was fired upon or hit resistance, they said there was a concentration camp there, we would take it in the morning.

What did you think that meant, concentration camp?

I didn't know. A prison, I thought it was just a prison, but I didn't know it was a concentration camp, I thought it was a prison.

And where were you when you started hitting resistance?

We was on a roadway going towards the camp, or the prison was ahead of us.

And could you see it from where you were?

No. It was dark, or almost dark, and small arms fire was real heavy. We had to take it in the dark or wait til daylight and go. And our orders was to wait til daylight.

How long did the firing go on before you were given orders to wait until daylight?

Not a long time, it was like fifteen minutes, and we was told to wait til daylight.

And what happened during the night?

It was quiet during the night, we just had to find protection if there was a ditch or anything like that. We was along the roadway, so we just waited along the edge of the roadway with orders to start out again at four o'clock in the morning.

How many men do you estimate were with you then?

I had my own squad with me. I know my twelve men were there.

And what happened at four in the morning?

The orders was to go, and we never run into any more resistance. We went right into the gate.

And what did the gate look like?

It was an iron steel gate, broke in the middle and folded both ways. Quite tall gate.

What was surrounding the gate on either side of it?

Concrete walls, concrete walls.

And how tall were they?

Like ten foot, I would say.

And who was at the gate when you got there?

There was nobody at the gate until the guys was opening up or getting into it.

And who opened it up?

My leader, who was leading me in the squad. I was a squad leader, and I had scouts ahead of me. But there was inmates from the inside was working from the inside, too. As the gate opened up, there wasn't very many inmates there, but they just looked bewildered. And the stink and the stench was terrible, too. To the right of the gate was some gas chambers. But they was in prison clothes and stripes, and they was coming down to that area from around there, I guess.

How did you know that the buildings to the right were gas chambers?

I guess maybe I didn't know immediately at the time, but they was dug into a wall. Maybe I wasn't right. Maybe they weren't gas chambers, but it sure looked like it to me.

What did it look like that made you think it was gas chambers?

It was several just arched like that, one against the other like that. And some of them was standing open, just a cement chamber is what it was.

And what was inside the chamber?

Nothing. I mean, you could see the concrete and whatever back in there.

Was there anything around the chamber, on the ground or near there?

There were several doors, several lengths of them, but to be around them, I don't know.

And what did the people look like, the inmates who came up to you when you went in the gate?

They was in striped clothes, gowns, and they just looked bewildered. There was a terrible smell inside the camp.

What kind of smell?

I don't how well you'd explain it, it was stinking. The stench was terrible. It wasn't clean there at all.

What did you see as you looked out at the camp?

I wasn't inside of the camp any farther than, well, probably less than a block when we was ordered to move on.

Who gave that order?

The company commander, Dan DiNacola.

When the people came up to you after you got into the gate, what kind of condition were they in?

They were in poor condition. I mean, they looked bewildered, dumbfounded, or whatever. I don't know how to explain it, but they just, they acted like they were scared of us or didn't act like they didn't know what we were. Maybe they thought we were more Germans or something. I don't know.

What about their physical condition?

Poor, very poor. Skinny.

In what way?

Thin and feeble-looking. Yeah, they was in real poor condition.

What kind of age range would you estimate the prisoners were that you saw?

Probably in the forties. I think probably in the forties.

Men and women and children, too?

I remember mostly men. I didn't see any children. I didn't see the railroad cars that held bodies and stuff like that. I didn't see any of that.

How long do you estimate you were in the camp?

I think 20 minutes or less.

And during those 20 minutes, what did you do? Where did you go in the camp?

We didn't go any farther than a block. It must have been less than 20 minutes cause we didn't. . . The prisoners seemed to be coming down, coming out, kind of showing up out from places around there. And we didn't go any farther in than that. Our company commander said, rear echelon can take care of this, and our objective is Munich.

How many prisoners would you estimate came towards you while you were there?

I would say right at the gate area there was eight or ten, and then before we left, I imagine there was 15, 20.

Did they ask for anything?

No.

And was anything given to them?

No, not that I know of.

Were you aware of anyone communicating with them?

No.

What were your thoughts when you saw these prisoners?

I wondered if it was a prison camp, why they were treated like this, or why they would look like this. I mean, it was unclean, and it was, and they looked really in need of food and everything.

What was your understanding of what a prison camp was like?

I didn't know there was a concentration camp. I just thought it was a prison.

And what would that have been like according to what you thought it should be like?

Well, I knew it shouldn't have them in that kind of condition. They should at least be fed.

And where did your company go after you left Dachau?

It went to Munich, Munich, Germany.

And what happened in Munich?

We didn't hit any more resistance from Dachau to Munich. To the right of us, I know there were some units over there that we could hear the battles going on, but our own unit didn't hit any more resistance. And as we entered Munich, the road we entered on was all had white flags was all out. No resistance in our area. But we did run on to American and British prisoners. They wanted our weapons. They knew guards they wanted to get, and they also was surprised, too, that we rolled in there at that time, I guess. They was under guard yet that morning.

While you were still at Dachau, what about the Germans at Dachau? What did you see of them?

The guards? I didn't see any German guards. I didn't see any SS troops. I didn't see any German guards.

And when you got into Munich, what did you hear about Dachau?

Nothing. I don't think they knew. The prisoners we liberated didn't know anything about it. And the Germans themselves, the company commander, usually tries to get in a small town. It's the Burgermeister. He gets all the information he can right away. He got information that there was a Nazi leaving. A Nazi informant, or not a Nazi informant, but a Nazi upstairs Nazi that was leaving from the airport. Our orders then was to go to the airport, which we did and we, I think we run onto the plane that was leaving with him because we tried to bring it down a small arms fire without doing that either.

So what happened to that plane?

It got away. It left. And it had a Nazi official on it, so the civilians said in Munich.

Do you happen to know that Nazi's name?

No, I don't.

What about other attempts to catch Nazis?

That was the only one I was involved in. And through the company commander questioning civilians, they reported that this Nazi was leaving. So we went to the airport, but we wasn't in time.

And where did you go from the airport?

We didn't go back into the city of Munich. We stayed out in the airport area. And then we went from there to Hallein. I think the name of it was Hallein. And this was the 29th by the 5th of . . . We was taken into some mountainous area to try and get some resistance taken out. And we was at Hallein whenever the war ended, May the 5th, officially. And we was at Hallein whenever the war ended, May the 5th, officially. Which was, it still wasn't ended, because they didn't know it was ended. I mean, they fought for a few days even after that.

And when you left Hallein, where did you go?

Hallein, I can't. Hallein wasn't very far from Berchtesgaden. From Hallein we went to the backside of Berchtesgaden. Hitler's hideout, hideout or mansion, but it had already been liberated.

What did you see there?

We was to the backside. We seen the elevators and the . . . dug - or whatever was into the side of the mountain. We seen where that was, but there was no Nazis or anything there left anymore, or any German troops.

And then after that, after Berchtesgaden?

The war was declared over, and I think that we was working out of Hallein. Whenever we went to Berchtesgaden, we went from Hallein up there and back to Hallein. And the war was over. And outside of running patrols into mountains, into areas, not mountains, but into areas, so we called it resistant pockets or something like that.

What was your involvement in those resistance pockets?

We would usually travel by jeep with three or four guys in it to go to—it wasn't ever very far either— to go back and try to pick up some where they thought there could be some resistance. They also tied fine wire across the road so that the jeeps had to have steel poles put up in the front of them to clip them wires so the personnel running the jeeps wouldn't get hurt.

Did any of those forays that you were on find resistance groups?

No. I never found any. We had to keep looking for them.

And how long did that go on after the war ended?

Oh, not real long. I think near a month, about a month.

And then where did you go?

Then we went to Linz, Linz, Austria. And we were stationed there for . . . until they started setting up occupation duty for all of them. I was in occupation until June of '46.

And what were your duties?

In occupation? Mostly guarding along at Linz. Russians had a territory across the river from us and we was on one side and they was on the other. And it was . . . They had highways, ferries, and railroads there. All personnel crossing between areas was checked.

What kind of contact did you have with the Russian army?

Nothing outside- I couldn't talk to guards that could speak some English or otherwise. They'd come across to our side. I never did go across to their side. They'd come across not in any enemy force, just friendly force, friendly wise.

And when did you ship out to go home?

I got home in June. In June of... It must have been the last of May. I don't remember exactly. Last of May, 1st of June of 1946 from Hamburg, Germany. Went by rail to Hamburg and loaded on ship there.

And when were you discharged from the army?

In June of 1946 from Leavenworth, Kansas.

And where did you go from Leavenworth?

Straight home to the ranch.

What was your rank at the time of discharge?

Staff sergeant.

What was it like to be home again?

It was something I'd tried to do for a long time, I guess. Even occupation, I was disinterested in and I wanted to go home. But it went by points and time involved. And I was one of the younger ones and went out of high school into the army. I didn't get home for a year after the war was over.

What had changed while you were gone?

What had changed? There had been quite a little change, yes. The automobiles weren't very available because there wasn't any. It was all the war effort.

And when you got back home?

They were still using the same ones. Fuel was rationed and sugar was rationed.

What other changes had happened while you were gone?

My sisters had gotten on through school and was teaching school instead of going to school. I guess I don't know of any big changes, no. What kind of adjustment was it for you to- Seemed like, seemed like that, the war had been over... For a year and I was in occupation and it wasn't like going home. The war was just over. It was a thing of the past almost already. I did notice that. It wasn't a hooray. Your home was a hooray. It was all over already.

How were you treated when you came back home?

Real good. Not as no hero, nothing like that because everything was over a year past.

What kind of adjustment was it for you to come back from the war?

Well, I just went home to the ranch again and there was plenty there for me to do. So it wasn't a big adjustment for me, no. I just went back to helping them and going from there.

How old were you when you came back?

June of 46, I was 22... 21, yeah.

How much did you talk about your war experiences with the people back home, with your family?

Not very much. I mean it seemed like they didn't like to ask and I didn't, it was hard to talk then. I've been able to talk better since we've been going to the reunions, division reunions.

When did you start going to the reunions?

In '88 in Denver.

Why do you think you started going to the reunions?

One of them from the company talked me into going and I just thought it was all right and kept on going. I had contact with them before by mail or letter.

What kinds of things would people talk about at the reunions?

At first they talked of some of the war experiences, but it isn't mentioned a lot anymore. I think that's a part that helped, though, probably. Dragging it out and hashing it over again.

What did you find out about Dachau at the reunions?

At the reunions. Most of them seemed to have pretty much the same idea. Except the 45th division was in Dachau too, but it must have been after we were there. I think after some reunion and some conversation between the two units, it was decided that the 42nd was ahead of them there. I know nobody was ahead of us. I do know that.

Did you get married when you went back home?

Yes.

When was that?

In '48.

And what is your wife's name?

Geraldine.

What was her maiden name?

Geraldine Cech.

And how did you meet her?

I think we was at one of the little old dances there in Rushville when we met.

What did she know about your experiences in the war?

Not, at that time, nothing. But I mean we've talked a lot about it since. I have the Bronze Star for going with the Rangers into the Würzburg. And the 222nd Infantry has bronze star with a cluster for being a unit going through the Ardennes. The whole unit.

Do you and your wife have children?

Yes.

And what are their names?

Sharon, Gerald, Vickie and Judy - have four. I have three great grandsons already.

How many grandchildren do you have?

Three. There's all newborns just this last year. One born just before we came to the reunion now. Fourteen grandkids, have a big family.

And where do most of them live?

Most of them live in Nebraska and one in Montana of our own four children in our home area, except the one boy who lives in Culbertson, Montana.

We're going to stop here for a tape change.

Lester Bruns, tape 3. We were talking about your family, your grandchildren, great-grandchildren. Have you talked to them about what you did in the war, your grandchildren?

No, I guess I haven't. I haven't really talked to them, no.

How do you think the war affected you and your life afterwards?

I guess I don't know of any ill effects. It seemed like I didn't go out and talk about it a lot, but I don't know if I kept it locked in or what. But I don't know of any ill effects, no.

How do you think that the things you saw around you during the war affected how you thought about the world?

I don't know. I don't think people can believe it unless they do see it or get into it, that things can be that bad. I mean like a dictator like Hitler had to be stopped. I guess there still can be if it isn't under control somewhere.

What did you find out about the Holocaust after the war?

After the war, the camp was kept as a museum. Part of it was destroyed and part of it was kept so people could go back and always know what had happened and what did happen. Otherwise, they wouldn't believe it either, I don't think. I mean, it don't seem like.

Did you ever go back to the camp, to Dachau?

Yes.

When was that?

In '93, I went back with the groups in the division.

Who sponsored that trip?

Our division hung a plaque on the wall just inside of the gate that we went in. I mean, that's still part of the museum, or museum or whatever, that they saved.

And what was it like for you to go back to Dachau?

Oh, it seemed more alive when I went back than I did before. I knew how bad it was from before and it showed up there that they saved it so people would know, but went through there.

What was your employment after you got back and you got married? What kind of work did you do?

I still did farming and ranching. When I got married, I moved on from the home ranch to the ranch of my father-in-laws, run it until we bought it. And now we've sold it to our children, so it's still home.

Working on a ranch, how long are your days, your working days?

In the season, busy season, run from like 12 hours or more, then you have slack seasons where you can have more time off if you want. Not too much to do at all. It's kind of seasonal to keep it going.

And what do you do during the slack seasons?

Mostly fishing, some hunting, and we do a lot of traveling, too. I've traveled a lot. We have a motor home. It takes up time that way.

Where do you go?

We try to go, in the winter, we go to Arizona, but other than that, we just go different areas of the country we haven't been, and acting like a tourist.

What do you like about traveling?

All the different things they have to do for the tourists, and of course the scenery like that, different trips and stuff. I've been to Canada salmon fishing. I guess we've been around quite a bit.

And now that you've sold the ranch or given the ranch to your children, how do you occupy your time?

We live in town. We only live five miles from it, so we go out there and help them until we're in the way, then we leave and decide someplace to go again or travel to. In Black Hills, South Dakota, we spend quite a little time up there just traveling.

Why do you think it's important to talk about your wartime experiences?

Why? I try to let it be known that it's no good, I guess.

What's no good?

War is no good, and the experiences, they were bad enough, so it should be known, I guess, how the things go.

Is there anything that you would like to add?

I don't know of anything, no. It's about all I can remember about it.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

This is my wife, Geraldine. I met her in 1946 after I got home from the war, and she's been keeping me going ever since. We're going to have our 50th anniversary next April.

He was in uniform when he came home. That was the first time I saw him.

You want to tell them anything more about me? Please don't.

We've been farming and ranching for 46 years on the same farm. Now we've sold it to our family. We have 14 grandkids and three great-grandsons. That's our family.

That's me on the left and Harlan Hoffman, my assistant squad leader on the right. Lester Bruns and Harlan Hoffman. The photo was taken in Austria in 1945.

This is a picture of Harlan Hoffman on the right and myself on the left. My name is Lester Bruns, taken in Austria at the town of Hallien in 1945.

Lester Bruns, this is a German jet plane captured during the war along the Autobahn in the year 1944. Lester Bruns, the picture was taken at home in the USA in the year 1943.