304^th Infantry Regiment

The 304th Infantry Regiment was organized at Fort George G. Meade on June 15, 1942, assigned to the 76th Infantry Division, and trained at A.P. Hill Military Reservation and Camp McCoy before staging at Camp Myles Standish. It departed Boston on November 24, 1944, reached England on December 4, and landed in France on January 12, 1945. The regiment crossed into Belgium and Luxembourg on January 23 as the division moved to the Sauer-Moselle front near Echternach. After the 417th Infantry opened the division's first Sauer fighting under attachment to the 5th Division, the rest of the 76th secured the bridgehead area by clearing high ground north of Minden and mopping up west of the Pruem.

The 304th became prominent during the February advance beyond Bitburg. After the division crossed the Pruem on February 24-25, the regiment crossed the Nims at Wolsfeld on February 26. In the renewed drive toward Trier, it captured Olk on March 1 while the 417th reached the Kyll and the 385th prepared Task Force Onaway. As the division cleared the Klein Kyll-Lieser line, the 304th took Musweiler and crossed the Moselle near Mulheim on March 14 in a limited objective attack with little active opposition.

The regiment later joined the eastward pursuit through Germany. On April 5 it reached the Wehre River and seized the bridge at Niederhone. During the drive behind the 6th Armored Division, the 304th moved through the Buttstaedt area, attacked across the Weisse Elster, and assaulted Zeitz on April 13 before handing the fight to the 417th and moving toward Altenburg. It then helped occupy and defend the Zwickauer Mulde bridgehead near Chemnitz until hostilities ended on May 7.