207469 Pfc. Joe R Miller US. Army from:Geneva, Ohio,USA Joe R. Miller who was a POW and captured by the Nazis December 17th of 1944. I have some history on him but not much. He went overseas to Luxembourg or Belgium. From what I found out at this time is he was in an Engineer Combat Battalion (do not know his infantry number) and was most likely captured on the first day of the Battle of the Bulge in Ardennes, December 17th of 1944 by the Nazis. During the battle, it is as far as I know and what I have been told, that the lines changed so quickly that he may not have never even made it to a POW camp as the Nazis at the time were more concerned in the push forward than in the transporting of prisoners back to Germany as they had been earlier in the war or with downed allied Airmen. They were also short on gasoline and did not use petrol for anything other than their offensive. They marched them and may have stopped here or there barely feeding them. He was captured as a POW for three and one half months. They stopped feeding them the last few weeks of his capture. He was a tall slender man, so you can imagine how he must have looked upon coming home. Some passed out from weakness and were shot. He had passed out, but they did not see him. My mother, from her memories, (she was only 3 when he enlisted in Cleveland Ohio June 3rd of 1943), said that he was found by some nuns who took him in. I am not one hundred percent sure of that story, but that is what she remembers.
I do however have a few local Geneva Ohio paper clippings of his story. One is in small writing as if it was in the 'want ad' section and the heading is Joseph Miller and speaks of his honorable discharge given to him (Pfc. Joseph R. Miller) at Camp Perry after two and one half years in the Armed Forces. It also speaks of him being captured for three and one half months and held captive by the Nazis in Luxembourg /Belgium. The other article is "Pvt. Miller is Missing" and that speaks of my Grand Parents finding out he was missing in action - the same location mentioned in the other clipping.
The last clipping is the family "Is Happy As Letter Arrives From Missing Son". This letter speaks of him being flown from Germany to France and staying at a hospital. He speaks of landing and seeing Majors and Colonels greeting them as a band played for them. They were treated as kings he states. My Grand Parents received offical notice from the War Department that their son was accounted for at this time and was safe.
I wish I had more information but collecting this is very hard. I would love to have more information on him as my mother is the only surviving member of her family and the last and youngest sibling in her family.
Joe passed in 2011 and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington Virginia along with his wife (my Aunt) Shirley. I am so very proud of him and his military service made me see what a true hero he was serving his country.
God bless the many men and woman who have lost their lives now and in past history.
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