Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 185076To weatherproof the Nissen huts, Marines banded sod up to tin roofs with barbed wire. Despite these precautions, hutsheights of four feet around the foundations and tied down the shuddered and shook when the winter's gale winds blew.

Iceland's long, warm summer days allowed Marines to hang Iceland's frequent rain showers. In the winter, with short daystheir laundry on lines outside the huts to dry, except during and bad weather, drying clothes outdoors was impossible.

Marine Corps Historical Collection

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involved is fully recognized and de-eply appreciated."

By late September, Marine leaderssaw problems arising from a combi-nation of short, dark days, badweather, and troops bored and con-fined to quarters. One lieutenantwrote to his mother suggesting thatthe ladies in her church might be in-terested in sending the troops someplaying cards, board games, dice,checkers, and similar items. Withinweeks the lieutenant was over-whelmed with the requested gamesand supplies, plus large parcels ofcookies and candy.

In October, as the days grew short-er, it rained, temperatures dropped,and the wind blew incessantly. The

ability to accomplish any meaning-ful field, tactical, or weapons' train-ing lessened as the weatherdeteriorated. Many units were stillbusy improving their camp facilitiesand preparing for a wet, muddywinter. Officers spent hours censor-ing their men's mail and the menspent hours writing letters. Mostjunior officers had time-consumingextra duties and the troops were as-signed to seemingly unending work-ing parties. Tactical plans, trenches,emplacements, wire obstacles, anddefense range cards for sectors ofresponsibility, had all been preparedduring the early and balmy weeks offall.

When the weather permitted, theContemporary

The wind blows very cold in Iceland.

A 6th Marines staff noncommissioned officer conducts bayo- wool socks worn by all hands. With the approach of badnet training in Iceland's mud. Note the galoshes and heavy weather Marines were unable to conduct meaningful training.

LtCol Robert J. Vroegindewey Collection

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Marines on expeditionary duty in Iceland in 1941 pause dur-ing their field training in the months before the winter weather

Officers of the 1st Battalion, 6th Marines, in Iceland,commanded by LtCol Oliver P Smith (front row, fifth fromleft). He was to become assistant division commander of the1st Marine Division on Cape Gloucester, division commanderin the Korean War, and a four-star general at retirement. Two

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Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 185021

made heavier clothing a necessity. These Marines wear thepolar bear shoulder patch on their forest green uniforms.

other officers of the battalion would become generals:Lt William K. Jones (second row, extreme right) and Lt MichaelP Ryan (last row, third from right). Three battalion officerswere killed in the Pacific in World War II. These were the "OldBreed" with whom the Corps went to war.

LtCol Harold K. Thronesen Collection

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Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 185298

Shortage of organic motor transport inthe Brigade forced it to depend upon thegood will of the British or the U.S. Armyfor trucking personnel and supplies, ortactical mobility. The only trucks avail-able in the Brigade were the one-tonartillery prime movers, as seen here,from the 10th Marines battalion at-tached to the Brigade. The bleak, deso-late quality of Iceland is evident.

ed Marines were issued two free cansof beer per day from the post ex-change, an event which also brokethe monotony. As always, cardgames for high stakes were a popu-lar pastime. Most of the gamblers'pay "rode the books" as there was noplace to spend it. Because there waslittle to read, one company com-mander often took a book to hismen's huts and read to them as theyand their salty and grizzled NCOs satat his feet and listened with rapt at-tention. Some nights he sneaked ina bottle of whiskey for the men.They described these visits as "theskipper's mail call:'

With the advancing cold weatherand snow, each battalion formed anad hoc "ski patrol" with a potentialmission of rescuing crews of downedaircraft or to find persons lost in therugged country. The patrol consistedof an officer and a few men, mostlyfrom New England, who claimed tobe experienced skiers. Their chiefproblem was that they had no sup-

ply of proper ski boots or bindingsor wax. The skis purchased inCharleston were simple wooden oneswith a toe strap only, and the polesprovided were basic beginner's bam-boo sticks. The snow was never deepenough around Marine camps forgood skiing and fortunately therewere no emergencies calling for a skipatrol rescue.

As noted earlier, a major difficultyfacing Marine units in remote out-post camps was the shortage of trans-portation. Marine infantry battalionshad no motor transport of theirown — neither jeeps nor trucks, primemovers nor weapons carriers. The 2dBattalion, 10th Marines, had small,one-ton truck prime movers for its75mm pack howitzers. The brigadehad a motor transport platoon withsome old two-ton trucks. The defensebattalion had a few vehicles, butthere were no general-purpose, staff,command, or utility vehicles in thebrigade. Only the generosity of theU.S. and British armies, whichloaned the Marines a small numberof trucks enabled them to meet themost basic logistic requirements. TheBritish had also loaned the Marinesa few of their small "staff" or recon-naissance vehicles which were littlemore than four-cylinder sport carspainted olive drab. The Army gener-

ously provided the brigade withsome jeeps and 3/4-ton trucks, andmade their 2 1/2-ton trucks availa-ble to transport Marine working par-ties and for logistic support.

Lack of motor transport was acontinuing problem for the brigadefor most of its time in Iceland. Withthe dearth of motor vehicles andmaterial handling equipment, theMarines continued to move by footand to use their backs to handle sup-plies. One benefit was that most en-listed ranks kept physically fit despitethe lack of a formal physical fitnessprogram.

Recreation for Marines in the cityand vicinity of Reykjavik was verylimited. The few existing restaurantswere small, barely able to serve boththe local citizens and a few Britishand American troops. There wereonly two small movie theaters andthe Hotel Borg— the largest and bestin town — which were the centers ofthe Icelanders' social life. The Borgattracted the Allied officers to itsdances but was "out of bounds" to en-listed troops. Single girls frequentedthe hotel to dance with the officersand even to establish some promis-ing friendships.

The staff non-commissioned of-ficers had a favorite restaurant andthe lower ranks made do with what

Downtown Reykjavi the capital of Iceland, was in 1941 a city of grey stuccobuildings with a strong odor of fish. It was an oasis of civilization, however.

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Clothing for Icelandhe Marines were issued items of special winter cloth-ing: some good 20-year-old stocks of mustard-colored wool shirts which were used in "banana

war" campaigns; woolen underwear; heavy wool socks;rubber galoshes; some short sheepskin-lined canvas coatsfrom Sears Roebuck and Co.; and "foul-weather gear7 blackrubber or canvas coats and pants from civilian sources.Some officers and men obtained fine olive-drab parkas withalpaca linings from the Army.

For working parties and training, the felt field hat andthe one-piece blue denim or olive herringbone utility uni-form were frequently worn. Sweatshirts gave an added lay-er of warmth, but the field-combat clothing issued Marinesfor service in Iceland was far from satisfactory. The result

National Archives Photo 127-N-185074

Marines in sheepskin coats and wearing garrison caps orfur hats pose before their decorated Nissen hut beforeIceland's winter set in. Appropriate weather proofing keptthe interior of the huts relatively warm despite the cold.

A Marine in service greens with polar bear patch, fur hat,galoshes, and heavy wool socks poses in the Icelandic cold.

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was that Marines in the field or on the continuous work-ing parties did not look military. The Marine Corps hadno winter field service combat uniform other than its winterservice greens, including the overcoat in the same heavywool worn since World War I, but tailored for appearancerather than field service. Marine officers in Iceland fareda bit better as they had access to British officers' stores wherethey could buy fine quality trench coats, officers' boots,wool shirts, wool socks, and other items.

The one distinctive item of Marine Corps uniform issuewhich was also the most popular was the fur cap with theemblem on the front. The cap had a green crown and thickbrown "fur" trim and ear flaps. It had a North China-dutyMarine ancestry.

National Archives Photo 127-N-185069

6th Marines commander Col Leo D. Hertnle is dressed forcold weather in his fur hat and lined winter parka. Theweather was cold, but it hadn't snowed yet. Col Hermleretired as a lieutenant general at the end of World War II.

Typical of uniforms worn by officers in Iceland is that ofLtCol Oliver P. Smith, commander of 1st Battalion, 6thMarines, at right. His uniform, breeches with leather leg-gings, was that of a pre-World War II field grade officer.

Col Chester M. Craig Collection

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Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 524213

A Marine rifle squad, all armed with the Springfield rifle, Note that not all Brigade Marines had winter clothing othermodel 1903, maneuver in the half-light of the Icelandic winter, than their forest greens. The snow made movement difficult.

The crew of a 37mm antitank gun maneuver it into position chased in Charleston while en route to Iceland, and the furfor relaying while conductng gun drill in the snow of the cap worn by Marines in North China. Note that the pipe-Icelandic winter. They are wearing the sheepskin coats pur- smoking NCO in charge of the crew wears a salty field hat.

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facilities were left, which weren'tmuch. Travel was so difficult thatmany Marines decided that going totown wasn't worth the effort re-quired.

The Marines had brought withthem a few musical instruments, suchas guitars. As time passed, the RedCross provided additional recreation-al equipment, radios, and recordplayers. As the troops were forced todepend upon their own resources,they soon produced several cleverand amusing shows.

Movies for the Marines weren'tavailable until September. Thebrigade had brought no projectionequipment with its expeditionarycombat gear. One projector waspassed around the battalions of thebrigade, which then used living hutsor mess buildings for shows once ortwice a week until they could final-ly build recreation huts. Eventuallysome of the camps were able to con-struct recreation huts for movieshows, where the small beer rationcould be dispensed, and in which asmall post exchange could be set up.

Window-shopping in downtown Reykjavic was one of the fewpleasures to be had. Recreation in the city and its outskirts

was very limited at all times. The city had two small moivetheaters and dancing for officers at the Hotel Borg.

As the Brigade brought few recreation items to Iceland, the officers and enlistedMarines had to improvise to entertain themselves. Here Lt Harold C. "Bing" Boehm,the leading singer in the 3d Battalion, 6th Marines, officers' mess, conducts his fel-low officers in a group sing. For heroism while commanding the 3d Battalion, 9thMarines, in close combat at Iwo Jima, he later was awarded the Navy Cross.

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Previously, a truck would visit thecamps periodically with a selectionof post exchange items such as smok-ing, washing, and shaving supplies.During the winter months, the recre-ation buildings served to providespace for small libraries, barber serv-ice, amateur shows, classrooms, andreligious services.

The battalion camp galleys wereprimitive at best and tested the skillsof the cooks and frequently thestomachs of the Marines, but at least

the rations were usually freshly pre-pared and warm. World War II com-bat rations had not yet appeared.Rations were never elaborate or f an-cy but were healthy and adequate.Meals were made with frozen, dried,and tinned foods prepared on oldMarine Corps World War I-vintage,kerosene-burning, trailer-mounted"buzzacot" stoves. Beans, frozen fowl,salmon, mashed potatoes, cornedbeef, stew, canned fruits, powderedmilk, coffee, and some baked goods

were typical items on the menu.(Officers were charged fifty cents perday for rations.) The menu wasrepeated every ten days. There wereno field combat rations. Troops atefrom their World War I mess kits:two pans with a handle and steelspoon, knife, and fork. Each manwashed his own mess kit in CI cansholding boiling soapy water followedby a dip in boiling clear water. No-body suffered, but it was an anti-quated system.

With the arrival of the Army, theMarines changed from Navy rationsto the Army menu which includedexperimental field rations consistinglargely of Spam, sausage, and de-hydrated items. The Navy had beensupplying an acceptable variety ofcanned and dried foods, but the newArmy rations weren't very popularwith most Marines. There was norefrigeration, no running water in thegalleys, and no good way to heatwater until the Army brought in No.5 coal ranges and immersion heatersto heat water to boiling for washingthe men's mess gear. Prior to this,water had been heated on the cook-ing ranges. The mess halls had roughwooden benches and tables, and

Author's CollectionUntil room was found for post exchanges in newly built recreation huts in the cam p5,Brigade Marines depended upon the periodic visit of a truck carrying for saleat minimal cost such post exchange staples as smoking, washing, and shaving items.

Marines line up in the mud for chow served from expeditionary cans on a truck.Marine Corps Historical Collection

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