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(Page 3.4)
Coleman Kaserne, Gelnhausen 
Home of Combat Command B (CCB)

Gelnhausen, in the state of Hessen, is a historic town that's more than 1000 years old. It's population in 1956 was about 10,000.

Pictures and words of our new experiences

    The following pages show how military life at Co D, 33rd Tank Battalion was after our arrival at Coleman Kaserne, our new home for the next four years.   Being  fluent in German I soon became the "old man's" driver.  CPT Purvis, our "old man" was tired of not being able to ask for directions in German when his team was getting lost in the German country side. Great privileges came with my new job -- no more guard duty and, even as a private, VIP status!
    An avid photographer, I always had my camera along.  I bought lots of good photo equipment and did all of my processing at the Coleman Photo Crafts Shop in the basement of Snack-bar and Special Services building near the PX. 

 

bulletAt and around Coleman Kaserne

Coleman Kaserne, named after an American officer, who was killed in WW-II, was the home of Combat Command B of the 3rd Armored Division. The mission of the 3rd AD, headquartered in Frankfurt about 30 miles west, in the Cold War years after 1956 was to stop any possible Soviet aggression down the Fulda gap into then West Germany.  The military post on the outskirts of Gelnhausen had been built by the Germans in the mid-30s and was called Panzerjaeger-Kaserne. It had been  the home of the German 9th Tank Destroyer battalion before the unit left to fight in France and Russia during WW-II (see GN: Other for some photos of the German soldiers at the Gelnhausen Kaserne).
After the departure of the US troops in 1992,  Coleman Kaserne was returned to the German authorities and and for a few years was used to house refugees seeking asylum. Next, the City of Gelnhausen successfully converted the area for civilian use and today it's a modern commercial/industrial section of the city.

 

bulletCombat Readiness through Training and Exercises

Training, field exercises, Grafenwoehr and Vilseck ---

 
bulletSightseeing
        Great opportunity for GI's to learn about the historic Hessian city and the surrounding area.