The Third Armored Division
is a World War II tank division which saw combat from June 1944 to September 1945. The 3AD was activated in April 1941 and began its training at Camp Polk, Lousiana. After training at Camp Polk and in the Mojave Desert the division was moved to Western Engalnd to finish its training. On June 24, 1945 the 3AD was deployed from Somerset, England into Northern France. The division landed at Omaha Beach and began its long campaign East and North into Germany.
(A map of that route can be seen below)
For research information please see the 3AD Archives tab at the top of this page.
Street scene in St. Fromand, France, July 1944
3AD Division headquarters convoy passing through St. Fromand, France, July 1944
Street scene in Neuilly La Foret, France, July 3, 1944
3AD tank operators in western Germany, November 1944
3AD Division headquarters convoy crossing "dragon's teeth" of Siegfriend Line near Kornelimunster, Germany, September, 15, 1944
3AD soldier standing near half-track vehicle in Aachen, Germany, 1944
Stolberg, Germany, September, 22, 1944
Bivouac style encampment on Hanz Prym estate near Stolberg, Germany, October, 22, 1944
Bivouac style encampment on Hanz Prym estate near Stolberg, Germany, October, 22, 1944
.German boy rollerskating in near rubble in Aachen, Germany, 1944
3AD soldier near Ardennes Forest, Germany, 1944
Snowy landscape near Ardennes, Forest, Germany, 1944
Church in Helbronval, Belgium, January, 14, 1945
3AD engineers with pheasant near Havelange, Belgium, January, 1, 1945
Road intersection scene in Hebronval, Belgium, January, 14, 1945
Pontoon bridge across Roer River at Mariaweiler, Germany, February, 26, 1945
German prisoners and civilians in Arnoldsweiler, Germany, February, 26, 1945
Scene of damaged church in town of Arnoldsweiler, Germany, February, 26, 1945
Damaged Sherman M4 tank in Arnoldsweiler, Germany, February, 26, 1945
Scene of street and castle in Stolberg, Germany, February 13, 1945
3AD soldiers in Stolberg, Germany, February 14, 1945
Sign and dog outside of Cologne, Germany, March, 1945
Scene of bombed street near Rhine riverfront in Cologne, Germany, March, 9 , 1945
Scene of bombed street and Sherman M4 tank in Cologne, Germany, March, 9, 1945
Scene of bombed street near Rhine riverfront in Cologne, Germany, March, 9, 1945
Damaged Cologne Cathedral and Mark V Panther tank in Cologne, Germnay, March 7, 1945
Scene of destroyed Hohenzollern Bridge over Rhine River in Cologne, Germany, March, 12, 1945
3AD headquarters convoy in intersection of bombed Morshenick, Germany, February, 27, 1945
Cemetary in Morschenick, Germany, February 27, 1945
Damaged Tiger tank in Elsdorf, Germany, March, 2, 1945
Dora-Mittelbau concentration camp, Nordhausen, Germany, April, 11, 1945
German men of nearby Nordhausen, Germany dig mass graves at Dora-Mittelbau concentration camp, April, 1945
3AD decoration ceremony in Darmstadt, Germany, May, 18, 1945
Swimming pool at Sportsplatz in Darmstadt, Germany, May, 18, 1945
View of New York skyline from the Marechal Joffre, New York Harbor, October, 1, 1945
Foreward of Spearhead into the West.
Click to read Spearhead in the West.
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General Information and Sources of 3AD Regiments
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-33rd Logbook, (June 1944-April 1945)
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-36th Regimental History, (April 1941-April 1944)
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Remembering Dora-Mittelbau; Blog Post
Map of Nordhausen and surrounding area, Third Armored Division Archives Andrew Barr map collection.
Nordhausen Concentration Camp Memorial website.
