Note 19 — Chapter XXI · Westward to the Sea

The 302d Engineer Battalion, which followed behind the assault battalions, fought the “battle of bridges.”19 The engineers worked around the clock, frequently without any infantry protection, to restore the bridges as soon as possible. The bridges were to be sufficiently strengthened initially to support 2½-ton truck traffic for infantry supply, then they were to be reinforced to carry 20 tons in order to bring M8’s forward, and eventually to 36-ton capacity to carry the M10’s. General Bruce had hoped that sufficient Bailey bridges could be made available for important crossings to carry traffic while engineers built wooden bridges under the Bailey bridges. Only a limited number of Bailey bridges were furnished, however, and engineer progress to the west was slowed down.20