Replies

WWII: Were there no other officers present at that point to take command?

Langanke: Yes, but this was an unusual and unexpected situation. Normally the next rank took over, but this was different. It just happened. Somebody had to do it, and I was the guy on whose tank Schreiber had sat.

WWII: Now that you unexpectedly found yourself in command of this ad hoc force, what did you do?

Langanke: After the first couple of attacks, the radio sets on the back of my Panther caught fire. I quickly opened the back hatch of the turret, leaned out and pushed the ignited stuff off the vehicle. I burned one hand, but it wasn't too bad. What was real bad was that the planes had seen one tank left down there, seemingly still operable and with the crew in it. They now concentrated on us. It was finally a considerable number that dealt exclusively with us. The continuous rattle of the bullets on all sides of the turret drove you crazy. Then a big bang! In the turret roof there was a hole, where a discharger for smoke grenades should be installed. When that piece of equipment was not available, this opening was covered with a round plate fastened with four bolts. We had such a lid. The enormous number of bullet impacts had broken the bolts and flung the lid away. Daylight in the turret! The loader and myself had the same reaction. We grabbed our blankets, turned them together into a kind of cone and wedged them into the hole so it served as a backstop. Twice, the impact of so many projectiles threw our contraption down, but luckily we had it in again before more bullets rained down on us.

WWII: Can you describe the scene around your tank?

Langanke: Some 20 to 30 meters in front of us a group of paratroopers had been mowed down by the first air attack. Among those pilots must have been some extremely queer characters. Time and again they buzzed this group and fired into the dead bodies. They flew just above the treetops, so they must have seen all the details. Slowly the limbs were torn off, the intestines were spilled. It's one of the most terrible impressions I remember from the war. The gunner had a view out of the tank with his sighting telescope and its narrow field of vision. That, unfortunately, was pointed at this group of dead soldiers. In this tremendous stress we all had to suffer, the horrible sight tipped the scale, and he cracked up. Hollering and swearing, he wanted to get out. He was for a short while out of his mind. I drew my pistol and stuck the barrel in his neck, hollered back at him and told him to stop playing the crazy idiot. He immediately got back to normal. This man was one of the finest comrades we had, absolutely reliable, sturdy and imperturbable. But I am sure every man exposed long enough to really extreme pressure will have a weak moment.

WWII: Clearly the pressure was mounting. How did you keep your group together?

Langanke: I had to change the situation somehow. We started the motor, turned to the right and hit the hedgerow regardless of the danger for our drive sprockets and reduction drives. Behind the hedgerow there was a very big orchard where we could hide. The planes strafed and bombed that area for a while but then lost interest and gave up. Soon thereafter, one of the roaming soldiers told us that close by, in a bunker at a farmhouse, a regimental commander of some infantry and 10 or 12 officers sat together. I assumed they were discussing what action to take to cross the Hambye-Roncey Road and continue their retreat. I told my crew I would run over and find out how we could join this group. Still close to my tank, I got caught in a burst of artillery fire. All around me shells fell. I felt forlorn, hit the ground and started crawling around in an absolutely senseless way. It was my breakdown. When I had myself under control again, I first ascertained that my crew hadn't seen me. Most probably there is no closer and unrestricted comradeship than in a tank crew that has to live and fight together through real hard times. If they had watched me crawling, those nice guys would have asked me -- in a mighty compassionate way, of course -- what kind of beetles I was trying to catch or was it moles or other nonsense like that.

An American halftrack rumbles through the wreckage of Roncey. During his escape, Langanke’s column stumbled upon several halftracks, destroyed them and drove off their crews. (NATIONAL ARCHIVES)

WWII: Once you regained your composure, did you continue to the farm?

Langanke: I got to the bunker, snapped to attention and reported to the regimental commander and asked for orders. He didn't have any for me, and I left the shelter. For the next two or three hours I was quite busy. I ran back 200-300 meters down the road looking for vehicles from our task force and others. Most of the men who had abandoned their vehicles were back now. I found two operable Panthers and one Panzerkampfwagen IV. With them I was able to move enough obstacles so that our halftrack and wheeled vehicles could pass. We formed quite a column. I told those with me that, come darkness, we would break out. I reported this fact to the regimental commander and checked in another two or three times. He finally told me not to make any noise and wait. He would, under cover of darkness, sneak stealthily through the American blockade with his infantry and all the stragglers, without shooting. I thought he was kidding me, because that was mere nonsense.

WWII: It sounds like that officer was losing his nerve.

Langanke: Shortly after my last encounter, some seasoned parachute noncoms came and said to me: "You poor bastard. You're the only one around here who doesn't know what's cooking. Those guys don't plan anything. They are going to surrender." I felt ashamed for my stupidity. I went over to the bunker and told them I would start with my column at 2200 that evening and the hell with them. Then two officers came to my tank. One, a major, was the commander of an assault gun battalion, and the other was his adjutant. They had camouflaged their two vehicles in a sunken lane close by. They asked me whether they could join our column. By that time I had given up wondering why an officer of his rank would ask a platoon leader, who wasn't even an officer, if he could join instead of taking over command. I then drove with my tank back to the road and broke two passages through the hedgerow on the left side in order to pass the big gun and other destroyed vehicles in front of us. In the attempt to move the destroyed vehicles to the side of the road, one of my Panthers had broken a sprocket wheel and had to be abandoned.

WWII: What other preparations did you make for your anticipated breakout?

Langanke: I set up a march formation. First my tank with grenadiers on the left side and about 50 to 60 paratroopers on the right side as a safeguard against close combat fighters with bazookas. Then the two assault guns, the wheeled vehicles of our task force, various stragglers, self-propelled infantry guns and mobile flak followed. The rear was brought up by the Panzer IV and my second Panther. The frequency of our radio communication was set, and at 2200 hours we started. Of course, no scouts had moved at all before this.

WWII: Had the other three Panthers of your platoon been knocked out by that time?

Langanke: No. The second Panther that took part in the breakout was the only one from my platoon left. The commander's name was Panzer. Sounds funny! The other Panthers were stuck in traffic or mechanically disabled. On the right side a farm was in flames. In the wavering light I thought I saw a Sherman in the field to the left. We fired twice and hit it, but it didn't burn. Then I drove full speed across the Hambye-Roncey Road, where I expected stiff American resistance and, if I remember correctly, we rolled over an anti-tank gun. I shot into the lane that led into the main road from the other side and stopped. Passing the intersection, I saw two Shermans to my right side standing at right angles, sticking their heads into the hedgerow. Now I realized these were the machine guns that had fired at our paratroopers when we started and had wounded a number of them. We had to be quick to use the surprise effect, so I ordered the assault guns to rush to the crossing, turn right and knock out the two tanks that showed them their sides. They hesitated and started deliberating. I was enraged. I turned my turret and told them to start immediately or I would knock them out. They did, turned right and had no problems destroying the American tanks. I proceeded down the lane. To my right side there was a wider field with a hedgerow bordering it. Along this hedge a number of armored vehicles were parked, pointed toward the main road. I was lucky. We hit the last one, probably an ammunition carrier, and it was like fireworks at a summer festivity. The flare ammunition with the different colors was a fantastic sight. The whole area was illuminated, and I could easily pick out another four to six of these armored halftracks. I don't remember the exact number. With all this, a great many soldiers of the infantry units behind the north-south road were encouraged to jump up and follow us. They did this in an unmilitary manner, with shouts and yells, firing in the air and the like. At first I was appalled, but then I realized it was quite useful. The Americans seemed to be completely surprised and even dumbfounded. They left a number of cars, which were taken over by Germans, and there was practically no further resistance. I drove on and maybe 150 meters in front of me an American tank raced from the right toward the road. We wanted to stop it, and that thing happened that all tank crews are most afraid of -- you pull the trigger or push the button, and the gun doesn't fire. Figuring that was the end for us, I turned my head and got an even bigger shock. From the south, four American tanks rushed onto the road that joined ours, which came from la Valtolaine. They turned back and disappeared at full speed. I again looked forward. That first tank had such momentum when it hit the road that it couldn't stop in time and got stuck with its nose in the ditch next to the road. Only with great trouble could it get out, turn around and get away. We were sitting there in our Panther, not only undamaged but even unmolested and almost couldn't believe it.

German Marder III self-propelled guns sit idle amid the ruins of Roncey following the fighting. (NATIONAL ARCHIVES)

WWII: It sounds as if things were going your way.

Langanke: The column we had started with comprised about 300 men. By now it was around double that number. As we moved farther, our progress was made easier by a number of captured [Allied] vehicles. Some stragglers joined us, while others separated and chose different ways. We were a motley, mixed bunch. I figured that combat action would occur in this intersection area, which appeared to be more than a mere roadblock. I ordered the other Panther to take the lead, and I brought up the rear. Radio communication still worked, and we began our erratic wandering. We first reached Lengronne, continued to Carences, crossed the Sienne River and drove on to Gavray.

Pzkw IVH

WWII: What did you find in Gavray?

Langanke: When we reached the town, it was under fire. Here our column became mixed with a number of other vehicles. Outside the town we continued without loss and turned toward St. Denis-le-Gast, but before reaching it, we left the road and drove to the bridge at la Baleine. As we approached, our movement nearly stopped. I climbed out of my Panther to find out the reason. Artillery fire, which continued sporadically, or bombing had damaged this bridge, the sides of which were partly destroyed. The drivers were very reluctant to go on it. I then took over, organized the approach to the bridge and directed each vehicle across. When our tank crossed, as the last vehicle, only half the width of the tracks found footing in some places. On the south side of the river, tactical signs of quite a number of units were installed, and the column could dissolve. Most of them now knew where to go. My self-appointed mission was finished. It was full daylight by now, and the first planes appeared. We drove into a lane that led up a hill, and at the first farm with an orchard we stopped. I told the crew we would now have a good nap after three nights of nearly no sleep at all. We crawled under our tank and were lost to the world around us. It was high noon when we were awake again, and we were alone.

M4A1(76) Sherman

WWII: What happened to the remaining Panther of your platoon, Panzer's tank?

Langanke: Panzer went along with the vehicles from Deutschland and reached the regiment. My crew and I couldn't continue after the river crossing, we were completely spent. The driver and gunner fell asleep every so often while we were moving, and I was totally exhausted. When I got all the vehicles over the river -- which was a beastly business, with yelling, swearing and threatening -- all my energy was gone. Physically and mentally we were just done, we couldn't continue, we had to get some sleep. That was the reason we stopped alone at the orchard.

WWII: What happened after you finally woke?

Langanke: Some 100 meters away we saw a Panther on the right side of the lane pointed toward us. From the left side another lane joined ours. There, Americans must have come up the hill, because the Panther was knocked out. It had a hole in the gun mantlet.

WWII: Was this Panther knocked out before you went to sleep?

Langanke: I don't know, but I can't believe that the Americans were already there when we reached the farm. I went over into the field on the left and met some German soldiers. They told me that there were already plenty of American troops down in the valley, and you could hear it, too. I went back and then had a mighty strenuous afternoon. The sky now swarmed with planes. I would run ahead some 50-100 meters, watch the direction of the flight of the various groups of aircraft, give a sign when it was favorable for us to move, and then the tank would race to its new position. After some hours, shortly before dark, we met a supply column of our division, where we could partly replenish our fuel. In this area Americans must have been present, because there were no planes above. We had lost one wheel set from artillery fire, and the bogies had damaged several track links. With a one-kilogram standard explosive charge we blew off the damaged part and were lucky not to harm the other tracks and suspension parts. During the night we completely lost track of our direction. In the morning we arrived at Beauchamps. Then we found a road sign that told us we had only 15 kilometers to Granville. That gave us our orientation back. We turned and sneaked around Villedieu-les-Poêles, evaded American columns several times on the roads south of that town, turned north, then east of it and reported back to our regiment during the night of July 31-August 1, in the Percy area. The regimental commander had already heard about our action and was mighty glad to see us, all the more so as he now had one more operational tank. Before the night passed we were on the way to another roadblock.

For his part in ensuring that hundreds of soldiers and their equipment managed to escape from the Roncey Pocket, Fritz Langanke was recommended for the Knight's Cross on August 7, 1944. He was awarded that medal on August 27, 1944.

Additional Sources:

www.wwiivehicles.com
en.wikipedia.org
www.sspanzer.net
www.combatmission.com
www.saintjohn.nbcc.nb.ca
www.ibiblio.org

On This Day In History

Birthdates which occurred on September 27:
1601 Louis XIII king of France (1610-43)
1657 Sophia regent of Russia (1682-89)
1722 Samuel Adams revolutionary rabble rouser/(Lt Gov-Mass, 1789-94)
1792 George Cruikshank England, illustrator for Charles Dickens
1817 Hiram R Revels Fayetteville NC, 1st black US senator
1840 Alfred Thayer Mahan US, naval officer (Influence of Sea Power)
1840 Thomas Nast political cartoonist of late 1800s America
1858 Giuseppe Peano Italian mathematician, founder of symbolic logic
1875 Grazia Deledda Italy, novelist (Old Man of the Mtn-Nobel 1926)
1895 George Raft NYC, actor (Each Dawn I Die, Scarface, Some Like It Hot)
1896 George Bender Cleveland, (Rep/Sen-R-Oh)
1896 Sam Ervin (D-Sen-NC), Watergate committee chairman
1905 Ernest Baier Germany, figure skater (Olympic-gold-1936)
1917 Louis Auchincloss Lawrence NY, lawyer/novelist (Watchfires)
1918 Sir Martin Ryle Britain, radio astronomer, astronomer royal 1972-82
1919 Charles H Percy (Sen-R-Ill)
1920 William Conrad Louisville Ky, actor (Bullwinkle Show, Cannon)
1926 Jayne Meadows Wu Chang China, Mrs Steve Allen, actr (Dark Delusion)
1929 Sada Thompson Des Moines Ia, actress (Family, Pursuit of Happiness)
1930 Igor Kipnis Berlin Germany, harpsichordist/professor (Fairfield)
1933 Kathleen Nolan St Louis Mo, actress (Real McCoys, Janie, Broadside)
1934 Barbara Howar Nashville, reporter (Wash Post, Entertainment Tonight)
1934 Claude Jarman Jr Nashville Tn, actor (Rio Grande, Inside Straight)
1934 Dick Schaap sportscaster/author (Joe Namath's co-writer)
1934 Greg Morris Cleveland Ohio, actor (Mission Impossible, Vega$)
1934 Wilford Brimley Salt Lake City Utah, actor (Gus-Our House, Cocoon)
1935 Jerome Shipp US, basketball (Olympic-gold-1964)
1939 Kathy Whitworth golfer (AP Woman Athlete of the Year-1966)
1941 Don Cornelius TV show host (Soul Train)
1943 Randy Bachman Winnipeg, rocker (Bachman-Turner Overdrive-Roll On)
1945 Misha Dichter Shanghai China, pianist (Tchaikowsy 2nd prize-1966)
1947 A Martinez Glendale Calif, actor (Whiz Kids, Cruz-Santa Barbara)
1947 Liz Torres Bronx NY, actress (Phyllis, All in the Family)
1947 Meatloaf aka Marvin Lee Aday, Dallas, rocker (Bat Out of Hell)
1949 Mike Schmidt 3rd baseman & HR hitter (Phillies)
1949 Robb Weller TV host (Entertainment Tonight, Home Show)
1952 Del Russel Pasadena Calif, actor (Richard-Arnie)
1952 Dumitru Prunariu 1st Romanian space traveler (on board Soyuz 40)
1958 Shaun Cassidy LA Calif, actor/singer (Hardy Boys, Breaking Away)
1959 Beth Heiden Madison Wisc, 3000m speed skater (Olympic-bronze-1980)
1963 Caren Metschuck German DR, 100m butterfly swimmer (Olympic-gold-1980)

Deaths which occurred on September 27:
1404 William of Wykeham, chancellor/Bishop of Winchester.
1660 St Vincent de Paul Vincentian Cong founder, dies
1870 Henry TP Comstock Canadian silver prospector, dies at 50
1956 Milburn Apt in X-2 rocket plane reaches 3370 kph, but, dies in crash
1956 Mildred "Babe" Didrickson Zaharias great female athlete, dies
1962 Francisco Brochado da Rocha PM of Brazil (1962), dies at 52
1965 Harry Reser orch leader (Sammy Kaye Show), dies at 69
1972 Rory Storm lead singer of Rory Storm & Hurricane, commits suicide
1979 Jimmy McCullough musician (Wings), dies of a drug overdose
1981 Robert Montgomery actor/dir (Robert Montgomery Presents), dies at 77
1984 John Facenda sportscaster (NFL Action), dies at 72
1985 Lloyd Nolan actor (Dr Chegley-Julia), dies of lung cancer at 83
1988 William V Shannon US ambassador to Ireland (1977-81), dies at 61
1993 James H Doolittle, US air force general (led first raid over Tokyo 1942), dies at 96
1996 Mohammed Najibullah, Pres of Afghanistan Democratic Party (1986-90), executed

Take A Moment To Remember
GWOT Casualties

Iraq
27-Sep-2004 3 | US: 3 | UK: 0 | Other: 0
US Private 1st Class Kenneth L. Sickels Al Anbar Province Non-hostile - unspecified cause
US Sergeant 1st Class Joselito O. Villanueva Balad - Salah ad Din Hostile - hostile fire - sniper
US Specialist Gregory A. Cox Balad (near) - Salah ad Din Non-hostile - vehicle accident

Afghanistan
A GOOD DAY

http://icasualties.org/oif/
Data research by Pat Kneisler
Designed and maintained by Michael White
//////////
Go here and I'll stop nagging.
http://soldiersangels.org/heroes/index.php

On this day...
0070 Walls of upper city of Jerusalem battered down by Romans
1290 Earthquake in Gulf of Chili China, reportedly kills 100,000 (And where was George Bush?)

1540 Society of Jesus (Jesuits) founded by Ignatius Loyola

1669 The island of Crete in the Mediterranean Sea falls to the Ottoman Turks after a 21-year siege.
1777 Battle of Germantown; Washington defeated by the British
1779 John Adams negotiates Revolutionary War peace terms with Britain
1787 Constitution submitted to the states for ratification
1791 Jews in France are granted French citizenship.
1821 Mexican Empire declares its independence
1821 Revolutionary forces occupy Mexico City as Spanish withdraw
1825 Railroad transportation is born with 1st track in England
1854 Steamship Arctic sank with 300 people aboard
1863 Jo Shelby's calvery in action at Moffat's Station, Arkansas
1864 Battle at Pilot Knob (Ft Davidson), Missouri: 1700 killed/injured
1864 Confederate guerrilla Bloody Bill Anderson and his henchmen, including a teenage Jesse James, massacre 20 unarmed Union soldiers at Centralia, Missouri. The event becomes known as the Centralia Massacre.
1869 After only five weeks in office as sheriff of Ellis County, Kansas, Wild Bill Hickok, found it necessary to kill his second man in the name of preserving peace.
1881 Chicago Cubs beat Troy 10-8 before record small "crowd" of 12
1892 Diamond Match Company bought the patent for book matches
1894 Aqueduct racetrack opens in NY

1905 1st published blues composition goes on sale, WC Handy "Memphis Blues"

1905 Boston's Bill Dinneen no-hits Chic White Sox, 2-0
1910 1st test flight of a twin-engined airplance (France)
1919 Democratic National Committee votes to admit women
1919 Pitcher Bob Shawkey sets then Yank record with 15 strike-outs
1920 Eight Chicago White Sox players are charged with fixing the 1919 World Series. (Black Sox scandal)
1923 Lou Gehrig's 1st homer
1928 US recognizes Nationalist Chinese government
1930 Bobby Jones completes the Grand Slam of Golf
1930 White Sox 1st baseman Bud Clancy didn't handle the ball at all in a 9 inning game vs St Louis Browns
1931 Lou Gehrig completes his 6th straight season, playing in every game
1936 Franco troops conquer Toledo
1937 1st Santa Claus school opens (Albion NY)
1938 Ocean liner Queen Elizabeth launched at Glasgow
1939 Warsaw, Poland, surrenders to Germans after 19 days of resistance
1940 Nazi-Germany, Italy and Japan signed a formal alliance called Tripartite Pact
1940 55 German aircrafts shot down above England
1940 Black leaders protest discrimination in US armed forces
1941 1st WW II liberty ship, freighter Patrick Henry, launched
1942 NY Giants beat Wash Redskins 14-7 without making a 1st down
1942 S.S. Stephen Hopkins, a Liberty Ship with an all-San Francisco crew, engaged the German raider Stier and her tender, Tannenfels. It shelled and brought down the Stier and hit the Tannenfels before it was sunk. Of a crew of 58, only 15 survived. They reached the shore of Brazil after a 31-day voyage in an open lifeboat
1950 Heavyweight champ Ezzard Charles defeats Joe Louis
1953 Bert Bechichar, Baltimore Colts, kicks a 56-yard field goal
1953 Typhoon destroys 1/3 of Nagoya Japan (It's all George Bush's fault)
1954 School integration begins in Wash DC & Baltimore Md public schools
1954 Steve Allen's "Tonight Show" premiers
1956 The U.S. Air Force Bell X-2, the world's fastest and highest-flying plane, crashes, killing the test pilot.
1959 Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev concludes his US visit
1959 Typhoon Vera, hits Japanese island of Honshu, kills nearly 5,000
1961 Sierre Leone becomes the 100th member of the UN
1962 US sells Israel, Hawk anti-aircraft missiles
1963 At 10:59 AM the census clock, records US population at 190,000,000
1964 Warren Commission released, finding Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone (or did he?)
1967 Phillies Jim Bunning ties NL record of 5, 1-0 losses in a year
1968 France vetoes UK entry into common market
1968 Cardinal's super pitcher Bob Gibson's 13th shutout of the year
1970 Ken Boswell sets 2nd baseman record of 85 games without an error
1972 1st game at Nassau Coliseum, Rangers beat Islanders 6-4 (exhibition)
1973 Nolan Ryan strikesout his 383rd batter of the year
1973 Soyuz 12 carries 2 cosmonauts into Earth orbit (2 days)
1977 Phillies clinch 2nd straight NL East Division title
1979 Congress' final approval to create Dept of Education
1982 John Palmer becomes news anchor of the Today Show
1986 Senate joins House of Reps voting for sweeping tax reforms
1987 NFL players' strike
1988 Grand jury evidence shows Tawana Brawley fabricated rape story
1988 Lab tests reportedly show Shroud of Turin not Christ`s burial cloth
1989 Sony purchases Columbia Pictures for $3.4 billion cash
1990 A gunman holds 33 people (killing 1) hostage in Berkley Calif
1990 Deposed emir of Kuwait address the UN General Assembly
1990 Senate Judiciary committee approves Souter's Supreme Court nomination
1990 Tour de France champion Greg LeMond visits White House
1991 "Princesses" premiers on CBS TV
1991 Pres Bush decides to end full-time B-52 bombers alert
1991 1st scheduled NHL exhibition game in St Petersburg Fla, is cancelled due to poor ice conditions (NY Islanders vs Boston Bruins)
1994 "Contract with America" signed by 350 Republican congressional candidates.
1996 In Afghanistan, the Taliban, a band of former seminary students, seized control of Afghanistan from the previous rebel group that'd taken the country back from Moscow's control. Enforced strict Islamic law across the nation
1999 Last game played at Tiger Stadium. Detroit Tigers beat Kansas City Royals, 8-to-2.
2000 99 Syrian intellectuals published a demand for more democracy and freedom of expression
2002 Three U.S. lawmakers, all Democrats, arrive in Baghdad to gauge the possible effects of war on ordinary Iraqi citizens. Rep. "Jihad" Jim McDermott of Washington and fellow House Democrats David "The Dufus" Bonior of Michigan and "Moron" Mike Thompson of California followed a Sept. 14 visit by a delegation led by Rep. Nicky "The Numbskull" Rahall, a West Virginia Democrat
2003 The Algerian army reported that it had killed 150 armed Islamic militants in a two-week operation in the eastern foothills.
2004 Lebanon said Ismail Katib, a local al Qaeda operative captured a week earlier, died “of a heart attack” while in police custody

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

South Belgium : French Day
Taiwan : Moon Festival
World : Ancestor Appreciation Day
Sweden : Lennart name day
US : Gold Star Mother's Day (Last Sunday in September) (Sunday)
US : American Indian Day (4th Friday in September) (1916) (Friday)
Crush a Can Day
Hong Kong : Moon Cake Festival

Religious Observances
Orth-Eth : Exaltation of the Precious & Life-Giving Cross (9/14 OS)
Old Catholic : Feast of SS Cosmas & Damian, martyrs
RC : Memorial of Vincent de Paul, priest, patron of charitable works
Judaism : Sh'mini Atz-8th day of Succoth

Religious History
1540 Through the encyclical "Regimini militantis ecclesiae," Pope Paul III officially approved the Society of Jesus, a body of priests organized by Ignatius of Loyola in 1534 for missionary work. Today, the Jesuits constitute the largest Catholic teaching order in the United States.
1735 Birth of Robert Robinson, English clergyman and author of the hymn, "Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing." He was converted at age 20 under the preaching of revivalist George Whitefield.
1785 The Protestant Episcopal Church in the U.S. was founded on this date, following the American Revolutionary War, when U.S. Anglicans met in Philadelphia to create a denomination independent from and autonomous of the Church of England.
1947 The Church of South India was officially formed by the merger of three denominations: the Anglicans, the Methodists and the South India United Church (a Presbyterian and Congregational union). Historically, it was the first union ever between episcopal and non-episcopal bodies.
1957 The dramatic anthology series "Crossroads" aired for the last time over ABC television. Depicting the work of various clergymen, the series had premiered in October 1955.

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

Man Takes Citizenship Oath, Wins Lottery

Sep 27, 4:07 AM (ET)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - A man who immigrated from Kenya to the United States found prosperity beyond his expectations on the day he became a U.S. citizen.
Shortly after Moses Bittok, of West Des Moines, took the oath of citizenship on Friday, he discovered he had a $1.89 million winning ticket from the Iowa Lottery's Hot Lotto game.
"It's almost like you adopted a country and then they netted you $1.8 million," Bittok said Monday as he cashed in his ticket. "It doesn't happen anywhere - I guess only in America."

Bittok said he took the citizenship oath at the federal building in Des Moines Friday then went shopping with his family. They stopped at a gas station to check his lottery ticket from the Sept. 21 drawing.
"For some reason, I'm calm," he said. His wife, Leonida, screamed.

Bittok, 40, an officer at the Iowa Correctional Institute for Women in Mitchellville, said he doesn't know exactly what he will do with his winnings, but a college fund for the couples 4-year-old daughter, Mindy, is top priority.
Bittok chose to receive his winnings in 25 annual payments of about $52,920 after taxes.

He came to the U.S. to attend college in Minnesota, then moved to Iowa to take the job at the women's prison.
He had purchased the winning ticket at a West Des Moines grocery store, where he once worked part time.

Hot Lotto tickets are sold in Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, South Dakota and West Virginia.

Thought for the day :
"The rain it raineth on the just
And also on the unjust fella;
But chiefly on the just, because
The unjust steals the just's umbrella."
Sam Ervin