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Milk River, Alberta --- Once among North America's toughest fighting men of the Second World War, the daring exploits of the "Devil's Brigade" have finally been recognized by the government of Alberta.

Highway 4 --- the main connector between Alberta and the United States --- has officially been renamed the "first Special Service Force Memorial Highway".

The force, nicknamed the Black Devil's Brigade by a frightened German officer, received little fanfare after the Second World War.

"We didn't really show much during the war in Canada," said former Staff Sgt. Terry Fitzgerald, 77, of Fort St. John, B.C. "We were kind of a secret outfit, you see".

"So Canadians don't know anything about us. This highway will kind of repeat their history for them --- arouse their curiousity if nothing else."

Fitzgerald and dozens of other veterans of the unit were on hand for the ceremony in Milk River, just a stone's throw from the Canadian/U.S. border.

Earl Stewart, 76, joined up in Battleford, Saskatchewan, and served with the unit as a private. He says he's still amazed at the unit's success.

"It sometimes surprises me what we were able to do," said Stewart, who now lives in Calgary. "It accomplished an awful lot --- a lot more than what they figured it would accomplish."

The elite force, was a joint Canadian - U.S. commando unit that distinguished itself during the Second World War.

The airborne infantry later became known as the "Devil's Brigade" in books and in a 1968 Hollywood movie of the same name.

The 1,800 strong Devil's Brigade, 40 percent of whom were Canadian, were trained in parachute, ski, mountain and amphibious battle techniques near Helena, Montana.

The force was founded on July 9, 1942 and was disbanded in southern France in December 1944.

The Devil's Brigade spearheaded the 1943 invasion of Kiska in the Aleutian Islands. It led the breakout from the invasion at Anzio in Italy and its troops were the first Allied soldiers to enter Rome.

In 1944, it spearheaded the Allied invasion of southern France.

One of its more notable members was the late Stan Waters, an Alberta senator, who was a major in the unit. His wife, Barbara, was on hand for the ceremony, but says her husband never spoke much about his experiences overseas.

"No, he had funny stories to talk about the war, but he never discussed the ugly bits," she said. "It wasn't something they figured was part of our business.:

Some of us Canadians who joined up settled in the United States after the war, including Bill Story, orignally of Winnegep. He says at the time, brigade members didn't recognize their accomplishments.

"We really didn't think we had done anything other than what we were expected to do," said Story, who now lives in Virginia. "It was only after the war that people started to write stories and articles about us."

Herb Morris, 76, of Wilsonville, Oregon, was on hand to honour his Canadian cousins. He, like many of the other veterans, spoke modestly of the unit's achievements.

"At the time, you're just trying to get to the next mountain or be part of the next day," said Morris, now a Methodist minister. "You're not thinking about what you're accomplishing other than staying alive."

"But as you look back, you say this is one of the great things. In my case, this is one of the finest things I've done in my life."

'The First Special Service Force got its nickname, "The Devil's Brigade", during the Italian Campaign from a words in the captured diary of a dead German Officer who had written: "The black devils are all around us every time we come into line and we never hear them.'

'The history of the 1st Special Service Force serves as a model for determined accomplishment today--start with nothing and act co-operatively to establish a military force of international stature and accomplishment only to disband and go home, after a job well done.

The story of the "Devil's Brigade" is a story of achievement from the infancy of its formation to the life accomplishments of its members--including one, who went on to become Canada's first elected Senator, the highest elected office in the country.

Many may know of the 1st Special Service Force only from a 1968 Hollywood film, "The Devil's Brigade", starring William Holden and Cliff Robertson. The "Devil's Brigade" is a Canadian-American success story that needs to be told--and celebrated--in our schools, rather than being limited to Hollywood reruns on late-night television.'

-- Peter Goldring,
Member of Parliament for Edmonton East

Good Morning SAM!

I have an interest in Alberta, my mom was born there.

Interesting story thank you.

Highway 4 --- the main connector between Alberta and the United States --- has officially been renamed the "first Special Service Force Memorial Highway".

As has its US continuation, Interstate 15, from the border to Helena, MT, location of Fort Harrison.

The Devil's Brigade spearheaded the 1943 invasion of Kiska in the Aleutian Islands. It led the breakout from the invasion at Anzio in Italy and its troops were the first Allied soldiers to enter Rome. In 1944, it spearheaded the Allied invasion of southern France.