Arthur Eugene Shattuck

Arthur Eugene Shattuck was truly a hero, during World War 11 while in Cassino Italy, on 31 January 1944 "While under attack, he left his position behind a stone wall, walked coolly toward a German machine gun nest and persuaded two Germans, manning the gun, to surrender. He was constantly under fire from other machine guns. His heroic action aided in the final conquest of the hill." Arthur was awarded the Silver Star. According to my mom her brother Art was a very gentle and caring man. He was a Golden Gloves Boxer before the war. and grandma and grandpa would listen to his matches on the radio. The announcer would say on the radio Shattuck fainted with his left or right, grandma would say to grandpa, Leo Arthur has fainted and that man is still hitting him. Grandpa would laugh and say Arthur is fine he didn't faint. Arthur was taken prisoner five days after the Cassino Italy battle, on February fifth. He was a prisoner for fourteen months. When the Germans realized they were loosing the war and it was almost over they put the prisoners on a death march. Arthur and the other soldiers that survived watched as soldiers fell from exhaustion and cold they would be executed where they fell. There was two other soldiers that were from the same area in Michigan as Arthur they talked and decided that they had to hold out until dark and get away, or they would share the same fate as the ones that fell. They saw there chance and took it. When the Germans realized they were gone Arthur and the others heard the Germans calling their last names. The German soldiers finally moved on, the next day the British Army found and liberated them. For a long time Uncle Art would vanish the first part of February about the same time he was taken prisoner. Mom or one of her sisters would go with grandma when they would get a call to get him in different states. They would go by train. the family thought that he was trying to hide from the Germans so he would not be captured. No one knew about PTSD back then. Arthur was married to a woman named Irene she was a school teacher they loved each other very much they had a son named David. Arthur fought the war over and over in his sleep between that and his vanishing Irene finally had came to a painful decision and realized it was not good for her or their son so she left with David and went back to Ohio to be with her parents Irene never remarried she always loved Art. Uncle Art never talked about when he was a prisoner but it must have been horrific.

Arthur Eugene Shattuck was born on August 7th 1923 in Portage, Kalamazoo County, Michigan he died on July 15th 2001 in Grand Rapids, Kent County, Michigan at the V A Hospital. Arthur did marry again to another woman and he had a son named Arthur Jr.