Capt. M. H. Goodwin 6-1
Photo Taken Dec 1942
Herb and Dorris Goodwin, Floyd Schmidt and Herb's Sister Elsie Henderson (Goodwin).
My Grandparents wedding day
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Association Roster & Books and Pictures Collectibles As this site is a work in progress I hope you will come back often to see the new pictures and stories that Herb told me about his life in the Force. I don't know many but the few I know are strong in my mind and I hope to share them with you all. Here are a few more favorite pictures I have scanned in to share. click on each one to get a higher resolution.
Many of you have seen the famous picture of the FSSF marching down Last Chance Gulch but unfortunately the person who took the picture never gets the recognition.
BJ Dahl a good friend of my grandparents took that picture and that very day she also took this fabulous picture of my grandfather Herb. Thanks BJ!!!
Taken shortly after Herb and his friend's joined the Canadian army. Standing in front of the WWI monument in Elmira during the fall of 1940
Left to Right:
Herb Goodwin - INF
Frank Howard - ARMORED
Floyd Schmidt - INF (Herb's Best Man at Wedding)
Floyd was Herb's best friend and was killed in action in Southern France on 27 Aug 1944.
Frank was never in the Force but somehow Herb has very cool keepsakes from his service that I will share with you all at another time. I do not know if he was killed during the war or not.
Thanks to Russ Goodwin for much of the info.
One of my Favorite pictures I have of Doris and Herbs Wedding day. Note the other Force members in the picture.
Just another Favorite!!!
This is a picture of Herb and his brother Bert after returning home from WWII.
Upon finding a whole bunch of 127 film negatives I had them put to digital pics and in them I found this gem. I will share many of the 48 other pics I have of the FSSF in training in the future on a seperate page.
Among the many treasures of the FSSF left behind in my Grandfathers passing, I was able to put together my own tribute to him and the Force in my very living room for all to see, that I may share his legacy with all who enter my home.
Among these treasures are his original Canadian uniform still pressed as if it were just brought back from
the cleaners. His Canadian Beret with Lt bar and Canadian Emblem. His Jump wings and the holy grail of this
display is the very special flashlight. Also note that I have pinned on the Bronze Medal that he was finally
awarded but never recieved before his passing.
In March of 2008 my father gave me Herb's V-42. Herb told him that the only way that I could have it was if I ever really showed a major interest in the Force. I hope that he would be happy to see how important it has become to my life. Also shown in the display is an original Nazi propaganda leaflet and an original Kill card that I purchased on Ebay.
Herb Goodwin was never wounded in World War II
Herb Goodwin was born in Elmira, Ontario, in 1919. He attended six years of` high school — three years basic and three years commercial, which is equivalent to two years of college. Goodwin joined the Army in 1940 in Kitchener, Ontario, and was part of the Scots Fusiliers of Canada. After N.C.O. school in London, Ontario, and Officer Training Center in Gordon Head, British Columbia, Goodwin graduated from Brockville OTC as a 2nd Lt. in July 1942. One of his classmates was Stan Waters, who went on to become a three star Canadian Army General, and later was a senator in Alberta.
Goodwin’s first night in Helena he stopped into the Placer Hotel’s Cheerio Lounge and met Doris Porten of East Helena. Eleven months later they were married in Vermont, where the FSSF was training.
When the Devil’s Brigade made its famous assault on Mount la Difensa in southern Italy in December 1944, Goodwin was at the base of the mountain assigned to 6th Company, 1st Regiment, 2nd Battalion. They were pinned down along the trail by heavy shell and mortar fire from the lower German outfits, sustaining heavy casualties. During this action, Goodwin lost a carbine, shattered by an enemy round.
After retrieving their casualties, they were sent to the top of la Difensa as reinforcements. Their next battalion mission, from their base at Caserta, was to take Hill 720. Moving at night, they encountered “friendly fire” from U.S. artillery. “We radioed and finally got them to stop shelling, but lost a lot of men first,” Herb recalls.
“After capturing the hill, we then received heavy enemy fire. We lost our company commander on the top.” Goodwin, who became company commander for the conquest of Mount Majo, was hit by machine gun fire in the attack, which went through his backpack, knocking him down.
“My rations were ruined and a bullet went through my flashlight. But it still worked,” he smiles.
When the force assisted in the siege and breakout of Anzio, Goodwin’s company helped capture 120 Nazis. The 6th was one of the lead units to push off the beachhead. Accompanied by some armor, they exchanged fire with some Tiger tanks past Highway 7, and then joined up with French forces on Highway 6 into Rome. Here Goodwin was promoted to captain and executive officer of 2nd Battalion.
Next, during the invasion of southern France, Goodwin recalls that the taking of a medieval fort on Port-Cros was a costly procedure, but they succeeded with the help of dive-bombers and naval gunfire. In the push eastward to the Franco-Italian border, he lost Floyd Schmidt, a friend from his hometown.
After the FSSF broke up, Goodwin became an instructor at Aldershott, England, and then went to London, Ontario. He and Doris came back to Helena in January 1946. Goodwin worked for Unemployment Compensation from 1946-48; McKinnon-Decker Construction from 1948-1953; and the Montana National Guard from 1954-65. He then owned and operated Herb’s Quick Service (across from the Helena Junior High) from 1965-82 before retiring. Although the couple had no children, they helped raise a niece and two nephews. Doris Goodwin passed away in 2000.
Goodwin, who was never wounded, describes his experiences in World War II as “very exciting; it was quite an adventure. One of the worst parts was at graves registration, to identify people. I remember how lucky I felt to still be alive.”
Taken from the Helena Independant Record http://www.helenair.com/articles/2002/08/17/stories/helena/6a1.txt
Curt Synness, an IR staff writer, is a U.S. Navy veteran. He remembers ordering pop and candy from Herb Goodwin at “Herb’s” from 1965-67 while attending Helena Junior High.
Please enjoy this short documentary
I made about my grandpa and the FSSF.
