Most people called Earl Andrus Sr., "Andy," as a shortened version of his last name. His wife Erma preferred to call him Earl. Still others nicknamed him "Gump" after the comic strip character Andy Gump, the father of an ordinary, middle-class American family known as The Gumps who appeared on the funny pages of newspapers for more than 40 years from the early to mid 1900s.
Truth be told, says his son, Earl Jr., Earl was much like his comic strip counterpart in that he was just a "regular guy" who enjoyed all of the simple, yet important things in life. Whether it was in his role as a husband, father, grandfather, baseball coach and friend, or as an Army tank gunner during the Second World War, you could always count on "Andy" Andrus.
Andrus was born in 1920 in Lock Haven, one of eight children to William and Lyda Rupert Andrus. He attended the Lock Haven schools, but quit after the 11th grade when his father passed away and he began working as a painter for the Pennsylvania Railroad in Renovo.
In 1943, in the throes of World War II, Andrus joined the Army and was sent to Fort Polk, La., for training. He was assigned to the 8th Armored Division, which had been activated less than a year earlier and had just been directed to attain combat-ready status.
The Division, which saw combat engagements in the Rhineland, the Ardennes Forest and Central Europe became known as "The Thundering Herd" and earned a combat code name of "Tornado."
Private First Class Andrus was part of the Division's Co. D, 18th Tank Battalion. Historical records show he served as a gunner on Tank No. 13 with a crew that also included tank commander Sgt. James McCutchen of Flushing, N.Y.; driver Nicholas Mortenson of Mattituck, N.Y.; loader Edward Cole from Alabama, and assistant driver Richard Berendt of Michigan. It could be said that they were all ordinary men... all carrying out extraordinary tasks during extraordinary times.
"He liked to tell war stories," says Earl Jr. of his father. "He always said that because he was in the armored division, he didn't think he had the face-to-face combat time some of the others did."
Face-to-face or not, Andrus'18th Tank Battalion saw plenty of action. An itinerary kept by tank commander McCutchen and published through the 8th Armored Division's webpage, is an amazing chronicle of the day-to-day activities of the members of Tank No. 13.
"Nov. 7, 1944. Left U.S.A. on the SS Marine Devil (troop ship) and anchored off Southampton, England, Nov. 18," wrote McCutchen. "Took a 40-mile train ride to Tidworth Barracks to begin a stay that was to last until 4 Jan., 1945."
In early January, the group shipped out on a landing ship tank (LST) for Le Havre, France. Once there, they drove to the small town of Totes in the country's Normandy region.
"Slept in a barn the first night, cold as hell," noted McCutchen. "During the night it snowed, and for the better part of two months there was a never-ending blanket of snow on the ground. Spent the (next) day rabbit hunting and getting acquainted with French apple cider, it's plenty powerful."
A few days later, McCutchen's itinerary stated, "Left Totes at 2300. It was still snowing like all hell, and for two days, we became thoroughly familiar with the handling of tanks on icy roads."
By mid January, McCutchen wrote, "These days were spent in getting our vehicles ready for combat, stowing them with ammunition and camouflaging them with white wash so that they'd look like snow."
On Jan. 17, McCutchen's itinerary noted, "Today the orders which we had all been awaiting came through. We moved that night; the journey was about 45 miles. When we stopped we knew we were close to the enemy because we could hear the rumble of artillery."
Company D entered Preshing, a small town on the French border, the next day. McCutchen noted the group got its first look at German vehicles which had been knocked out by fighting a few days prior to their arrival.
"26 Jan. 1945. Today we got our first taste of combat. We moved up on a ridge outside of Nennig, Germany. Our mission was to support the 94th Infantry Division. It is not a pleasant feeling to hear artillery and discover that you are the target."
The following day, McCutchen's journal stated, "Moved up to attack the town of Sinz. In so doing we had to advance against a barrage of constant artillery and mortar fire. We got our first taste of German rockets, the 'Screaming Meemies.' From Sinz we were withdrawn after a battle that cost us one tank, knocked out, and two men wounded."
Andrus' unit was attached to the 9th Army and in late February, McCutchen's journal noted, "Moved out to join the all out attack across the Roer (also known as the Rur) River. Spent most of the day in a town called Gladback, held up by a blown bridge." The next day, the journal continues, "Moved to Wildenrath, where tanks 14, 12 and 13 (Andrus's tank) were called to the front of the column for reconnaissance. We left the town burning."
Company D continued to be on the move for another week or so before being relieved for a two-week period of rest. In mid March, the unit was attached to the 30th Infantry Division. Wrote McCutchen, "Moved up to an assembly area one mile from the Rhine River. Listened to one of the most tremendous artillery barrages of the war. It's nice to know it is your own guns making all that noise."
And the next day, his journal noted, "Crossed the Rhine at 11:30 on an LCM (Landing Craft, Mechanized). It is not a very comforting thought to know that if you are forced back, you'll have to swim for it."
According to McCutchen, the unit captured 116 prisoners on March 25, and they were on the move constantly.
"That night we moved out for an objective 45 miles away. After an advance of 10 miles, we were stopped by stiff opposition."
Just a few days later, his itinerary read, "We were joined by elements of the 75th Infantry Division and moved up. For the first time we were treated to the experience of being strafed by aircraft. They were M.E. 109's (German fighter aircraft). At night we moved into Im Loh. The Jerries (a shortened form of "Germans," used during the war) spotted us going into a house and sent over a few shells to keep us company. The nearest one was about 50 feet away."
By early April, the fighting was still intense. As McCutchen's journel noted, Andrus's tank continued to see a lot of action. "Started to work wiping out the Ruhr pocket. We were taking two or three towns a day. Had to live exclusively on 'K' rations and sleeping in the tanks."
And on April 8, he wrote, "Forced to stop for a day of maintenance, the tanks are taking a terrific beating with very little maintenance. The last town we took was taken by tanks 11 and 13 (Andrus' tank), the other three were disabled."
The itinerary also mentioned the crew liberated a large farm house and dozens of slave laborers. On April 11, they captured the city of Unna, along with a distillery and 59 prisoners. McCutchen made a tongue-in-cheek note of the distillery, saying, "When the tanks pulled out the distillery's stocks were somewhat depleted."
McCutchen also made mention of the infamous VE Day (Victory in Europe) on May 8, 1945, when the Allied forces formally accepted the surrender of Nazi Germany.
"VE Day. The long awaited has arrived, now we begin to sweat out the Pacific in earnest. Today a man in the company killed himself while cleaning his carbine. Ironic that fate should catch up to one on such a day."
Later in May, members of the 8th Armored Division were assigned to the 3rd Army and were moved to Pilson, Czechoslovakia, to process Allied prisoners of war. Later in the year, soldiers began coming home, based on the military's system of points.
Andrus was discharged in February of 1946. His son notes his father was awarded a number of medals, including the American Campaign medal, the Good Conduct medal, the European Campaign medal with three Bronze Stars (for combat in the Rhineland, Ardennes and Central Europe), and the World War II Victory Medal.
Shortly after coming home, Andrus married Erma Putman, a young woman he'd met before going to war. He went to work for the New York & Pennsylvania Co. as a forklift driver in the warehouse, retiring from the paper mill in 1982. Andy and his wife also began a family. Son Earl Jr., who today lives with his wife Lisa in Salona, was born in 1948, and another son, Terry, who passed away last year, was born in 1949. The family also includes four grandchildren.
Throughout his life, family meant the most to Andrus, and he found ways to combine his love of family with support for the community. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, as his sons played baseball, Andrus served as a Little League coach in Mill Hall.
"When we played baseball, he coached our teams," remembers Earl Jr. "He attended a lot of sporting events over the years. I played football and basketball and my brother played football. Dad was usually there - he went to everything. He was a big fan of Bald Eagle-Nittany and Central Mountain sports, in particular softball, football and wrestling. Even after we graduated, he'd go to the games with our uncles. Then when the grandchildren came along, he watched them play ball, too. He really spoiled them!"
Andrus also served as a volunteer firefighter in Mill Hall for about 40 years. He was a champion archer with the Black Eagle Bowmen Archery Club in Lamar and enjoyed hunting and fishing.
"He was just a good guy, a hard worker," says Earl Jr. of his father. "He worked a lot he worked shift work. He always had good stories from the paper mill."
"We also did a lot of things together, regular family things," adds Earl Jr. "We hunted a lot and Dad enjoyed fishing later in life. We had a big family, lots of uncles and lots of kids; they were everywhere. We visited relatives a lot and then we'd spend time at home on Sundays."
Service to country was important to the Andrus family. In addition to Andy, all five of his brothers saw military service. Brothers Harry and Calvin also served during the Second World War. Brothers Carl (who still lives in Lock Haven), Dick and Paul served during the Korean War. In addition, Erma's brother Elmer Putman gave the ultimate sacrifice. An Army soldier, he was killed during his service in World War II.
Earl Jr. says another local man and fellow soldier, former Clinton County sheriff, the late Bill Maggs, always joked that he was responsible for Andy Andrus's safe return home from the war.
"Dad and Bill Maggs were in the service at the same time," says Earl Jr. "They were in Germany and Sheriff Maggs had to clear a town of Germans. As they told it, here comes this tank and Bill Maggs was going to shoot at it, but then he recognized Dad in the tank. Depending on who you talked to, Bill would say one thing and Dad, another. 'Don't shoot, Bill - it's me,' my dad said, and Bill said he told one of his fellow soldiers, 'Don't shoot it's Andy.' So over the years, Bill Maggs would always tell me, 'You know, I'm the reason you're here today!'"
Andy Andrus passed away in September of 2003 at the age of 83, and his wife Erma died five years later, in 2008. But their memory lives on in their family. And when opportunity arose to recognize Andrus's military service through the Hometown Hero Banner Program, the family took it.
"My son, Scott, and daughter Lindsay really put this together for the family," says Earl Jr. of Andrus's Hometown Hero banner. "They got the banner information together. I think it's great - it's just a super program."
It's safe to say Andy Andrus never thought of himself as a hero. Like the family says, he was "a good guy... a regular guy and a hard worker who cared about his family."
It's people like him - those who took in stride all that life threw at him - who are possibly the most remarkable.
