Margraten in Eijsden-Margraten, Limburg, Netherlands — Northwestern Europe
De Afro-amerikaanse Doodgravers van Margraten / The African-American gravediggers of Margraten
Die afroamerikanischen Totengräber von Margraten
— Liberation Route Europe —
Photographed By Andrew Ruppenstein, October 28, 2023
1. The African-American gravediggers of Margraten Marker
(Dutch:)
'De Afro-Amerikaanse doodgravers van Margraten'
In het najaar van 1944 kiezen de Amerikanen akkerland vlakbij Margraten uit als begraafplaats voor het Amerikaanse Negende Leger. De identificatie, registratie en het begraven van dagelijks aangevoerde gesneuvelden is niet alleen een zware taak voor de soldaten want ook de inwoners van Margraten en omstreken werken mee. Eenheden van Afro-Amerikaanse soldaten moeten onder zware omstandigheden de stoffelijke resten begraven. De 19-jarige Jeff Wiggins is één van hen...
De provincie Limburg speelde een belangrijke rol tijdens de Tweede Wereldoorlog. Hier begon de bevrijding van Nederland, die gepaard ging met felle gevechten tussen de geallieerde en Duitse strijdkrachten. Ook startte hier de doorbraak naar Duitsland: het Rijnlandoffensief. Burgers raakten verwikkeld in dit oorlogsgeweld, een roulette die draaide om overleven of niet, om vreugde en verdriet. Als u de Liberation Route volgt hoort u hun belevenissen. Het verhaal van deze plek kunt u beluisteren via 0900-54 23 728 of gratis downloaden vanaf www.liberationroute.com
this page online
'The African-American gravediggers of Margraten'
In the autumn of 1944, the Americans choose farmland near Margraten as a cemetery for the American Ninth Army. The identification, registration and burying of the dead arriving every day is not just a difficult task for the soldiers. The people of Margraten and its surroundings work alongside them. Units of African-American soldiers must bury the remains under severe conditions. 19-year-old Jeff Wiggins is one of them...
The province of Limburg played an important role in the Second World War. It was from here that the allied forces commenced the final push into Germany: the Rhineland Offensive which made possible the liberation of the Netherlands. For the civilians of the province it was an unpredictable time; a time of severe fighting and the contradictions of war: life and death, sadness and joy. Hear their stories as you travel along the Liberation Route. You can download the story for this location at www.liberationroute.com or scan the QR code.
'Die afroamerikanischen Totengräber von Margraten'
Im Herbst 1944 wählen die Amerikaner ein Stück Ackerland bei Margraten als letzte Ruhestätte für die neunte US- Armee. Das Identifizieren, Registrieren und Begraben der Gefallenen,
Photographed By Andrew Ruppenstein, October 28, 2023
2. The African-American gravediggers of Margraten Marker - wide view
Die Provinz Limburg spielte während des Zweiten Weltkriegs eine wesentliche Rolle. Hier begann die Befreiung der Niederlande, die mit heftigen Gefechten zwischen den alliierten und den deutschen Streitkräften einherging. Zudem nahm hier der Durchbruch nach Deutschland seinen Anfang: die Rheinlandoffensive. In diese Kriegsgewalt wurden auch Zivilisten verwickelt - in einem Roulette um Leben und Tod, um Freude und Leid. Auf der Liberation Route hören Sie die Erlebnisse der Beteiligten. Die Geschichte dieses Ortes können Sie von der Website www.liberationroute.com herunterladen oder den QR-Code scannen.
Erected by Stichting Liberation Route Europe, Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds, Provincie Limburg, Gemeente Eijsden-Margraten, VVV Midden-Limburg. (Marker Number 212.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Cemeteries & Burial Sites • War, World II. A significant historical year for this entry is 1944.
Location. 50°
Photographed By Andrew Ruppenstein, October 28, 2023
3. The African-American gravediggers of Margraten Marker - wider view
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 8 kilometers of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Dr. Jefferson Wiggins (1925-2013) (a few steps from this marker); Banholt Liberation Memorial (approx. 3.4 kilometers away); Daniel Pearson, Jr. Memorial (approx. 3.4 kilometers away); 30th Infantry Division (“Old Hickory”) Memorial (approx. 4.2 kilometers away); Vliegtuigcrash Hoogcruts / Plane Crash at Hoogcruts (approx. 4.6 kilometers away); St. Geertruid Liberation Memorial (approx. 4.9 kilometers away); P51d Mustang jachtvliegtuig neergestort / P51d Mustang Fighter Plane Crash (approx. 6.6 kilometers away); Welcome to Holland (approx. 7.4 kilometers away).
Also see . . . The African-American gravediggers of Margraten (Liberation Route Europe). The page linked to by scanning the QR code.
Excerpt: In the autumn of 1944, the Americans choose the village of Margraten as the final resting place for the men killed in battle. Margraten has just been liberated, and whilst the fighting continues elswhere, a group of African-American soldiers are given the task of digging their graves.(Submitted on November 27, 2023.)
One member of this group is 19-year-old Jefferson Wiggins, a messenger from Alabama and First Sergeant of the 960th QMSC (Quartermaster Service Company). He is sent to help the 3136th QMSC which is already struggling with the enormous number of soldiers being brought for burial.
The military cemetery near Margraten and Cadier en Keer is marked by a 30-metre-high landmark shaped like a tower. It is the only American cemetery in the Netherlands and covers an area of more than 26 hectares of what used to be arable land. Most of the 8,301 servicemen buried here died during the liberation of the south-east of the Netherlands and the Battle of the Rhineland and the advance to the Ruhr region.
The website www.blackliberators.nl offers stories about the African American Liberators in The Netherlands. Including the impressive story of Jefferson Wiggins.
Credits. This page was last revised on November 27, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 27, 2023, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California. This page has been viewed 61 times since then and 22 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on November 27, 2023, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California.
