Rome, NY WWII Fallen

PVT. ANTHONY “TONY” D. SCALERO

U.S. ARMY 32941080

9th Army, 29th Infantry Division, 115th Infantry Regiment, Company B

Anthony “Tony” Dominick Scalero was born June 10, 1925, in Rome, Oneida County, New York, to Oresto “Mahoney” (1891-1980) and Rosena “Rose” Sellaio (1891-1941) Scalero.

Rose was born in Italy and married to Salvatore Arcuri who died in 1923 in Rome, NY. Rose and Salvatore had six children: Raffaela Adamo (1911-2010), Mary C. Aruci (1916-1942), Antoinette Colasanti (1917-2011), Peter J. (1918-2008), Thomas V. (1921-1975), and Sarah Rose Bernabe (1923-2016).

Oresto Scalero was born in Italy and came to Rome, New York, in 1913. Oresto served in the U.S. Army 77th Division and 308th Infantry in France in World War I.

Rose married Oresto Scalero in 1924. The couple had two sons, Anthony and Augustine “August” (1927-1991). In the 1940 U.S. Census, Oresto, Rose, five of Rose’s children, and Tony and August lived at 162 Lock Street in Rome, NY. Oresto was employed by Revere Copper and Brass. Rose died January 9, 1941, after being ill for a month. She was buried at Saint Johns Cemetery, Rome, New York.

Oresto married Anna Peraino Myers in 1942. Her husband, Sam Myers, passed away in 1938. Anna and Sam were the parents of two children, Ruthe (1922-2020) and Sam (1931-2014). Anna died in 1972 after a long illness.

Tony attended Rome schools and was a member of Troop 7 of the Boy Scouts. In March 1938, he passed signaling. Tony attended summer school in 1941 and qualified to enter the Senior High School in September.

Tony married Dorothy Stumpo, daughter of Constantino and Theresa Stumpo, and moved to her family’s home at 206 Steuben Street in Rome, NY. Their son, Ernest Anthony, was born December 13, 1942, in Rome, NY. Dorothy had a younger brother, Anthony, and a younger sister, Rita.

Tony registered for the draft on his 18th birthday, June 10, 1943, in Rome, Oneida County, New York. He was 5’ 7 ½” tall, weighed 130 pounds, and had brown hair and blue eyes. He and Dorothy were living at 206 Steuben Street in Rome, and she was listed as the “person who will always know your address.” Tony listed his employer as the Rome Air Depot.

Draft Registration Card (front)

Tony was formally drafted into the Army on June 18, 1943. On July 13, 1943, Tony was in a contingent of 30 from the Rome area who were accepted into service in the Army and sent to a reception center.

In October 1943, Pvt. Tony D. Scalero was listed in Battery C, 5th Battalion, 1st AARTC (Anti-Aircraft Replacement Training Center) at Ft. Eustis, Virginia.

In the Company Morning Report of January 8, 1944, Pvt. Scalero was with Battery C, 590th AAA BN, and was reported assigned and joined to HQ and HQ Battery, 814th AAATC (anti-aircraft artillery training center), Camp Stewart, Georgia.

In the Company Morning Report of April 16, 1944, Pvt. Scalero was reported returned from furlough to duty as of 2300 on 15 Apr 1944, Camp Stewart, Georgia.

Pvt. Scalero was later with Company H, 113th Infantry, Camp Pickett, Virginia, and on July 6, 1944, was authorized twelve days of leave to Rome, New York, to return to duty on or before July 19, 1944. On July 19, 1944, he was one of fourteen enlisted men from Company H listed from furlough to AWOL. In the Company Morning Report of July 23, 1944, he was listed as returned to duty. He went overseas shortly thereafter.

Pvt. Scalero saw service in England, France, Belgium, Holland, and Germany. Pvt. Tony D. Scalero was killed in action on November 18, 1944, in Germany.

From the 29th Division Association website: https://29thdivisionassociation.com/29th-division-world-war-ii/

Major General Charles Gerhardt, a cavalryman and member of the West Point class of 1917, was a tough disciplinarian, but transformed the division into one of the finest fighting outfits in the U.S. Army.

On November 16, 1944, the 29th Infantry Division joined in one of the largest U.S. Army offensives of the war to date as a component of the Ninth Army. The goal was to smash through the German lines in the Rhineland, cross the Roer River at Jülich, and drive on to the Rhine by Christmas 1944. In three weeks of brutal combat, however, Gerhardt’s men only managed to advance nine miles and were halted on the west bank of the Roer just short of Jülich. The miniscule German towns through which the 29th fought—Siersdorf, Dürboslar, Aldenhoven, Bourheim, Koslar, and others—would be remembered by the 29ers as some of the most brutal fighting they experienced in World War II. Further, as cold and wet weather set in, the 29th Division lost hundreds of men due to exposure and trench foot.

From The Lone Sentry website: https://www.lonesentry.com/gi_stories_booklets/29thinfantry/

"29 Let's Go! The Story of the 29th Infantry Division” is a small booklet covering the history of the 29th Infantry Division. The booklet was one of the series of G.I. Stories published by the Stars & Stripes in Paris in 1944-1945.

Aggressive patroling and diversionary attacks were the 29th's initial assignments when it went into the line in Germany, Oct. 1. On the left flank of Ninth Army in the Geilenkirchen area, the 115th quickly seized the Siegfried Line towns of Hatterath, Birgden and Kreuzrath.

Day and night patrols pushed out to Bauchem, Geilenkirchen, Busherheide, Waldenrath, Schierwaldenrath and Niederheide as German defenses were probed, casualties inflicted and prisoners taken.

This activity kept constant pressure on the Germans, kept the Nazis from sending these troops south to aid the defenders of Aachen, who were nearly encircled by American troops, The main German escape route from Aachen was the road to Alsdorf, which ran northeast from the besieged city. With attached battalions from the 66th Armd. Regt., 120th Inf. Regt., and 99th Inf. Bn., the 116th moved against Wurselen, five miles north of Aachen, Oct. 13, repulsed a counter-attack, cut the Alsdorf Road to seal the Aachen Gap.

By the end of October, the 19th had moved back across the Dutch border to the Herzogenrath-Kerkrade area where it trained daily for the impending offensive.

Rumors made the rounds. "The 29th is going back to the States as demonstration troops..." "It's going back to Paris to guard the railroad yards." But the Army had other plans. Replacements arrived and immediately attended the division training school at Trebeck, Holland. Opened back in Normandy, the school offered battle facts straight from the front lines as well as such division SOPs as: "Chin strap on point of the chin"... "Soup twice a day"... "Two up and one back"... "I don't know but I'll find out."

Nov. 16, 1944: Massed artillery hurled tremendous preparation fires. Tanks rumbled out in roaring escort. The 29th Division surged across cabbage patches and beet fields along a line that ran through Bettendorf, Oidtweiler and Baseweiler. This was the big push through the Siegfried Line aimed at the Roer River and Julich, last barriers before the Cologne Plain. Ninth Army had waited days for the attack. Dark, rainy skies had grounded air support. Now, the sky was clear and Aldenhoven and Julich were being saturated with bombs.

From AI on Google:

On November 18, 1944, the 29th Infantry Division, including the 115th Infantry Regiment, was engaged in the Roer River offensive, pushing towards the Roer River. This offensive followed the Normandy campaign and the Northern France campaign, where the 115th Infantry Regiment notably fought in the Battle of Brest. The Roer River offensive involved intense fighting and heavy casualties as the division advanced through German towns like Siersdorf, Setterich, Durboslar, and Bettendorf.

Detailed breakdown:

Post-Normandy: After the Normandy Campaign and the Northern France Campaign, the 29th Division, including the 115th Infantry, was heavily depleted due to casualties.

Roer River Offensive: By November 16, 1944, the 29th Division began its drive to the Roer River, facing strong German resistance and heavy fighting.

November 18: On this specific date, the division was likely involved in the ongoing battles as they moved towards the river, pushing through towns like Siersdorf, Setterich, Durboslar, and Bettendorf.

Heavy Fighting: The Roer River offensive was characterized by intense combat, with the 29th Division suffering further casualties as they fought to secure key locations.

From World War II Chronology website: http://www.etherit.co.uk/1944/11/18.htm

November 16th, 1944 (THURSDAY): In the U.S. Ninth Army area, XIX Corps attacks for a crossing of the Roer at Juelich at 1245 hours. Combat Command B, 2d Armored Division, pushes toward Gereonsweiler on the left flank of corps from Waurichen and Beggendorf, seizing Immendorf, Floverich, and Puffendorf. Puffendorf is in the outer ring of the Juelich defenses. Efforts of one column to take Apweiler are costly and unsuccessful, but another column seizes a hill 700 yards (640 meters) northeast of Puffendorf on the highway to Gereonsweiler. In the center, the 29th Infantry Division, committing a battalion each from 115th and 175th Regiments, attacks from the Baesweiler-Oidtweiler area toward Aldenhoven en route to Juelich but is stopped close to the line of departure near the villages of Siersdorf and Bettendorf. The 30th Infantry Division, reinforced by a regiment of the 84th, attacks south in the Wuerselen area with three regiments abreast, the 117th taking Mariadorf and 120th overrunning Euchen; but little progress is made in Wuerselen.

November 17th, 1944 (FRIDAY): In the U.S. Ninth Army’s XIX Corps area, Combat Command B, 2d Armored Division, withstands determined counterattacks against Immendorf and Puffendorf but loses a hill northeast of the latter; another attempt to take Apweiler fails; Combat Command A commits Task Force A to drive through Puffendorf toward Ederen but cannot get beyond Puffendorf. The 29th Infantry Division employs a battalion of the 116th Infantry Regiment, attached to the 115th Infantry Regiment, against Setterich, on the main highway and needed to support tanks of 2d Armored Division, but is unable to take it; nor do assault forces to the south succeed in clearing either Siersdorf or Bettendorf. The 30th Infantry Division makes progress in the heavily built up area on the southern flank of the corps, taking the village of Heengen on north and on the south clearing the rest of Wuerselen and overrunning Broichweiden.

November 18th, 1944 (SATURDAY): In the U.S. Ninth Army's XIX Corps area, Combat Command B of 2d Armored Division, after repelling a minor counterattack against Immendorf, takes Apweiler in a limited attack, then pauses while the 29th Infantry Division is clearing Setterich. The 29th Infantry Division, with close tank and artillery support, makes substantial progress, the 116th Infantry Regiment gaining a firm foothold in Setterich and other elements penetrating the outer defenses of Juelich to take Siersdorf and Bettendorf. The 30th Infantry Division continues to mop up Broichweiden and seizes Warden, southeast of Mariadorf, after being twice driven off.

Private Tony D. Scalero was buried on November 26, 1944, in the cemetery at Margraten, Netherlands. He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and the Rome Medal of Honor. He is remembered on Page 110, World War II Honor List of Dead and Missing, Army and Army Air Forces Personnel from New York 1946, on Page 13111 of the US Rosters of WWII Dead, 1939-1945, and on the Honor Roll, Page 385 of the Unit History, 115th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division, 1944-1945.

The Daily Sentinel of Rome, New York, March 17, 1949, reported that the “bodies of four more Rome World War II dead would arrive in the United States that day enroute home for final burial.” They were Pvt. Tony Scalero , PFC Nicholas Esposito, , Cpl. James Smaldon, and PFC Frank Verrucci. These four citizens of Rome, NY, were among 2918 WWII fallen on board the USAT Haiti Victory, which docked in New York City.

A military funeral for Pvt. Scalero was held in Rome on Monday, May 3, 1949, at the Martin J. Nunn Funeral Home at 10:00 a.m. and at St. John the Baptist Church at 10:30 a.m. Interment was in St. Johns Cemetery in Rome.

All members of Rocco Racco Post No. 4 and Auxiliary were requested to meet Saturday, April 30, 1949, at the Post rooms from where they went as a body to pay respects to Pvt. Scalero and Cpl. Smaldon.

Dorothy Stumpo Scalero married Joseph J. Mercurio on October 26, 1946. Joseph served in the U.S. Army during WWII. Dorothy’s brother, Anthony Stumpo, enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1946. He was a student at Juilliard School of Music and studied piano. While in the Army, Anthony was a member of the 502nd AAF Band at Keesler Field, Mississippi, performing as a French Horn player, pianist and vocalist.

In 1947, August Scalero married Joseph’s sister, Elenia Mercurio. August served in the U.S. Navy in the Pacific Theater in WWII.

Ernest Anthony Scalero, son of Dorothy and Tony, died in 2018 in Arizona at age 76.

Tony’s stepbrother, PFC Thomas Arcuri, served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1941 to 1945. He received the Purple Heart in the Battle of Guadalcanal. Two of Tony’s brothers-in-law also served in WWII. T/Sgt. Gene Bernabe, husband of Sarah Rose Arcuri, served in the U.S. Army and received the Purple Heart. Louis Colasanti, husband of Antoinette Arcuri, served in the U.S. Army.

Oresto “Mahoney” Scalero died April 14, 1980, after a brief illness. He was retired from the Rolling Mill, Revere Rome Division.

End notes: This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars Project, a national effort of volunteers to write the stories of all 421,000+ of the US WWII fallen saved on Together We Served and Fold3 web sites. Can you help write these stories? These stories will be accessible via smartphone app at any war memorial or cemetery. If you noticed anything erroneous in this profile or have additional information to contribute to it, please contact hillerson@beyondbb.com.