Possible field grave in Gronsveld – October 2016
Large team
We are continuing our search for the possible field grave in Gronsveld, The Netherlands. Our goal is once again to find the remains of a World War II soldier who is believed to be buried there.
Today there are quite a lot of us on the small field in Gronsveld and we will try using different equipment to find the soldier’s remains. Last time, we couldn’t get into the rock-hard ground with our shovels, and a metal shed was in the way. It was located exactly where Signi’s dogs responded. We’ve also brought some other metal detection equipment. Perhaps this will give us a more focused picture of what lies beneath the surface, and these “deep-seekers” will be able to “look” a little deeper.
Rock hard
The ground is still rock-hard, and we still can’t get in with a shovel. As usual, we do not want to damage a potential field grave, we proceed carefully. We’re not using machinery, but a pickaxe so we can dig layer by layer, but even then it’s not easy.
Aside from shell casings, we find no other war material, and the deeper we dig, the less the metal detectors give signals. We are not that deep yet when the metal detectors, pin-pointers, and deep-seekers stop giving any results at all. We also find nothing that indicates any past disturbance of the soil.
Below the area where the shed once stood, we search with various makes and models of metal detectors, as well as the two deep-seekers. They give no results at all at this location, and we find no human remains. This is a unfortunate, because we had hoped the dogs had reacted on human remains.
Summary
- Rumor has it that the former owner of the land unearthed the remains of a soldier while planting a vegetable garden. This soldier was fully equipped and was believed to have been lying at or just below the surface. Our metal detectors should find something here, even if it’s just a button.
- The former owner has decided to cover up the remains and leave them there.
- Passersby are providing us with information;
- The field was probably used as a kind of firing range during the war. This could be the reason we find so many shell casings.
- A few dozen feet from this meadow, there would have been some kind of POW camp or gathering point. During the war, there were many military vehicles, tents and field kitchens, and it was a hive of activity.
- On short distance from our meadow, some human remains of a soldier were found in the past.
It’s a difficult situation. The only thing we can find about Gronsveld in relation to the Second World War is that it was liberated on September 13, 1944. The liberators were soldiers of the 30th Infantry Division (Old Hickory). Apparently a small battle took place in which one German and one American soldier were killed. Apart from that, not much seems to have happened in Gronsveld, and little can be found on the internet either. The U.S. Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) cannot provide us with any useful information either, and they have no information about missing U.S. personnel in the area. And yet we find about a hundred shell casings. Surely something must have happened?
October 2016 Attendees – Project field grave in Gronsveld
Ton de Louw, Peter Mulder, Tino Dam, Bart van der Sterren, Jurgen Uffink, Maarten Piet, 2x volunteer Stichting Signi zoekhonden