Robert Louis Blustin

Era: World War II

Military Branch: Army

Mr. Blustin served during World War II in the European Theater.

He served in the U.S. Army, in the 103rd Infantry Division. He was assigned to the 1st Squad, Company F, of the 411th Infantry Regiment.

Mr. Blustin was born on November 26, 1923, in Minneapolis, MN.

He graduated from Duluth Central High School in 1942.

Source: Material based on interview by Daniel Hartman, Program Director, Veterans' Memorial Hall, with Dave Blustin on March 19, 2009 (summary below).

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While shopping at the Garon Brothers Jewelry Store, you may notice a photo of war hero M.G. McAuliffe pinning a Silver Star onto Robert Louis Blustin during WWII. In addition, you will see a case with historic photos of the shop that date back to the 1900s. You will also find assorted military pins and a historic Dick Tracy watch. The Garon Brothers Jewelry Store itself is historic, considering that it is 105 years old. The current owner, Dave Blustin, is proud of the history he has collected and has on display. And when it comes to his father’s history, few know the story as well as Dave does.

Dave Blustin’s father, Robert Louis Blustin, was born on November 26, 1923, in Minneapolis. Early in his childhood, his family moved to Duluth, where the family has resided ever since. He graduated from Duluth Central High School in 1942, and by 1943 he was drafted into the Army, where he was part of the Army Air Corps. During basic training, he was tested and placed in the Army Specialized Training Program. While there, he was given a college education at Oklahoma A & M until the program was disbanded in March of 1944. Many of the students went from being students to being transferred into the 103rd Infantry Division.

The 103rd Division was nicknamed the “Cactus Division” because originally it started as a regional National Guard unit out of the Southwest, but at this time it was changed into an active division. Robert served in the 1st Squad, Company F, of the 411th Regiment. They were sent for training to Camp Howze, Texas, and then to Camp Shanks, and then finally to New York, where they were shipped across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe.

The entire division of more than 3,000 soldiers was sent on a ship that was designed to carry only 700 passengers. So as you might imagine, these men, including Robert, dealt with cramped quarters and seasickness. One of the ways Robert passed the time was by playing craps and other card games with others on the ship.

At one point, Robert missed roll call because he was upstairs playing craps with a friend, who was a bigger guy from Texas. When they had to report for misbehavior, the Texan said he would take care of it. When the officers got done yelling at them for their behavior, the Texan replied, “Maybe you should send us back, then?” Of course, that didn’t happen, and they went about their business.

Eventually, they landed in southern France, at Marseilles, where they were part of the Allied invasion of southern France, Operation Dragoon, about 90 days after the forces had landed. [Note: Landing occurred on August 15, 1944.] When they arrived, they needed to march about 10-15 miles to their camp. They continued training, until they took a troop train to Epinal to relieve the 45th Division.

They were committed to the front line on November 11, 1944. Robert remembered that it was a rainy and cold fight, especially as they fought in the Vosges Mountains. It was here that Robert hit a roadblock with a German machine gunner.

Robert and three guys decided to do a flanking maneuver on the machine gunner’s position; Robert eventually got close enough to shoot the machine gunner. Once the machine gunner was shot, the rest of the German unit surrendered. It was because of this bold action that he was awarded the Silver Star.

It was awarded to him by M. G. McAuliffe. He had become a famous WWII figure after he was surrounded by the Germans at Bastogne and, when asked to surrender, he replied, “Nuts.”

As is common with many veterans of all eras, Robert barely talked about the Silver Star incident throughout his life. It was something that barely came up, and then only when someone asked about it. One time his son had asked him to talk about what had happened, and he replied, “It says what happened in the citation. Read that.” According to his son, he always was a very humble man. After he received the Silver Star, the Duluth Herald published an article, on June 30, 1945, entitled “Duluth GI Seconds ‘Nuts’ Cry.” The family still has the article today.

During the war, Robert received two Purple Hearts. The first one he received on an unknown date in November 1944. While marching, his unit came under fire, and he was hit with shrapnel to the face. He refused to leave the line and stayed with his unit. He earned the second Purple Heart on December 13, 1944. While on a march, one of the men in the unit tripped a wire, which caused an explosion. Robert received shrapnel in the calf and was shipped to Dijon, France, where he was treated and recuperated. By February 28, 1945, he was back in the unit.

He returned in time to be part of the “Big Push,” which was a nickname for the last major Allied offensive in the European Theater. Within seven weeks they had crossed the Rhine and were in Austria. They were moving so fast that they decided to drop many items they usually carried, such as gas masks.

They moved into Austria to help combat the Werewolf soldiers that were supposed to exist in the mountains. The Werewolf unit of the Germans was a unit designed for guerrilla warfare against the Allies. The Werewolves were fairly successful in causing injury to reconstruction efforts, but over time most of the population of Germany wanted to move on, and they did.

Robert eventually helped liberate a concentration camp near Landsberg. [Note: Liberation occurred on April 27, 1945. See www.ushmm.org/wlc/article.php?lang=en&ModuleId=10006154] This camp was a satellite camp to the much larger Dachau Concentration Camp in Germany, which was liberated by both the 42nd and 45th Divisions.

Robert eventually returned back to the United States. Like many service members, he brought back some souvenirs. He brought back with him: a German Nazi sword, dagger, and a 32-caliber pistol. While in Germany he had someone make a holster for the pistol. He also tried to bring back a P-38, but lost it by the time he returned. The items he brought back are now family history items and reside within the family.

Robert’s story is a great and heroic story of one of our local veterans of St. Louis County. We are proud to have it as part of our collection, and if it wasn’t for the help of his son, Dave, his story might have been forgotten.