The Blue Ridge Path Through France, Luxembourg, Germany and Austria

The European campaign of the 80th Infantry Division.

The Blue Ridge Path referred to in the title of this map reflects the origin of the men who comprised the 80th Infantry Division, having been from the mid-Atlantic states of Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia. The path of the Blue Ridge boys from debarkation in Southampton to victory in Austria is shown on the sheet, published two weeks after V-E day by the division’s operational staff. (Note the statement indicating the image passed AEF Field Press Censor).

The underlying base map outlines the international borders as of Sept. 1, 1939; over which the route of the 80th is shown in red arrows. The defensive structures of the Maginot and Siegfried lines are also depicted. The Blue Ridge Division would ultimately become the workhorse of Patton’s Third Army as it sliced across France and Germany and played a key part in the Battle of the Bulge. By the time V-E Day celebrations occurred, the 80th captured over 200,000 prisoners and suffered nearly 20,000 casualties.