The "Battle of the bulge" Caused Charlton A Miserable Christmas In 1944.

The streets of Folkston were unusually busy. People from throughout Charlton County were doing their Christmas shopping. Stapleton's Drug Store was open late on Saturday night, December 16, 1944.

Across the street, locals were swapping stories in front of the Suwannee Store and L. E. Stokes and Son's general store. World War Two had been going well for the Allies with American troops sweeping across France, liberating friendly troops from Nazi prison camps where the Germans had held some for years.

Press releases told of heroism by several hometown citizen-soldiers. Sergeant W. L. Huling, Jr. of Folkston had just completed the 85^th mission of his B-17 flying fortress, the Rum Dum. An Associated Press story quoted. Huling, the radioman and waist gunner after that historic 85^th mission over Germany. "We put the old Fort through her mission without any trouble." She never turned back and is still as good as ever."

Huling had two brothers, Ben, a navy frogman, and Joe, a navy signalman aboard ship, serving in the navy during that war. Their mother, Mrs. Winnie Huling, displayed a sheer linen cloth in the front window of her First Street home. It had three blue stars, indicating three from the home in the armed forces. All three survived years of war action to return home to Folkston.

On the homefront, people of Charlton County were beginning to see victory in sight after years of worrying about relatives, rationing and deprivation. It was beginning to sound a lot like Christmas in early December of 1944.

Then, like lightning, on December 16, 1944, bad news struck home. A German counterattack in the Ardennes was threatening to take the victory from the Allies. Adolph Hitler took the Allies by surprise as he launched a sharp counterattack in the Ardennes. Hitler had hoped to reverse recent setbacks of his troops in Belgium and France and drive through Brussels all the way to Antwerp.

The Fuhrer threw three armies of at least 20 divisions into the assault. The battle became known as the "Battle of the Bulge." It would prove to be Hitler's last offensive thrust of World War Two.

On the streets of Folkston and inside the stores and homes, glee turned to gloom. People could see more years of suffering, sending relatives into service, and worse of all, uncertain about the outcome of the war.

The Charlton County High School's graduating class had no males. All had gone to war. Automobiles were at least 4 years old, and most of them had slick tires and empty gasoline tanks. But, through it all, the Charlton County homefront stood tall. Ladies sewed sweaters and scarves for those in service. Homemade fruitcake and cookies were on the way to hometown servicemen throughout the world. In the Folkston Post Office, Post Master Edgar Allen was urging early mailing. His assistant, Lucille Pearce, lost a son, Gene, fighting with the U.S. Army in Italy.

Youngsters, too young for service, gathered in Folkston's Blue Willow Café, to listen to the jukebox and drink milk, lemonade, coffee and tea. Coca-Cola and other soft drinks were not available because of the war effort.

In Dick Stroup's Sinclair service station, the Charlton County draft board met monthly to pick the men who were to be drafted. Stroup was the secretary of the draft board. The men would leave for service just across the street, from the Greyhound bus depot run by Woodrow Pickren. Twice monthly mothers and fathers saw their sons get aboard the busses headed for induction centers.

Indeed, the German offensive at the Battle of the Bulge brought sadness to the people of Charlton County. Christmas of 1944 would be one of the saddest of the war as news commentators like Gabriel Heater told of "bad news tonight."

Things began to turn for the embattled allies when skies cleared over Belgium and France to allow cargo planes to drop sorely needed food and ammunition to the encircled troops at Bastogne. General George Patton's tanks would break through the German lines to relieve the entrapped Americans. On December 29, 1944, the battle of the bulge ended. But, the German offensive claimed thousands of American lives and spoiled the nation's wishes for a Merry Christmas.

The Battle of the Bulge at Christmas time of 1944 will be an unforgettable part of the 20^th Century for those who were there, and for the Homefront in Charlton County.