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102nd Signal Battalion
Melibokus Radio Site
Looking for more information from military/civilian personnel assigned to or associated with the U.S. Army in Germany from 1945 to 1989. If you have any stories or thoughts on the subject, please email me (webmaster).

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1956 (Donald R. Elmore)
19..-.. (Jim Creek)
2008 (Markus Ruehl)

USAREUR Patch, 1955-19..
 
102nd Signal Battalion
 

MELIBOKUS RADIO SITE
 
1956 
(Source: Email from Donald R. Elmore, Co A, 102nd Sig Bn, 1956-58)
I was assigned to Company A, 102nd Signal Battalion, 4th Signal Group, in February 1956 and was sent back to the States in June 1958. Captain Jack Rosen was the Commanding Officer of Company A, 102nd Signal Battalion in 1956/1957. 

Company A, was in 7811 Kaserne, Frankfurt Germany. Hq, 102nd Sig Bn was in Karlsruhe, Germany. Hq, 4th Signal Group was at Campbell Barracks in Heidelberg, Germany.

I was at the Melibokus Radio Station. Here is a list of names for some of the guys at the Melibocus Radio Station (Co A, 102nd Sig Bn, 1956-1958):
SFC Michael J. Kishmonian (New York)
SP1 Albert W Spangler (West Virginia)
SP2 Donald R. Elmore (Kentucky)
CPL Schneider (Illinois)
SP3 Bill Moore (Oklahoma)
SP3 James Mitchner (Pennsylvania)
SP2 Horace Smith (South Carolina)
SP3 Jerry L. Cordis (Nebraska)
SFC Almond S. Peppers (Unknown)
Margot Weber (Civilian Cook) (Bensheim, Germany)
Looking at the cars (in Jim Creek's photos -- below), they look like the same time period.  My Site Commander, SFC Almond S. Peppers, had a 1957 Ford Sedan.

I am looking at the weeds along the fence and this is not what it looked like when I was there. We kept it neat and I planted flowers along the inside of the fence. We also had a large 4' X 8' sign warning not to take pictures, etc.  I am disappointed at the condition of the site. We had it so neat.

If you look in the middle of the picture by the Flag Pole, there is the remnant of an old tower base, with a wood frame around it. I built that wood frame and made a flower box to hide the old tower base.

102d Sig Bn
Melibokus

 

1. (KB)
2. Equipment room (KB)
3. Site crew and Margot Weber (KB)

4. Operations Building (KB)
5. Gate (KB)
6. A little card game (KB)		  

7. CPL Schneider (Site cmdr) (KB)
8. Site personnel (KB)
9. Site personnel (KB)		  

10. "Lucky" Luciano (KB)		      
 
(Source: Email from Jim Creek and the 102nd Sig Bn MSN Group website)

102d Sig Bn
Melibokus

 

1. Sign near gate (KB)
2. Ops bldg and billets (KB)

3. Billets (KB)
 
1981  
(Source: ABOUT TOWN, Nov 18, 1981)

View from radio tower, 1981
The photo on the left appeared in the ABOUT TOWN issue of November 18, 1981. I have tried to clean it up a bit and also added some information that should make it easier to compare the photo with those provided by Markus Ruehl from 2008 (see below).

The accompanying article about the "Mountain men of Melibokus" can be read on the 11th AD Sig Bn Page.
 
2008 
(Source: Photos by Markus Ruehl, Germany)
Markus reports that the relay site structures - with the exception of the concrete radio tower - will be torn down starting sometime in September, 2008.

A report in the Darmstädter Echo newspaper confirms that. The Bundesanstalt für Immobielienaufgabe, a German agency that manages properties that have been handed back to the German government by NATO forces, will remove the structures.

Melibokus Radio Site
Melibokus
Who can provide additional details about the site?
 

1. Front view (KB)
2. Main gate (KB)

3. Rear view (KB)

4. Old sign (KB)
5. Bldg 6025 (KB)
6. (KB)		  

7. Bldg 6024 (KB)
8. (KB)