Severt Kvande was born April 8, 1918 in Orlandet, Norway to John and Sarah Kvande. He moved to America when he was 8 years old. Severt continued his education in Bagley and graduated from Bagley High School in 1937.

Severt joined the Army in 1942 and was sent to Fort Snelling. He received additional infantry training at Camp Ripley and in Colorado for ski training. He served in Europe during WWII with the 99th Infantry Battalion. The 9th Infantry Battalion (Separate) was a battalion of Norwegian-speaking soldiers in the U.S. Army. Created in July of 1942 at Camp Ripley, Minnesota, the battalion originally consisted of 1,001 soldiers. The battalion was attached to the First Army; however, it was labeled “separate” because it was not attached to a specific regiment.

In October, 1942, the battalion moved to Fort Snelling, Minnesota; and again in December, 1942, to Camp Hale in Colorado for training in winter warfare and alpine warfare. On September 5, 1943, the 99th Infantry Battalion was shipped out from New York to Scotland. In the UK, the battalion was stationed in Perham Down Camp between Salisbury and Andover. The training there was for infantry purposes as D-Day approached, and it became increasingly clear that the battalion would receive its baptism by fire in Operation Overlord.

The 99th Infantry Battalion landed on Omaha Beach on the evening of June 22, 1944, and then attended the final battle at Cherbourg. As a “separate” battalion, it belonged to no regiment, but was attached to different formations as needed. From September, the battalion operated in Belgium. During Christmas 1944, the battalion was involved in the Battle of the Bulge.

The battalion participated in the following campaigns:

• Normandy: June 22, 1944 – July 24, 1944
• Northern France: June 25, 1944 – September 14, 1944
• Rhineland (Würzlen–Aachen): September 15, 1944 – December 16, 1944
• Ardennes–Alsace: December 17, 1944 – January 18, 1945
• Central Europe: April 4, 1945 – May 11, 1945

The 99th Infantry Battalion spent 101 days in combat. The casualties suffered were 52 killed in combat, 207 wounded and six missing in action. These 207 men were wounded multiple times, several 5 times thus the 207 received 305 Purple Hearts.

 Severt was honorably discharged at war’s end in November of 1945.

Severt died May 20, 2007 and is buried in Bagley City Cemetery.

Plot: 7   Side: South        Row from Bottom: 1

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