[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 53 (Thursday, May 5, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: May 5, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                       TRIBUTE TO LEONARD MUDLOFF

                                 ______


                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 5, 1994

  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, as the Defense Department moves ahead to close 
various military bases across the land, including Vint Hill Farms 
Station in Fauquier County, Virginia, near the town of Warrenton, I 
want to share with my colleagues an almost forgotten story involving a 
young Army soldier named Leonard Mudloff. This story was related to me 
by Manassas, VA, vice mayor James H. Payne, about the selfless devotion 
to duty of a soldier, quietly doing his job, who recognized the 
uniqueness of a particular event which had far-reaching impact on the 
outcome of World War II.
  The story goes that at the outbreak of World War II, our military 
desperately needed to establish an intelligence-gathering facility to 
listen in on German communications. At that time, short-wave radio 
operators in northern Virginia routinely picked up radio transmissions 
from Berlin taxi drivers. It seemed conditions were right to establish 
a listening post for this purpose just south of the Nation's capital 
and Vint Hill Farms Station began operations in an old barn converted 
for the Army's use.
  Army soldier Leonard Mudloff was assigned as a Morse-code copier 
at Vint Hill in the early days of the war and had the morning shift on 
Wednesday, November 10, 1943. As the clock was slowly ticking toward 
the lunch hour, soldier Mudloff heard the repeated radio transmission: 
``Urgent message,'' ``urgent message,'' ``Berlin Calling Tokyo.'' 
Thoughts of lunch gave way to the intense concentration of copying a 
long coded message from Berlin to Tokyo. It was later learned that this 
was a dispatch from the Japanese Ambassador to Germany in Berlin to the 
Minister of Foreign Affairs back in Tokyo.

  I have seen a copy of this message which contained a detailed report 
of the Ambassador's inspection of German defenses along the French 
coast at Normandy, listing troop strengths, dispositions, and even 
contingency plans. This information was received just as Operation 
OVERLORD--General Eisenhower's invasion of the European continent--was 
deep in the final planning stages. D-day was delayed so this new 
information could be factored into battle plans. General Eisenhower 
later credited this information with making a significant contribution 
to the success of the attack. Gen. Omar Bradley, who commanded the 
ground troops on the Normandy beaches, later personally visited Vint 
Hill to commend the men for their extraordinary achievement.
  For his part in this effort, Army soldier Mudloff was promoted one 
grade. Not even his wife or his family were made aware of the key role 
played by Leonard Mudloff. There are doubtlessly many who crossed the 
beaches at Normandy that are alive today because this soldier did his 
job.
  Leonard Mudloff has since passed on. His wife continues to live in 
Warrenton near Vint Hill Farms Station and was proud to learn of her 
husband's contribution toward winning the war in Europe. His daughter, 
now Mrs. Joann Kassner, who lives in nearby Laurel, MD, shares her 
mother's pride.
  I didn't want this moment in history to be lost. I wanted to share 
this story with my colleagues and to stand for a moment to let America 
salute Leonard Mudloff, a man who did his job--a soldier to remember.

                          ____________________