| Sources |
- [S9] Smoky Mountain Historical Society Newsletter, Smoky Mountain Historical Society, Vol. XXVI, Issue 1, page 21, 41, 2000.
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 3 Jul 1998.
For 89-year-old Mack Leibrock, Cocke County’s oldest military veteran, the years may have faded into the past, but the memories of his time at war remain vivid, like the colors of the American flags flying this Independence Day holiday in celebration of our nation’s liberty.
He recalls with stark clarity the day the concussion from a bomb dropped by a German airplane threw him from his bunk and shattered all the teeth in his lower jaw.
“We used to get air raids all the time in North Africa. I was working in headquarters. There were three buildings about the size of the courthouse, one in the middle and two on the sides.
“We had just had a raid and they gave the all-clear sign and we were sitting on our bunks when one of the bombs went off late. It knocked me about 20 feet and I lost my teeth,” said Leibrock. “They didn’t even numb them when they pulled them out.”
Leibrock said he figures he was lucky because several men died during that raid and he lived to carry on and remember with honor the sacrifices made by those who have fought and died in battle to preserve the liberty of this nation.
“I’m proud I served. I didn’t join up but when my number, 055, came up I went. I wasn’t no coward,” said Leibrock. “I’m glad I went. Edward (Mack’s brother) had a young boy and I didn’t have any kids. I figure I went to keep him from going.”
Leibrock said the most action he saw was action was on the convoy across the Atlantic Ocean on his way to Europe.
“There were 60 ships in the convoy and; five days out we sunk our first German submarine and about nine days out we sunk another. It took 11 days to get over there,” said Leibrock.
Although he never saw combat, he was always ready. He said he carried a gun all the time and was just 16 days away from being called to the front lines to fight at the Battle of the Bulge.
“I was scared, you bet, but I would have went. I wouldn’t have run; I can tell you that,” said Leibrock, recalling his days in Cannes, France, after D-Day.
Leibrock recalled his time in Cannes with more than a little affection, especially the pretty French girls and the way they talked.
“I was over 27 women at the PX and I couldn’t speak a lick of French, but I had an interpreter. They got to stealing cigarettes real bad and the colonel said I had to catch them; but I never turned them in,” said Leibrock.
Other memories are clear as well. Leibrock was in North Africa when German Field Marshal Irwin Rommel and US General George S. Patton were chasing each other around the desert.
“I never saw Patton, but I heard a lot about him. He was a rough son-of-a-gun,” said Leibrock. “I did see Eisenhower, though. I saw him a couple of times.”
Leibrock recalled his stay in the Pine Tree Hotel upon his arrival in North Africa with a laugh and a wink. “That first night in North Africa we drove for four hours and they said we was going to the Pine Tree Hotel. It wasn’t no such thing. It was just a bunch of pine trees in the desert and we slept out on the ground,” said Leibrock. “I was there for a year and five days and never saw it rain.”
Leibrock said the war was quite an experience for a young man from Cocke County who had, until that time, worked at Stokely-Van Camp as a fireman keeping the coal fires burning, which made the steam which tuned the turbines to provide electricity to the plant.
Leibrock was drafted into the military in December of 1942 at Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, at the age of 33 and served until his discharge in January of 1946 at Fort Knox, Kentucky.
He came back home to Newport where he married Lucille Wood in 1952. He continued to work at Stokely-Van Camp until his retirement in 1974.
Leibrock spends most of his time recruiting members for the American Legion, where he is third vice-commander and one of its strongest recruiters.
“I’ve signed up more members than any other. You just ask them if I ain’t,” said Leibrock. Leibrock said he expects to become a lifetime member of the American Legion in July. He is cu
- [S1] U. S. Social Security Death Index, 409-01-4746.
Issued in Tennessee, residing in Newport, Cocke County, Tennessee
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 2000.
Mack Leibrock dies at age 91
Cocke County's oldest surviving veteran passed away Saturday at Mariner Health Care Center following a long illness.
Mack Leibrock, 91, served in the United States Army, during World War II where he fought in the North African and European theaters.
Leibrock was born in the family farm house off Edwina Road and worked on the farm all of his life. He was retired from Stokely-Van Camp after 52 years of service. He was a member of the First Baptist Church of Newport and was a Past Commander of the American Legion Post #41 in Newport.
“He did a lot during his life, but what he most enjoyed was playing Santa Claus for the children,” said his nephew, William Leibrock. “After he retired from Stokleys, he would dress up as Santa Claus and visit all of the children in the community. He really got a kick out of that.”
Leibrock was preceded in death by his parents, Frank and Zola McMahan Leibrock; his wife, Lucille Leibrock; and his brother, Edward Leibrock.
He is survived by his two sisters; Wilma Davies of Newport, and Carolyn Aaron, of Nashville; nephews Bill and John Leibrock; niece Ellen L. Shelton; one great-nephew William McMahan Leibrock Jr.; two great nieces Charlotte Ann Leibrock and Jocelyn Shelton; and sister-in-law Frances R. Leibrock.
The funeral will be held on Monday, April 24, at 3 p.m. at the Manes Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Ralph Smith officiating. Burial will be in Union Cemetery with members of the Lance Corporal Charles C. Roberts Disabled American Veterans Chapter 102, conducting military rites.
The family will receive friends from 2 until 3 p.m. Monday prior to the funeral service at Manes Funeral Home.
Memorials may be made to the DAV L/CPL Charles C. Roberts Chapter 102, 148 Pine Street, Newport, Tennessee, 37821.
Manes Funeral Home in charge.
- [S87] Death Certificate.
Name Date of Death / Age County of Death County / State of Residence Marital Status Gender Race File #
LEIBROCK MACK 04-22-2000 / 91 COCKE COCKE / TN WIDOWER M WHITE 16829
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