The crossing of the Rhine at Nierstein in 1945 by American troops was a key operation on the Western Front in the final phase of World War II. Starting from Nierstein, 18 km south of Mainz in what is now Rhineland-Palatinate, several hundred American infantrymen crossed the Rhine into southern Hesse and built bridges, which were then used to transport 60,000 vehicles for the further occupation of the German Reich. The operation went down in military history as the “Nierstein Crossing – Silent Crossing” because it took place with almost no fighting.
Since March 2017, a monument has commemorated this crossing of the Rhine. The granite stone is flanked by information boards and two flagpoles flying the American and German flags. The memorial stone was initiated by the veterans' association of the 249th US Engineer Battalion, financed by the Ralph and Lucille Schey Foundation, and supported by the city of Nierstein.
