We made a side trip to the village of Ostheim. Ostheim is a martyr town of World War II. It's residents were evacuated and the town was completely destroyed by shelling from November 1944 to January 1945. This action allowed Allied forces to cross the Fecht River and proceed with the battles of the Colmar Pocket, a campaign to defeat the Germans in the last part of France that they controlled. The United States funded the rebuilding of Ostheim which was completed in 1960.
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| This wall is all that remains of the old village of Ostheim. When the storks returned to the nest atop the wall in March of 1945, villagers took it as a symbol of life. They decided to preserve the wall as a monument. |
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| This plaque honoring the dead of World Wars I and II is placed at the wall. |
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