Did they carry two 1911 pistols? They might have. Is there categoric proof. Probably not, but anyone reading this thread must be asking themselves about the stories that their aunts, uncles, father, mother, grandfather and grandfathers have told them about any aspect of their lives. I live in Ireland, believe me , we have plenty of stories. Do I believe them all? It never entered my head to question them. They are stories that weave a picture of the past that become part of you and your family. I love history and the broad strokes must be true, but what happened on a particular day will always be open to a bit of conjecture.
Photographic proof is great but can a two edged sword. While watching Flags of Our Fathers it showed American units with Doberman dogs working over the beachhead. I looked at these scenes and thought "No Way. That just doesn't look right". But at the credit sequence at the end Eastwood used photographs taken at the time. Not fuzzy snaps but pin sharp, medium format beauties. Hmmmm I thought, " See our wrong".