National Archives Photograph

Courtesy National Archives

The M7 self-propelled gun, named the "Priest" because of its pulpit-like .50 caliber ring mount, entered service in the spring of 1942 and was the primary artillery support for American armored divisions. M7s built after January 1943 were on M4 Sherman chassis with cast hulls. Over 4,200 M7s were built. This image shows an M7 in the winter of 1944 with the commander directing fire.