Project Description
Arrive in Camp Meade May 28, 1918. Left Camp Meade July 6, 1918. Left New York the 8th. Arrived in Brest, France the 15th. We came over on the Leiathan or the Veyatland. I was located on H16 bunk 266. We stayed at Brest 4 days living in our pup tents. Broke camp at midnight and boarded the box cars. The nex morning we were on the train 3 days. 40 men in a car landed at Laignes the 22nd. Left here in auto trucks, 25 men in a truck. Left at 2:00 arrived at Champlitte next morning at 6:00. I am sleeping in a convent over 200 years old. We get up at 5:00 bells in the morning. We are drilling every day. About all the people here are old. They wear wooden shoes. They don’t live out in the country. They all live in the villages. They have a good many goats and they make cheese. There is 406 men in our company. Captain’s name is Edgar B. Howard. Jack Bentley is our lieutenant. Sergeant Franklin B. Hill, Corporal Bryan, Colonel Washington Sam Miller: Grantsville Dover-Baltimore. We left Chanplitte September 8th. Hiked 9 kilometers to Ayrieres. Taken the boxcars for the front. Landed at Longville the next afternoon 3:00. Some mud and rain here same as the rest. Left Longville 11:00 at night, September 12th in auto trucks. Land at shelled town next morning. Hiked all day, landed in a woods. Slept Gougouts. Left there the next morning, went into camp Savile. We pioneers took the rations up to the trenches at night on pack mules. Some job before the drive. We went over the top, September 26th a.m. Morning was the zero hour. We were in front of infantry cutting wire and we had to show them the paths. We pioneers some awful place to be. We lost 4 of our majors there names Jackson and Langley were wounded. Putnam and Pepper were killed the 28th September on the hill just to the right of the 316th dressing station. We buried the majors and a sergeant of the 313th machine gun company. All were buried in the same grave. The 4th division was on our right and the 37th was on the left in the drive at Montfaucon. On September 26th we was in the drive until the last day of September. We were relieved by 3rd division. We hiked back to a town called Genicourt. Friday, October 4th landed here at 7:10 a.m. Two officers were wounded. Captain Devlin and Lieutenant Shaffer. We captured Montfaucon. 3 women with machine guns. One was killed, the other two was taken prisoners with a lot of men. Our arc was falling short and the Huns was throwing gas on us. We were flanked by machine gun fire. Quite a big bunch was killed. Left Genicourt, slept in a woods, left there the next day at noon. We went into the St. Meihel front, west of Verdun. Relieved the 26th division. We are about 18 miles from Metz. Thursday, October 7th a German patrol came over and we got them. The nights are getting very cold but we have a good dugout. My thoughts tonight, October 18th reading of wheatless and meatless days in the States. We went 4 days without anything to eat, that is wheatless and meatless, both. We got our drinking water out of shell holes, but I have found lots of things are worse than wheatless and meatless days. For Sherman said “War was Hell” and it is worse than that when they make you hike all day with a pack on your back that weighs 70-80 lbs. in mud up to your shoe tops and it raining all the way. We were relieved October 25th by the 33rd division at 3:00 a.m. We stayed in a woods overnight, left the next morning. 10:00 p.m. went to Rupt, stayed there, left Rupt the 26th went to Monthairon and from there we went on to Verdun city. Landed there 5:00 p.m. October 28th. Verdun front, Western front east of the city, 313th Reg. and 316th Reg. They fought side by side until the Armistice was signed. We have a new Colonel now, Rogers Saveysy has the pneumonia. Verdun has been shot up a good bit. We were on the front from 13th of September until November 26th. Now we are back in Verdun city again and we are drilling 5 hrs. a day and take a hike once a week. First snow, November 24-25th. We left Verdun December 26th and hiked 26 kilometers, sleep in a French hospital overnight at Soullier, left there the next morning we hiked 15 miles to a town Seigneulles. Staye there ujntil January 17th moved to Conde. We are attached to the supply company. I went to Division school Sunday, January 19th, returned from school the 26th. The school was 7.5 kilometers from Sohillieu. I did nothing but shoot on the range, left Conde March 28th. Hiked to Longville, that was 20 kilometers, landed there at 1:30 p.m., left there March the 29th, 9:30 a.m., hiked 20 kilometers to Stainville, landed 1:30 p.m. Left there, Stainville 8:30 a.m. Hiked to Pancey, landed 2:20 p.m., left Pancey 8:00 a.m., hiked 38 kilometers or 24 miles to Remaucourt, left Remaucourt 8:30 a.m. April 1st, hiked 14 kilometers to La-Fauche, landed here at 11:45 a.m. About 120 kilometers in 5 days, some long hike. We are staying in base hospital #117, left La-Fauche April 21st, hiked to Remaucourt, landed there at 4:30 p.m. That was 24 kilometers. Got aboard of the train, April 22nd, 2:55 a.m., left Remaucourt at 5:25 p.m. rode on boxcars landed at Chalet at 5:00 p.m. April 24th. Some big place. April 29th we had a review, we had another inspection May 4th, show down of all equipment and another one May 11th at Chalet we left there May 13th at 12:25 noon, arrived at Palilion, waited on the other section, landed in St. Nazirie at 9:20 p.m. Hiked to camp #2, landed there about 11:30 p.m. The number of billet is 19. Had to stand in mess line over an hour this a.m. for breakfast. Just came back from inspection for cooties, I have none, thank God, but everybody in the regiment had to be de-loused. We were de-loused and moved to camp 1. The number of my billet is C2. This is a prison we left to have tickets to get our meals. I am wearing overalls and blouse to save my clothes. This camp is 3.5 miles from port. Left camp #2 May 17th after getting chocolate, chewing gum and cakes and cigarettes from the Red Cross. Went on the boat 12:25 p.m. supper at 5:00, May 20th passed a ship this morning headed northeast. May 21st passed a ship this morning loaded with our troops. The sea has been very rough on our trip so far and we have bad rain all the way. 22nd still rain and very rough. 23rd 10:00 a.m. we stopped about 1 hour and picked up a floating mine. Weather still very rough. May 25th, still rough, no rain. 26th still rain but it is pretty smooth. May 27th still a little rough, but no rain and heavy thunderstorms this evening. May 28th it is fine today. Arrived May 29th at Newport News. We came over on Antigone, got there at 10:15, march 3 miles to Camp Curtis. We arrived there 12:25. The people from Baltimore are treating us fine, they gave us cake and ice cream. May 30th they gave us a big dinner and we had our pictures taken at 1:30. The sun is very hot here. We have a fine view of the Bay. The big gun boats are being all along here. Doing guard duty. 31st they gave us ice cream and pie, it is very hot today. June 1st we had a very hot Sunday and also an inspection 10:00 p.m.The 2nd we had another one this morning the same time left Camp Stuart. June 2nd arrived at dock Newport News, 4:00 went aboard the Essex, rode all night, slept on top deck, some lunch, arrived at Baltimore June 3rd , 9:00 a.m. at pier #9. Some big bunch there, it sure was a mob. We marched to the 5th army, got there at 9:45. At Union Station took the 10:13 express to Perryville, MD. Went to Uncle George’s for dinner, then I went up to the Grove on the 110. I saw a good many of my old friends and come back on 613, got to Union Station 8:20, arrived at the 5th regiment armory at 8:30 and had a good time around there getting ready for the parade. The parade started at 2:00 and we paraded until 4:00. That was 2 hours of hard walking and awful hot. We had a grand supper and plenty of girls there for the dance. They danced until 1:35. Some bunch of people there too. June 5th took the train at Mt. Royal 10:10 for Camp Meade, took our final inspection. June 7th some of the fellows they turned down, they sure are in hard luck. Some hot today. June 8th we had a big thunderstorm, we were mustered out. June 9th at 2:00 I arrived at Liberty Grove at 6:24 and stayed at grandmothers and I went to most of my friends around the Grove. I went to Philadelphia last June 17th to Aunt Clara’s on Tuesday and came down on Thursday to grandmothers and I went down to Uncle George’s on the 21st and came back on the 22nd and I went to A.R.A. June 23rd and stayed there until the 25th. I went on down to Reba M. and it rained a little on me. Going down there I walked down there in 1 hour and 22 minutes. I left Reba the 26th, went to Perryville with Albert in his car. I went to work the 30th day of June on the railroad. I got hurt the first day of work.