Southbridge, MA Native Charles Edwin Hellner’s WWI Journey

September 30, 2025 / portraitsofwar / Leave a comment

Southbridge’s First Soldier

Writeup by: Andrew Locke

(All photographs and narrative were provided by Locke)

The first man from Southbridge, Massachusetts to enlist during World War 1 was Charles Edwin Hellner. He was born on April 11th, 1897 and was at the age of 20 when he enlisted for the US Army on May 7th, 1917. He was placed into B company of the 1st Engineer Regiment (part of the 1st Infantry Division) with about 30 other Southbridge men. After exactly three months of training he departed for France.

Following their arrival, the soldiers of B company then spent more time training. This time it was in the tactics of trench warfare with the French as their experienced instructors. In later parts of the training, American units would serve alongside French ones in relatively idle sections of the frontline so that the doughboys could get some experience. While serving with elements of the 16th infantry on the morning of November 3rd, 1917, Hellner would be present for the first raid on American troops by the German army. The first three American deaths of the war occurred there.

Hellner’s Diary, Cigarette Case, Pocket Watch and War Medals

Training and engineer work continued for Hellner’s unit until the 1st Division was called into action again. On May 28th, 1918 the 28th infantry regiment had attacked and successfully captured the French town of Cantigny. The 1st Engineers moved into the sector and began work fortifying the area and digging trenches. Hellner memorialized his service there with a large pennant that bears “Cantigny 1918” and his portrait which speaks to the fame of the battle at the time. While in these trenches at and around Cantigny, B company experienced shelling and fought off diversionary attacks from the German’s Montdidier-Noyon offensive that was aimed at nearby French positions.

On July 18th the 1st Engineers began its involvement in the Second Battle of the Marne. A German attack had recently pushed back allied lines before it faltered and it was realized that this was an opportunity for a counterattack. Hellner had recently been given command of his own squad and would now be leading them into battle. B company spent three days attacking the Germans near the town of Soissons. During the first day of attack on July 18th, a member of Hellner’s squad named William Broughton was hit in the stomach by a piece of shrapnel. Unfortunately, he eventually died from his wounds. Broughton had also come from Southbridge and Hellner wrote a letter home that informed his family that he had passed. July 19th saw B company’s advance slowed by machine gun fire that wounded several men and an officer. On July 20th, Hellner led his squad over the top at 4 AM with the rest of B company in the first wave. With heavy losses they were able to fight until they reached a railroad where they remained the rest of the day. While taking cover behind an embankment near this railroad, Hellner experienced his first wound of the war. He later wrote a letter about the incident: “I was lying on a railroad embankment when a high explosive German shell burst near me, digging up the dirt and stones all around, and a heavy stone fell upon my foot, breaking one of the bones.” This artillery shell had actually caused much more damage than he’d thought. It dislocated his shoulder, broke a bone in his foot, and gave him a severe rupture. He never reported these wounds and continued to fight at Soissons for two more days. By the end of the battle he was the only man from his squad to report to an officer, the rest had either been killed or wounded. B company in total sustained 74 casualties at Soissons from July 18th to the 22nd.

After the chaos of their first large scale offensive, they now had a few moments of relief. For the next few months they went back to being engineers and did manual labor including building roads during the St. Mihiel campaign in early September. It is during this time I believe Hellner attended gas school. One of his journals has a section with the same heading that includes details about each type of gas and various mortars including the Livens projector.

Silk Portrait Photo and Cantigny 1918 Pennant

For the last and largest battle of the war the 1st Engineers was once again called up to act as infantry. The Meuse-Argonne offensive began on September 26th but B company didn’t attack until October 9th. Hill 269 in the Argonne Forest needed to be captured and B company was part of the force chosen for the job. The fight for the hill was intense with the attackers engaging in hand to hand combat. After capturing the hill the engineers immediately braced for a counterattack. One didn’t come until the following day when the Germans stormed the hill with the support of heavy artillery. The enemy never reached the top of the hill and were successfully repelled. At some point during this engagement Hellner was gassed and evacuated to a hospital.

Unfortunately I don’t know when he left the hospital but I do know that by November 11th he had returned to B company and was marching towards the frontline near the town of Sedan with the rest of the regiment. Suddenly, a courier on horseback rushed down the column of men telling them to stop marching because the war had ended. In Hellner’s own words: “When we realized it was all over, we whistled, screamed, cheered and raised the devil, and I was so hoarse I couldn’t speak next day above a whisper.” That night the frontline was almost as bright as day with bonfires, flares, and rockets from the celebrating soldiers.

In December the 1st division was sent into Germany to be a part of the army of occupation. The 1st Engineers remained on this post until July 21st, 1919 when they were detailed to finally return home. He returned to the United States in August and was supposed to receive a discharge but a medical officer advised him to re-enlist so that his wounds from Soissons could finally be tended to by army doctors. This was when the true extent of his injury was truly discovered. It was necessary to fracture his dislocated arm to get it back into its socket. After this though, he could finally return to Southbridge. Funnily enough, even after his wounds from Soissons were corrected, he wasn’t given credit for a wound in action. So his only wound according to his enlistment record was being gassed on Hill 269. Hellner got married in June of 1921 and went on to have two daughters. In later life he moved to Florida and passed away there on June 26th, 1975 at the age of 78.

Roy H. Oplinger and the 158th Aero Squadron Survive the Sinking of the SS Tuscania

August 17, 2025August 17, 2025 / portraitsofwar / Leave a comment

Survivors of the Sinking of the SS Tuscania

The 158th Aero Squadron and the Sinking of the SS Tuscania

On the night of February 5, 1918, the troopship SS Tuscania was steaming off the coast of Islay, Scotland, when it was struck by a torpedo fired from the German submarine UB-77. The liner was carrying over 2,000 American soldiers bound for the Western Front as part of the earliest waves of U.S. troops to join the fight in Europe.

Among those aboard were men of the 158th Aero Squadron, a newly formed Air Service unit. Organized in late 1917, the squadron was composed largely of young Americans who had trained in Texas before embarking overseas. Their mission would be to support the burgeoning U.S. Air Service in France, a much needed element of warfare in the late stages of WWI.

When the torpedo struck, chaos erupted. Lifeboats were launched into rough seas, and the darkness made rescue operations difficult. British destroyers and local fishermen rushed to aid survivors. Despite these efforts, more than 200 soldiers and crewmen were lost, making the Tuscania the first U.S. troopship sunk in World War I.

Footage of the Survivors of the Tuscania Sinking

The men of the 158th Aero Squadron were among the survivors. Shaken but determined, they eventually reached England and continued their training before heading off to France. Looking at this group portrait, it’s striking to think that every face here carries the memory of that night in the frigid waters of the North Channel. For the men of the 158th, their war began not in the skies over France, but in the dark Atlantic, clinging to lifeboats and praying for rescue.

Roy Oplinger and the 158th Aero Squadron

While the group photo provides us with an overall snapshot of the 158th Aero Squadron in the days after their harrowing ordeal, the photograph also highlights the wartime experience of an individual soldier who decided to send this image home to his family.

The reverse side of this English postcard has a few unique elements that help point towards the ID of the soldier who sent the postcard home in 1918. The first and obvious clue is that the photograph is likely related to someone who served with the 158th Aero Squadron. The following clues can be found on the reverse side of the postcard.

The additional clues are pretty obvious given the stamp at the top right-hand corner paired with the writing on the bottom. We know his name is Roy, and that his Army Service Number was 250033. Using the powers of ancestry.com and fold3.com I was able to identify the sender as Corporal Roy Holden Oplinger who served as a mechanic with the 158th Aero Squadron. Born on May 8th, 1896 in Danielsville, PA to Adam and Edna Oplinger, Roy went on to enlist for the draft on June 5th, 1917 with a listed address in Walnutport, PA. What doesn’t jive is that he was a private at the time of the sinking of the SS Tuscania, so it appears that he didn’t actually send this postcard to his family (if ever) until later that year when he was promoted to corporal in October.

According to Roy’s WWI Pennsylvania Veteran’s Compensation Application, after enlistment he went on to serve with the 49th Aero Squadron (an obscure pursuit squadron) in August of the same year and then on January 8th of 1918 with the 158th Aero Squadron shortly before his departure aboard the SS Tuscania.

WWI Pennsylvania Veteran’s Compensation Application Form

A Letter Home to a Friend

In a rare stroke of luck, I struck photo researcher gold after searching for newspaper articles related to Roy’s WWI service. In this case, it looks like he sent a letter home to a close hometown friend, Samuel W. Danner on February 13th, 1918 only a few days before the group photo was taken. Anecdotes like this offer a rare glimpse into individual moments during the war, and I was lucky to stumble across it. Here’s a link to the The Morning Call, an Allentown, PA newspaper. Please disregard any typos in the OCR transcription of the article.

Roy H. Oplinger Private in 158th Aero Squadron now in France received the following letter: American Rest Camp, Winchester, England.

February 13, 1918. Dear Sir: best of health and hope you are well I will let you know that I am in the same in America. I will let you know that I have experienced the Torpedoing of the S. S. Tuscania.

The very first ship sunk with U. S. Soldiers on board. I had a narrow escape, I was on deck when we were submarined, but was soon floating on the Atlantic waters on a raft, shortly after we were struck about one hour and a half later we were picked up by a British patrol boat.

If the ship would have sunk as quick as the Lusitania, why I think we would have perished. The S. S. Tuscania went down some hours later, she was torpedoed about supper time somewhere on the Irish coast. How many lives were lost I am unable to tell.

Only a few of our squadron The clothing and my personal belongings I had with me are all the articles I have, all the rest of my stuff is at the bottom of the sea with the Tuscania. But my gold watch which mother presented to me as a present some years ago is out of commission as the salt water did not agree with her very well. I do not like the taste of it myself, it does not feel very comfortable to be in the water this time of the year. But I was kept warm as I was the only one on the raft that knew how to handle an oar. So you see what I had to do to get away from that sinking ship.

There is danger in being too near a sinking vessel as the suction will at times suck persons down that are near. I paddled along and when rescued we eight boys on the raft were a few miles from the ship. We were somewhat soaked. But I am dry by the time you received this letter. Ha Ha.

I will never forget that shock of that torpedo which hit us on that night February 5, 1918. The boys were brave and sang national hymns when we let her go down. Every soldier was coal as jar as I know not one was panic stricken, all left that ship in an excellent manner and can tell you from my experience what I have had in seeing a ship sunk. That you can thank God if you never have to witness that kind of a sight on a rough sea. I am sure glad that I am safe.

It was God’s will that only a few lives were lost in the ship wreck. I will sure do my best to do a little harm towards “Kaiser Bill” as he has to account for the lives that were lost on that cold night (you know). I am yours as before.

Address, Priv. Roy H. Oplinger, 158th Aero Squadron. A. E. (via) N. Y.

And Some Insight From a Friend

Fast forward to 2025, here’s some information about the photo from a WWI researcher friend of mine, Charles “Chuck” Thomas. Thanks Chuck!

Chuck’s Take

Here is a special image of the surviving members of the 158th Aero Squadron shortly after arriving at the American rest camp in Winchester, England. This squadron was aboard the Tuscania when it was sunk by a German submarine off the northern coast of Ireland 5 February 1918. When the 158th AS was reassembled at Winchester, it was determined that seventeen men had been lost during the sinking. After the picture was taken, the flying officers were sent to France for training and the enlisted members were broken up into four flights: one flight was sent to Beverly, Yorkshire and the other three went to Lincolnshire, England.

The squadron would later be reunited and sent to Issoudun on 27 September to finish out their service at that aerodrome.

The squadron officers were:

1st Lt. Phil E. Davant

1st Lt. Herbert B. Bartholf

1st Lt. J. W. Blackman (Gorrells has it spelled ‘Blakcman’ – typo?)

1st Lt. Merle H. Howe

1st Lt. Miner C. Markham

2nd Lt. Kenneth S. Hall

2nd Lt. Freeman A. Ballard

2nd Lt. LaRue Smith

2nd Lt. James McFaddan

Of note is the mixture of civilian attire with military uniforms being worn by some of the enlisted men.

I should also point out that the flag seen here was the only one saved during the sinking of the Tuscania by Corp. Guy W. Burnett.

Meet Punkins – The Mixed-Breed Bull Terrier and Official Mascot of the 27th Engineer Regiment in WWI

June 2, 2025November 19, 2025 / portraitsofwar / 4 Comments

After taking a break from writing, I’m excited to finally share some of the fascinating WWI photos and research I’ve uncovered over the past few years, little hidden gems I’ve been eager to bring to light on this little corner of the internet. In this quick post you will meet Punkins, the official mascot of Company C of the 27th Engineer Regiment. Photographs of unit mascots during WWI are not exceedingly rare, but studio portraits of an identified mascot/dog are nearly impossible to find. Most, if they exist, were kept in personal albums or letter collections and discarded or forgotten about over the past 100+ years, but this shot of Punkins somehow emerged on eBay several years ago.

Sporting a studded leather collar and matching riveted harness, Punkins seems like a quite the bruiser, a fitting mascot for an engineering regiment during WWI. With just the image and brief stamped caption below (the stamping hints at a volumed production of photo postcards for veterans after the return home), it seemed a difficult task to identify the sitter based on contextual clues such as insignia or other identifying material. Although the postcard backstamp suggests a stateside printing of the postcard, I’m guessing the original photograph was taken in France or Germany and replicated stateside for dispersal to fellow soldiers who wanted photographs to remember their wartime experiences.

Luckily, I did some deep diving and discovered a digitized version of a unit history of the 27th Engineer Regiment that included a brief caption mentioning a ‘Punkins’ below a photograph of our mystery sitter with one of his wartime friends.

“Punkins” and PFC William H. Hall of Santa Clara, CA.

Punkins has now been identified as the regimental mascot of the 27th Engineer Regiment! Note that he is sporting a custom coat with markings and insignia showing he was a member of Company C. of the 27th Engineer Regiment with the First Army. His downward pointing chevron on the right means he served at least six months with the unit. Based on the background contextual clues in the unit history photo, this shot appears to have been taken aboard a return vessel from France to the USA in March of 1919. Private First Class William H. Hall of Santa Clara, CA was aboard the USS Dakotan, a US military transport ship that served in both WWI for the US and later in WWII for the Russians starting in 1942.

Pvt. William Hall heads to France in June of 1918

It’s unclear and likely impossible to know the circumstances of Punkins’ adoption by the 27th Engineer Regiment in WWI, but based on the visual info provided in the unit history, it’s likely that they were adopted at least three months before departure from France in March of 1919 which points towards an adoption date of August or September of 1918 while the unit was serving in Germany at the time. Punkins appears to be a Bull Terrier mix of some sort based on the pointed ears, coloring and general boxy frame. If anyone knows anything else about Punkins please reach out and share.

One last note – Punkins appears to be wearing an actual WWI US dog tag. Dog tags used by the US Army and Marines were primarily aluminum discs that could be hand punched with pertinent information bearing the owners name, unit, serial number and sometimes other personal touches. It looks like Punkins received a set of his own tags although the details are obscured. Note that the ridges on the left tag hole hints that they’ve been worn long enough to encounter some wear and tear. The circular tag to the right doesn’t seem to be a proverbial dog tag but some sort of other identifier or an actual DOG tag.

November, 2025 Update

It appears that Punkins sat for several photographs during his illustrious career as a mascot. Another eBay listing appeared a month or so ago (I didn’t win) that provided a bit more information about our sitter. Amazingly, we now know the birthdate, birthplace and wartime career of Punkins to a level of detail I never thought I would learn. See below for a transcription of the caption from the eBay postcard.

Nov. 2, 2025 Ended Listing for *Another* Punkins Postcard!

Punkins was born Dec. 30, 1917, in Baltimore, was mascot of Co. C., 27th Eng., was smuggled across on a transport in a suit case, thru the worst of the submarine zone, landed in France May 18, 1918. He spent nine months in the front line trenches, went over the top three times at the battles of Chateau Thierry, Argonne and St. Mihiel. He was gassed Sept. 28, 1918, in the Argonne. Punkins is the only dog that ever received an honorable discharge from the U.S. Army. He received a Medal of Honor from the French Government at Verdun, also wears the U.S. Victory button. Here’s to the Good Old U.S.A. – Punkins

This secondary portrait of Punkins provides a very similar view but shows a few more details that “my” version does not include. Now, we can see a little more detail to the dog tag/medal attached to his collar.

The tag that I had originally assumed was some sort of identifier appears to have a castle at center which may be a 27th Engineers commemorative medal given out to members of that unit. See below (top left) for a possible match from the US Army Engineering collection website. (Image 16 in the first slideshow)

Two Mississippi Doughboys in France, 1918

March 3, 2024August 16, 2025 / portraitsofwar / 3 Comments

Finding vintage photography to post to the site that has meaningful background history has been a tough mission the last few years. I was recently inspired to start posting to the blog more often from a group of friends who enjoy seeing great photography mixed in with background research. This site has always been a labor of love and I’ve neglected posting new material (but have updated older posts) since the global pandemic hit. I now introduce you to a new addition to the collection that showcases an underappreciated aspect of the the WWI US service experience.

The process of making these shots web-ready is a bit tedious but it involves the scanning, editing for dust and scratches as well as optimizing size for the web. It’s not a quick task but I like to take time to make these available whenever possible.

Ernie Rayburn and Ollie Stiger Smoking Cigars in France, 1918

This photograph struck me when I first viewed it for a few reasons. The role of African Americans in World War One has been touched upon in books, documentaries and museum exhibits but the photographic history of the common labor war worker has been eclipsed by the “fighting” units that are often depicted. These two men, Erie Rayburn of Coffeeville, MS and Ollie Stiger of Jackson of the same state have likely never been shown online. These postcard style shots were often taken to be sent to friends and family as a way of remembering a time where the normal day-to-day life of the 1910s was upended and normal guys were thrown into abnormal situations.

Both Ollie and Ernie served in the same labor unit – the Depot Service Company No. II based out of Brest, France during the war. I’m unsure of what exact labor duty they would have been assigned to but it likely involved the moving of material onto or off of ships onto trucks or trains. More research will need to be done.

Ollie Stiger (also spelled Steger in later documents) was born on August 6th, 1892 (also listed as 1891?) in Mississippi and died in San Diego, CA in October of 1972. After the war he worked with the Chicago and North Western Railroad as a “coach cleaner”. I’m unaware of any children or family at the point of writing this post.

Corporal Erie Rayburn was also from the same hometown of Ollie of Coffeeville, MS and was born around the same time in 1895 and passed away a few years after Ollie in 1988. I sincerely hope they stayed friends after the war and after they parted ways to seek the true American Dream.

More research to come…

WWI Portrait of Pvt. Louis Alterici of the 1st Gas and Flame Regiment in WWI

October 21, 2018November 27, 2018 / portraitsofwar / 5 Comments

Pvt. Louis Alterici

I apologize for not posting more frequently, but I’ve been focusing on preparing presentations and talks for local historical societies here in my home state of Vermont. Tonight’s post is the first that focuses around a recently-purchased portrait photo. A dealer from the Philadelphia area has been selling off what appears to be an entire collection of WWI portraits from a Charleroi, Pennsylvania photo studio. Of the several dozen portraits sold by this seller in the past two months, I’ve been lucky enough to pick up two photos. The best of the two is the image photograph presented below:

Louis Alterici of Charleroi, PA

At first glance, this photograph clearly presents evidence of damage in the hands of an ink-wielding enemy. Who knows how this was damaged, but it didn’t seem to impact the final value of the photograph, which sold for a healthy $68.00. The particularly interesting elements of the photograph are presented here:

English Style Cap and Engineer Collar Disc

French Croix de Guerre medal w/ silver star and 1st Army patch variant

After a bit of research into the sitter above, it quickly became clear that he was an engineer with the 1st Gas and Flame Regiment, previously the 30th Engineer Regiment. As a Private with the regiment, he would’ve been involved in the maintenance and mobilization of Livens gas projectors during the last several months of the war.

Born on April 21st of 1897 in Naples Italy, Louis emigrated to the United States on May 26th, 1910 in hopes of linking up with family members in Pennsylvania. He gained his citizenship when he was naturalized in May of 1928 due to his service for the U.S. during the war.

The men of the 1st Gas and Flame would be charged with maintaining, resupplying and moving the Liven’s projectors during the tail end of the war. What did this involve?

Levin’s Projector schematic

Louis is sporting a wound chevron in the portrait photo above – he was gassed on November 1st, 1918 only ten days before the Armistice of November 11th.

Note wound chevron (stripe) on right hand sleeve

It’s unclear through the records on how he received his gas wounds, but it’s highly probable that his gassing took place during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, when the 1st Gas Regiment was actively moving forward during the “third-phase” of the offensive. The attack in which Louis was wounded began at 5:30 on the morning of the 1st of November. Sadly, the gas mortars that were projected that morning were done so under less-than-ideal conditions and it appears that shifting wind blew toxic gas back towards the 1st Gas Regiment. All those who were gassed during this event were brought off the line to Sommerance, France where they were treated. All of this information can be found in the unit history of the 1st Gas Regiment, which is hyperlinked here.

Louis’ War Record (Note gassing date)

What Louis achieved after the war is unknown to me, but I hope that he lived a full and rewarding life. His war record and portrait will remain a part of my website, but I hope to pass the photo along to a relative one day.

WWI – 57th Field Artillery Brigade Soldiers Pose in French Studio

February 10, 2018November 27, 2018 / portraitsofwar / Leave a comment

A recent purchase just arrived in my mailbox and I’ve been researching the details in hopes of identifying something interesting to write about. Well, this photo has a few good details that will hopefully help future collectors with identifying their WWI photographs!

57th Field Artillery Brigade

The first details that pop out are the accessories that these doughboys decided to wear into the studio. These small nuances of WWI photos really help researchers, reenactors and collectors understand that uniform and insignia regulations in 1918 were at time blurry, and interesting one-off uniform presentations did exist. In this case we see a handful of elements that are not typically found in photos of the period.

Leg Covering

One soldier (far left) is wearing M1910 canvas gaiters, while the other two are sporting wool puttees.

puttees

Cap Insignia

All three doughboys are wearing French lettering on their caps denoting their specific unit affiliation. In this case, they are wearing the number 57 with a letter A. In any other scenario I would assume that this would place them within the 57th Infantry Regiment, Company A, or possibly 57th Pioneer Regiment, Company A. In this case, the next detail down drives the unit ID home. These letters and numbers are often seen on French collars.

French Cap Numbering

Officer’s Field Artillery Insignia

The soldier at the far right is wearing an officer collar insignia for a Field Artillery Regiment. An odd thing on an enlisted man, and especially odd at the center of the chest. Who knows?

insignia

Watches

All three are wearing watches! The first on the left has a pocket watch with fob and chain clipped to his shirt. The other two are wearing “trench watches” with kitchener straps. Interestingly, they both do not currently have crystal guards AKA “shrapnel guards” on the watch face to protect from wartime damage. These were popular amongst watch-wearing soldiers of WWI.

watches

Field Artillery Ring

One detail that I always look for is the presence of a ring on WWI soldiers. The soldier at the far left is wearing a sterling silver Field Artillery ring – another clue that supports the 57th Field Artillery ID for this photo.

Oval Sterling Field Artillery Ring

FAring

In summary, the tiny details of a photo can actually make an unidentified WWI photo incredibly interesting and fun to dissect. These little nuances of wartime accessory can, at time make the difference between a $5.00 photo and a $50.00 photo to the discerning collector. It also helps expand knowledge into unknown areas of military material culture collecting. Pull out your magnifying glass and look through your collection!

WWI German Facial Dueling Scars – Mensur Scars and WWI Portraits

December 26, 2017November 7, 2023 / portraitsofwar / 11 Comments

Apologies for not posting any interesting original material in the past few weeks, I’ve been busy dealing with the holidays and the celebrations that inevitably pop up at this time of year. Today’s blog post will be about a topic I’ve become fascinated with over the course of the past two years. Have you ever wondered why stereotypical WWI German media characters from WWI always seem to have a large scar on their face? Ever wonder why they always seem to be on the cheek and always are attributed with men of high status such as generals and higher ranking officers?

Well, recently I was able to purchase on eBay an inexpensive photo ($4.99) on eBay that perfectly personifies the image of a young WWI German soldier with a prominent facial scar.

Mensur Scar (New photo to collection)

Was this scar the result of a bad shaving accident? In fact, the answer is exactly the opposite; this left cheek scar is the result of a deliberate action.

Ouch!

After a solid night of internet research, I was able to cobble together an answer regarding the odd number of facial scars associated with late 19th and early 20th century German and Austrian soldiers. The Dueling Scar!

Male (upper class) students who were members of fraternities of major German and Austrian universities during this time were often engaged in academic fencing which at times would, at times, become a duel between competing fraternities. These individualized duels between students eventually became a badge of honor among fraternity members – taking a blow to the face showed courage and was a lasting reminder of the fraternal bond.

Since these boys were often from a higher class, it was no surprise that many eventually became officers during WWI. This act was well know during the time and eventually became banned around the time of the outbreak of the war. The ban was lifted when Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933. Many of the German officers of WWII had these scars given the fact that they were in university prior to WWI.

A fun fact – The majority of scars appear on the left side of the face due to the fact that many fencers were trained in a right-handed style!

Skip ahead to 2:50 to see the duel in action!

ss-hauptsturmfuhrer otto skorzeny schmiss mensur scars

Otto Skorzeny with Mensur Scar

German Pilot Eduard Wolfgang Zorer

IscUC6I 6vXdRk1 8qHI20k

Cartoon View ca. 1909 (From eBay listing)

Luftwaffe Portrait Photo (from an eBay auction)

WWI – US 7th Engineers Pose in Villerupt, France 1919

September 23, 2017September 23, 2017 / portraitsofwar / Leave a comment

Scans316

Ancienne_salle_fetes_Villerupt

WWI Portrait Photo – Lt. Carl Wehner, 141st Infantry Regiment, KIA at St. Etienne, France

May 16, 2017May 23, 2017 / portraitsofwar / 4 Comments

A recent eBay purchase has lead me down a warren of research avenues that are helping shed light on the American involvement at the bloody fray at St. Etienne during the Battle of Blanc Mont Ridge in October of 1918. The photo depicts Lt. Carl Wehner with the following inscription on the verso:

“141st Inf., 36th Div. Lt. Carl Wehner killed Oct. 8, 1918 by a German sniper.”

It was this writing that pushed me to purchase the photo at a reasonable $25.00 in hopes of researching and fleshing out the life of the young Lieutenant and Wisconsin native who was killed in action only days after his 26th birthday.

Lt. Carl Wehner in France, 1918

This photo was most likely taken a month or so before his death in October, as he is sporting a 6 month overseas service chevron on his left cuff. August or September would roughly be six months after his arrival from stateside officers training. He was selected to be a Lieutenant with Company K of the 141st Infantry Regiment of the 36th Division – a unit comprised mostly of southern boys from Texas and surrounding states. Having been born in Lincoln, Kansas and spending most of his life in Madison, Wisconsin, he originally enlisted with the 32nd “Red Arrow” Division but elected to train to become an officer. At the time of his enlistment, he lived at 925 West Dayton Street in Madison.

Carl’s WWI Draft Registration Card

And I was able to find a fascinating account of his death while commanding Company K following the death of his Captain (Source – Entry by RavenHawk)

…It was near St. Etienne, as his captain layed dead, Wehner led his unit forward, until he himself was struck in the head, by enemy gunfire, and killed. One account of the battle (perhaps a little exagerated), said: “Lieutenat Wehner died with three machine gun bullets in his forehead and a smile on his lips as he led Company K of the 141st Infantry over the top after his captain was killed by the fire of the enemy.”….In a letter signed by the Marshall Of France, Commander in Chief of the French Armies of the East, Petain, it was written: “Lt. Wehner displayed audacity and disregard of danger during the operations near St. Etienne. At the head of his men, encouraging them with his skill, he largely contributed to the success of the operations which made it possible to capture all objectives. He was killed at his post of combat.” For his bravery, Wehner was awarded the Croix de Guerre with palm for bravery….As for Wehner’s family, they didn’t find out until after Christmas, that Wehner had been killed, in battle…Wehner’s body was returned to Madison in 1921, and reburied at Forest Hill on 10/21/1921.

WWI Portrait Photo – 102nd Ambulance Company, 26th Division

May 2, 2017May 2, 2017 / portraitsofwar / 5 Comments

This photograph is a true mystery for me. I can’t identify the sitter of this photograph even though there is so much information to work with:

He’s identified on the print as Pvt. John Illiano of the 102nd Ambulance Company
He’s sporting a 26th Division uniform with at least 1 1/2 years overseas service
He was one of the first 100,000 US soldiers to enlist (conjecture based on star)
He’s most likely from New England at the time of enlistment
Probably Italian-American

I found a digital scan of this photo on War Relics Forum, a site dedicated to WWII artifact research. The OP of this photo, MD Helmets, doesn’t have any additional information but did claim he/she purchased it from Bay State Militaria back in 2013.

What do you guys think? Any leads?