They don’t get much better than this! Check out the detail on the equipment – this is the first photo in my collection that shows the M1911 pistol lanyard hanging from the right breast pocket. I’ve owned a few in my day, but have always sold them to buy photos! The soldier is proudly posing with his slightly dented helmet and his M1911 and leather holster proudly presented. A top ten shot for me!
Finding nice portraits of doughboys posing in studio is becoming harder and harder given the scarcity and high prices on eBay. This is one of the better examples in my collection, and although it doesn’t have a unit designation associated with it, I felt that it would go well with my current theme of WWI RPPCs postings on PortraitsofWar. Enjoy!
310th Engineer in Archangel, Russia
Don’t know too much about the US involvement in Russia during WWI? Don’t worry, neither did I until a few years ago. The above photo was acquired from a poorly listed eBay auction, and depicts a 310th Engineer posing for the camera in a Russian studio in the city of Archangel. Photos of “Polar Bear” soldiers are incredibly rare, especially front-taken studio portraits. I’ve seen a FEW example of Polar Bears posing back home, but only a couple taken overseas. This one is particularly rare, as it shows a member of the 310th Engineers, who only sent ONE battalion of soldiers up to Russia.
Want to read more about the Polar Bears? Visit the site below!
An excerpt taken from the Bentley Historical Library at the University of Michigan’s website:
(http://polarbears.si.umich.edu/index.pl?node=polar%20bear%20history)
“The American military intervention at Archangel, Russia, at the end of World War I, nicknamed the “Polar Bear Expedition,” is a strange episode in American history. Ostensibly sent to Russia to prevent a German advance and to help reopen the Eastern Front, American soldiers found themselves fighting Bolshevik revolutionaries for months after the Armistice ended fighting in France.
Because many of the American troops involved in the intervention were from Michigan, the Michigan Historical Collections has long been interested in documenting this episode. This guide describes the Collections’ holdings of manuscripts and photographs as well as maps and primary printed source materials relating to the Polar Bear Expedition.
During the summer of 1918, the U. S. Army’s 85th Division, made up primarily of men from Michigan and Wisconsin, completed its training at Fort Custer, outside of Battle Creek, Michigan, and proceeded to England. While the rest of the division was preparing to enter the fighting in France, some 5,000 troops of the 339th Infantry and support units (one battalion of the 310th Engineers, the 337th Field Hospital, and the 337th Ambulance Company) were issued Russian weapons and equipment and sailed for Archangel, a Russian port on the White Sea, 600 miles north of Moscow.
When American troops reached their destination in early September, they joined an international force commanded by the British that had been sent to northern Russia for purposes never made clear. Whatever the reasons for the intervention, however, the force was fighting the Bolsheviks who had taken power in Petrograd and Moscow the previous winter.”
Yet another great Yankee Division photo for my collection; this shot shows a 104th Infantry Regiment soldier wearing his unit designation on his cap. He is also sporting the United States National Guard collar disc. What a great image! He is proudly wearing his French fourragère on his left shoulder. The 104th Infantry Regiment was one of a small handful of WWI US units to be awarded the fourragère for gallantry. Please read the article below for more info!
A Mystery…………..
A 1918 article in the Springfield, MA newspaper The Republican
Enemy Storm Troops Hurled Back By Impetuous Yankees Regiment Reveals Its Valor and Fighting Qualities in the Fierce Combats of Bois Brule.
By AMICO J. BARONE
Apremont!The name spells horror and glory for the 104th. In April 1918, the troops from Springfield, Massachusetts achieved a distinction never before won by American troops in the entire history of our armed forces. So valorously did they conduct themselves in the Bois Brule, a wood close to Apermont, that the French Government decorated the colors of the regiment with the Croix de Guerre. It was the first time such an honor had ever come to an American unit. In addition the regimental commander and 116 other officers and men had the bronze cross with its red and green ribbon pinned on their breasts. The regimental citation read: “For greatest fighting spirit and self-sacrifice during action of April10, 12 and 13, 1918. Suffering from heavy bombardments, and attack by very strong German Forces, the regiment succeeded in preventing their dangerous advance, and with greatest energy reconquered, at the point of bayonet, the few ruined trenches which had to be abandoned at the first onset, at the same tome making prisoners”. In a general order issued a few days after the Bois Brule engagements, the French general Passaga declared: “During this fight the American troops gave proof not only of their splendid courage, which we know, but also of a brotherhood in arms which was absolute and ever present. With such men as these the cause of liberty is sure to triumph.”
Continued below: The First American Croix de Guerre to be awarded to an entire regiment. This Medal was also given to Captain George Roberts, and the bronze frame was specially cast with the infantry tools of the day around the frame. The frame mold was broke and never reproduced to be one of a kind. The picture is Colonel George A. Roberts, Commander of the 104th Infantry Westfield Massachusetts.
Continued: Bois Brule was in La Reine sector on the southeasterly face of the St. Mihiel salient, a rough and ragged terrain where virtually all the tactical advantage lay with the enemy. In 1914 the sector had seen violent fighting, but as the war of attrition developed, it became moderately quiet with a sort of tacit understanding between the opposing forces to permit the situation to remain unchanged. The town of Apremont, whose name will be forever linked up with the 104th Regiment, lay outside the Allied lines. In the distance, grim and desolate Mont Sec loomed up as a splendid vantage point from which the enemy could observe the American positions. Difficult Spot to Defend.
The 26th Division took over the sector the first of April, the left of the line being assigned to the 104th. On the immediate left of the Western Massachusetts outfit was the 10th Colonial French Division. The regiments sub sector in the Bois Brule formed an awkward, narrow salient, hard to defend. The trenches were in poor condition, there was inadequate protection against shelling, and the marshy land made trench drainage difficult. The third battalion of the 104th, under command of Capt. George A. Roberts of Springfield, MA., immediately went into the forward position. The battalion commander, noting the small salient extending out and realizing how simple it would be for the enemy to pinch in on it and make prisoners of the men holding the position, asked and received permission to straighten out the line. K Co., under the command of First Lieutenant George Hosmer of Springfield, MA., performed this operation successfully. For some unaccountable reason, the French had persisted in maintaining the small and unimportant salient and had often lost prisoners to the enemy who would come over and successfully pinch it out. During the first three of four days the outfit held the sector, it was subjected to a harassing enemy fire. On April 5 the shelling grew in intensity and for the following four days the area was severely pounded by the enemy artillery. Evidently, an action was impending and the Germans were bent on shaking the moral of the troops by the concentration of shells.
Early on the morning of the 10th, the enemy blasting became particularly severe. The huge projectiles from the German minenwerfers came thundering down on the positions held by the third Battalion, shattering trenches and subjecting the men to terrific punishment. Capt. Roberts sent back word that help was needed to evacuate the wounded and suggested that the bandsmen be used as stretcher bearers. The suggestion was acted upon and the valiant work these men did under fire won for several of their number decorations from the French and American Governments. .As the dawn crept over Bois Brule on April 10, the enemy troops made their appearance on the front held by the 3rd Battalion – a hillcrest. They came on relentlessly, but that assault wave of storm troops failed to dislodge the men of Western Massachusetts. It was a severe test of arms in which much technique of warfare was forgotten by the green Yanks who nevertheless battled vigorously and effectively to beat back the veteran enemy.
The artillery fire also was of great aid in stemming that first tide. Thus for the moment the 3rd Battalion had checked the attack on the night of the 11th despite heavy enemy shelling, the second Battalion came in to relieve the 3rd which had held the position for 10 days. On the 12th the enemy came over again with renewed energy. This time the French on the American’s left fell back, exposing the left flank of the Yanks. But the Americans rose to this emergency and by a vigorous counter-attack, driving back remnants of enemy groups.
Gives Credit To Men By the 13th the affair of Bois Brule was over and the 104th had conclusively demonstrated that it could withstand the attack of seasoned troops. The men had revealed courage and resourcefulness and the officers had shown real leadership under trying conditions. A day or two later Capt. Roberts was promoted to the rank of major for the splendid manner in which he had handled his battalion. An incident characteristic of his modesty occurred at that time. The divisional commander, Gen. Edwards drove up to battalion headquarters and seeing Capt. Roberts he called him over to congratulate him. Capt. Roberts said: “The credit belongs to the men of the battalion, General, not to me.” The General answered: “You would say that.” On April 28, the regiment was lined up at Bocq, not far from where it had demonstrated its mettle, and there Gen. Passaga decorated the colors of the outfit and scores of men and officers with the Croix de Guerre. His voice trembling with emotion, the French officer pinned the red and green ribbons to the 104th colors, saying: “I am proud to decorate the flag of a regiment which has shown such fortitude and courage.”
Capt. Roberts was among those decorated with the French cross. He was also recommended for the American Distinguished Serviced Cross. Later, in the Bouconville sector, he was slightly wounded and in July he was transferred to provost marshal duty in Lanon.
Not every WWI photo in my collection has a name inscribed on the reverse, but this one comes with both a name and a modern day connection. After buying the image on eBay with only minor excitement, I was pleased to find a name and address inscribed on the back giving me a glimmer of hope in identifying the soldier. After doing a quick search on findagrave.com (a great site for cemetery information), I was able to find the name of the cemetery where Mr.Nablo is buried. Without much hope, I submitted a grave photograph request and was astonished when, within a few days, my request was fulfilled with a snapshot of his grave marker. I added his photo to the findagrave.com site and wiped my hands of the issue. One week later, the grandson of Charles Nablo emailed me! I sent him the photo in the mail, and helped reunite a lost photo to it’s rightful owner.
Authors Collection
My recent trip to the local Burlington antique shop yielded some WWI gold; yet another WWI UVM panoramic photo to add to my extensive collection of war photography. This one was taken in August of 1918 in front of Williams Hall at the University of Vermont. I spent countless hours studying anthropology and archaeology in the hallowed halls of Williams, and I know the front facade well. From the looks of it, not much has changed! This photo shows Company C of the US Army Training Detachment which was housed at UVM in the months preceding the end of the war.
Looking at some of the details of the photo actually helped elucidate a bit of Louis McAllister’s business. Check out the writing on each of the benches – it appears that McAllister wrote his name on each bench in his typical flowery style. Very interesting!
Great shot of a pair of 89th Division soldiers posing in a German studio. Note the 89th Division patch variant with the cornflower center.
Click for Larger View
The large format of WWI panoramic photos is not an easy scan, but after scanning this yardlong photo in seven sections, I was able to seamlessly splice the photo together using Photoshop. The results are an eye pleasing display of WWI doughboys sitting in a French street. One could spent hours looking at each battle wizened face, or the citizens and scenery in the background.
131st Machine Gun Battalion – 36th Division
Using the magical power of GoogleEarth, I was able to track down the exact street corner in this photo. Not much has changed in 100 years!
Saint Aubin Des Coudrais, Sarthe France
A recent eBay purchase will add yet another mascot dog photo to my collection. The 28th Division keystone is clearly visible on the mascot’s vest, as well as two overseas chevrons. Very cool.
Portraits of War 
