Many graves were from WW1, one was of a private who had served with the 20th Engineers. That was a regiment that at the time had over 500 officers and 30,000 men, bigger than any reinforced division that I ever heard of (although most of that 30K never made it to France prior to the Armistice). Primarily made up of lumberjacks and sawmill workers in 49 Engineer Companies (Forestry), it also included 12 road and bridge companies, 36 engineer service companies, plus railroad and quartermaster units. Many of the officers in the Forestry Companies were recruited from the US Forestry Service.
After Pershing's advance HQ, they were the first American unit in France. Many came from here in the the great NW states of Washington and Oregon, but it was the only unit in WW1 that included men from every state in the union. Their casualties were not that large for such a big unit: 95 died when the USS Tuscania was torpedoed by a U-Boat, and at least two that we know of were KIA in the Argonne Forest. But it provided huge benefits for the war effort, not just for the AEF but also for Brit, French, and Canadian allies. Some served in direct support of US infantry divisions. The forestry units harvested French timber for the war effort: bridge timbers, buttress sets for saps, bomb proofing, bunkers, shoring for trenches, railroad ties, 50 and 100 foot tall pilings for piers and bridges, logs for corduroy roads, poles/stakes for barbed wire support poles, duckboards, and millions of cords of fuelwood - all the sinews of war - or at the time that timber was itself considered a munition.
http://www.20thengineers.com/ww1.html
Hey Mike, Long time no hear from. Good on you for visiting cemeteries. There's a great article I linked here http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/may/28/donald-trump-endless-war-memorial-day
ReplyDeleteon the meaning of war vis-vis Memorial Day. I think it's Dyne-O-Mite. My Uncle was a Pionier (combat engineer) in Stalingrad. The gods of fate smiled upon he and other bachelors as they received leaves to Germany before the gates were shut.
Good link Eddie. I've got to read more of Ambrose Bierce, and perhaps rent a video of 'The Old Gringo'.
ReplyDeleteThere were no politicians and no cameras at our cemetery yesterday. But on Monday there probably will be a press photographer there, if so a small time local pol or a wannabee will come out of the woodwork. I'll stay home.
You mentioned your Pionier uncle previously. I bet he had some hairy stories to tell. You should retell some of his history and post it here or elsewhere, for posterity.
Mike, Alas he and my Grandpop were silent about this, furthermore, I was real young at the time. I had to analyze my mom's debrief on that score; I was uncertain about ranking her as a source.
DeleteMy mom passed in Vancouver this March past, she made it to 90. I and the wife went up there to tie up loose ends and arrange for burial. A lot of friends from school moved there, so I'll be going up next year.
The whole "Army-as-loggers" seems to have been a huge feature of WW1. Here in the Pacific NW the Army set up something called the "Spruce Production Division" to cut and saw aircraft timber (see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spruce_Production_Division ) along with other wood products. Apparently the opinion on the effect of the Army's outfit in the timberlands is controversial; supposedly the SPD did help improve working conditions for the guys in the private industry...but supposedly it also help suppress the IWW that was trying to organize the mills and lumber camps.
ReplyDeleteWe tend to forget that a hell of a lot of the "infrastructure" of the United States was designed and built by Army engineers, all the way back to the Earlies...
To use conscripts for such by nature economic activities is a quite obvious and clear example of forced labour. That, of course, is part of the very nature of conscription.
DeleteChief, was the FDR created CCC ever used in working with the Army Corps of Engineers or other Mil Lashups?
DeleteChief -
ReplyDeleteA few Wobblies volunteered for the Spruce Division and for duty in France with the 20th. But most went ahead and registered for the draft. Official IWW policy was to go ahead and register. They were not all hard-core like Frank Little. Most of the union busting of the IWW happened after the war when the Comintern was formed. Here in Washington after the war an Army veteran who was also a IWW member was lynched. Amazing to me that after the war IWW members were beaten, killed, and hounded everywhere, yet the American Socialist Party still thrived and had two members in Congress.
One of my Grandma's brothers was in the IWW, another of her brothers and her husband served in France. Yet she never let the politics come between them.
Eddie:
ReplyDeleteVancouver WA, or BC? Too bad you missed those stories from your Uncle and Grandpa.
BC ...... Did you know that their Cherry Blossoms bloom before DCs', despite being further north? They had a hot spell up there (march 30). I did tell you about Grandpop's adventures in WWII, did I not?
DeleteEddie:
ReplyDeleteNo. Or if you did tell me, the wind blew it right through my ears. Being a great Grandpop myself I frequently get the CRS symptoms. Would be great to hear it in any case. I see you are not one of the barkeeps here. I can put you on the list, or email it to me and I will post it. Or if its a shorty just comment it in here.
Weird about the cherry blooms. I am almost three degrees of latitude south of Vancouver yet mine bloom about the same time as DCs.
What's neat about Vancouver is that the trees are everywhere: public places, and individual houses. Quite amazing since the majority of Vancouver's neighborhoods feature high rise buildings made up of apartments and condos, some of the friends living in them. All of this because of the bubble like pricing of individual homes, both new and old of a certain respectable size (one Mil- two Mil and higher, Can $).
ReplyDeleteonly a matter of time before it bursts I will add Grandpa's adventures once I get pictures.
Yeah, I heard the new Chinese millionaires bought like crazy in BC. The provincial authorities encouraged it. I believe they are starting to move into Seattle also buying up golf courses, waterside restaurants, and several mansions.
ReplyDeleteMy old High School algebra teacher, who was at the Chosen Reservoir with Chesty, is probably spinning in his grave.