Thanks for the link!
Thanks for posting these great shots.
I once invited in to my Civil Air Patrol Cadet Squadron a veteran of WWI. He was a German veteran. He told several great stories about life in the trenches. One that I remember was when he was leading a brand new Lieutenant through the trenches out to their unit. They heard an incoming artillery shell and the Lieutenant dove to the bottom of the trench. This experienced guy just ducked down a little and leaned against the trench wall. The shell landed and blew their trench walls in. Rescuers dug him out in time but the Lieutenant, lying at the bottom of the trench, was dead by the time they got him dug out.
He also handed around his Iron Cross. He said that it was a real Iron Cross, not like the ones given out by the Austrian Corporal.
That looks like fun.
Not.
I got the history of the 113th Antiaircraft Artillery Gun Battalion (WWII) from my uncle today. My grandfather wrote the the history of Battery D (Dog Battery). I put it on scribd because it came to me as a 76 page pdf.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/158942992/113th-Antiaircraft-Artillery-Gun-Battalion-History-All
Ping for later
Thanks for posting. My great-uncle was with the Canadian Expeditionary Forces in WWI. Killed in action in France. He’s buried in a British Military Cemetery there. I’ve got a picture of him in uniform on horseback.
VERY nice. Thanks.
My daughter had the opportunity just this past spring to tour some of the WW1 battlefields for a college course. She took some tremendous pictures but said the pix didn't do it justice...the experience was quite moving.
Forty-five years ago I often golfed with several WW1 vets, a couple of whom had been gassed in their trenches. I made sure they knew I appreciated them and their service.
Thanks for the photos.
My grandfather was in the 307th Ammunition Train of the 82nd Division. Although late to the front, they were hip deep in the Meuse-Argonne offensive.
The 307th was split into truck and horse units and Pop, being a farmer, was not in the automotive portion.
He told stories when I was young-like delivering artillery shells to the guns then being run off by the crews because the resupply wagons would draw enemy fire.
The worst was when he was running down a road with an officer when he came upon a poor dying soul (of unknown origin) crawling across the trail with his intestines out.
He wanted to stop to help but the fire was coming ever closer and the officer turned the whip on Pop forcing him to run over the man to get back to safety.
This bothered him greatly to his dying day.
What a sad thing was this war.
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Please, put me on your ping list if you have more of these coming.
I am Walter Koessler’s granddaughter, and he passed away in 1966 when I was seven years old. I have wonderful childhood memories of him. He was a very kind and gentle man. I know very little about this part of his life, though I am blessed to have some of the color pencil renderings he made during this time, of churches and farms where he happened to be. He went on to be a successful art director in Hollywood from the 30’s to the 50’s.