Highlights of the World War I digitization project, part 1

Today I would like to share with you some of the great resources I have been able to digitize as a part of this World War I project.

One of our contributors, the Rice County Historical Society, is home to an amazing collection of World War I records created by the Rice County War Records Committee. This committee was formed while World War I was underway primarily to create a historical record of those who served in the war from Rice County. The RCHS’s collection includes a basic index of names for servicemen arranged by township or city, a huge ledger with double-sided pages for everyone who served, and individual soldier files – many of which include original induction cards, photographs, correspondence, and more.

Individual soldier file for Frank Paul Delesha of Faribault, Rice County Historical Society collection

Since the entire collection takes up two wooden four-drawer file cabinets, the Collaborative has decided to scan only the ledger book and a small selection of individual soldier files. We chose to include folders from soldiers who came from various Rice County cities, villages, and townships that contained unique stories. And what stories they tell!

In summary form, we can learn about the soldiers’ families, residences and occupation prior to service, military training, ranks and departments, stations and battles, whether or not they were injured or killed, and (in some cases) what they did after the war. As a whole, this digitized collection gives us all a very broad perspective on the variety of ways men (and some women) could serve in the military during this time.

Individually, we get snapshots of experiences that are fascinating on many levels, not only for war history buffs. Genealogists, family historians, social historians, and more can find something of interest in this collection.

For example, the record for Roy James Kallak includes a personal account of life in the United States Navy, written by Roy himself. Part of his job was to escort troopships across the Atlantic Ocean for service in the trenches. They were constantly on the lookout for enemy submarines hoping to torpedo the American soldiers. At the end of his account, Roy writes:

It may be well to add, in the interests of those Minnesota “Leather-Necks,” especially the Faribault boys who left New York with our convoy Oct. 13th 1918, that I have since learned…that the ship has been officially notified through the Navy Department, by information received from Germany, that that convoy was followed by a submarine for thirteen hours, it being unable to get a shot in because of the series of zig-zag courses we run [sic].

Thanks to Roy and his Navy crew, those Faribault boys crossed safely over the ocean.

Portrait of Roy Kallak, Rice County Historical Society collection

Item of the Week:

Here is Private John Fredrickson’s handwritten poem about his unit in World War I: Company L of The 54th Pioneers, who were cross-trained in combat engineering and infantry tactics, and often were responsible for building the roads for their fellow troops – all while under heavy bombardment.

The Pioneers, Private John Fredrickson. Rice County Historical Society Collection.

Apparently the Pioneer Infantry units were often overlooked in stories about the war, and Fredrickson felt the need to laud their efforts when he wrote:

We read about the dough boys and their valor, which is true,
And of the valiant part they played for old Red, White and Blue;
We read about the H.F.A. [heavy field artillery] and their ever roaring guns,
Also the heavy part they played in blowing up the Hun;
The Infantry, the Cavalry, the hardy engineers,
But we never read a single line about “The Pioneers.”

He continues:

The Pioneers, Private John Fredrickson. Rice County Historical Society Collection.

He sums up his work in this way:

We didn’t really fight the battles,
Nor really chase the Hun,
Our bit was just to keep on working,
And not to shoot a gun.
But tell your friends and neighbors, Frank
We helped old Bill’s retreat
For every road was fixed for loads
For troops and trucks and tanks.

Read more about Pvt. John Fredrickson and see his photographs in his war service record on the Collaborative.

Two of the major themes we are exploring at the Northfield Historical Society for our centennial commemoration of World War I are service and sacrifice, both at home and abroad. While going through some of the individual soldier records in the Rice County War Records Commission collection at the Rice County Historical Society (2 file cabinets full!) I have already found a few examples of both service and sacrifice from Northfield-area citizens.

Delphine Carpenter in uniform. Rice County Historical Society collection.

Miss Delphine Carpenter is one of the few women included in the files. She was from Northfield and served the U.S. Navy as a Yeoman 3 Class Female, one of the few ways women could directly serve the U.S. military during the war. She was stationed at Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. for the duration of the war until she was discharged in 1920.

Ralph W. Cornell in uniform. Rice County Historical Society collection.

Ralph W. Cornell was drafted on June 25, 1918 in Faribault. He served with the infantry in the battles of Argonne Forest in November of 1918, and was badly wounded by shrapnel in his neck and shoulder. After he returned to civilian life, he only worked two days before his wound opened and he was unable to work consistently for years after he returned. He sent this photograph to the War Records Committee along with a letter describing when it was taken:

Letter from Ralph Cornell to Frank Kaisersatt, 1919. Rice County Historical Society collection.

“From appearances,” he wrote, “you would hardly think me badly injured would you?” He continued, “Still the left arm at that time was paralized [sic] and an ugly hole through the base of neck and left shoulder also a portion of the spine shot away, and since then have had one rib removed etc.” Living with the realities of his wound, he concluded that his arm “hasn’t weakened yet but may get thin some day.”

Arthur H. Drewitz in uniform. Rice County Historical Society collection.

Finally, some of the greatest sacrifices were borne by the families of soldiers. Arthur Drewitz served with the infantry in France from August to October 1918. He was declared missing in action since October 8, 1918.

Telegram sent to Arthur Drewitz’s parents, December 1918. Rice County Historical Society collection.

His mother wrote the following letter in March of 1919 asking the Rice County War Records Committee to track down any information they could about her “Dear boy” Arthur. She asked them to do what they could so that she “may know what has become of him” and to “find out if he is alive yet or if he is in some prisoners camp yet or any place in Germany.” She had not heard from her son since his last letter of September 15, 1918.

Letter from Mrs. Hermann Drewitz, March 26, 1919. Rice County Historical Society collection.

Many of the soldiers initially listed as missing in action were later classified as killed in action, but their bodies were never recovered. Can you imagine the pain of not knowing anything about your son like Mrs. Hermann Drewitz? Or living with chronic pain from shrapnel wounds? Even despite these sacrifices, though, most of those who served remained proud of their service. Even Private Cornell, disabled as he was, said, “I am sure proud to say I did my little bit over there for Minnesota.”

The full records of these individuals, among others, will soon be posted on the Northfield History Collaborative site. You can view more of them in person in Faribault at the Rice County Historical Society.

One of the reasons we chose to focus our digitization efforts on World War I materials this year is the fact that there is a massive collection of documents from the Rice County War Records Commission at the Rice County Historical Society. But they have never been digitized, so our ability to share the information contained within is limited.

I am pleased to say that I have recently begun the long process of scanning one of the most important documents in that collection – a massive bound ledger with two-sided pages dedicated to individual soldiers who came from Rice County, Minnesota. The pages contain family history, enlistment data, department and rank served, and any other miscellaneous information (often including Army serial numbers, name of ship that carried them to Europe, where stationed, which battles fought, and date and location of discharge).

Cover of the Record of Soldiers in World War I, Rice County Historical Society collection (2010.119.04)

The State of Minnesota created the War Records Commission in 1918 to ensure that the activities of Minnesota individuals and units were properly documented in a central location, usually based in each county. In prior wars, there had been no organized system to collect this kind of data, and some veterans had difficulties proving that they had even served in the military. State leadership realized if they did not work to collect this information from this Great War, it would be more difficult to bring it all together before too much time had passed.

The Rice County War Records Commission was based in Faribault and Frank M. Kaisersatt, a prominent citizen from Wheatland Township, was its chairman. Over the course of about five years, the commission located and recorded the information from as many men who served in some capacity during World War I as they could find. Some records exist only as a name, with no other information. Others offer a wealth of knowledge, including even names of commanders or more. A few note that the man was killed “somewhere in France,” which highlights the fact that tracking down some of these men – some of which had no family at home – was very difficult considering the circumstances of conflict and disease.

Excerpt from Thomas Ansems’ record

While going through even just a few of these records, I am amazed by the variety of ways in which these people from Rice County served during the war. Some were cooks. Some joined the medical corps, or sanitation, or the air service. Others were in the ammunition trains. Some barely made it to Europe before the end of the war in November 1918, so they stayed over with the American Expeditionary Force as the Army of Occupation in Germany from 1918 through 1919. One soldier enlisted in the Student Army Training Corps (S.A.T.C.) at Carleton College on October 11, 1918, exactly one month before the armistice. He trained there for only two months before being discharged, but his record exists in this book, as well.

Excerpt from Claude Revier Babcock’s record

And they had a variety of backgrounds, as well. Considering Rice County’s agriculture-based economy, many servicemen were farmers, but there were also teachers, mechanics, a “Proprietor of a Machine Shop and Foundry,” and a professor of chemistry at St. Olaf College who wasn’t even born in Rice County.

Excerpt from Arthur Van Krogh Anderson’s record

While there are many pages to go before this book will be shared in its entirety on the Northfield History Collaborative, I can already see how it will add to our understanding of Northfield-area experiences during World War I – which is exactly the purpose of this digitization project. Stay tuned for more updates!

Note: there are many resources out there on the state level on the War Records Commission in Minnesota, or World War I military service records in general. They include:

• A Library Guide to Military Records of World War I at the Minnesota Historical Society’s Gale Family Library
• Family History Resources for Military Records available from the Minnesota Historical Society based on type of record or particular conflict
• A Finding Aid for World War I soldier photographs from the Minnesota War Records Commission at the Minnesota Historical Society