USA > Iowa > Scott County > History of the war activities of Scott County Iowa, 1917-1918 > Part 5
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Very respectfully, J. T. KERR.
Adjutant General, in charge of office.
39
Recruiting for the Navy
The Naval Recruiting Station at Davenport was a busy place all through the war, and inquiry of Lieut. Geo. E. Ketterer, Recruiting Officer in charge of the main station at Des Moines, brings word that enlistments here were most gratifying in number. In the course of the letter he says:
U. S. NAVY RECRUITING STATION, OLD POSTOFFICE BUILDING, DES MOINES, IOWA, March 27, 1919.
Editor of History of War Activities of Scott County, Iowa:
In reply to yours of March 17th, I am enclosing herewith table show- ing enlistments and enrollments at the Des Moines main station and the various sub-stations during the war, in which you will see that Davenport was second of the sub-stations in the state, and I am of the opinion that it would have been the leading station had it not been for the short distance to Chicago and Great Lakes, as a great many recruits took advantage of the training station at Great Lakes for the purpose of enlisting and getting into the service as soon as possible.
Of course, Des Moines takes a big lead for the reason that all en- listments coming from various parts of the state direct to Des Moines are credited to Des Moines regardless of what counties they came from, and the enlistments and enrollments credited to the various sub- stations are those that applied in person at the respective sub-stations.
A history is now being compiled at Great Lakes of the war activities and the results of different recruiting stations, and I was informed while in Chicago by one of the men in charge of the work, that per capita, Iowa is leading the entire United States in the number of en- listments and enrollments.
The station at Davenport during the war was in charge of Chief Master at Arms James M. Sullivan, now deceased, and he was ably assisted in all his activities by I. Deutsch, of the Deutsch Advertising . System, who was very active at all times in assisting the Naval Recruit- ing Station.
The success of recruiting is not by any means due to the navy re- cruiting force but the great assistance given by the daily papers of the state as well as the weekly publications and the hearty co-operation from all organizations in the various cities, made it possible to make such a wonderful record for this state.
Yours very truly,
GEO. E. KETTERER, Lieut. U. S. N. R. F., Recruiting Officer.
Enlistments and enrollments as reported by Lieut. Ketterer, April 6, 1917, to November 11, 1918:
Station
Enrollments
Enlistments
Total
Des Moines
1,959
2,235
4,194
Burlington
144
219
363
Cedar Rapids
231
449
680
Davenport
196
353
549
Dubuque
134
15
149
Ft. Dodge
183
276
459
Mason City
151
162
313
Red Oak
....
132
100
232
Waterloo
. . . .
146
309
455
Totals
3,276
4,118
7,394
.
40
The American Red Cross Scott County Chapter
BY CLARENCE M. COCHRANE, Secretary
The aged governor of one of the stricken and battered French prov- inces not long ago stated that, though France had long known of America's greatness, it remained for the American Red Cross in this war to reveal America's heart. The Scott County Chapter of the Red Cross is but a small unit of that wonderful organization, yet the truth of the remark is better realized when one contemplates the spirit of sacrifice and patriotism which has pervaded the work of the Red Cross in this community. It is a glorious record upon the pages of local his- tory. No words can pay adequate tribute to the loyalty, determination, and splendid efforts of thousands upon thousands of the women of this county, the children who did their bit through the Junior Red Cross, and the men who gave their counsel and their financial support.
While the local chapter was officially designated as the "Davenport Chapter," its jurisdiction extended throughout all of Scott county, and a big part of its support came from the people of the rural districts.
This review necessarily must be a limited one, but some idea of the results obtained by the local chapter during the war may be gathered from the following facts:
Within ten days after the United States entered the war, April 6, 1917, the chapter was organized, officers and directors elected, commit- tees appointed, auxiliaries perfected, and in a short time the work was well under way. Officers and committee chairmen were:
Chairman-Charles Grilk.
Vice-Chairman-Mrs. E. C. Roberts.
Secretary-C. M. Cochrane.
Assistant Secretary-Anna Garstang.
Treasurer-Charles Shuler.
Assistant Treasurer-Louis G. Bein.
Surgical Dressings-Mrs. J. Reed Lane.
Knitting-Mrs. Elizabeth Birdsall.
Garments-Mrs. Walter Chambers.
Home Service-Mrs. C. A. Ficke.
Canteen-Mrs. Dick R. Lane.
Junior-Mrs. Julius Ficke and Mrs. A. O. Sheriff.
Motor Corps-Miss Alice French.
Registration and Personnel-Miss Anna Garstang.
Emergency Relief-J. L. Hecht.
Membership-Dr. Raymond E. Peck.
Finance-Joe R. Lane.
County Branches-Mrs. Brett M. Cobb.
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42
HISTORY OF WAR ACTIVITIES
The first efforts were directed toward a campaign for membership. Previous to our entrance into the war there were probably not a dozen members of the Red Cross in the county-in fact the total membership in the whole United States had been less than 50,000. A short local campaign resulted in applications for 4,748 new memberships; at the time of the first Christmas roll call, in December, 1917, more than 21,000 people either renewed their memberships or joined the organization as new members. The armistice came before another Christmas campaign, but in December, 1918, a total of more than 14,000 people joined once more and constitute the present strength of the chapter.
Within a few weeks of the organization, suitable rooms were turned over by the Davenport Commercial Club for the active workers; branches were at work in the county; additional rooms were soon donated by the Putnam estate; classes in instruction were being held and the workers were ready to begin their task. The following depart- ments made up the complete organization: Surgical Dressings, Knit- ting, Garments, Educational Classes, Home Service Section, Canteen Work, Junior Red Cross, Motor Corps, Registration Department, Mem- bership, Finance, Bureau of Communication, Emergency Relief, Bureau of Personnel, and Bureau of Conservation.
County branches were established at the following points: Big Rock, Fairview, Long Grove, Lincoln Township, Le Claire, Maysville, McCausland, Pleasant Valley, Princeton, Rockingham, Walcott, Blue Grass (town), Blue Grass rural routes, Bettendorf, Buffalo, Eldridge, Dixon, Donahue, and New Liberty.
Other units were perfected at all the public and parochial schools, the churches, in clubs, small groups, social gatherings, and other organ- izations in the city of Davenport. They were so numerous that the limits of this article will not permit a list of them, but they are a part of the permanent records of the society and incorporated into its own reports.
The Surgical Dressings department completed a total of 420,620 articles and delivered them to central headquarters at Chicago, the Rock Island Arsenal, and the Emergency Hospital in Davenport. The Knitting department reports a total of 23,079 knitted articles made and properly delivered. A total of 13,865 hospital and refugee garments was turned in by the Garment department.
These articles were the products of women's hands, and by the same token infinitely more precious than could have been the output of factories or machines. Going into the operating rooms of hospitals, to homeless or needy refugees, and carrying comfort to the American boys in the field, they conveyed a message of love from the women of this community entirely distinct from the great money value attaching to their handiwork.
The children of the city and rural schools furnished 6,214 articles of wearing apparel, pillows, quilts, comforters, etc., besides large quan- tities of other material, such as bedside tables made by boys of the Manual Training Schools, scrap books, etc.
The Canteen Committee of the local chapter worked jointly with the committee from Rock Island, meeting the troop. trains in that city
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SCOTT COUNTY, IOWA
where the stops were usually made. The real activities of this depart- ment began in the winter of 1918, after the signing of the armistice and the movement of troops westward; they are still carrying on and will be busy for some time to come. Up to July 1, 1919, a total of 65,479 men had been served with thousands of sandwiches, packages of chew- ing gum, and cigarettes, crackerjack, chocolate, etc.
The Home Service section of the chapter established its headquarters and began the work of caring for the families of soldiers and sailors, loaning funds until the proper allowances could be secured from the government, if necessary giving outright financial assistance, securing free medical aid from the local physicians, surgeons, and dentists when required, and in short performing a thousand duties which had a great deal to do with keeping up the morale of the men who had entered the service. The efforts of this department did not stop with the end of hostilities; it is still doing a tremendous amount of good work, and its activities will not cease until all the men who went away to war have returned and are once more established in civil pursuits.
That the benefits of the Red Cross are not always confined to the field of battle and military hospitals was amply demonstrated during the influenza epidemic which swept over this community last fall and winter, and through the quick action of the Emergency Relief Com- mittee, working in conjunction with the medical authorities at the Rock Island Arsenal, the local situation was met promptly and it is certain that fatalities from the dread disease were kept down to a minimum through the efforts of the general committee in charge. The Red Cross instituted, managed, and paid for the Emergency Hospital, organized and fully equipped it to meet the demands required of it. A great ser- vice was performed, and hundreds of patients were given the best of care and attention. The work of this institution brought from the Commandant at the Aresnal a personal letter of the highest commenda- tion. With almost 14,000 men employed at the Arsenal and living in the Tri-Cities, the Commandant stated: "The fact that we have suffered practically no interference in our work on account of this epidemic is due entirely to the efforts of your committee and the health officers of the three cities."
The Emergency Relief Committee received the hearty and willing co-operation of the Motor Corps section of the Red Cross Chapter, which responded energetically to every call made upon it. The Motor Corps in fact was always ready for any call from any other department of the chapter; its services were invaluable and its accomplishments worthy of the highest praise.
The Bureau of Personnel was in operation but a short time before its activities were stopped by the national headquarters, immediately after the signing of the armistice; its work had to do with the recruit- ing of young women for overseas duties, including canteen work, hospital services, and clerical positions. Ten applications were re- ceived by this chapter, and a complete file was sent in for each ap- plicant, one being accepted for active duty. The Bureau of Conserva- tion had charge of various drives for the collection of clothing for
44
HISTORY OF WAR ACTIVITIES
Belgian refugees, nut-shells for use in manufacturing gas masks, metals for various war purposes, and other objects.
Financially, the local chapter of the Red Cross was organized and carried on in the soundest and most substantial manner. Under the regulations of the national society, a portion of the membership dues were retained for chapter use, and the balance forwarded to head- quarters in Washington and later in Chicago for the central division. Donations, proceeds of benefits, etc., poured into the treasury from in- numerable sources. As the expenses of the chapter for materials and supplies increased, it was decided to start a system of monthly cash pledges for the maintenance of the organization, and an average of $2,500 monthly came from this source alone up to the time it was dis- continued, December 1, 1918. In the two War Fund campaigns 25 per cent of the contributions were retained by the chapter and the re- mainder sent to the War Council at Washington. One item of more than $12,000 was received as net proceeds of the Red Cross County Fair, given in August, 1918, at Forest Park in one day, when more than 13,000 people were in attendance. The following statement shows in detail the receipts under five general heads, and the total of disburse- ments and the cash on hand April 1, 1919, covering approximately two years of time. A monthly report has been made up and forwarded to the central division office, and the American Red Cross is thus able to keep in touch with its chapters throughout the nation.
Received from memberships. $ 42,191.15
Received from donations, etc. 50,306.23
Received from monthly pledges. 30,038.75
Received from one-fourth of War Fund. 15,005.08
Received from County Fair. 12,617.06
$150,158.27
Disbursed
111,831.20
Balance April 1, 1919 $ 38,327.07
Total contributions received in the county for the first War Fund were $31,000 and in the second War Fund, $61,932. The 25 per cent re- turned out of the first fund did not go into the ordinary chapter receipts, but was administered as a separate fund.
This report can best be concluded by a quotation from Henry P. Davison, the chairman of the American Red Cross War Council, in his annual message to the people of the United States last October:
"The American Red Cross has become not so much an organization as a great movement, seeking to embody in organized form the spirit of service, the spirit of sacrifice-in short, all that is best and highest in the ideals and aspirations of our country. Indeed we cannot but believe that this wonderful spirit, which service in and for the Red Cross has evoked in this war, is destined to become in our national life an element of permanent value."
Let it be so in Davenport and Scott County, Iowa.
The Home Service Section American Red Cross
BY MRS. C. A. FICKE, Chairman
The Home Service Section of the Civilian Relief of the Davenport Red Cross has now been actively at work for over eighteen months.
How great a help it has been during that time to hundreds of men in the service and their families, the public will perhaps never fully realize.
With its officers, members, and assistants pledged to secrecy, all those whose husbands, sons, brothers, or sweethearts were in the service felt free to come to the Home Service with their troubles, knowing that they could do so in confidence.
It was not until after the other departments of the Davenport Chap- ter of the Red Cross had been fully organized that the Home Service was established.
Its officers and members as originally appointed were Mrs. C. A. Ficke, Chairman; Mrs. Lillian Moore, Secretary; Mrs. J. J. Richardson, Mrs. Nathaniel French, and Messrs. Charles Shuler, Charles Grilk, and William Heuer.
After a few months Mrs. George White succeeded Mrs. Moore as Secretary. Mrs. Richardson and Mrs. French retired as members after six months of most efficient service.
In its ever-increasing work the Home Service had the able assistance of Mrs. Cora M. Compton, Miss Helen Seiffert, Miss Marie Lorenzen, Mrs. Thomas Sharon, Mrs. Charles J. Johnson, Mrs. Arthur D. Ficke, and Miss Cossette Jones in the office, and these women also acted as friendly visitors together with Miss Elizabeth Putnam, Mrs. W. H. Adylette, Mrs. J. H. Buck, Mrs. C. R. Baker, Miss Mina Collins, Mrs. Anna Vannier, Mrs. J. W. Cooper, Mrs. Ernst Wilckens, Miss Alice Croul, Mrs. Fred Crouch, Mrs. C. T. Darling, Miss Margaret Durnin, Mrs. H. L. Huebotter, Miss Anna Haller, Mrs. O. J. Hickey, Miss Louise Henigbaum, Miss Auguste Pasche, Mrs. W. G. Smith, Mrs. L. B. Somerby, and Miss Jennie Teele.
A Home Service chairman in each of the ninteen branches in the townships and smaller towns of the county co-operated with the Home Service Office in Davenport in investigating cases.
It need scarcely be stated that all the officers, members, and as- sistants gave their services free.
In the beginning the Home Service had its headquarters at the rooms of the Ladies Industrial Relief Society. Later they were moved to the rooms of the Davenport Commercial Club, and finally when its work assumed large proportions, and there was need for greater privacy, the Home Service accepted the offer of an office, rent free, at No. 22612 West Third street.
45
46
HISTORY OF WAR ACTIVITIES
During most of the time the office hours of the Home Service were from 9 until 12 o'clock daily, except on Sundays and holidays. The after- noons were devoted by its officers and members to visits to the families of the men in the service. Lately, however, when work greatly in- creased, the headquarters were kept open all day, and during rush hours all the women members and a number of the assistants were in attendance.
The services rendered by the Home Service were of many kinds. The work was highly confidential, and much of it required great tact. While this branch of the Red Cross originally intended to limit its work to the care of dependent families of soldiers and sailors, it soon found it necessary to extend its activities far beyond these limits.
At first neither the men in the service nor their dependents came to the Home Service for advice or help. To the contrary, advice and help were thrust upon them.
The men from Scott county who had enlisted or had been drafted were appealed to in person or by letter or circulars to take out the in- surance for the protection of their dependents, which the government was wisely offering.
This appeal was followed up by another appeal to the dependents of these men, urging them to plead with their husbands, fathers, and sons in the service to avail themselves of this insurance. Had these appeals not been heeded some families in Scott county would now doubtless suffer want.
In the spring of 1918 there came another difficult task. The War Risk Insurance Bureau had fallen down lamentably on its promise to send to dependents promptly the allotments taken from the pay of the men in the service plus the allowance to be added by the government. In this emergency the Home Service was appealed to, and when, in many cases, correspondence extending over months failed to bring the promised allotments and allowances so unjustly withheld, the Home Service advanced to these dependents the funds necessary to bridge them over.
The Home Service was prepared for and endeavored to meet all other emergencies. It kept in touch with the families of the men in the service through friendly visits. From all the physicians and den- tists of the city it secured promises to donate their services to these families. From the hospitals it secured for them reduced rates. In behalf of these families innumerable letters were written to the United States War Risk Insurance Bureau, to the Red Cross headquarters, to officers and privates in various cantonments and abroad. It secured marriage certificates, birth records, affidavits, and other evidence re- quired to establish claims upon the government. For the families of some soldiers it found better homes. For the children of some soldiers it secured better school advantages. For many dependents of soldiers it found employment. It assisted at marriages, welcomed babies, and took charge and met the expenses of funerals. When men had re- quested furloughs, it was asked by wire to investigate and to confirm the truth of the grounds given in the requests for furloughs. It as- sisted men in securing the compensation due them from the govern-
47
SCOTT COUNTY, IOWA
ment. It urged soldiers. whose health had become impaired to avail themselves of, and assisted them in obtaining the free treatment offered them by the government to restore them to health, and it urged those who were discharged as disabled to avail themselves of, and assisted them in obtaining the vocational training offered them by the govern- ment. There was no limit to its good offices.
When the heartrending casualty lists made their appearance, it sought out the families of those whose names appeared in these lists, and tendered them aid and comfort.
Early in 1919 Congress voted honorably discharged soldiers and sailors an extra allowance of $60.00. Immediately the Home Service wired for instructions, and within ten days it had had the privilege of assisting nearly one thousand discharged soldiers and sailors in secur- ing this allowance.
The Home Service gives its services free. Its work is far from being finished. This work is more likely to increase than to decrease in volume. As long as work remains to be done the Home Service will be prepared to do it.
Financing the War The Liberty Loans
BY A. F. DAWSON, County Chairman
From the time the government made its first call upon our citizens to buy their share of Liberty Bonds for the conduct of the war, down to the last call for the Victory Loan, the people of Davenport and Scott county responded in full measure to each request, and in every one of the five loans oversubscribed their quota. Scott county's subscriptions to the five issues reached the splendid total of $22,000,000.
When the first call came in May, 1917-thirty days after the declara- tion of war against Germany-it found Davenport, like every other city in the United States, without an organization for carrying forward speedily and efficiently the task of selling millions of government securities to the people. Scott county was asked to subscribe $1,500,000 to the first Liberty Loan, and subscriptions closed June 15th. There was only about thirty days in which to conduct the necessary campaign of education, bring together an organization, and do the soliciting.
The first step was taken by the Davenport Clearing House Associa- tion, which designated a Liberty Loan Committee with A. F. Dawson, chairman, and empowered it to take whatever action was required. Active publicity work began at once, and every bank in Davenport in- vited subscriptions to the loan. Thirty thousand folders were printed and distributed setting forth the merits of the loan and explaining how to purchase the bonds. To encourage their sale the banks agreed to loan to purchasers at cne per cent below the going rate, and to en- courage the sale of bonds in small denominations a plan was offered under which bonds could be purchased on small weekly payments.
A call was issued for volunteer solicitors, and at a meeting held at the Davenport Commercial Club June 4th, eighty men enrolled for the work of making a canvass of the city for the sale of bonds. The city was divided into districts, and the solicitors worked in pairs. The first day's work brought in $50,200 in sales. On the second day, when Davenport was registering her young men for military service under the selective service act, the solicitors brought in $102,800 in subscrip- tions. When the campaign closed June 15th Scott county's response totaled $1,542,600. Of this amount all but $30,000 had been subscribed in the city of Davenport.
Second Liberty Loan
The experience gained in the first loan campaign made clear the necessity of perfecting an organization which would make a house-to- house canvass for subscriptions in both the city and county. The lack of committees to reach the rural population was particularly felt, and many weeks before the second Liberty Loan was announced much attention was devoted to the details of constructing an organization
48
49
SCOTT COUNTY, IOWA
that would be able to distribute the succeeding issues of bonds equitably and fairly among all the people.
The second Liberty Loan was offered for popular subscription be- tween October 1 and October 27, 1917, but about the middle of Septem- ber active efforts began that resulted in the Scott County Liberty Loan organization, which made such an unusual record in this and succeed- ing loans.
The work of organizing the townships of the county required most energetic work. After selecting a chairman for each township, the county chairman called a meeting and but three of the fifteen townships responded. An organization committee was selected, with E. P. Adler at its head, and every township in the county was visited by Chairman Dawson, Mr. Adler, and J. Reed Lane. At least one, and in many instances two organization meetings were held in each township, and committees were brought together who pledged themselves to raise the quota which would be assigned to their district.
In Davenport twenty-five team captains were selected to make a thorough canvass of the city. They were C. M. Littleton, C. M. Coch- rane, L. J. Dougherty, Joseph Deutsch, Charles Grilk, Leon H. Hass, William Heuer, H. J. McFarland, Harry Faerber, I. Petersberger, H. K. Spencer, F. D. Throop, George White, F. B. Yetter, E. L. Goff, L. M. B. Morrissey, S. E. Greenebaum, John H. Ruhl, A. J. Faerber, Fred Henig- baum, Woodworth Clum, Chris. Heuck, Geo. W. Cannon, Erwin Hol- brook, and W. T. Cotter. Each captain selected ten men as active team workers, making a city organization of 275 men.
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