USA > Massachusetts > Franklin County > Shelburne > History and tradition of Shelburne, Massachusetts > Part 24
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THE SPANISH WAR
READING the news and comment on the Spanish War in the local newspapers, with the events of the Second World War fresh in mind and those of the First World War not yet dimmed, one gets the impres- sion that the impact of the conflict did not affect the life of the community very deeply, although the inter- est was keen.
In March of 1898 the Shelburne Falls column in the Greenfield Gazette & Courier reports: "For the past few weeks, on account of the war scare, both morning and evening papers have been in great de- mand. This community is noted for keeping posted on the current events." In the issue of May 7th, the same column reports that, "great enthusiasm was manifested by the villagers upon receipt of the news
from the Philippine Fleet," but the column states that, "most of those here who would like to go to war for Cuba's freedom, are either too young or too old. It don't look now as if this village would be represented in either Cuba or Alaska." (The refer- ence to Alaska is not explained.)
However, the Shelburne column in the April 30th issue of the same paper, had reported Frank W. Car- penter was the first man in this town to enlist, with the added comment: "If his war record should equal that of his father (W. W. Carpenter) in the good old 10th in the Civil War, it will be a good one." The official records for Shelburne at the State House show that Carpenter and Charles Perry Wilson, Shel- burne Falls, both enlisted on May 3rd, in Company
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L of the Second Massachusetts Regiment.
Both of these men served with their historic regi- ment in Cuba. Wilson was wounded at Santiago. Carpenter became ill there with malaria and a type of disease called "Santiago fever." He was kept there for some time because the doctors could not agree on whether or not he had yellow fever. This is not surprising considering the discreditable state of the Army Medical Corps at that time. Both men were mustered out in November. A sum of money was raised and a gold watch was sent to Wilson, as he was still the only representative of Shelburne Falls in service.
Other incidents were recorded in the news of the day. Two local couples, members of a theatrical troupe, left for New York to go from there to Maine by boat. Evidently the fear of the Spanish fleet, which caused certain residents of Boston to place their bonds and family silver in Worcester and Springfield bank vaults, did not reach inland as far as Shelburne Falls. Nevertheless, there was naturally "great excitement" when the newspapers announced the "possible victory" of Sampson's fleet over these same ships off Santiago.
There were more complaints that there were not enough newspapers on sale. There was also a short-
age of flags and of bunting in national colors, and later there were reports of flags being stolen. ("Have we Spaniards in town?", asked the Deerfield Valley Echo.)
Shelburne Falls collected $360.00 and Shelburne $50.00, plus a "large bundle" of sheets, pillowcases, bandages and old linen for the hospital ship, Bay State. In July an organization of ladies, known as the "Vol- unteer Aid Association" was announced, with a list of fifteen "honorary" and fifty-one "working" mem- bers. The purpose of the organization was not speci- fied, nor was the distinction between the two types of membership.
The land and sea fighting around Santiago evidently inspired enlistments. Julius Pfersick and Charles S. Whitney enlisted in June and were assigned to Regu- lar Army regiments, as was Albert Maines in Novem- ber. In July James Woods enlisted in the Marine Corps. He served in the war in the Philippines, where he died during one of the campaigns for the suppres- sion of the Philippine Rebellion.
Two other men are mentioned as being in service : Charles Hill of the Cruiser Brooklyn, and Henry L. Porter; but neither of them is officially credited to Shelburne Falls.
FIRST WORLD WAR
THERE is no record of the development of sentiment in Shelburne regarding the First World War from the summer of 1914 to the spring of 1917. Apparently it was similar in most respects to that of rural New England in general, being characterized by a steady increase in concern about the seriousness of the con- flict, sympathy with the Allied Nations and, toward the last, acceptance of the unavoidability of this coun- try's entry into the war.
The first sharp impact came late in February, 1917, when armed guards were placed about the plants of the New England Power Company and on various near-by railroad bridges. A month later the weekly Greenfield Gazette & Courier, from which much of the information in this chapter is taken, announced the mobilization in Greenfield of the local unit of the National Guard, Company L of the 2nd Infantry Regiment, merged in reorganization with the 104th Infantry, 26th Division.
From April 6th, 1917 - the day that Congress declared that a state of war existed between this country and Germany, practically all of the activities described here are those of Shelburne and Buckland, working as a single community. It would be impos- sible to separate them, even if it were desirable, for no attempt seems to have been made to keep separate records. The two exceptions are the proceedings of the town meetings and the lists of men in service ; but any action by one town regarding the war effort was nearly always duplicated by the other, and even the supposedly accurate files in the War Records Office in the State House list many men as coming from
one side of the river, who were known to be residents of the other.
On April 6th, a mass meeting of citizens of both towns was held in Memorial Hall. It was called by Dr. Charles L. Upton, who at that time was a reserve officer in the Army Medical Corps, and who was soon after called into active service. M. Z. Woodward was chairman of the meeting. Several addresses were delivered and a tentative organization was set up to direct the wartime activities of the community.
The general committee consisted of: C. L. Upton, Chairman; W. D. Forbes, Vice-Chairman; W. J. Hume, Secretary; M. Z. Woodward, Treasurer; J. D. Avery, W. S. Ball, William Boyle, J. S. Bush, F. H. Chandler, E. Feige, W. D. Forbes, F. A. Goodell, P. B. Gould, L. T. Haigis, C. L. Hunt, W. M. Johnson, F. D. Kendrick, L. L. King, B. H. Newell, W. H. Noonan and Rev. L. T. Rock.
A subcommittee on food production and conserva- tion was appointed with F. D. Kendrick as chairman, and other subcommittees were named for finance, emergency help and equipment, publicity, use of cars and trucks and the organization of a home guard unit. Delegates were appointed to attend a regional confer- ence in Greenfield on food production and conserva- tion.
The same week a street rally was held by the county recruiting committee for the National Guard and a dance was given to raise the first funds for the Red Cross. A special town meeting held on May 1st (at the same time as the election of delegates to the State Constitutional Convention) voted "to raise and appro-
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priate the sum of $500 to be expended under the direc- tion of the committee of Public Safety for the purpose of preserving peace and good order, maintaining police and for other necessary town purposes." An appro- priation of $250 more for the same purpose was voted at the annual town meeting, February 4, 1918.
FOOD AND FUEL
A week after publishing the account of the mass meeting, the Greenfield Gazette & Courier voiced complaints about lack of realization that the country really was at war. It mentioned waste of food, "even with steak as high as forty cents a pound," increased expenditure for luxuries, shortage of farm help, and (only a month later) profiteering in food and other supplies.
All of that was incidental to readjustment to an unaccustomed state of affairs. Federal food and fuel regulations began to go into effect, and there is no record of serious violation of them. Garden plots were provided for village residents who had none. The teacher of the recently organized Household Arts de- partment at Arms Academy, Miss Rena Winchester (the late Mrs. Albin S. Johnson), took a special course at the State Department of Education to enable her to help housewives adjust their menus to wartime living. The use of white flour and other wheat prod- ucts was limited and finally prohibited, meatless days were generally observed, and sugar was rationed at two pounds per month per person.
Beginning in the early winter, coal deliveries were restricted (causing an increased demand for kerosene), and J. B. Parsons was appointed to head a committee on fuel conservation. Stores closed one day a week to save fuel, and the public library opened only one day a week. The Methodist, Congregational, and Bap- tist Churches of Shelburne Falls held union services in Memorial Hall. Much more wood was cut than usual, "Gasoline-less" Sundays were observed, and later all pleasure driving was forbidden.
THE HOME GUARD
. as his part is that goeth down to the . . battle, so shall his part be that tarrieth by the stuff : they shall share alike."
I Samuel 30:24
This group was informally organized in the spring of 1917 and began drilling in the then new Academy gymnasium, later known as the Assembly Room in Science Hall. Arthur J. North, who had served in the Navy in Philippine waters and elsewhere for four years shortly after the Spanish War, was in command.
On July 14th seventy-two men were given physical examinations by State officers, and a week later the sixty-seven who were found fit were mustered into State service. (The required minimum was sixty.) This organization was first known as the 28th Com- pany of the Massachusetts State Guard. When the
Guard was reorganized, the local unit became Com- pany C of the 3rd Battalion, 20th Regiment.
In September uniforms and rifles were received from the State Headquarters. The weapons formerly pur- chased were sold and the money used for shoes, and a benefit entertainment netted $175 for other expenses.
In October this battalion, comprising companies from Greenfield, Colrain and North Adams as well as Shelburne, held a parade in town, followed by a bat- talion drill on the Arms Academy campus.
It is regrettable that the list of members of this organization has not been preserved.
THE RED CROSS
The Red Cross, as usual, was in action ahead of time. Relief work had been carried on increasingly since the outbreak of the war in 1914. By February, 1917, the women of both towns were all busy. By May all-day meetings for work were being held each week. By the end of June the membership was re- ported as 362, sewing or knitting in their homes or in the rooms over the Savings Bank.
There were the usual difficulties in getting material for knitting, but books and magazines were collected for camps, old magazines and newspapers were col- lected and sold, and clothing was gathered for the French and Belgians. In September, 1917, a call was issued for additional members; in January the enroll- ment was 650, and additional rooms were opened. The organization continued to work through 1918, and several weeks after the Armistice a large supply of sheets, towels, and similar materials was collected for French hospitals.
INFLUENZA EPIDEMIC
This scourge was first mentioned in the local news column on Sept. 28, 1918. It was at its worst during the following month. Social gatherings ceased, no public meetings except the most important were held, schools were closed, and services were discontinued by all Protestant churches and later by the Roman Catholic church. Not until late fall were normal activities resumed.
FINANCIAL CAMPAIGNS
The achievements of the two towns in drives, both for the purchase of government bonds and for con- tributions to auxiliary activities, seemed incredible at the time, and even in retrospect are remarkable. De- tailed records are not available of the amounts re- quested in some of the individual campaigns, of the amounts assigned to each town, or of the individuals who worked on the drives, but the totals are impres- sive. Especially notable is the work of the school children, who contributed generously and purchased large quantities of war savings stamps.
The total proceeds of the various campaigns are
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given below. All amounts are oversubscriptions of the quotas.
Five Government Bond Sales $688,200.00*
War Savings Stamps +1,215.00
Y. M. C. A. 1,169.80
Knights of Columbus 772.00
Red Cross 9,940.37
Salvation Army 734.58
United War Fund
6,969.98 **
Near East Relief
1,035.00
The efforts used to raise nearly three quarters of a million dollars in bonds and stamps were necessarily educational as well as patriotic. Most people regarded bonds as something mysteriously connected with huge fortunes. It required time, skill and patience to per- suade them that bonds were within the reach of ordi- nary people and that they were a prudent investment as well as a means of supporting the government.
This educational campaign called for careful organ- ization and a great deal of work. It was put in charge of a committee headed by Mrs. Alice M. Ware. The village was blocked off by streets and the outlying areas by neighborhoods, and the residents were visited by carefully trained solicitors. The banks and post office were also responsible for large sales. And as will be seen later, the lessons so learned carried over into the Second World War.
CELEBRATIONS
In 1917 and 1918 there was no formal observance of the Fourth of July. Celebrations were limited to the ringing of bells at midnight, a baseball game and an evening lawn party.
On April 9, 1918, the annual town meeting voted to lay on the table indefinitely an article "to raise and appropriate the sum of $250 for the celebration of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the town or to take any action relative thereto," the decision being due to war conditions.
The end of the war, however, did away with such restraints most effectively. The false report of an armistice on November 7th released a pent-up enthusi- asm which produced a bedlam of bells and whistles, a parade which seemed almost too complete to be im- promptu, and a flood of oratory. Even when it became evident late in the afternoon that the war was still in progress, no one seemed deeply concerned. It was perfectly clear from the progress of the Allied Armies
and the internal disintegration of Germany that the report was only premature.
When the news of the real Armistice came through in the early morning hours of the 11th, even before the firing ceased in Europe, a celebration began for which the previous one might well have been a re- hearsal. Whistles and bells began before daylight and continued through the day. Schools, stores and mills did not even begin their usual affairs. Colrain joined Buckland and Shelburne in the celebration, and the motorized part of the parade, headed by the town band, included Colrain in its line of march. In the evening there was another parade, a band concert with community singing, a mass meeting with stirring speeches, a bonfire and a dance.
A less exuberant, but equally happy and sincere, observance was the "Welcome Home Day" given late the following summer after the demobilization was largely completed and the men had returned from service. Each town, in special town meetings, had voted to appropriate $400 to defray the costs. The day set was September 16th. A very attractive little souvenir booklet was prepared, containing the pro- gram of the day, the names of all residents known to be in service, and other information. The com- mittee modestly omitted the names of its members from the booklet and we cannot list them here, but we know that William E. Woods, President of the local Board of Trade, was Chairman.
Incidentally, the dishes and silverware now in use in the Community Rooms were purchased for the ban- quet, as it was impossible to borrow enough from other organizations.
The day's schedule was as follows:
PROGRAM OF THE DAY
12:00 o'clock Whistles and bells proclam their wel- come.
12:30 o'clock Community basket picnic on Arms campus. Concert by the Shelburne Falls Military Band during picnic.
1:30 o'clock Addresses by His Honor, Lieut. Gov. Channing Cox; President Kenyon L. Butterfield of Massachusetts Agricul- tural College and Rev. D. P. Sullivan. Honor medals from Buckland and Shelburne will be presented to each Soldier and Sailor after the speaking.
3:30 o'clock Base ball game, Service Boys vs. Civil- ians. Band concert throughout the game.
6:00 o'clock Banquet in Science Hall. The banquet will be served to the returned Soldiers and Sailors, their guests, and Veterans of the Civil War and their wives. There will be after-dinner speaking and music by the Philharmonic Orches- tra.
* It is not clear whether this is the actual total of bonds purchased, or whether it is a total of quotas which were exceeded, but the fact that it is not in even thousands indi- cates the former as probable.
** This included allotments, apportioned in previously de- termined ratio, for the work of the Y. M. C. A., Y. W. C. A., National Catholic War Council (Knights of Columbus), Jewish Welfare Board, American Library Association, Sal- vation Army and War Camp Community Service. All of these had previously conducted campaigns for the support of their respective activities, although some had not carried organized drives into smaller communities.
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8:30 o'clock Dance in Memorial Hall for the Serv- ice Boys and their guests. A section of the gallery will be reserved for the par- ents of the returned Veterans and the Grand Army of the Republic. Music by James' Orchestra of Springfield.
9:00 o'clock The public will be admitted to dance floor and gallery as space will permit.
SHELBURNE MEN IN SERVICE
Four men are officially recorded as being in the Armed Services of their country before the declaration of war. Thomas E. McGrail had enlisted in the Navy August 27, 1913; and on October 2, 1917, a few weeks after the end of his first four-year term, he re- enlisted and served nearly four years more. George Parkhurst had enlisted in the Regular Army January 27, 1915, and served in the Coast Artillery Corps until June 4, 1920. Frederic W. Davis had served since June 19, 1916, in the National Guard (Com- pany L, 104th Infantry), and was inducted into Fed- eral service with his regiment on March 30, 1917. He made a distinguished record, which is described on the following page, and was discharged March 1, 1919. Walter F. Lowell had been in the Navy since October 20, 1915, and served until October 19, 1919, a full four-year enlistment.
The first enlistments after the declaration of war on April 6, were those of Frederick D. Sullivan, who enlisted in the Navy on May 8, and Carl F. Meekins, who joined the Regular Army on May 10.
The scarcity of volunteers, which in Shelburne was only a reflection of the condition in the nation at large, so disturbed President Wilson and the Congress that the Draft Act was passed and signed on May 18. The first "General Registration Day" was set for June 5. Apparently this impressed the community to some de- gree with the seriousness of the situation, and by the end of June two more men enlisted.
On May 31 William E. Mills entered the Army by way of the National Guard, and on June 16 Horace W. French was called from the Officers' Re- serve Corps into active service as a first lieutenant of infantry. Numerous voluntary enlistments followed during the summer and fall, notably that of Dr. Charles L. Upton, who went into active duty on August 27 from the Officers' Reserve Corps as a cap- tain in the Medical Corps.
The last voluntary enlistment was in July, 1918. Draft calls began officially on July 20, but the first call for a Shelburne resident, John M. Gebo, was two months later. These calls increased in frequency as the war continued and were very heavy in the summer and early fall of 1918. The last recorded call was on November 2, nine days before the Armi- stice.
Given below are the names of all Shelburne men in the Armed Services, according to the official list
compiled at the State House in Boston, except those who are shown by the voting lists of 1916 through 1918 to have been residents of Buckland at the time. Con- siderable confusion was due to the use of the post office name of Shelburne Falls; but the list below is believed to be accurate.
Men who served with the land forces overseas are indicated by an "E" (Expeditionary). Those not marked were in the land forces and did not leave this country. A few of the early enlistments were assigned to the Regular Army divisions; the few who were in the National Guard before the war were inducted, in most cases, into the famed Twenty-sixth (New England ) Division; these and the great majority of the others were in the so-called "Army of the United States," a distinction long since forgotten by most of the men concerned. The Navy men are indicated by a prefixed "N." Unfortunately while the list gives the names of the ships and other units to which the men were assigned, it does not indicate whether they saw service on the high seas, in foreign waters, or at home.
Wallace A. Barlow George H. Bemis
E Albert J. Benoit Jesse H. Burdick
N John Tyler Carpenter, Jr. Henry B. Chesley Earl A. Cromack
E Frederic William Davis
E George A. Drew William V. B. Field
E John M. Gebo
E John A. Girouard Edward Clark Goodell Joseph W. Griswold
E Eugene F. Hardy
E Frank W. Harris
E Lauriston D. Koonz Lucius J. Lee Mark R. Mayhew Frank J. McDonald
E Carl F. Meekins
N George Henry Mills
E William E. Mills William Russell Nichols
E William T. Patch
E Roger E. Peck
N James Eldridge Rand Charles Spurgeon Randall
E Harold E. Richmond
E Rollo H. Schack Louis L. Scott
E Edward Smith
N Frederick Devlin Sullivan Elliot H. Taylor
E Charles B. Tyler Charles Louis Upton
V Frank Russell White
Lawrence L. Wholey
E Donald G. Wood
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In addition to the preceding list, seven others were sworn into service but assigned for study and training to units of the Student Army Training Corps established at various colleges. They were :
Elmer F. Davenport, Wentworth Institute
Howard H. Eldridge, Clark College
Ernest W. Goodnow, Massachusetts Agricultural College
Robert M. Gould, Massachusetts Agricultural College
James A. Graves, Massachusetts Agricultural College Harry E. Legate, Clark College Richard C. Peck, Massachusetts Agricultural College
SPECIAL NOTE
Possibly the most notable service record is that made by Frederic W. Davis, mentioned before. He was promoted through the various ranks from private to captain, received a citation in General Orders and was wounded twice within two months, the second time seriously. The citation reads:
Cited in GO 74 Hq 26 Div AEF dated 31 Aug 1918 - "for marked gallantry and meritorious service in the capture of Torcy, Belleau, Givry, Bouresches Woods, Rochet Woods, Hill 190 overlooking Chateau Thierry, Etrepilly, Bezuet, Epieds, Trugny and la Fere Woods to the Jaulgonne-Fere- on-Tardenois Road, during the advance of this Division against the enemy from 18-25 July 1918 in the second Battle of the Marne"
CASUALTIES
In addition to Captain Davis, no casualties in action are recorded, but the epidemic of influenza exacted its price : Ernest W. Goodnow died while a member of the Student Army Training Corps at the Massa- chusetts Agricultural College.
OFFICER RANK
Commissioned Rank was attained by the following:
E Carleton P. Davenport, First Lieutenant, Infantry Frederic W. Davis, First Lieutenant, Infantry Horace W. French, First Lieutenant, Infantry Edward C. Goodell, First Lieutenant,
Dental Corps
Charles S. Randall, Second Lieutenant, Infantry Charles L. Upton, Captain, Medical Corps Earl A. Cromack was commissioned Second Lieu-
tenant in the Field Artillery Officers' Reserve Corps shortly after the close of the war.
Harold J. March was commissioned Second Lieute- nant in the Quartermaster Corps.
To make the record as complete as possible, there are listed below the names of men in service who were closely connected by family or otherwise with Shel- burne, but whose legal residence was apparently else- where at the time.
Alton E. Brackett
Lowell Brown
Frank J. McDonald William Moscardini
F. Merriam Colvin Paul Needham
Albert W. Davenport
Clarence S. Richardson
Carlton P. Davenport Colin B. Richmond Stanley J. Rowland
William Davenport
Frank C. Dinsmore
Burton T. Smead
Sumner A. Dole Fred Smith Ralph H. Duncan Albert W. Spencer
Douglas D. Farmer
Fred A. Spencer
Howard Gleason Parker T. Spinney
George E. Graves
Raymond E. Starkey
Harold Hartwell
James Thackeray
Albin S. Johnson
Herbert A. Thorndike
Sidney Jones
Harold Walker
Frank P. Lunardi
James Warner
Harold J. March
Ernest N. Wilcox
Earl J. Belanger, Rev. H. L. Packard of the Con- gregational Church at Shelburne Falls, Principal James W. Vose of Arms Academy, and Earl J. Wil- son served in the wartime Y. M. C. A. John P. Monahan was in the Merchant Marine.
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