Request WW I photos from Belleau Wood

[72 usmc]

I just stumbled onto this photo in 3x5 original paper, not a modern reprint. No press release mark on the back.  I saw it and purchased it asap. Apparently too fast.   I was unsure if a  Chateau Thierry German cemetery.

 

It is Chateau de Chehery of the last Meuse push.  I found out this is not Chateau Thierry, but the Village of Chatel Chehery in the Ardennes Argonne northern France associated with the Meuse Campaign. A neat photo dated 1919.  O well....

 

a quote 

Quote

The Meuse–Argonne offensive was a major part of the final Allied offensive of World War I that stretched along the entire Western Front. It was fought from September 26, 1918, until the Armistice of November 11, 1918, a total of 47 days.  Source Wikipedia

An interesting read:

https://www.abmc.gov/sites/default/files/publications/Section4.pdf

 

 Nearby the area where Alvan York earned his medal.  Also the Lost Battalion history.

Has anyone seen this cemetery view? How common is this photo of this 1919 cemetery.  Anyone have a history of this cemetery ?  Were these 1919 gaves relocated?  A stone monument is in the center of the cemetery,  yet the building complex is still in a battered shelled state in  Janaury, 1919. Does anyone know this building complex? It appears a good deal of work was done to mark the  German graves in this January 1919 photo. This photo was taken approximately 60 days after the 11 November Armistice and shows paper or ribbon tags on some of the crosses. This is an interesting cemetery historical photo.  So much effort by who ? The villagers, the Germans,... odd no mass graves. Is the cross shapes with a roof like triangle over the cross a German or French style WW I cross?   Why do some crosses have a roof and others do not? Different religions?   I can show some close up views when the photo arrives.  Any historical information a reader can provide is welcomed.  Are the oval markers on the cross wood or metal?  What style of cross is this? I have never seen this in U.S. old  1920s  cemeteries. 

  

I have never seen this view also of interest:

 

 

I wonder if those odd crosses are a German Catholic tradition at the turn of the 20th century.  These soldiers must have been buried while the town was under German occupation and control.  In most civilian cemeteries I excavated, the old wood crosses were rotted away and long gone. Only a rock or sunken ground depression marked a burial location of poor graves.  Wealthy families had  tombstones. This reminds me of a book I am reading ( I should do a book review on this, a fantastic book about mass graves excavation of Australian & British soldiers  buried by the Germans):    
'Remember Me to All' : The Archaeological Recovery and Identification of Soldiers Who Fought and Died in the Battle of Fromelles 1916, an  Oxford  Archaeological monograph 23 

[Fritz]

Crosses with a "Dacherl" usually of Southern German/Austrian catholic tradition

[72 usmc]

I found an interesting Belleau Wood  post card that shows the  visitor and caretakers building under construction, scaffolding is seen against the walls so this card most likely dates around 1930-1931.  A second view from a later pre WWII card, most likely around 1937-1938,  this shows a completed complex and front gates. The Boston architectural firm of Cram & Fergusion designed the 1929-33 plans for tall new Chapel, entrance gates, and the two buildings show in the cards; the vistor building and the staff care taker building at the Aisn-Marne Cemetery (American Expeditionary forces Cemetery Number 1764-Belleau Wood).  On July of 1923, the Belleau Wood Cemetery was dedicated as an American battle monument site. After improvements, the newly named Aisne-Marne Cemetery was dedicated on 30 May 1937 with the completed Chapel sitting at the base of Belleau Woods.

  

 

Added 26 June 2024

A photo  of the gate constructed after the 1933 ABMC transfer, notice the new stone visitor center and care takers house (Left side of the gate) are present. Most likely around 1934-1936. Notice the chapel is not present yet.  This post card is by  Ehrhard, Chateau Thierry series. Title is"Aisne-Marne- Entrance to American Cemetery at Belleau Wood." Not a bad treasure for $2.

 

 

 Early view while planting trees and it shows the hill better. 

 

The second later view of the completed complex is shown below with the above gate. 

 

  

 

Below are some views of the structures. 

 

Here is a view of the early 1920-1928 wood buildings at the gate prior to the 1929-1933 improvements.

 

HABS report source

[72 usmc]

 A  7/ 18/ 1931 dated post card showing the new finished entry road and  the vistor building and the staff care taker building . A nice view of the woods with a lack of trees from the battle even in 1930.

 

The lower photo portion shows the open path at the end of the battle. Where the flag is standing in the above photo. This is a central portion of a 1918 yard long. 

This at the base of the wooded hill of Belleau Woods.   It shows the Hunting Lodge tower on the top.  Photo is before the cemetery is located here. 

Title: As seen on the original yard long photo: "A close up view of the Belleau Woods showing the hard fought ground captured by the American Army in 1918" 

Fred Schutz  Photograph(Washington, D.C.) 
Date Created/Published: 1918. 
 

[72 usmc]

I just purchased a very interesting post card with what might be a WW I  French Berliet transport bus on the road to Chateau Thierry that is adjacent to the June 1918, Doctor Boone Dressing station at the Marine HQ farmstead.  Behind the truck to the upper right you can see the farm building's roof and gutter line, and to the lower left in the view you can see the Marine burials. This Marceel Delboy photo post card is dated 1918. It appears barb wire still remains along the road in front of the truck.   The men in the photo are dressed in coats so the weather must have been cold at the time the photo was taken.

The U.S. Marine burials were removed sometime between the late summer of 1918 and early spring of 1919 to the newly established American Cemetery at the foot of Belleau Woods.  I have a photo dated February 1919 showing the relocated graves in the new cemetery.  

 

Here is the card.

 

Here are views that confirm the location. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[72 usmc]

 

 

 

After a long wait, I was finally able to obtain at a reasonable cost an interesting view of an original, somewhat worn and damaged, 10 inch x 8 inch press photograph dated 26 August 1919 of Belleau Wood Cemetery.  The Belleau Wood cemetery was well established by summer of 1919. This photo shows only the flag pole; no buildings have yet  been constructed. Wood crosses mark the graves. The entry road is at the East end of the cemetery, not at the northern edge. This has its description tag still attached on the rear of the photo.  I will see if I can get a more detailed photo after it arrives

 

 

Map source; Aisne-Marne American Cemetery & Memorial Pamphlet

1920 view of Belleau Wood Yard Long

 

 1920s Repatriation of WW I dead.  A look... possibley dated 10/31 19.  

Reel America C span

Graves Registration Service U.S. Army Silent Film Belleau Wood

Historian Mitchell Yockelson and French World War I battlefield guide Guillaume Moizan provided commentary while watching the film.

https://www.c-span.org/video/?445390-4/graves-registration-service-us-army-silent-film

[72 usmc]

Source  Chateau Thierry battle recovery, Source of photo.

 https://www.loc.gov/resource/ppmsca.51942/

QUOTE

The "skirmish line" searching for the lost graves ... Company A, 321st Labor Battalion, spread out in "skirmish line" formation by twos, searching for dead along the south bank of the Vesle in the Chateau-Thierry section. The stretchers are used to transport the bodies to the cemeteries / / U.S. Army Signal Corps A.E.F. photographic laboratory.

END OF QUOTE

 

[72 usmc]

 

 

A update on two fantastic books. 

Among the Ranks of the Carrion Men: The Epic Story of the Thirty-Six-Day Fight in and around Belleau Wood covers the background of how the battle developed, the battle events, and the involvement of the United States Armies, 2nd Division AEF in the Aisne defensive. They suffered 8,177 casualties of which 1,879 died.

This set of two paperback volumes (unfortunately it was not published in hard cover format) are the most comprehensive books about the Battle of Belleau Wood covering its operations and events from 30 May 1918 to 6 June 1918. It does not analyze tactics.

The author places the reader on the front lines utilizing a chronological narrative, utilizing first hand accounts and testimony of the Marines detailing their tremendous sacrifices at Belleau Wood. The author uses many never before seen sources such as oral histories, unpublished family letters, and WW I Marine’s written notes or short stories, newspapers, family members archived photographs and stories, USMC records and archives, meetings with other military historians, burial files, unit histories, vintage maps, and service record books to compile a narrative of the USMC company grade officers, sergeants, corporals and privates who participated in the action.

The two volumes are 6x9 inch economical thick trade paperbacks produced by Lulu press. These were privately published. In an effort to keep the price down, the books have a lower quality glued perfect binding with the many pages (over 400) lacking staples or sewn packets. They are held together by glue and are less durable and will crack with age. The maps are small and difficult to see. I would have preferred full page maps. However, with a copy of the BELLEAU WOOD FRONT LINE PROGRESSION BATTLE MAP by Battle Archives, all is fine. There are many pictures of the soldiers and marines  sourced from old books or newspapers of the time. Some have a grainy look, most look fine. All maps and photos are black and white. I would have hoped such significant key reference books would have been offered in hard cover, but both volumes can be rebound as hard covers. Each chapter has detailed end notes and cited references. I found a great map source to print out and use for the many place names mentioned in the books is found here: MCA Marines.com battlefield study package Belleau Wood

https://mca-marines.org/bsp/bsp-europe/belleauwood/

These maps includes woods, farms, towns, roads and hill numbers as well as topographic elevation lines.

 Update see the next post about a reference I found with full size topo maps. 

 

Volume I of Among The ranks Of The Carrion Men with its black cover on the second edition is a paperback published in 2020, has 428 pages and has ISBN 978-1-387-98197-7. This first volume covers the events of the battle from 30 May 1918 to 5 June 1918. The first edition was published in 2018.

Volume II, a first edition, has a brown cover and is also is a paperback that was published in 2020, has 598 pages, and has ISBN 978-0-359-66543-3. This second volume covers the events of the battle on a single day, 6 June 1918. There are over 500 pages devoted to the events on this single day.

 

These are the two best books on Belleau Wood battle I have read.  A MUST READ.

 

I actually have two sets of this reference.  One as a working copy with notes in the text, and one I keep clean and will get re bound as a hard cover.  Here is an example of a master area map that I printed out and added notes and page references for the first volume so I can follow the locations as I read. I reduced it almost too small so it fits folded into the book for a handy reference. Each day has it own map published in the book, unfortunately they are small and do not show surrounding towns.  See an example of 3 June's map found on page 270.  I also added larger fold up maps for each day.

 3 June, page 270 

[72 usmc]

An interesting book with 1936 topo maps showing battlefield movements, roads, named farms, woods,  hills, villages, rivers, and buildings with three full size nice pocket maps and smaller text fold out maps (sections on Belleau Wood on page 103)  all maps are in color like an actual topographic USGS map is the "American Armies and Battlefields in Europe." This is a hardcover reference dated 1938 and produced by the American Battle Monuments Commission.  There are 3 large maps and many fold outs in this book. The smaller maps found in the text are  color topo. fold outs with a scale of  1/20,000. they are small sections of the larger maps.

 

 Included are hundreds of black & white WW I photos.  Prices for the book range from $12 to $75 per copy with intact pocket maps.  Worth it just for the reference maps. One can actually see the features.  Where can one find topos for WW I actions for $25. What a nice research tool.   Use caution, most vintage books are missing their valuable pocket maps. I must have been living in a cave to not have known about this reference's maps.

The scale of the packet large map is 

1 /10,000 and the pocket maps measure 31 inches wide by 30 inches long.  

 

 

Table of Contents   

 

 

[72 usmc]

2nd Division USMC photo archive 1918, 1919, video

 Link   https://2nd-division.com/_div.misc/contents.media.htm

These two lower photos are from the above reference link.

 

[72 usmc]

 A keystone card I am on the look out for:

[72 usmc]

A recent find of a view from Belleau Woods looking down at the wheat field.  A French post card rarely seen.  Piles of straw in the harvested field.   Now in my collection.

[72 usmc]

Here is a recently sold U.S. Army soldier's letter ( Sgt.  Albert  C. Harbolt of 1205 South 7th Street, Trenton, Ohio.) from a year after the Belleau Wood action ( 10 June 1919) where he documents burial removals of the Marines to the new cemetery. The Belleau Wood Aisne-Marne cemetery was established in late 1918 and contains the graves of Belleau Wood marines and graves of other American soldiers. This U.S. Cemetery  is located at the base of the hill of Belleau Woods.  At the top of the hill, the hunting lodge is visible in early photos because most of the trees were destroyed in the shelling during the battle.

See more details: https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/master/pnp/habshaer/us/us0000/us0039/data/us0039data.pdf  

 

A Quote from the end of the letter:

 

I missed out on this document. But it is first hand evidence of the removals of U.S. Marine hospital and battlefield graves being relocated and in progress by June of 1919.  

 

Screen shots are from the auction.