The FReeper Foxhole Remembers "Harlem's HellFighters" 369th Infantry - Feb. 27th, 2003

http://raven.cc.ukans.edu/~libsite/wwi-www/Scott/SCh14.htm ^ | Emmet J. Scott

[SAMWolf]

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369th United States Infantry,
New York National Guard
The Regiment That Never Lost
a Man Captured, a Trench,
or a Foot of Ground

The first effort to organize a colored National Guard regiment in New York City was sponsored by Charles W. Fillmore, a colored citizen, who afterwards was commissioned a Captain in the "15th" by Col. Hayward. The effort to secure proper approval of such a regiment was more or less abortive until Gov. Charles S. Whitman, following the gallant fight of Negro troops of the Tenth Cavalry against Mexican bandits at Carrizal, authorized the project and named Col. William Hayward, then Public Service Commissioner, to supervise the task of recruiting an organization. It was found that there were more than two hundred Negro residents of the city who had seen service in the regular army, or in the militia of other states. With these as a nucleus the work of recruiting began on June 29, 1916.

Colors of NY 15th Colored Infantry [369th Infantry, AEF; Known as the "Harlem Hellfighters"]

By the first of October, ten companies of sixty-five men each had been formed, and the regiment was then recognized by the State and given its colors. By April 8, 1917, the regiment had reached peace strength, with 1,378 men, and was recognized by the Federal Government. Two weeks later the organization was authorized to recruit to war strength. The 600 men needed were recruited in five days after the applicants had been subjected to a physical examination more stringent than that given in the regular army. The first battalion of four companies was recruited in Manhattan; the second battalion was composed of Brooklyn men, and the third of men from Manhattan and the Bronx. "There is no better soldier material in the world," said Col. Hayward, following the organization of the regiment. "Given the proper training, these men will be the equal of any soldiers in the world."

Training the Regiment

Training the men presented some difficulty. At first they were drilled in Lafayette Hall, 132nd street and Seventh avenue, New York City. But the place was altogether too small and many of the fifty squads which drilled nightly had to take to the streets to carry out the maneuvers of their drill sergeants. Later they went for three weeks to Camp Whitman. An announced plan to send the regiment to train at Camp Wadsworth, Spartanburg, S. C., caused a storm of protest from the citizens of the South Carolina town.

"The most tragic consequences," they insisted, "would follow the introduction of the New York Negro with his Northern ideas into the community life of Spartanburg." The Spartanburg Chamber of Commerce drafted resolutions protesting against the training of Negro troops at Camp Wadsworth, which were sent to New York State officials. The resolutions, however, had less weight than the exigencies of war and, early in October, the 15th Negro Infantry detrained at Camp Wadsworth. The "tragic consequences" did not materialize. Certain stores refused to serve Negro customers and were, in turn, boycotted by the white soldiers, but the chief result of the Fifteenth's visit to Spartanburg was an increased respect in some measure, at least, for the black soldier.


Sergeant Henry Johnson

While at Spartanburg the regiment was supplied with the latest things in trench shoes, heavy underwear, and other overseas supplies. This led the men to expect immediate transfer overseas. They were, indeed, ordered overseas, but as Colonel Hayward's memorandum quoted above indicates, the regiment made three distinct starts for France before it finally got away from America. The accident that caused the first turning back .occurred when still in sight of the Narrows. The vessel was disabled by a bent piston rod and had to put back to the Brooklyn Navy Yard for repairs. Four days later the ship put out again, only to halt when fire was found in the reserve coal bunker. Putting back to Hoboken, the sorely tried Fifteenth counted the hours until a new transport could be obtained. Hours became days, and days ---weeks, but still no other ship offered.

Delayed by Storm and Collision

Finally, oil December 3, 1917, the Navy Department notified the transport's commander to put to sea. But while the pier lines were being cast off a storm started to blow up, and by the time the "Pocahontas"---nameless at the time---reached the outer bay, the greatest blizzard of the year was raging. Clouds of snow, through which nothing could be seen, forced the "Pocahontas" to drop anchor. She had hardly done so when a huge hulk, appearing suddenly through the murk, bore down upon the transport's bow and cut a ten-foot hole in her side. then the storm abated in the bay, but a new one arose below decks, where 3,000-odd exasperated soldiers were maintaining their belief that no such place as France existed. The captain of the transport was for turning back again to the Navy Yard. The hole was above the water-line, be admitted, and there was no great danger impending as a result of the collision, he said. Nevertheless there would be an inquiry, and it was necessary that he be present to state his case.

"I can see no reason for turning back except that of fear," said Col. Hayward to the captain. The captain did not turn back. There was an ambulance assembly unit on board with electric drills. Ten hours, it was said, would suffice to make sufficient repairs to enable the vessel to proceed. The bent plates were drilled out and double planking erected in their place. Concrete was then poured between the planks. The result was not elegant, but the ship was water-tight and best of all, still bound for France.



Brest was reached on December 27 without incident except for an epidemic of German measles which attacked the crew of the transport, but which was escaped by nearly all officers and men of the Fifteenth.

From Brest the regiment was transferred to St. Nazaire, where the troops were put to work constructing a huge railroad yard, building roads, and unloading ships. The fact of being ill the country "where the war is" helped the impatient soldiers to endure their lot for awhile, but before long there was a general feeling that "while stevedoring may be all right, it is not war," and the officers were besieged with apologetic and respectful queries, "When do we fight?"

Guarding German Prisoners

The answer was assumed to have been supplied when, early in January, the Third Battalion was ordered to Colquidan, in Brittany, where there was a big American artillery camp. It turned out, however, that peace was still longer to bear down upon the spirits of the Fifteenth. At Colquidan, they found, as well as an American artillery camp, there was also a large German prison camp, and it was for the purpose of guarding this camp that their services were required.

Three weeks passed, and then the Third Battalion received orders to join the rest of the regiment at Givry-en-Argonne, there to be formally transferred to the French high command and to be known as the 369th Regiment d'Infanterie Etats Unis (United, States Infantry). Actual fighting was still afar off, it seemed to the soldiers, for they were put to training under French officers. One hundred and twenty picked men and a number of officers were sent to the French Divisional Training School, where they were taught to use the French arms, including grenades, French bayonets, rifles and machine guns. Upon the completion of the course others of the former Fifteenth were sent to take this training.



They proved apt pupils. In grenade-throwing they easily outdid their instructors, and in bayonet work they demonstrated great skill. They surprised the French, also, with the manner in which they acquired the French language. Many of them were talking quite fluently after a week with their French comrades. It turned out, however, that many of the soldiers hailed from Louisiana, and that their new environment merely had revived forgotten memories of the French language.

In May the regiment went to the Main de Massiges, a part of the French line which offered the greatest danger as well as the greatest opportunity for training in trench warfare and raiding. A small number of the Fifteenth's men were sent with each French company, with instructions to observe all regulations and familiarize themselves with the tactics of the French. The French "poilus" were delighted with their colored comrades and soon sought to teach them all they knew.

After two weeks' experience obtained in the manner described, the 369th was sent into action in the Bois d'Hauze, Champagne, where the regiment, unassisted by the French, held a complete sector, which in length constituted 20 per cent of all territory held by American troops at the time. In this action, which lasted until July 4, 1918, when the colored soldiers, their ranks thinned by the deadly German fire and completely worn out, were relieved by the 4th French Chasseurs-à-pied.

Fighting Ability Recognized

By this time the fighting effectiveness of the Negro troops from New York was recognized by the high command, and after resting behind the lines for a few weeks they were transferred and placed in the path of the expected German offensive at Minancourt, near Butte de Mesnil, where they bore the brunt of the German attacks of July 15 and thereafter. Against the enemy in this action the old Fifteenth was completely successful, holding against the German fire, repelling German attacks and by counter-attacks becoming possessed of the front line German trenches.

At the end of July the regiment, after a three days march to the rear, went into training for open warfare, but had hardly started work when a hurry call was sent to them to take over the same place in the line which they had left a few days before. Motor lorries were impressed and the New York soldiers hastened back to the front, arriving in time to assist in repelling the most violent German attacks.


Lt. James Reese Europe, famous jazz band leader, back with the 369th Regiment

During the action which followed it was the policy of the French strategists to retreat from the lines then held after having "gassed" all the dug-outs. The advancing Germans thereupon were met with such heavy shell fire that they were forced into the underground shelters and so fell by the hundreds, victims of the noxious fumes released by the French.

The men of the 369th, advancing again after this defeat of the enemy, found enough Mauser rifles lying beside the dead Germans to equip an entire brigade. Finding the German Mauser to resemble the Springfield formerly used by the American troops and preferring it to the French weapon furnished them, the men of the Fifteenth promptly adopted the captured rifle, and it was with considerable difficulty that the French equipment was finally restored to them.

Wins the Croix de Guerre

Early in September the men of the 369th were transferred from the 16th French Division, in which they had been serving, and made an integral part of the 161st French Division. And then, on the morning of September 26th, they joined with the Moroccans on the left and native French on the right in the offensive which won for the entire regiment the French Croix de Guerre and the citation of 171 individual officers and enlisted men for the Croix de Guerre and the Legion of Honor, for exceptional gallantry in action. The action began at Maison-en-Champagne; it finished seven kilometers northward and eastward and over the intervening territory the Germans had retreated before the ferocious attacks of the Fifteenth and its French comrades.




Members of the US 369th Infantry, awarded the Croix de Guerre for gallantry in action

A month later a new honor came to the regiment---the honor of being the first unit of all the Allied armies to reach the River Rhine. The regiment had left its trenches at Thann, Sunday, November 17, and, marching as the advance guard of the 161st Division, Second French Army, reached Blodelsheim, on the left bank of the Rhine, Monday, November 18. The 369th is proud of this achievement. It believes also that it was under fire for a greater number of days than any other American regiment. Its historian will record:

That the regiment never lost a man captured, a trench, or a foot of ground; that it was the only unit in the American Expeditionary Force which bore a State name and carried a State flag; that it was never in an American brigade or division; that it saw the first and the longest service of any American regiment as part of a foreign army; and that it had less training than any American unit before going into action.

Thanks to FReeper Western Phil for suggesting this thread and for providing his Uncle's letters that will be posted during the day.

[SAMWolf]

Called "Hell Fighters" by the Enemy

The men of the 369th came to be known among the French and the Germans as "Hell Fighters." The regiment participated in the action which followed the German offensive on the 15th of July, 1918, when the Germans were reinforced by released prisoners from Russia, so that they then had their maximum forces.

They had broken through the British line and disaster was at hand. This was east of Rheims. The Germans had also torn through the French at Montdidier and had gone through for 30 or 40 kilometers.



During the 191 days that the regiment was in the trenches there were weeks in that immediate sector when there was nothing between the German army and Paris but these black men from America. It was through the action of the men of the 369th in capturing German prisoners on the night of July 14 that the expected German attack was learned. When the French found out that the great German offensive was coming, their forces did not remain a thin blue line. Gen. Gouraud, who commanded the Fourth French Army, took his troops out of the front line trenches over a front of 50 kilometers, and when the attack occurred he had the 369th on one flank of a 50-kilometer line and the old 69th New York, a part of the Rainbow Division, on the other. When the German fire fell on these front line trenches for five hours and twenty minutes, the shells fell on empty trenches except for a few patrols left in reinforced trenches with signal rockets, gas shells, and a few machine guns. When the hour for the German infantry attack came, these patrol let off their gas bombs and signal rockets and the massed allied artillery let loose on the massed Germans, who were literally smashed and never got through to the second line of the 369th. On the other end they did get through, crashing into the Rainbow Division and the old 69th New York, which met them hand-to-hand in some of the most terrible fighting of the war.

Won the Cheers of the French

Of the 369th it may be stated that although the Germans never captured a single man, they killed nearly 200 of them and wounded more than 800 others, but on the other side of the score were to be found more than 400 Germans captured by the Third Battalion of the 369th alone, and countless men of the enemy killed and wounded.

It proved itself to be one of the most efficient military units of all the Allied forces. The officers and men were constantly cheered by the gratitude of the French, who never failed to place in evidence their appreciation for the wonderful fighting prowess of the men of the 369th. The French were amazed not only at the proficiency of the men as soldiers but at their proficiency in laying railroad tracks, which was the first duty assigned them near one of the larger French ports. The 369th laid many stretches of track, pushed them into alignment, gave twists to the bolts, and proceeded half a mile farther down to repeat the performance. "Magnifique!" exclaimed a party of French officers who watched them do the work.



The story of the wanderings of "the old 15th," of its hard fighting in France, of its returning to America, and of the triumphant procession through the streets of New York City, down Fifth Avenue, is one of the proudest possessions of the Negro race and of American arms.

Five colored officers went over with , the 369th Regiment. These officers were afterwards transferred to the 92nd Division. Considerable criticism followed the transfer of these colored officers from a colored regiment which had won such renown as the 369th. Col. Hayward, however, gave the following as reason for the transfer:

"In August, 1918, the American Expeditionary Force adopted the policy of having either all white or all colored officers with Negro regiments, and so ours were shifted away (though Lieut. Europe later was returned to us as bandmaster, whereas he had been in the machine gun force before). Our colored officers were in the July fighting and did good work, and I felt then and feel now, that if colored officers are available and capable, they, and not white officers, should command colored troops. I hope, if the Fifteenth is reconstructed, as it should be, colored men will have the active work of officering it, from top to bottom.

"There is splendid material there. I sent away forty-two sergeants in France who were commissioned officers in other units. I would have sent others, but they declared they'd rather be sergeants in the Fifteenth than lieutenants or captains in other regiments."

Individual Exploits of the 369th

There are many outstanding exploits of the men of the 369th and of Col. Hayward himself. In Belleau Wood on June , 6, 1918, the regiment came up to the German front lines where it met a very heavy counter-attack. Some one suggested that they turn back. "Turn back? I should say we won't. We are going through there or we don't come back," was what Colonel Hayward said as be tore off the eagles of his insignia, grabbed a gun from a soldier, and darted out ahead of the rest of Company "K," which went through a barrage of German artillery that was bearing down upon it. A French General ordered the regiment to retire, but Colonel Hayward, who, of course, was under direct command of this French General said: "I do not understand you."

Then the French General raised his arms above his bead and cried:

"Retire! Retire!"

And then Colonel Hayward, with his hat knocked off, came running up and cried: "My men never retire. They go forward, or they die!"

A Prussian officer captured by the "Black Watch," as the 369th was called after they had reached the Rhine, is said to have remarked: "We can't hold up against these men. They are devils! They smile while they kill and they won't be taken alive."

The regiment was eleven times cited for bravery in action, and Colonel Hayward himself received a citation, reading: "Colonel Hayward, though wounded, insisted on leading his regiment in battle."

A typical story of the dare-devil courage of the men of the 369th is afforded in the exploit of Elmer McCowin of Company

"K, " who won the Distinguished Service Cross. He tells his own story as follows: "On September 26 the Captain asked me to carry despatches. The Germans pumped machine-gun bullets at me all the way. But I made the trip and back safely. Then I was sent out again. As I started with the message the Captain yelled to bring him back a can of coffee. He was joking, but I didn't know it at the time.

"Being a foot messenger, I had some time ducking those German bullets. Those bullets seemed very sociable, but I didn't care to meet up with them, so I kept right on traveling on high gear. None touched my skin, though some skinned pretty close.

"On the way back it seemed the whole war was turned on me. One bullet passed through my trousers and it made me hop, step, and jump pretty lively. I saw a shell hole six feet deep. Take it from me, I dented another six feet when I plunged into it hard. In my fist I held the Captain's can of coffee.

"When I climbed out of the shell hole and started running again, a bullet clipped a hole in the can and the coffee started to spill. But I turned around, stopped a second, looked the Kaiser, in the face, and held up the can of coffee with my finger plugging up the hole to show the Germans they were fooled. Just then another bullet hit the can and another finger had to act as stopgap.

"It must have been good luck that saved my, life, because bullets were picking at my clothes and so many hit the can that at the end all my fingers were hugging it to keep the coffee in. I jumped into shell holes, wriggled along the ground, and got back safely. And what do you think? When I got back into our own trenches I stumbled and spilled the coffee!"

Not only did Lieut. George Miller, Battalion Adjutant, confirm the story, but he added about Private McCowin: "When that soldier came back with the coffee his clothes were riddled with bullets. Yet half an hour later he went back into No-Man's-Land and brought back a number of wounded until be was badly gassed. Even then he refused to go to the rear and went out again for a wounded soldier. All this under fire. That's the reason he got the D. S. C. "

Corporal Elmer Earl, also of Company "K," living at Middletown, New York, also won the Distinguished Service Cross. He explained: "We had taken a hill September 26 in the Argonne. We came to the edge of a swamp, when enemy machine guns opened fire. It was so bad that of the fifty-eight of us who went into a particular strip, only eight came out without being killed or wounded. I made a number of trips out there and brought back about a dozen wounded men."

[SAMWolf]

How Sergeant Butler Won the D. S. C.

On authority of General Pershing, Colonel Hayward himself presented the Distinguished Service Crosses to the heroes among his regiment. Then, from the hands of General Collardet, of the French Army, he received the medal of the Legion of Honor. But even among this list of distinguished heroes those who knew of the exploits of Sergeant "Bill" Butler insisted upon calling for him and making him the object of their attentions.

It was on the night of August 12, 1918, while the fighting was raging in the Champagne District, that Sergeant Butler's opportunity came to him. A German raiding party had rushed the American trenches and, after firing a few shots and making murderous use of the short trench knives and clubs carried for such encounters, had captured five privates and a lieutenant. The victorious raiders were making their way back to their own trenches when Butler, occupying a lone position in a forward post, saw that it would be necessary for the party to pass him.


US 369th Infantry (Harlem Hellfighters) members wearing French helmets and equipment

The Negro sergeant waited until the Germans were close to his post, then opened fire upon them with his automatic rifle. He kept the stream of lead upon the raiders until ten of their number had been killed. Then he went forth and took the German lieutenant, who was slightly wounded, a prisoner, released the American lieutenant and five other prisoners, and returned to the American lines with his prisoner and the rescued party.

Under the heading, "Trenton Has Nothing on Salisbury," The Afro-American of Baltimore said: "Trenton, New Jersey, may have her Needham Roberts, but it takes Salisbury, Maryland, to produce a William Butler. Roberts had his comrade, Henry Johnson, to help him in repulsing a raiding party of Germans, but Butler took care of a German lieutenant and squad of Boches all by himself. Herbert Corey, a white newspaper correspondent, in telling of the incident said that Butler came 'a-roaring and fogging, through the darkness with his automatic, and 'nobody knows how many Germans he killed.' It was for this that General Pershing awarded him the Distinguished Service Cross recently and the citation read: 'Sergt. William Butler, Company L, 369th Infantry (A. S. No. 104464). For extraordinary heroism in action near Maison de Champagne, France, August 18, 1918. Sergeant Butler broke up a German raiding party which had succeeded in entering our trenches and capturing some of our men. With an automatic rifle he killed four of the raiding party and captured or put to flight the remainder of the invaders. Home address, Mrs. Jennie Butler, Water Street, Salisbury, Maryland.'



"The rest of the State of Maryland and the whole United States now has its hat off to Butler of Salisbury."

And the New York Tribune, on April 28, 1919, said: " 'Bill, Butler, a slight, good-natured colored youth, who until two years ago was a jack-of-all-trades in a little Maryland town, yesterday came into his own as a hero among heroes. More than 5,000 men and women arose to their feet in City College stadium and cheered themselves hoarse while representatives of two Governments pinned their highest medals upon the breast of the nervous youth. Sergeant Butler was one of a list of twenty-three members of the famous 15th Regiment upon whom both France and the United States conferred medals of honor because of extraordinary heroism on European battlefields. But by common consent his name comes first on the list a list that was made up only after a careful comparison of the deeds of gallantry that finally resulted in the breaking of the Hun lines."

[SAMWolf]

Following is the citation awarded the 369th for its courage and valor in the great offensive in the Champagne, September and October, 1918, by the French Commanding General:

CITATION FOR CROIX DE GUERRE
AWARDED

369e RÉGIMENT d'INFANTERIE U. S.
(FORMERLY 15th N. Y. INFANTRY)

FOR ITS OPERATIONS AS A COMBAT UNIT OF A FRENCH DIVISION IN THE GREAT OFFENSIVE IN

CHAMPAGNE, SEPT. AND OCT. 1918,

BY THE FRENCH COMMANDING GENERAL

Under command of Colonel HAYWARD, who, though injured, insisted on leading his regiment in the battle, of Lieutenant Colonel PICKERING, admirably cool and brave, of Major COBB, (killed), of Major SPENCER (grievously wounded), of Major LITTLE, a true leader of men; the 369th R. I. U. S. engaging in an offensive for the first time in the drive of September, 1918, stormed powerful enemy positions energetically defended, took, after heavy fighting, the town of, S--------, captured prisoners and brought back six cannons and a great number of machine guns.

[SAMWolf]

My uncle, Herbert Schabacker, served as an officer for the 369th infantry. As did Col. Hayward, the commander of the 369th , he had Nebraska roots. He entered the service from Ft. Wayne, Indiana. As far as I can tell, his basic training was at Ft. Benjamin Harrison in 1917.

Other places of service included Camp Taylor (at Louisville, Ky.) and Camp Sherman(Chillicothe, Ohio). The evidence points to his arrival in Britain in April of 1918. Apparently there or in France he became one of sixty 1st Lieutenants of the 369th Infantry (From "Harlem to the Rhine, The Story of New York's Colored Volunteers" - Appendix A, published in 1924). I can find no sign of him being associated with this group in the States.

Little, if any, accurate news came from the front, but my mother said that they knew that her brother had been involved in heavy fighting. The war ended and the family in Nebraska did not hear anything from my uncle and thought that he was likely a late fatality in the hostilities. Then on Christmas day a letter arrived from my uncle describing his group's activities at the end of the war.

After my mother passed away, I found among her effects five letters dating from just before the end of the war to their disembarkation from France from my uncle to his parents & family. The letters are all quite interesting to me and I hope others will find them to be so also.

NOTE: Some of the letters have an * embedded, these were words or letters that Andyman was unable to decipher when transcribing from the original letters.

Thank you, Western Phil, for the suggestion and the contributions to this thread on the 369th Infantry.

ON ACTIVE SERVICE
WITH THE
AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCE
October 30, 1918

Dear Parents, Brothers & Sisters:

Another letter from me, to let you know, I am still one of the kicking ones & not doing it with a wooden leg neither.

I have been in the front line, but am back again & working hard behind the lines. My first trip to the front lines was very interesting as it was all more or less new to me. The sector we occupied was more or less quiet with but little excitement. I slept for the first time in a dug out with bed companions a million strong, as a Frenchman who was near us put it "Petit Coushet, beaucoup 'Toto'"! Neither did I sleep much on account of the "Cooties" and rats but I got used to them & got away better the second night.

I received a letter from Freda this morning, and it certainly tickled me it was quite ancient, but it was the first I have had from Nebr. since I left Camp Sherman, it was dated Aug. 30 so you see mail is not coming thru very quickly when it takes 2 months to catch up, but from Florence I have been hearing now & then the last one being dated Sept. 5th.

The weather here is still tolerable tho cold nights it warms up pretty nicely during the day, but it is awful wet, in the trenches. I never was without wet feet. Where I am now located we are well off. We train during the day & sleep between sheets, so are more or less in luxury.

I am sending you a few small coins & intend sending you others of as many different denominations as possible for your collection. I am presently not in shape to send you many as I have not drawn any checks since I left the states, but if we stay behind the lines long enough for my mail to catch up I expect to sit quite pretty as I have about $225.00 due me now part of which I have already spent due to my 15 day travels in France. Incidentally I lost a share of my baggage for which I do not expect to be reimbursed.

I am sending you a Xmas package slip but not as a hint for something but thinking that possibly you would be hurt should you not be able to send me anything. I really want nothing as Uncle Sam takes care of us as much as possible of course we have to do without a lot of things but that cannot be remedied. I shall not feel hurt whatever should I not receive anything but your best wishes & greetings.

I must close now

Many regards to all
Herbert
1st Leut. 369th Inf. U. S.
French Postal Sect. 107
American Exp. F.
Via N.Y.

[SAMWolf]

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[SAMWolf]

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[SAMWolf]

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[SAMWolf]

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[Valin]

On This Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on February 27:
0280 Constantine the Great Roman emperor (306-37), adopted Christianity
1539 Franciscus Raphelengius Dutch book publisher
1622 Rembrandt Carel Fabritius Dutch painter
1649 Johann Philipp Krieger composer
1702 Johann Valentin Gorner composer
1745 Silverius Muller composer
1746 Gian Francesco Fortunati composer
1759 Johann Carl Friedrich Rellstab composer
1784 Elias Annes Borger Dutch theologist/poet (To the Rhine)
1784 Job Plimpton composer
1792 Don Joaquin B F Espartero Spanish adventurer/field marshal
1802 William George Frederick Cavendish Bentinck Lord George Bentinck
1807 Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Portland ME, poet (Hiawatha)
1811 [Catherine] Mildred Lee sister of US General Robert E Lee
1822 Eugene Gautier composer
1823 Ferdinand Van Derveer Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1892
1823 William Buel Franklin Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1903
1827 Richard W Johnson Bvt Major General (Union Army), died in 1897
1832 Alfred Pollard Edward Civil War journalist, died in 1872
1835 Charles Cartuyvels Belgian pulpit orator
1835 Richard Garnett English author (Ananda the Miracle Worker)
1841 [Eleanor] Agnes Lee daughter of US General Robert E Lee
1846 Joaquin Valverde composer
1847 Dame Ellen Alice Terry Coventry England, Shakespearian stage actress
1848 Charles Hubert H Parry England, musicologist/composer (Jerusalem)
1850 Henry Edwards Huntington US, railroad exec
1861 Rudolph Steiner Kraljevic Austria, founder (doctrine of anthroposophy movement)
1867 Irving Fisher US economist (compensating dollar)
1867 Wilhelm Peterson-Berger composer
1869 Alice Hamilton physician/writer (workmen's compensation laws)
1870 Louis Coerne composer
1874 Max Ettinger composer
1879 Jose Sancho Marraco composer
1881 Luitzen [Bertus] Brouwers Dutch mathematician
1881 Sveinn Björnsson 1st President of Iceland (1944-52)/poet (Figur ild)
1886 Hugo L Black Alabama, (Senator-D-AL)/78th US Supreme Court justice (1937-71)
1887 James D Innes English painter
1888 Lotte Lehmann Perleberg Germany, soprano (Fidello)
1891 David Sarnoff US, radio/TV pioneer/CEO (RCA)
1891 Georges E Migot French composer
1892 William Demarest St Paul MN, actor (Uncle Charlie-My 3 Sons)
1893 Joseph Messner composer
1893 Ralph Linton US cultural anthropologist (Tree of Culture)
1894 Robert-Lucien Siohan composer
1895 Edward Brophy actor (Champ, Dumbo, Great Guy, Cameraman, Doughboys)
1897 Bernard F Lyot French astronomer (Lyot filter)
1897 G Paul H Schuitema graphic designer/photographer (System-O-Color)
1898 Allison Danzig sports writer (Tennis Pictorial History)
1898 Rutkowski Bronislaw composer
1899 Charles H Best Maine, physiologist/co-discoverer of diabetes treatment (Insulin)
1899 Ian Keith Boston MA, actor (Rochefort-3 Musketeers)
1899 Sulo Nikolai Salonen composer
19-- Stephen Yates actor (Another World, Guiding Light)
19-- Tim Topper Baltimore MD, actor (Evan-Seven Brides for Seven Brothers)
1901 Marino Marini Italian sculptor/painter
1902 Gene Sarazen Harrison NY, PGA golfer (Masters 1935, US Open 1922, 32)
1902 John Steinbeck Salinas CA, author (Grapes of Wrath-Nobel 1962)
1902 Marian Anderson singer, banned by D A R
1902 Ethelda Bleibtrey 100 meter/300 meter US swimmer (Olympics-3 gold-1920)
1903 Reginald Gardiner Wimbledon England, actor (Great Dictator)
1904 James Thomas Farrell US, author (Studs Lonigan trilogy)
1904 Renaat Verheijen Flemish actor/director (Innocent Heart)
1905 Franchot Tone Niagara Falls NY, actor (Dr Freeland-Ben Casey)
1905 Charles de Keukeleire Belgian director (Evil Eye)
1906 Alexander Matheson New Zealand cricket pace bowler (2 Tests 1930-31)
1906 H Algernon F "Algy" Rumbold English diplomat (South Africa/Tibet)
1907 Gerhard Alexander [Veldheer], Dutch actor (Prince Willem of Orange)
1909 Elisabeth Welch singer (Song of Freedom, Over the Moon)
1910 Joan Bennett Palisades NJ, actress (Elizabeth-Dark Shadows, Little Women, Disraeli)
1910 Peter De Vries Chicago IL, author (Reuben Reuben, The Prick of Noon)
1912 Hugues Panassié French jazz saxophonist/author (Hot Club of France)
1912 Lawrence Durrell Darjeeling India, writer (Alexandria Quartet)
1913 Frank Allaun British MP (L)
1913 Irwin Shaw US, novelist (Rich Man Poor Man)
1915 Arthur Gilson Belgian attorney/minister of Defense (1958- )
1917 John Bowden Connally Jr Floresville TX, (Governor/Senator-D/R-TX), Wounded in the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy
1919 Roman Haubenstock-Ramati composer
1920 Jose Melis Havana Cuba, orchestra leader (Jack Paar Program)
1920 David Vere Bendall former diplomat
1920 Reg Simpson cricketer (prolific England opener 1948-55)
1921 Andras Szollosy composer
1921 Michael Fox US, actor (Saul-Bold & Beautiful, Young Frankenstein)
1922 Mervyn Jones author (Nobody's Fault, 5 Hungarian Writers)
1923 Dexter Gordon US, tenor saxophonist/actor (Connection)
1923 Viktor Kalabis composer
1924 M M Shearer former Lord Lieutenant of Shetland
1924 Norman Marshall cricketer (brother of Roy, one Test for West Indies 1955)
1925 Guy Mitchell Detroit MI, singer/actor (Guy Mitchell Show)
1925 Hugh Leggatt art dealer
1925 Michael Kaye director (City of London Festival)
1925 Richard AFM Auwerda Dutch journalist/writer
1926 Sir Peter Emery British MP
1927 Guy Mitchell [Al Cernick], Detroit MI, rocker/actor (Red Garters)
1927 Lord Belhaven & Stenton
1927 Michael Butler Pro-Provost/chairman (Royal College of Art)
1930 Joanne Woodward Thomasville GA, actress (3 Faces of Eve, Rachel)
1930 Lieux Dressler actress (Alice Grant-General Hospital)
1931 Andrew Sloan Chief Constable (Strathcourt)
1932 Elizabeth Taylor London, actress (Cleopatra) violet eyes
1932 Lord Young of Graffham CEO (Cables & Wireless)
1932 Dolf Zwerver Dutch painter
1933 Edward Lucie-Smith poetry critic
1933 Raymond Berry Texas, NFL hall of famer (Baltimore Colts)
1933 6th marquess of Bute Scottish large landowner/bibliophile
1933 Geoffrey Maitland Smith CEO (Sears)
1933 Malcolm Wallop (Senator-R-WY, 1977- )
1934 Van Williams Fort Worth TX, actor (Green Hornet, Tycoon)
1934 [Navarre] Scott Momaday US author (House Made of Dawn, Pulitzer 1969)
1934 Ralph Nader Winsted CT, consumer advocate (Unsafe at Any Speed)
1935 Mirella Freni Modena Italy, lyric soprano (Madame Butterfly)
1935 Alberto Remedios opera/concert singer
1936 Roger M Mahoney Hollywood CA, archbishop of Los Angeles (1985- )
1936 Chuck Glaser Spalding NB, singer (Glaser Brothers-Getting to Me Again)
1936 Timothy Spall actor (1871, Life is Sweet, Crusoe, Remembrance)
1936 Virginia Maskell actress (Suspect, Doctor in Love, Man Upstairs)
1937 L Jay Silvester US, discus thrower (Olympics-silver-1972)
1937 Barbara Babcock Pasadena CA, actress (Dr Quinn, Dallas, Hill St Blues)
1937 Donald MacKay CEO (Scottish Enterprise)
1937 Viscount Head
1938 Pascale Petit Paris, actor (Code Name Jaguar, End of Desire)
1939 Peter Revson auto racer (1971 Indianapolis pole winner)
1939 Antoinette Sibley ballerina (Turning Point)
1939 Kenzo Takada Japanese director (Dream After Dream)
1939 Lester King cricketer (West Indies fast bowler, 2 Tests 1962-68, 9 wickets)
1940 Howard Hesseman Salem OR, actor (Dr Johnny Fever-WKRP, Head of Class)
1940 Barbara Kelly CEO (Scottish Consumer Council)
1941 Paddy Ashdown New Delhi India, 1st leader of Britain's Social/Liberal Democrat Party
1941 Ian McGarry General Secretary (British Actors' Equity Association)
1941 Sandy Wilson director (Harmony Cats, American Boyfriends)
1942 Charlayne Hunter-Gault Due West SC, news reporter (McNeil-Lehrer)
1943 Mary Frann St Louis MO, actress (Joanna-Newhart, Days of Our Lives)
1944 Alan Fudge Wichita KS, actor (Man From Atlantis, Paper Dolls)
1944 Graeme Pollock cricketer (South African batting prodigy)
1944 Roger Scruton philosopher
1945 Daniel Olbrychski Poland, actor (La Truite)
1947 Gidon Kremer Riga Latvia, violinist (Tchaikovsky Prize 1970)
1947 Ashley Woodcock cricketer (one Test Australia vs New Zealand 1974, only knock 27)
1947 Marian G Klaren Dutch mime/actress (Red Cabbage)
1948 Eddie Gray rock guitarist (Tommy James & Shondells-Crystal Blue Persuasion)
1948 Stephen Curtis CEO (DVLA)
1950 Franco Moschino fashion Designer
1950 Julia Neuberger British Rabbi
1951 Lee Atwater Republican National Committee Chairman (1989-91)
1951 Steve Harley London England, rocker (Cockney Rebel-Make Me Smile (Come Up & See Me))
1952 Dwight Elmo Jones Houston TX, basketball player (Olympics-silver-1972)
1952 Henk Westbroek Dutch singer (Good Cause)
1952 Kevin Raleigh rock vocalist/keyboardist (Michael Stanley Band)
1954 Neal Schon rock guitarist (Journey-Open Arms, Bad English)
1955 Garry Christian rocker
1955 Sally Spencer actress (M J McKinnon-Another World)
1957 Adrian Smith heavy metal guitarist (Iron Maiden-Aces High)
1960 Paul Humphreys rock keyboardist/synthesizer player (OMD-Crush, Pacific Age)
1960 Stoney Jackson Richmond VA, actor (White Shadow, Insiders)
1960 Andres Gomez Ecuador, tennis pro (Madrid Grand Prix-1990)
1960 Bolik Dahan Suriname singer/radio host (Radio KBC)
1960 John van Grinsven soccer player (MVV)
1961 James Worthy NBA forward (Los Angeles Lakers, 1988 Playoff MVP)
1961 Grant Shaud actor (Miles Silverburg-Murphy Brown)
1962 Adam Baldwin Chicago IL, actor (Full Metal Jacket, My Bodyguard)
1962 Grant Show Detroit MI, actor (Jake Hanson-Melrose Place)
1962 Kory Tarpenning Portland OR, pole vaulter
1962 Veronica Ribot-Canales Buenos Aires Argentina, US diver (Olympics-96)
1963 Francesco Cancellotti Italy, tennis star
1964 April Heinrichs Littleton CO, US women's soccer coach (Olympics-96)
1964 Ewen Vernal British pop bassist (Deacon Blue-Your Town)
1964 Richard de Vries soccer player (De Graafschap)
1965 Sandra Cecchini Bologna Italy, tennis star (1995 Warsaw doubles)
1966 Gregg Rainwater actor (Buck Cross-The Young Riders)
1966 Chris Howard US baseball catcher (Seattle Mariners)
1966 Pete Smith US baseball player (Atlanta Braves, New York Mets)
1967 Dallas Eakins Dade City, NHL defenseman (Winnipeg Jets)
1967 Frantisek Kaberle Brno Czechoslovakia, hockey forward (Team Czechoslovakian Republic)
1967 Robert Kron Brno Czechoslovakia, NHL right wing (Hartford Whalers)
1968 Loy Vaught NBA forward (Los Angeles Clippers)
1968 Mike Sullivan Marshfield, NHL center (Calgary Flames)
1968 Ron Cox NFL linebacker (Chicago Bears)
1969 Victoria Fair Jackson MI, Miss Michigan-America (1990)
1969 Greg Stevenson Sherbrooke Québec Canada, rower (Olympics-11-92, 96)
1969 Robert Massey NFL cornerback (New York Giants)
1969 Robert Molenaar Dutch soccer player (FC Volendam)
1969 Willie Banks US baseball pitcher (Chicago Cubs)
1970 David White NFL linebacker (Buffalo Bills)
1971 Ivan Robinson Philadelphia PA, US boxer (Olympics-92)
1971 Jaroslav Modry Ceske-budejovice C, NHL defenseman (Ottawa Senators)
1971 Rich Tylski guard/center (Jacksonville Jaguars)
1973 "Pooh" Clark rocker (High-5)
1973 Terence Davis WLAF wide receiver (London Monarchs)
1974 Chris Dishman guard (Arizona Cardinals)
1974 Jim Maher cricketer (Queensland lefty batsman victorious 1995 side)
1975 Christina Nigra actress (Out of This World)
1975 Dana Marie Lane Cheyenne WY, Miss Wyoming-America (1995)
1975 Duce Staley running back (Philadelphia Eagles)
1975 Marcus Robinson wide receiver (Chicago Bears)
1976 Tony Gonzalez tight end (Kansas City Chiefs)
1980 Chelsea Victoria Clinton Daughter of Bill & Hillary Clinton

---

Deaths which occurred on February 27:
1167 Robert of Melun English philosopher/bishop of Hereford, dies
1656 Johan van Heemskerk Dutch lawyer/writer/interpreter, dies
1706 John Evelyn diarist, dies
1731 Angelo Predieri composer, dies at 76
1733 Johann Adam Birkenstock composer, dies at 46
1735 John Arbuthnot physician/mathematician, dies
1779 Jan Nepveu Dutch Governor-General of Suriname (1769-79), dies at 59
1797 Benvenuto Robbio San Rafaele composer, dies at 61
1805 Stefan Paluselli composer, dies at 57
1844 Nicholas Biddle US lawyer/diplomat/statesman/financier, dies at 85
1852 Joseph Drechsler composer, dies at 69
1862 Gabriele dell' Addolorata patron of Italian Catholic youth, dies at 23
1881 George Colley British governor of Natal/General, dies in battle at 46
1887 Alexander Porfir'yevich Borodin Russian composer, dies at 53
1913 Adam Sedgwick English zoologist (Peripatus), dies at 58
1920 Alexandru D Xenopol Romanian historian, dies at 72
1921 Schofield Haigh cricketer (England all-rounder 11 Tests 1898-1912), dies
1923 Charles Francis Abdy Williams composer, dies at 67
1929 Manuel Manrique de Lara y Berry composer, dies at 65
1936 Ivan P Pavlov Russian physiologist (reflexes, Nobel 1904), dies at 86
1939 Nadezjda K Krupskaya Russian revolutionary/wife of Lenin, dies at 70
1940 Peter Behrens German architect, dies
1942 Karel WFM Doorman Dutch Rear Admiral (Java Sea), KIA at 52
1943 Kostís Palamis Greek poet/scholar (Flogera tou Basília), dies at 84
1945 HJ Lochtman Dutch chaplain/resistance fighter, dies in Bergen-Belsen
1947 Mackinnon of Mackinnon cricketer (Tests England vs Australia 1879), dies at 89
1950 Ivan Goll writer, dies at 58
1952 Theodorus Pangalos Greek General/dictator 1926, dies at 74
1955 Tom Howard comedian (It Pays to be Ignorant), dies at 66
1956 Frank Dailey orchestra leader (Music at Meadowbrook), dies at 54
1956 Günther Ramin German organist/composer/choir conductor, dies at 57
1958 Harry Cohn CEO (Columbia Pictures), dies of a heart attack
1960 Adriano Olivetti Italian engineer/manufacturer, dies at 58
1961 Platt Adams high jumper (Olympics-gold-1912), dies
1962 Willie Best actor (Charlie-My Little Margie), dies at 45
1966 Minerva Urecal actress (Apache Rose, Ghost Crazy), dies at 81
1968 Johannes Tralow writer, dies at 85
1968 Ludvik Podest composer, dies at 46
1969 John Boles actor (Stella Dallas, Curly Top), dies at 73
1970 Robert Bruce Lockhart diplomat/writer, dies
1973 Lucijan Marija Skerjanc Yugoslav composer/conductor, dies at 72
1974 Pat Brady Toledo OH, actor (Roy Rogers Show), dies at 59
1975 Neville Cardus writer/cricketer, dies
1977 Allison Hayes actress (Attack of 50 Foot Woman), dies at 47
1978 Vadim Nikolayevich Salmanov composer, dies at 65
1980 George Tobias actor (Abner Kravitz-Bewitched), dies at 78
1982 Malika A Sabirova Russian dancer, dies at 39
1985 J Pat O'Malley actor (My Favorite Martian, Maude), dies at 83
1985 David Huffman actor (FIST, Jane Doe, Firefox, Onion Field), dies
1985 Henry Cabot Lodge (Senator-R)/diplomat, dies at 82
1987 Joan Greenwood English actress (Gentle Sex, Bad Sister), dies at 65
1989 Joe Silver actor (Rage, Rapid, Deathtrap, Shivers), dies at 66
1989 Konrad Lorenz Austria zoologist (Nobel 1973), dies at 85
1991 Artie Mitchell porn producer (Behind the Green Door), shot at 45
1991 H J of Royen manager Dutch (Concertgebouw Orchestra), dies at 52
1991 Robert-Jan Akkerman Dutch diplomat (to Tunis), murdered
1992 Marinus Ruppert Dutch trade union leader (CNV), dies at 80
1992 S I Hayakawa (Senator-CA, 1977-83), dies of a stroke at 85
1993 José Duval actor (Juan Valdez), dies at 72
1993 Lillian Gish US actress (Birth of a Nation), dies at 96
1993 Ruby Keeler actress (42nd Street), dies of cancer at 83
1994 Harold Acton English/Italian historian/art collector, dies at 84
1994 Karl I Pelgrom Dutch sculptor, dies at 66
1994 Laurence "Bill" Craigie jet pioneer, dies at 92
1994 Leopold "Hans" Kohr Austria social philosopher/economist, dies at 84
1995 Bernard Cornfield financier, dies at 67
1995 Philip Sherrington opus Dei Priest, dies at 51
1996 François Chaumette actor (They Never Slept, Christine), dies at 72
1996 George Ian Murray 10th Duke of Atholl, dies at 64
1996 Pat Smythe show jumper, dies at 67
1996 Sylvia Williams museum director/curator, dies at 60

---

On this day...
0837 15th recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet
1526 Saxony & Hesse form League of Gotha (league of Protestant princes)
1531 Evangelical German monarchy/towns form Schmalkaldische Union
1557 1st Russian Embassy opens in London
1563 William Byrd is appointed organist at Lincoln Cathedral
1594 Henri IV crowned king of France
1665 Battle at Elmina, Gold Coast Vice-Admiral De Ruyter beats English
1667 Abraham Crijnssen conquerors Fort Willoughby (Zeelandia), Suriname
1670 Jews are expelled from Austria by order of Leopold I
1678 Earl of Shaftesbury freed out of London Tower
1696 English/Welsh nobles lay down Oath of Association
1700 Pacific island of New Britain discovered
1713 French troops bomb Willemstad Curaçao
1801 Washington DC placed under Congressional jurisdiction
1803 Great fire in Bombay, India
1813 1st federal vaccination legislation enacted
1813 Congress authorizes use of steamboats to transport mail
1814 Ludwig von Beethovens 8th Symphony in F, premieres
1816 Dutch regain Suriname
1827 1st Mardi Gras celebration in New Orleans LA
1844 Dominican Republic gains independence from Haiti (National Day)
1854 Composer Robert Schumann saved from suicide attempt in Rhine
1861 US Congress authorizes 1st stamped newspaper wrappers for mailing
1861 Warsaw Massacre Russians fire on crowd demonstrating against Russian rule of Poland
1864 Near Andersonville GA, rebels open a new POW camp "Camp Sumter"
1864 6th & last day of Battle at Dalton, Georgia (about 600 casualties)
1865 Civil War skirmish near Sturgeon MO
1869 John Menard is 1st black to make a speech in Congress
1871 Meeting of Alabama claims commission
1872 Charlotte Ray, 1st Black woman lawyer, graduated Harvard U
1873 Dutch socialist Samuel van Wooden demands law against child labor
1874 Baseball 1st played in England, at Lord's Cricket Grounds
1877 US Electoral College declares R Hayes winner Presidential election
1879 Constantine Fahlberg discovers saccharin (artificial sweetener)
1881 Battle at Amajuba, South Africa Boers vs British army under General Colley
1883 Oscar Hammerstein patents 1st cigar-rolling machine
1890 D Needham & P Kerrigan box 100 rounds (6 hours 39 minutes), San Francisco; match is draw
1900 Conference in London calls for creation of a British labor party
1900 Battle at Pietershoogte; Boer General Cronjé surrenders to English in Pardenberg, South-Africa
1901 NL Rules Committee decrees that all fouls are to count as strikes except after two strikes
1906 France & Britain agree to joint control of New Hebrides
1908 Sacrifice fly adopted (repealed in 1931, reinstated 1954)
1908 Star #46 was added to US flag for Oklahoma
1912 Lord Kitchener opens Khartoum-El Obeid (Nyala) railway
1919 1st public performance of Holst's "The Planets"
1919 American Association for the Hard of Hearing formed (New York NY)
1921 US female Figure Skating championship won by Theresa Weld Blanchard
1921 US male Figure Skating championship won by Sherwin Badger
1922 Supreme Court unanimously upheld 19th amend woman's right to vote
1922 Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover convenes 1st National Radio Conference
1922 G B Shaw's "Back to Methusaleh I/II" premieres in New York NY
1924 Belgium's Theunis government falls
1925 Hitler resurrects NSDAP political party in Munich
1925 Test Cricket debut of Clarrie Grimmett, who took 5-45 & 6-37 vs England
1927 For 2nd Sunday in a row golfers in South Carolina arrested for violating Sabbath
1929 Turkey signs Litvinov-pact
1929 Russia & US sign trade agreement
1930 Bouvet Island declared a Norwegian dependency
1932 Explosion in coal mine Boissevain, Virginia, USA (38 dead)
1933 German parliament building, Reichstag, destroyed by fire (set by Nazis, blamed on communists)
1933 Jean Genet's "Intermezzo" premieres in Paris
1936 Willy den Ouden swims world record 100 meter free style (1:04.6)
1937 Bradman scores 169 in 5th Test Cricket vs England in 223 minutes
1938 Britain & France recognize Franco government in Spain
1939 Supreme Court outlaws sit-down strikes
1939 Belgian government of Pierlot falls
1939 English Spook house Borley Rectory destroyed in a fire
1942 Battle of Java Sea began 13 US warships sunk-2 Japanese
1942 J S Hey discovers radio emissions from the Sun
1942 1st transport of French Jews to Nazi-Germany
1945 Battle of US 94 Infantry
1946 4th "Road" film, "Road to Utopia" premieres (New York NY)
1947 Paul-Emile Victor French polar expeditions organized
1949 Chaim Weizmann becomes 1st Israeli President
1950 General Chiang Kai-shek elected President of Nationalist China
1951 22nd amendment to the Constitution is ratified, limiting President to 2 terms in office
1955 Betty Jameson wins LPGA Sarasota Golf Open
1956 Elvis Presley's releases "Heartbreak Hotel"
1956 Female suffrage in Egypt
1957 Mao's speech "On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among People"
1957 Premiere of only prime-time network TV show beginning with an "X" "Xavier Cugat Show" on NBC (until X-Files)
1958 USSR performs nuclear test at Novaya Zemlya USSR
1959 Boston Celtic Bob Cousy sets NBA record with 28 assists Boston Celtics score 173 points against Minneapolis Lakers
1959 Chicago Cards trade running back Ollie Matson to Los Angeles Rams for 9 players
1960 Oil pipe line from Rotterdam to Ruhrgebied opens
1960 US Olympics Ice Hockey Team beats USSR 3-2 en route to gold medal
1962 South-Vietnam President Ngo Dinh Diem's palace bombed, 1st US killed
1963 Mickey Mantle of New York Yankees sign a baseball contract worth $100,000
1964 "What Makes Sammy Run?" opens at 84th St Theater NYC for 540 performances
1965 "High Spirits" closes at Alvin Theater NYC after 375 performances
1965 Dutch Marijnen government resigns
1965 France performs Underground nuclear test at Ecker Algeria
1966 Ice Dance Championship at Davos won by Diane Towler/Bernard Ford Great Britain
1966 Ice Pairs Championship at Davos won by Belousova & Protopopov of USSR
1966 Ladies Figure Skating Championship in Davos won by Peggy Fleming of US
1966 Men's Figure Skating Championship in Davos won by Emmerich Danzer Austria
1967 Antigua & St Christopher-Nevis become associated states of UK
1967 Dominica gains independence from England
1967 Pink Floyd release their 1st single "Arnold Layne"
1967 Rio de la Plata Treaty
1969 General Hafez al-Assad becomes head of Syria via military coup
1969 President Nixon visits West-Berlin
1970 New York Times (falsely) reports US army has ended domestic surveillance
1972 President Nixon & Chinese Premier Chou En-lai issued Shanghai Communique
1973 American Indian Movement occupy Wounded Knee in South Dakota
1973 Dick Allen signs a record $675,000 3-year contract with White Sox
1973 Pope Paul VI publishes constitution motu proprio Quo aptius
1974 "People" magazine begins sales
1974 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1975 House of Representatives pass $21.3 billion anti-recession tax-cut bill
1975 CDU-politician Peter Lorentz kidnapped in West Berlin
1976 Final meeting between Mao tse Tung & Richard Nixon
1977 Keith Richards gets suspended sentence for heroin possession, Canada
1977 Judy Rankin wins LPGA Bent Tree Golf Classic
1978 France performs nuclear test at Muruora Island
1980 22nd Grammy Awards What a Fool Believe, Streisand-Diamond duet (You Don't Bring Me Flowers)
1980 Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF wins elections in Zimbabwe
1980 Terrorists occupies Dominican embassy in Bogota
1981 Greatest passenger load on a commercial airliner-610 on Boeing 747
1981 Paul McCartney & Stevie Wonder record "Ebony & Ivory"
1982 Dan Issel (NBA-Nuggets), hits on 63rd consecutive free throw
1982 Earl Anthony becomes 1st pro bowler to win more than $1 million
1982 Wayne Williams found guilty of murdering 2 of 28 blacks in Atlanta GA
1982 France performs nuclear test at Muruora Island
1983 Eamonn Coghlan sets indoor mile record of 3 49.78
1983 Jan Stephenson wins Tucson Conquistadores LPGA Golf Tournament
1984 WRC-AM in Washington DC changes call letters to WWRC
1984 Carl Lewis jumps world record indoor (8,675 meters)
1984 Worker's union leader Billy Nair freed in South Africa
1985 Farmers converge in Washington to demand economic relief
1985 Mauritania's new constitutional charter published
1985 US dollar is worth ƒ3.9355 (Netherlands)
1987 Donald Regan resigned as White House chief of staff
1987 NCAA cancels SMU's entire 1987 football schedule for gross violations of NCAA rules regarding athletic corruption
1987 "Washington Week In Review", 20th anniversary on PBS
1987 Mike Conley triple jumps world indoor record (17.76 meters)
1988 Bonnie Blair (US) wins Olympics 500 meter speed skating in record 39.1
1988 Katarina Witt (GDR) wins 2nd consecutive Olympics figure skating
1988 Ayako Okamoto wins LPGA Orient Leasing Hawaiian Ladies Golf Open
1988 Gulfstream G-IV goes around the world 36 08 34
1989 German war criminals Austria der Fünten/Fischer, freed in Holland
1990 Exxon Corp & Exxon Shipping are indicted on 5 criminal counts (Valdez)
1991 Noureddine Morcelli set 1500 meter mark at 3 34 16
1991 Singer James Brown is released from prison
1991 Ben Elton's "Silly Cow" premieres in London
1991 Gulf War ends after Iraqi troops retreat & Kuwait is liberated
1992 Larry Smith, named 9th Commissioner of the CFL
1992 Tiger Woods, 16, becomes youngest PGA golfer in 35 years
1993 PBA National Championship Won by Ron Palombi Jr
1994 17th Olympics Winter games close in Lillehammer, Norway
1994 Maronite church near Beirut bombed, 10 killed
1995 Car bomb explodes in Zakho, North-Iraq (54-80 killed)
1996 Mark Waugh scores 126 in World Cup against India
1997 "Last Night of Ballyhoo" opens at Helen Hayes Theater NYC
1997 Singer Sade (Helen Folasade), arrested in Jamaica for disobeying a cop
1998 14th Soap Opera Digest Awards
1998 Apple discontinues developing Newton computer
1998 FBI arrests 10 most wanted suspected serial killer Tony Ray Amati
1998 New England Patriot David Meggett arrested in Toronto on sex assault charges

---

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Dominican Republic : Independence Day (1844)
St Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla : Statehood Day (1967)
St Kitts & Antigua : Independence Day (1967)

---

Religious Observances
Christian : Feast of St Leander
Anglican : Commemoration of George Herbert, priest
Roman Catholic : Commemoration of St Gabriel Possenti [non-leap years]

---

Religious History
280 Birth of Constantine the Great, the first Roman emperor to be converted (ca. 312) to the Christian faith.
1838 Birth of William J. Kirkpatrick, American Methodist sacred composer. He edited his first collection of hymns at age 21, and is still remembered today for composing the melodies to such hymns as: "He Hideth My Soul," "'Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus," "Redeemed, How I Love to Proclaim It" and "Lord, I'm Coming Home."
1839 Scottish clergyman Robert Murray McCheyne wrote in a letter: 'Most of God's people are content to be saved from the hell that is without. They are not so anxious to be saved from the hell that is within.'
1849 William Jewell College was chartered in Liberty, Missouri, under Baptist sponsorship.
1938 English Bible expositor Arthur W. Pink wrote in a letter: 'Slackness and carelessness are inexcusable in a child of God. He should ever present a model and example of conscientiousness, painstaking care, and exactness.'

---

Thought for the day :
"Let a fool hold his tongue and he will pass for a sage."

[SAMWolf]

1942 1st transport of French Jews to Nazi-Germany

Sure is nice the see the French and Germans working together again isn't it? < /sarcasm>

[SpookBrat]

Good morning! Awesome thread.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Spooky

[SAMWolf]

My uncle, Herbert Schabacker, served as an officer for the 369th infantry. As did Col. Hayward, the commander of the 369th , he had Nebraska roots.

NOTE: Some of the letters have an * embedded, these were words or letters that Western Phil was unable to decipher when transcribing from the original letters.

A.E.F.
OFFICERS' INN.
Nov. 8, 1918

Dear Parents, Brothers & Sisters:

It has been better than a week since I have written you, I believe and as I have a little time I'll let you hear from me.

I am sending you a few German Propaganda slips that Fritz drops over our lines on clear days. It is a lot of "Bunk". But he insists in it. We have our share of fun on them, Have taken them & written in long hand right under them some American Propaganda & sent over to his lines. I am also sending you some more coins, Papa. A Swiss & a Belgian Coin. I would ask one thing tho & that is if you acknowledge every time you get some coins & the next time you write just what coins I have sent you. I can replace such, maybe, that were lost in the mails.

I suppose Dora told you that again I am where you really soldier. Today was quite a clear day and our artillery brought down one of Fritz's Planes who was getting a little to chesty the last week or so. He fell in back of my sector, but I was unable to go & see the wreck.

The nights are unusually long and will get longer as this month & the next goes along. At 4:30 it is dark & it does not light up until 6:00 & on dreary days they are longer yet. It is pretty hard on a man's nerve to be always on the alert especially so at night when you must hear if Fritz comes over as you cannot see him.

It night I do my share of translating French orders that were turned over to me, writing letters, discussing plans of the war with my new commissioned officers, reading what little English reading matter drips thru to us. Tho a good deal of my time is spent with the men on post. Being Colored men, they are a little scary but let them see that their officers are willing to go there with what they must they will follow him thru anything and you would be surprised at their confidence in me. Like one said to me whin I stood with him on post one night "Lieutenant, sir! I believe there was somebody in the wire, my hand was itching to throw, a grenade at it , but I knew you were just a little ways off & you would have heard it so let it alone." Just such little incidences are every day occurrence. You cannot depend on them when away, but let a white officer lead them & nothing will stop them. So I have heard when this Regiment went over the top and one of the officers was wounded & fell 12 men rushed up to him to help him in spite of the fact that the earth was just being churned by machine gun Bullets. The old officers in this Regiment are the elite of New York City. Col. Hayward in command was Chas. E. Hughes' National Campaign leader. Our Captain is running for State Senator, millionaires & multimillionaires make up a great part of the officer personnel. The old men are all of N.Y. and a fighting Bunch it was originally the 15th N.Y. N.G.

In the day time I do a lot work around my post such that will make the place safe & comfortable not only for me but also for my successor whom we always take into consideration.

Food is good, considering under what difficulties it has to be brought up and cooked. Now & then we officers are able to get somebody into a village behind the lines & have extras such as butter @ 1.25 per lb. Eggs @ .20 each a can of Peaches the other day cost us $1.60 at that rate we are not eating much extra especially so since I have not been paid since I left the States. But it is coming sooner or later.

I'll close now, with many regards to all.

Your son & Brother
Herbert
369th Inf. U.S.
French Post. Sect. #107
Via N.Y. American E. F.

[CholeraJoe]

Awesome!

[SAMWolf]

Morning CholeraJoe.

It's a real honor for the Foxhole to have Western Phil share his Uncle's letters with us.

[SAMWolf]

My uncle, Herbert Schabacker, served as an officer for the 369th infantry. As did Col. Hayward, the commander of the 369th , he had Nebraska roots.

NOTE: Some of the letters have an * embedded, these were words or letters that Western Phil was unable to decipher when transcribing from the original letters.

ON ACTIVE SERVICE
WITH THE
AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCE
Nov. 28, 1918

Dear Parents Brothers & Sisters:

I have not fulfilled my wish of writing you weekly for the last 2 weeks, but not because I did not want to, it was because I could not. From what has passed the last 18 days you may know that we are now in Germany and are permitted to say that we are stationed at Fessenheim some 30 Kilometers from Muchlhouse along the Rein. We claim to be the first division of the Allied Army who reached the Rein 11:30 A.M. Nov. 19. I dipped my hands in the River & the next day I was ordered out to establish a guard on the front of the river & my Company was the first one called "Die Wacht am Rein" I was in command of the Co. We stayed out there for some few nights Froze our share and came out in a nice autumn snow storm. We had no shelter except a thin tent and 3 Blankets but as soldiers we came out. Now we are enjoying home comforts as far as sleeping is concerned, Eating tho not like at home, is plentiful thanks to Uncle Sam's good work in building up the Railroads and roads across No Mans Land.

What a grand and glorious feeling I had when the "runner" brought to me a message at 9:30 A.M. Nov. 11 ordering me to cease all hostilities after 11;00 A.M. same date it certainly relieved me of a lot of anxiety and for the first time in 9 nights I took off my shoes that night & slept. But more of this when I come to visit you upon my return which is my one ambition and along with me will come Florence.

Rumor has it that we will be going home very shortly in fact one of the first ones. So now I am looking ahead and wondering where I will be making my living and how. A certainty is that nothing is settled by any means.

I received today a letter from Henry which I will endeavor to answer if at all possible. Freda's Cousin Lena and your letter of Oct. 18 came at the same time with 5 from Florence, but as this is the first mail received since we left the line I feel that I was not unusually swamped.

I see, Mother, you are still writing in English and having your share of trouble which is not necessary. German is satisfactory to the censor.

Today is Thanksgiving day and we expect to have 2 roosters for dinner which is the best we could do under the existing circumstances but good they will taste.

Must close now. With much love & many regards to all

Your Son & Brother
Herbert
369th Inf. U.S .
Fr. Post. Sect. #107
American E. F.

[SAMWolf]

Mr. Hughes sounds very angry and frustrated in this poem.