Posted on 01/13/2012 7:12:54 AM PST by Daffynition
KANSAS CITY, MO (Reuters) - Somehow, maybe in a struggle to remove his helmet, Kent Potter lost his dog tag on a French battlefield in World War I.
Private Potter, who worked on an Army supply train that consisted mostly of mules and horses, survived the war and returned home to Kansas without the tag, which remained buried for more than 90 years.
At a ceremony hosted in the small town of Cottonwood Falls on Thursday, however, the worn, round metal tag finally landed back with the Potter family thanks to the efforts of two Frenchmen.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Wonderful, feel good story, Daffy! I am sure his son will treasure this and the two French people showed great compassion and good hearts. Bravo!
I wish I could find the records of my great uncle, who was killed in France, September 1918.
The fire in St. Louis in 1973 destroyed a huge percentage of the records of the first world war.......
Medals and records have such meaning for families. I have no idea what happened to my Dad’s two Purple Hearts and some other medals. Very sad too because his grandchildren would have simply treasured them and passed them down the line.
You can go to the DOD and request the data. Also they may issue replacement medals and paperwork.
Good Luck
Right now I’m looking at a photo of my grandfather, in his doughboy uniform, seated on a sorry-looking horse. He was 15 when he enlisted (lied about his age), and when he was shipped to France, his superior officers insisted he be placed behind the lines with the horses and mules. I wish we still had his dog tags. He died at the age of 82.
I had no idea you could do that. Thank you, Yorlik803! Even if there is a chance of a replacement... it would be great. You’re a doll!
Great story.
There are still citizens of France who remember...
Fifteen... he was a very special and brave man. He was just a kid and enlisted to do a man’s job. Bless him.
Thanks! I think he was unhappy at home and he was a rough and tough Brooklyn boy who later went on to have a smalltime boxing career. Boys were men in those days!
You can get them replaced. In the 80s my mother replaced all of my father’s lost WWII medals. He was annoyed with her - he hated the army, lol!!!
Good for your MOM! Granted, the medals are given to the individual BUT future generations would love to keep them for memories. I know I would and so would my kids. Thanks, Miss Marmelstein!
Well done!
When I was in Paris a few years ago, an old lady came up to me on the street, no doubt after hearing me speak bad French to a street vendor, and thanked me for being an American. She said to me, “Merci, Thank you, American, World War 2, merci, merci, thank you”.
I said to her, “Lafayette, Revolution, merci, thank you!” we both laughed, said “au revoir, goodbye” etc.
Best part of the trip.
My doughboy grandfather was with the 7th ID over there. I looked it up by the insignia on his helmet. I used to have his uniform as well, but it got lost in moves over the years.
Here is the link to get replacement medals for veterans and families:
http://www.archives.gov/veterans/
That is good to know.
I have heard comments from young people so patheticlly misguided they think that the bombings of Dresden and Hiroshima were war crimes.
That is a wonderful story! “Lafayette, Revolution, merci, thank you!” ... what a wonderful way to thank her back.
I was working on an airport project back in 2001 that required the irrigation canal at the end of the runway be rerouted. After the water was drained and the contractor was working in the 4 foot of muck, we discovered parts (engine cowling and landing gear) of a jet fighter that had crashed in the early 60’s while attempting to land and killed the pilot.
A few weeks later the Cultural Resource Specialist from the local indian tribe discovered the pilots wallet while sifting through the waste piles of muck. All work was stopped and Air Force personnel showed up with a hearse and honor guard to pick up the wallet. They returned it to the pilots family back in Wisconsin.
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