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Old 03-06-2021, 01:23 AM
salem1912 salem1912 is offline
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Was wondering if anyone could put this in order. Just found some info of grandfathers military service in WW1.
28th Division
53rd brigade
108th F.A.
3rd Battalion
From what I think this was a Pennsylvania National Guard Unit that was called up and "Federalized"??

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Old 03-06-2021, 02:39 AM
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The 108th Field Artillery has quite a history.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/108th_...llery_Regiment

I'm not an Army guy but it appears that your Grandfather was assigned to the 3rd Battalion of the 108th, a Pennsylvania NG unit. It in turn was assigned to the 53rd Brigade of the 28th Division of the US Army.
Currently it is the only National Guard Stryker Brigade

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Old 03-06-2021, 10:26 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by salem1912 View Post
Was wondering if anyone could put this in order. Just found some info of grandfathers military service in WW1.
28th Division
53rd brigade
108th F.A.
3rd Battalion
From what I think this was a Pennsylvania National Guard Unit that was called up and "Federalized"??
"Federalized" means they called to duty as US Army under control of the Federal Government.

Definition of the National Guard: "The National Guard is a unique element of the U.S. military that serves both community and country. The Guard responds to domestic emergencies, overseas combat missions, counterdrug efforts, reconstruction missions and more. Any state governor or the President of the United States can call on the Guard in a moment’s notice. Guard Soldiers hold civilian jobs or attend college while maintaining their military training part time. Guard Soldiers’ primary area of operation is their home state. Because of the National Guard's dual state-federal mission, Guard members can be mobilized to protect and defend America in battle domestically or overseas. "

The Coast Guard is also similar and they too can be "Federalized" during war times.

You can do additional searches for more info, and you want to search for the "Unit History" or "Unit Diary" of any military organization which can reveal more about the group and what took place - to include rosters.

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Old 03-07-2021, 10:52 PM
JimFB400HO JimFB400HO is offline
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I found a lot of information on specific divisions when I followed my Grandpa's service in WW1, from his induction through the ship he came home on. I found a book on his division and I followed each movement of him through the war. Confirming it, I have a personal record of locations he wrote on the case his gas mask is in as he went through France and Belgium.

The genealogy companies have many of the military resources you can use. For example, here is a book Family Search has:
Pennsylvania in the World War : an illustrated history of the Twenty-eighth Division, vol. 1
https://www.familysearch.org/library...89-redirection
and
Pennsylvania in the World War : an illustrated history of the Twenty-eighth Division; v. 02
https://www.familysearch.org/library...73-redirection

And an index of WW1 AEF : (note your Grandpa's 108th Artillery within the "Keystone") https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en...ion,_1917-1919


I've had a free Family Search membership for many years. Ancestry also has a good military library but they have a fee.


Last edited by JimFB400HO; 03-07-2021 at 11:02 PM.
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Old 03-08-2021, 12:21 AM
salem1912 salem1912 is offline
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Thanks for the info guy's. Have a few photo's of my grandfather.
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Old 03-08-2021, 04:53 PM
JimFB400HO JimFB400HO is offline
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You are fortunate to have those priceless photos.

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Old 03-09-2021, 12:55 AM
salem1912 salem1912 is offline
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Have this one; reads Me on Capt. Fellmans horse "chief". We had his full uniform and would wear it for Halloween but somehow between me and my three brothers lost it. Mom was pi$$. Thanks JimFB400HO I now have a few more links to good to.
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Old 03-09-2021, 01:05 AM
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Have you checked to see if his military record is still available from the government? https://www.usa.gov/military-records Note that some years ago there was a fire at the records center that destroyed many of the records on file, so they may or may not be able to provide the information on your grandfather but's worth checking. My brother got the records for our uncle who was killed in WWII (the pages were charred around the edges) and it had very detailed information on him, from the day he enlisted all the way to the condolence letter that was sent to my grandmother after he died.

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Old 03-09-2021, 10:52 AM
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Originally Posted by JimFB400HO View Post
You are fortunate to have those priceless photos.
This so much. I have my great-grandfather's WWI service uniform photos and a few photos from the after period, but not much more nor his service info (other than "some bad stuff happened").

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Old 03-09-2021, 01:44 PM
JimFB400HO JimFB400HO is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ben M. View Post
This so much. I have my great-grandfather's WWI service uniform photos and a few photos from the after period, but not much more nor his service info (other than "some bad stuff happened").
I am fortunate to have some of my Grandpa's WW1 memorabilia. Sadly, he died very early in life so I only have a few personal memories of him, me being only age six at the time. I really enjoyed researching and documenting his WW1 service, merging some notes he made while overseas with the records of his division. I have a couple of his "bad stuff" events documented but I know there was much I don't know other than overall division information in the records.. While that brutal war was underway, our military and citizens at home were also fighting and dying from the Spanish Flu.

From the rare "good stuff", I know he took the message for his division in Belgium on 11/11 that the war was ending.

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Old 03-09-2021, 01:57 PM
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Originally Posted by JimFB400HO View Post
Sadly, he died very early in life so I only have a few personal memories of him, me being only age six at the time.
That was my great-grandfather too. He died young, like age 43. My grandfather was only 12 and would never talk about him in any way around me despite me asking once or twice - I never even saw the photos until after my grandfather died and we were going through his papers. My dad told me his dad told him a few times that he came back from the war in 1918 and something had happened and he never was the same person again and ended up drinking himself to death. I just recently found a few more photos in the family archives of him later in life and the facial expressions between the "going to war" photos and the "aftermath" are just sad to see. I am so glad you have the memories and photos! My great-grandfather's records were lost so there's very little info on where he was other than the 2 photos I have of him in his doughboy's uniform.

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Old 03-09-2021, 02:24 PM
JimFB400HO JimFB400HO is offline
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Ben, With his uniform, you may sufficient information to start research on his service. With the patch and rank on it plus his full name and his home town/state in 1917-18, you can likely find some level of information. Perhaps the event or events that changed him so much may never be known but you might be able to understand the battles he was in.
Let me know with a PM if I can help. I spent several years researching my wife and my family genealogy.

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Old 03-09-2021, 05:21 PM
JimFB400HO JimFB400HO is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by salem1912 View Post
Was wondering if anyone could put this in order. Just found some info of grandfathers military service in WW1.
28th Division
53rd brigade
108th F.A.
3rd Battalion
From what I think this was a Pennsylvania National Guard Unit that was called up and "Federalized"??
I forgot, a site that has a lot of military records is https://www.fold3.com/
Our local library has a subscription to it. Maybe your does too.

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