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Archiving Wheeling Ohio County Public Library Archives WALS Foundation

From Camp Lee to the Great War: January 6, 1918 – Lester Scott

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From Camp Lee to the Great War: The Letters of Lester Scott and Charles Riggle: Podcast Episode 24

“I don’t know what time I will get to Wheeling. The trains have been so late…”

In his seventeenth letter home from Camp Lee, Virginia, to his sister Minnie Riggle, US Army Wagoner (mule team driver) Lester Scott, a World War I soldier from Wheeling, West Virginia, writes that he’s just gotten out of the hospital after his bout with measles. He’s feeling better and is eager to get to Wheeling for a two-day visit. The weather has been “fierce” in Virginia, so he assumes it’s worse in Wheeling, and he’s not sure a “machine” [automobile] will be able to make it the train station to pick him up.

Elsewhere on the same day, France and Germany recognized Finland’s independence (the latter after Bolshevik Russia, with whom the German Empire was negotiating peace, had done so) and the Italian army had some success in Albania.

Lester Scott was drafted in 1917 and trained at Camp Lee, where so many Wheeling soldiers were trained. And, like so many of his Ohio Valley comrades, he served in the 314th Field Artillery Supply Company, Battery “A,” 80th (Blue Ridge) Division in France. This is his seventeenth letter from Camp Lee, dated 100 years ago today, January 6, 1918.

Archiving Wheeling Ohio County Public Library Archives WALS Foundation

From Camp Lee to the Great War: January 2, 1918 – Charles Riggle

Archiving Wheeling January 2, 2018January 19, 2018 Leave a Comment 1955 Views

From Camp Lee to the Great War: The Letters of Lester Scott and Charles Riggle: Podcast Episode 23

“I say [Germany] ought to get a good whipping before it is over. If they would make peace with her now she would prepare up again. Go back in the war stronger than ever…”

In his seventh letter home from Camp Lee, Virginia, dated January 2, 1918, PFC Charles “Dutch” Riggle, a WWI soldier from Wheeling, WV, tells his brother James “Abe” Riggle that he is recovering from a mild case of the measles. He notes that Less [our second letter writer, Wagoner Lester Scott] is now in the hospital with the same ailment. Dutch regrets missing Christmas at home but says they had a splendid good time and a “number one good dinner” at camp. The weather has been “powerful cold” and it’s “snowing like the devil” as he writes. There are 22 prisoners in the guard house who tried to “run off” for home. Dutch again mentions the U.S. Coastal Artillery (founded in 1901 to defend America’s coastline and harbors). He says the army has made him tough. He has no fear of battle. He’d like to get to France soon but doesn’t think he ever actually will because the Germans are “tired of war” and talking peace [probably a reference to the peace talks at Brest-Litovsk between the Germans and the Bolsheviks (Soviet Russia) that were occurring at the time]. He thinks Germany fears American power entering the war and that “she ought to get a good whipping” lest she arms up again and continues the war. In his own way, Charles seems to anticipate the rise of the Third Reich and the Second World War. He thinks the submarine was Germany’s last chance to win. He closes by noting that James is taking care of Lester’s horse.

Elsewhere on the same day, the British Air Ministry was established to oversee the Royal Air Force and deal with the increasing number of German Luftstreitkräfte bombing air raids (featuring Zeppelins, Gotha bombers, and other aircraft) against Great Britain.

Charles “Dutch” Riggle was drafted into the US Army in 1917 and trained at Camp Lee, Virginia, where so many Wheeling draftees and volunteers—including his sister-in-law Minnie Riggle’s brother, Lester Scott—were trained. Dutch Riggle was a Private First Class in the 314th Field Artillery Supply Company, in France. Riggle was a farm boy with little formal education who grew up in the hills of Pennsylvania and West Virginia. He spelled many of his words phonetically. His letters have been transcribed exactly as they were written. This is his seventh letter from Camp Lee, dated 100 years ago today, January 2, 1918.
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Archiving Wheeling Ohio County Public Library Archives WALS Foundation

From Camp Lee to the Great War: January 1, 1918 – Lester Scott

Archiving Wheeling January 1, 2018January 2, 2018 Leave a Comment 1656 Views

From Camp Lee to the Great War: The Letters of Lester Scott and Charles Riggle: Podcast Episode 22

“Believe me we got some fine looking nurses here. One looks just like Cleo. I wouldn’t mind staying here for awhile…”

In his sixteenth letter home from Camp Lee, Virginia, to his sister Minnie Riggle, US Army Wagoner (mule team driver) Lester Scott, a World War I soldier from Wheeling, West Virginia, writes, on base hospital stationary, that he’s in the hospital with the German measles, but is doing fine. He plans to come home as soon as he’s out. He wants to make sure his girlfriend Cleo is there when he arrives. Like Dutch [Scott’s brother-in-law and our second letter writer Charles Riggle] had noted in a previous letter, Lester has read that the farm boys would get to come home for the spring to get the crops planted. Lester would just as soon stay in the army. There’s a soldier next to him from White Sulphur Springs, Greenbrier County, West Virginia. He’s a hunter with deerhounds and promised to send Jim [Minnie’s husband James Riggle] a pup. Lester thinks the nurses are good looking at the base camp hospital. One looks just like Cleo. He wouldn’t mind staying for a while.

Elsewhere on the same day, German raids near Mericourt on the Western Front failed, the French held back a raid at Verdun, the Austrians bombed Venice Italy, and the Mare Island US Marine Corp football team defeated the Camp Lewis US Army team 19-7 in the 4th Rose Bowl, which featured squads from military bases in 1918 and 1919.

Lester Scott was drafted in 1917 and trained at Camp Lee, where so many Wheeling soldiers were trained. And, like so many of his Ohio Valley comrades, he served in the 314th Field Artillery Supply Company, Battery “A,” 80th (Blue Ridge) Division in France. This is his sixteenth letter from Camp Lee, dated 100 years ago today, January 1, 1918.

Archiving Wheeling Ohio County Public Library Archives WALS Foundation

From Camp Lee to the Great War: December 25, 1917 – Lester Scott

Archiving Wheeling December 25, 2017January 2, 2018 Leave a Comment 1735 Views

From Camp Lee to the Great War: The Letters of Lester Scott and Charles Riggle: Podcast Episode 21

“We are going to have a big dinner today. I can’t remember what I was doing last Christmas…”

In his fifteenth letter home (written on Christmas Day 1917) from Camp Lee, Virginia, to his sister Minnie Riggle, US Army Wagoner (mule team driver) Lester Scott, a World War I soldier from Wheeling, West Virginia, writes that the troops will be having a big dinner at camp and that he expects to be able to come home soon for a visit. He regrets that he won’t have sufficient notice to let his girlfriend Cleo know so that she can be in Wheeling to meet him. He’ll only have five days and he won’t be late getting back lest he be “slapped in the guard house.”

Elsewhere on what would prove to be the last Christmas Day of the Great War, there would be no truce in the trenches as there had been in 1914, when French and British soldiers, along with their German enemies, agreed to unofficial ceasefires along the front to exchange Christmas greetings and even to sing carols together in “no man’s land” (recreated in the 2005 film, Joyeux Noel). Though much smaller in scope and number, a few similar truces occurred again in 1915. But the increasing brutality of the war ensured no recurrence in 1916 nor in 1917.

Lester Scott was drafted in 1917 and trained at Camp Lee, where so many Wheeling soldiers were trained. And, like so many of his Ohio Valley comrades, he served in the 314th Field Artillery Supply Company, Battery “A,” 80th (Blue Ridge) Division in France. This is his fifteenth letter from Camp Lee, dated 100 years ago today, December 25, 1917.

Archiving Wheeling Ohio County Public Library Archives WALS Foundation

From Camp Lee to the Great War: December 23, 1917 – Charles Riggle

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From Camp Lee to the Great War: The Letters of Lester Scott and Charles Riggle: Podcast Episode 20

“The Coast Artillery will never go across the pond. They may never see a battle unless the Germans come across an they hant much danger of them doing that…”

In his sixth letter home from Camp Lee, Virginia, dated December 23, 1917, PFC Charles “Dutch” Riggle, a WWI soldier from Wheeling, WV, tells his brother James “Abe” Riggle that his name was drawn 104th for furlough, so it will be a good while before he gets to come home — probably February. He’d like to come home with Less [our second letter writer, Wagoner Lester Scott] but thinks that won’t be possible. He says he saw in the newspaper that Bill Riggle was sent to the U.S. Coast Artillery in Georgia [established in 1901 to defend the U.S. coastline and harbors in case of attack]. He thinks that’s good because he doesn’t think they will be sent to France. A few cooks have been sent over. He also read that all the farmers would be sent home in the spring. Charles isn’t sure he wants to go. He feels army life has done him good. He’s heartier than ever. He says the expect a big dinner for Christmas in camp and a lot of stuff from the Red Cross. He says they had nine inches of snow. He asks Abe to save him some apples as they are too expensive at a nickel a piece at Camp Lee.

Elsewhere, peace talks between Soviet (Bolshevik) Russia and the Central Powers had been initiated the previous day at Brest-Litovsk, a city near the Polish border in what is now Belarus. The negotiations would continue for two months and would lead to, among other things, the ceding of the Baltic States (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) to Germany as well as the release of Russian claims in Poland, Ukraine, and Finland. The Bolsheviks were involved in a civil war for control of Russia and were willing to agree to harsh peace terms to free up resources.

Charles “Dutch” Riggle was drafted into the US Army in 1917 and trained at Camp Lee, Virginia, where so many Wheeling draftees and volunteers—including his sister-in-law Minnie Riggle’s brother, Lester Scott—were trained. Dutch Riggle was a Private First Class in the 314th Field Artillery Supply Company, in France. Riggle was a farm boy with little formal education who grew up in the hills of Pennsylvania and West Virginia. He spelled many of his words phonetically. His letters have been transcribed exactly as they were written. This is his sixth letter from Camp Lee, dated 100 years ago today, December 23, 1917.

Archiving Wheeling Ohio County Public Library Archives WALS Foundation

From Camp Lee to the Great War: December 20, 1917 – Lester Scott

Archiving Wheeling December 20, 2017January 2, 2018 Leave a Comment 1898 Views

“The doctor asked me what I was before I came to the army a preacher or a prize fighter… I told him I was nothing but a common farmer. I weigh 188 now so you know I would look like a preacher…”

In his Fourteenth letter home from Camp Lee, Virginia, to his sister Minnie Riggle, US Army Wagoner (mule team driver) Lester Scott, a World War I soldier from Wheeling, West Virginia, writes that he will not be home for Christmas but expects to visit for five days after New Year’s. Christmas furloughs are being determined by a random drawing, but after New Year’s they will be granted alphabetically. When Les and the other troops were examined for tuberculosis, the doctor asked if he was a preacher or a prize fighter. He thinks he’ll be driving a truck instead of driving mules. He says Dutch [our second letter writer, PFC Charles “Dutch” Riggle] was also driving mules that day. Les had luck hunting opossum, until some were stolen.

Elsewhere on the same day, the Battle of Jaffa (Palestine) would begin, with the Egyptian Expeditionary Force and a few Scottish brigades of the British Empire on one side and the Yildirim Army Group of the Ottoman Empire and German Empire on the other. A daring nighttime river crossing by the Scottish brigades during a heavy downpour secured victory for the British.

Lester Scott was drafted in 1917 and trained at Camp Lee, where so many Wheeling soldiers were trained. And, like so many of his Ohio Valley comrades, he served in the 314th Field Artillery Supply Company, Battery “A,” 80th (Blue Ridge) Division in France. This is his fourteenth letter from Camp Lee, dated 100 years ago today, December 20, 1917.

Archiving Wheeling Ohio County Public Library Archives WALS Foundation

From Camp Lee to the Great War: December 15, 1917 – Lester Scott

Archiving Wheeling December 15, 2017January 2, 2018 Leave a Comment 2239 Views

From Camp Lee to the Great War: The Letters of Lester Scott and Charles Riggle: Podcast Episode 18

“If one deserts in time of war the punishment is death, so I guess I will not try it…”

In his thirteenth letter home from Camp Lee, Virginia, to his sister Minnie Riggle, US Army Wagoner (mule team driver) Lester Scott, a World War I soldier from Wheeling, West Virginia, writes that he won’t be coming home for Christmas because the Secretary of War won’t allow it. Secretary Newton D. Baker issued a directive December 11 instructing divisional commanders at national army and national guard camps to restrict Christmas furloughs due to the harmful effect a general leave would have on camp discipline and the heavy burden it would throw on the railroads as reasons for the department’s action. “Most of the men in camps are far away from home,” Secretary Baker reported. “It would be a great expense to those able to afford a trip home, and a discrimination against the men who could not afford the trip. Moreover, it would seriously interfere with the training of the men if any large number were permitted to go home for the Christmas holidays.” ^[1]Lester, however, seems to think President Wilson disagrees, offering slim hope of a last-second reprieve. The weather in Virginia is cold and there are six inches of snow on the ground, which is hard for the mules. Meanwhile, Lester has been promoted to Private First Class, which surely beats being a “buck private.” He’s done well taking orders in the army and thinks Minnie could use some army discipline herself. If he does get to come home, he won’t abuse the privilege, lest he be considered a deserter.

Elsewhere on the same day, the big news was that Bolshevik controlled Russia signed an armistice with Germany (and the Central Powers) which would lead to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in March 1918. This critical development effectively freed Germany to shift 44 divisions to the Western Front in preparation for a massive offensive in the spring of 1918.

Lester Scott was drafted in 1917 and trained at Camp Lee, where so many Wheeling soldiers were trained. And, like so many of his Ohio Valley comrades, he served in the 314th Field Artillery Supply Company, Battery “A,” 80th (Blue Ridge) Division in France. This is his thirteenth letter from Camp Lee, dated 100 years ago today, December 15, 1917.

Archiving Wheeling Ohio County Public Library Archives WALS Foundation

From Camp Lee to the Great War: December 7, 1917 – Charles Riggle

Archiving Wheeling December 7, 2017January 2, 2018 Leave a Comment 2431 Views

From Camp Lee to the Great War: The Letters of Lester Scott and Charles Riggle: Podcast Episode 17

“There are about 6000 Negro troops here and you never saw a lively bunch of fellows as they are. There are some dandy singers among them…”

In his fifth letter home from Camp Lee, Virginia, dated December 7, 1917, PFC Charles “Dutch” Riggle, a WWI soldier from Wheeling, WV, tells his brother James “Abe” Riggle that Charles and his brother-in-law “Less” (our second letter writer, Wagoner Lester Scott), have applied for Christmas furloughs. Charles talks about hunting rabbits, fox, and raccoon and asks about the corn, potato, and apple crops back home. He still thinks he won’t have to go to France because the Germans are “getting the fur knocked out of them,” and “bound to get licked,” especially since the submarines (aka “U-boats”) aren’t doing much now. He says he’s been “hungry” for his snuff and was happy to get some from home. Importantly, he notes the arrival of 6,000 Negro troops raising the company’s number to 40,000. Charles is impressed by the spectacle of thousands of uniformed troops marching past Secretary of War [Newton D.] Baker, who was visiting the camp.

For African Americans like those seen by Charles Riggle, the First World War was a transformative experience. Blacks were dealing with the horrors of full-blown “Jim Crow” segregation in the American South (including Wheeling, West Virginia), and the “Great Migration” was taking place, as thousands of African Americans moved to northern cities seeking opportunity. President Wilson’s pledge to “make the world safe for democracy” gave many African Americans hope that the war would also increase freedom and equality for them at home. Others decried the hypocrisy of asking people who were not treated as equals in their own country to fight for democracy overseas. In reality, the men Riggle saw at Camp Lee were likely part of segregated service battalions (probably the 510th and 511th Engineer Service Battalions) who were expected to do manual labor, such as ditch digging and burial of war dead, or, as Riggle notes, to provide entertainment as musicians or singers. More than 200,000 African American soldiers were eventually sent to France. Those who did see combat were often assigned to French command and were treated with greater respect by the French. Many served with distinction, especially members of the 92nd Division and the 93rd Division’s 369th Infantry Regiment from New York, nicknamed the “Harlem Hellfighters.” Unfortunately, the hoped-for improvement in race relations at home, out of respect for honorable service, did not happen. The achievements of African American soldiers were largely ignored or diminished for decades. But the WWI experiences of African Americans, both military and civilian, had also proved empowering and eyeopening, and many were inspired and emboldened to fight for racial justice.

Charles “Dutch” Riggle was drafted into the US Army in 1917 and trained at Camp Lee, Virginia, where so many Wheeling draftees and volunteers—including his sister-in-law Minnie Riggle’s brother, Lester Scott—were trained. Dutch Riggle was a Private First Class in the 314th Field Artillery Supply Company, in France. Riggle was a farm boy with little formal education who grew up in the hills of Pennsylvania and West Virginia. He spelled many of his words phonetically. His letters have been transcribed exactly as they were written. This is his fifth letter from Camp Lee, dated 100 years ago today, December 7, 1917.

Archiving Wheeling Ohio County Public Library Archives WALS Foundation

From Camp Lee to the Great War: December 4, 1917 – Lester Scott

Archiving Wheeling December 4, 2017December 5, 2017 Leave a Comment 2086 Views

From Camp Lee to the Great War: The Letters of Lester Scott and Charles Riggle: Podcast Episode 16

“Well I will see you Christmas for sure…I would not of come but I knew you would have a conniption fit if I didn’t…”

In his twelfth letter home from Camp Lee, Virginia, to his sister Minnie Riggle, US Army Wagoner (mule team driver) Lester Scott, a World War I soldier from Wheeling, West Virginia, writes that he expects to be home for Christmas for three or four days. He wants the visit to be a surprise but he wants to make sure that his best girl, Minnie’s friend Cleo, will be there. He’s glad he’s not one of the boys who won’t get to go home because they were caught playing poker. As usual, Les mentions his mules as well as his brother-in-law Dutch Riggle.

Elsewhere on the same day, British psychiatrist W.H. Rivers presented his report titled, “The Repression of War Experience,” to the Royal School of Medicine. The report focused on the phenomenon dubbed “shell shock,” the disturbing psychological and physical effects on soldiers subjected to the horrors of long-term combat in the trenches during the Great War. We now refer to similar effects as “post-traumatic stress disorder.”

Lester Scott was drafted in 1917 and trained at Camp Lee, where so many Wheeling soldiers were trained. And, like so many of his Ohio Valley comrades, he served in the 314th Field Artillery Supply Company, Battery “A,” 80th (Blue Ridge) Division in France. This is his twelfth letter from Camp Lee, dated 100 years ago today, December 4, 1917.

Archiving Wheeling Ohio County Public Library Archives WALS Foundation

From Camp Lee to the Great War: November 29, 1917 – Lester Scott

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From Camp Lee to the Great War: The Letters of Lester Scott and Charles Riggle: Podcast Episode 15

“Believe me we have some bad mules here. We have one we call dynamite nitro glycerin. It takes four or five men to harness him…”

In his eleventh letter home from Camp Lee, Virginia, to his sister Minnie Riggle, US Army Wagoner (mule team driver) Lester Scott, a World War I soldier from Wheeling, West Virginia, writes wistfully (on Thanksgiving Day, 1917) about hearing the “hounds running and the rabbit hunters shooting,” an activity he himself engaged in the prior Thanksgiving. He writes about having turkey, pumpkin pie, fruit cake, oysters, oranges and even a five-cent cigar. He says he’ll be getting a raise despite talk of “motorizing” the mule companies. He admits he doesn’t know much about the war but if the papers are to be believed, the “Dutch” (Germans) are losing. Yet he thinks he’ll be sent to France soon as activities in camp have settled down. He then names some of the men in the photo of his company that he has sent home and discusses the bad behavior of some of the mules.

Lester Scott was drafted in 1917 and trained at Camp Lee, where so many Wheeling soldiers were trained. And, like so many of his Ohio Valley comrades, he served in the 314th Field Artillery Supply Company, Battery “A,” 80th (Blue Ridge) Division in France. This is his eleventh letter from Camp Lee, dated 100 years ago today, November 29, 1917.