paul guthrie Posted 20 August , 2003 Share Posted 20 August , 2003 Dave, I am not sure where I read Gresham was a Kentucky man but I have, Evansville, Indiana is just across the Ohio River from Henderson, Kentucky and there is a good chance he was born in one and lived in the other, I claim him either way. I will try to run this down. Some here claim Samuel Woodfill, MOH, the man Pershing wanted to get the hero status that Alvin York a Tennessee mountaineer won instead. He lived at Fort Thomas, Kentucky when US entered WW1 but was born in Indiana and lived there after the War. He's a hoosier. His grandfather was a Kentucky Methodist preacher. There is a Fort Thomas school named after him. He was one of three soldiers picked by Pershing to attend the Unknown Soldier ceremony in 1921, others were York and Charles Whittlesley, commander of the men called the Lost Battalion. Pershing proclaimed him the greatest hero of the AEF, it bothered him that he did not get that recognition. I think Pershing wanted him instead of York because he was a regular. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CROONAERT Posted 21 August , 2003 Share Posted 21 August , 2003 Dave, I am not sure where I read Gresham was a Kentucky man but I have, Evansville, Indiana is just across the Ohio River from Henderson, Kentucky and there is a good chance he was born in one and lived in the other, I claim him either way. I will try to run this down. I think you could be right, Paul. Looking through the list, I've come across one or two others whom I know were born outside the USA. Their "home" details are listed as places in the US, so it must mean place of residence at the time of their death. If this is true, it looks likely that Gresham was residing in Indiana, but was actually born in Kentucky (rather than the other way round). If you ever find out, I'd be interested to know (conversely, If I find out before you, I'll let you know). Dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ciaran Byrne Posted 21 August , 2003 Share Posted 21 August , 2003 At the other end of the scale, the last fatality of the war was Private W. Ellison of the 5th Royal Irish Lancers who was shot dead by a sniper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CROONAERT Posted 21 August , 2003 Share Posted 21 August , 2003 At the other end of the scale, the last fatality of the war was Private W. Ellison of the 5th Royal Irish Lancers who was shot dead by a sniper. ...or Pte.George Lawrence Price, 28th Bn.Canadian Inf. - both buried near to Pte J.Parr (St.Symphorian). Dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CROONAERT Posted 21 August , 2003 Share Posted 21 August , 2003 At the other end of the scale, the last fatality of the war was Private W. Ellison of the 5th Royal Irish Lancers who was shot dead by a sniper. ...or Pte.George Lawrence Price, 28th Bn.Canadian Inf. - both buried near to Pte J.Parr (St.Symphorian). ... The graves of Price and Ellison. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Beckett Posted 22 August , 2003 Share Posted 22 August , 2003 Just to add to this interesting thread. The first shot of World War 1 by any Allied army is supposed to have been fired from Point Nepean fort at Port Phillip Heads, Victoria, Aus. The date was 5 August 1914, and the war was just one day old. The target was the German steamer Pfalz which was attempting to leave the port. When she left Melbourne, news that Britain had declared war had not yet reached Australia. But that news had come through by the time Pfalz had reached the Heads.(approx 4-6 hrs steaming time) A shot fired ahead of the ship prompted wrestling over the engine-room telegraph control between the ship's Master and Melbourne Pilot Captain M. Robinson of Williamstown, followed by a quick reversal of course. The ship returned to anchor off Williamstown. More than five hours passed after the incident before the crew realised why the vessel had been fired upon and detained Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CROONAERT Posted 22 August , 2003 Share Posted 22 August , 2003 Could the Austrian bombardment of Belgrade (30th July 1914, if memory serves me correctly) be classified as the very first shots of the war (not counting G.Princip's, that is!)? Also, would the very first casualties have been on this date? Dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mordac Posted 22 August , 2003 Share Posted 22 August , 2003 Could the Austrian bombardment of Belgrade (30th July 1914, if memory serves me correctly) be classified as the very first shots of the war (not counting G.Princip's, that is!)? Also, would the very first casualties have been on this date? Hi Dave: The first skirmish of the war, resulting in loss of life, took place on July 27, 1914 when the Austrians crossed the Serbian boarder at Mitrovitza, about 50 miles northwest of Belgrade. The bombardment of Belgrade began on July 29, 1914. Garth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CROONAERT Posted 22 August , 2003 Share Posted 22 August , 2003 Thanks Garth. Can the 27th be regarded as the "official" start date of hostilities in this war then? Dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mordac Posted 22 August , 2003 Share Posted 22 August , 2003 Can the 27th be regarded as the "official" start date of hostilities in this war then? Hi Dave: That's an interesting question. Officially Austria declared war on Serbia on July 28, 1914. Having said that, they crossed the boarder on July 27, which was the beginning of the first Austrian campaign in Serbia. Just to muddy the waters further, the shelling of Belgrade (which began on July 29) was carried out from the Austrian side of the Danube River, so was not part of an Austrian invasion of Serbia. I personally think the engagement at Mitrovitza was the beginning of WWI. However, many noted historians feel the shelling of Belgrade were the opening shots of the war. Take your pick. Garth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mordac Posted 22 August , 2003 Share Posted 22 August , 2003 A couple of days ago I mentioned the first Canadians KIA were L/Cpl. N. Fry and L/Cpl. H. G. Bellinger of the PPCLI. Checking other sources, I've found out that both men were killed by snipers. Garth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul guthrie Posted 22 August , 2003 Share Posted 22 August , 2003 Dave was Gresham's first name James? I will check Kentucky Adjutant General to see if they know, Edward Coffman, THE expert doesn't know but I am pretty sure he's a Kentucky guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CROONAERT Posted 22 August , 2003 Share Posted 22 August , 2003 Hi Paul. Yes it was. James B.Gresham (I think that the B is for Bernard, but I can't remember where I got that bit of info from - so it's probably wrong! ) Dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now