Back to the main page Back to category 1
watch details
WW1 Inscribed 102nd Ambulance Co. 26th Division WIA Sergeant's Trench Watch
Estimated price for orientation: 1 250 $
Category: 1
Class:
Description
This is for an excellent identified WWI Patria Trench Watch. This watch is original (and is serviced and working) and is inscribed to the original owner. The inscription on back reads, "For a real Pal Dick Barlow Pals of U.M.C.Co." Dick Barlow is a well known member of the 102nd Ambulance Company., 26th US "Yankee" Division from Bridgeport, Connecticut who published "Letters to the Bridgeport Comfort Club from the Foreign Chapter in France" after the war. Leslie R. Barlow, who went by "Dick Barlow" also published letters during the war in the Bridgeport Telegram (available via Google). Included in the research with this watch is Barlow's State of Connecticut 1917 Military Service record listing his employer as the "Union Metallic Cartridge Co" (aka U.M.C.Co.).Other research, mostly from the Connecticut State Archives, Fold3.com, Ancestry.com, and other sources are Barlow's WWI portrait photograph, service records, application for veteran's headstone, and his "World War Daily Diary of the 102nd Ambulance Company by Serg't L.R. (Dick) Barlow." The diary, unpublished, is almost 100 pages and includes GRAPHIC battle and ambulance response content. The bulk of the diary was acquired by fee through the Connecticut State Archives, and the majority is NOT available in digital form. I can not begin to state the amazing content that Barlow wrote. I was a diary collector for 25 years and this is the best I have ever read. I'll save the content for the buyer of the watch in case they choose to write about this man. The following example passage, however, is listed on ancestry.com along with this portrait photo and is easily available to see:"Oct. 27, 1918 ...Men brought in the ambulances on stretchers placed one above the other, often bleed so freely even after their woulds had been dressed temporarily, that the blood runs down onto the man on the stretcher below and when removed by the men at the dressing station they do not know who is wounded the most seriously. Several of our men were so exhausted they could not dig a hole for themselves and slept on a pile of trap rock...The ambulances are still unable to get up beyond Death Valley and wounded are littered to that point from all directions. The stretcher bearers went ahead to where the 101st Infantry wounded men were. After all these wounded had been taken back to a point where they could be picked up by the ambulances it was found that every one of the sixteen stretcher bearers and been either killed or wounded or so badly gassed that they had to be sent to hospitals (including Captain Thomas D. MacRossie)..."The buyer gets the original WW1 inscribed watch, which is in working order, a newly made reproduction leather trench watch band, as well as the following research (all quality copies): 1917 Military Census record for Barlow at his enlistment, Connecticut War Record from end of war for Barlow (states he was wounded by being gassed), portrait photograph of Barlow in uniform, Application for Headstone (Barlow died Nov. 16, 1940) service summary from state of CT records (via fold3 and copied below), 1934 letter and reply from Barlow to CT State Archives requesting a transcript from his diary, the approx 100 page diary.Summary of Barlow's Service (as per Fold3): Enlisted Bridgeport, Conn. May 23, 1917, Born Watertown, Conn. 30 11/12 years old at enlistment, Ambulance Company No. 1 Connecticut National Guard (102nd Ambulance Company) to discharge. rank of Sergeant Dec. 17, 1917, served at Chemin des Dames Toul, Seicheprey, Chataud Thierry, Champagne-Marne, Aisne-Marne, St. Mihield, Trayon, Meuse-Argonne, Wounded slightly Oct. 28, 1918, AEF Sept. 26, 1917 to April 18, 1919. Discharged April 29, 1919.The following record of the 26th Yankee Division is from wiki:The 26th Infantry Division was first constituted on 18 July 1917, three months after the American entry into World War I, as the 26th Division. It was formally activated on 22 August of that year in Boston, Massachusetts,[1] and it was celebrated by Boston writers and by composers in pieces such as "The Yankee Division March" and "Battery A March." The division commanded two brigades comprising national guard units from Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine. The 51st Infantry Brigade contained the 101st and 102nd Infantry Regiments, while the 52nd Infantry Brigade contained the 103rd and 104th Infantry Regiments, together with supporting units.[2] Shortly thereafter, the division commander, Major General C. R. Edwards, called a press conference to determine a nickname for the newly formed division. Edwards decided to settle on the suggestion of "Yankee Division" since all of the subordinate units of the division were from New England.[3] Shortly thereafter, the division approved a shoulder sleeve insignia with a "YD" monogram to reflect this.[4]On 21 September 1917, the division arrived at Saint-Nazaire, France.[5] It was the second division of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) to arrive on the Western Front at the time, and the first division wholly organized in the United States, joining the 1st Division. Two additional divisions completed the first wave of American troop deployment, with the 2nd Division formed in France and the 42nd Division arriving at St. Nazaire on 29 October.[6] The division immediately moved to Neufchâteau for training, as most of the division's soldiers were raw recruits, new to military service.[6] Because of this, much of the division's force was trained by the experienced French forces.[7] It trained extensively with the other three US divisions, organized as the U.S. I Corps in January 1918,[6] before being moved into a quiet sector of the trenches in February.[8]The 26th Infantry Division remained in a relatively quiet region of the lines along the Chemin des Dames for several months before it relieved the 1st Division near St. Mihiel on 3 April. The line here taken over extended from the vicinity of Apremont, on the west, in front of Xivray-Marvoisin, Seicheprey, and Bois de Remieres, as far as the Bois de Jury, on the right, where the French line joined the American line. Division Headquarters were at Boucq.The stay of the division in this sector was marked by several serious encounters with the enemy, where considerable forces were engaged. There were furthermore almost nightly encounters between patrols or ambush parties, and the harassing fire of the artillery on both sides was very active.On 10, 12 and 13 April, the lines held by the 104th Infantry in Bois Brule (near Apremont), and by the French to the left, were heavily attacked by the Germans. At first the enemy secured a foothold in some advanced trenches which were not strongly held, but sturdy counterattacks succeeded in driving the enemy out with serious losses, and the line was entirely re-established.In late April, German infantry conducted a raid on positions of the 26th Division, one of the first attacks on Americans during the war. At 0400 on 20 April, German field artillery bombarded the 102nd Infantry's positions near Seicheprey before German stoßtruppen moved against the village. The artillery box barrage, continuing 36 hours, isolated American units. The Germans overwhelmed a machine gun company and two infantry companies of the 102nd and temporarily breached the trenches before elements of the division rallied and recaptured the village. The Germans withdrew before the division could counterattack but inflicted 634 casualties, including 80 killed, 424 wounded, and 130 captured, while losing over 600 men, including 150 killed of their own.[9] Similar raids struck the 101st infantry at Flirey on 27 May, and the 103rd Infantry at Xivray-et-Marvoisin on 16 June, but were repulsed. The 26th Division was relieved by the 82nd Division on 28 June, moved by train to Meaux, and entered the line again northwest of Chateau Thierry, relieving the 2nd Division on 5 July.As the size of the AEF grew, the division was placed under command of I Corps in July.[10] When the Aisne-Marne campaign began shortly thereafter, the division, under I Corps was placed under command of the French Sixth Army protecting its east flank. When the offensive began, the division advanced up the spine of the Marne salient for several weeks, pushing through Belleau Wood, moving 10 miles from 18 to 25 July. On 12 August it was pulled from the lines near Toul to prepare for the next offensive.[11] The division was then a part of the offensive at St. Mihiel, during the Battle of Saint-Mihiel. The division then moved in position for the last major offensive of the war, at Meuse-Argonne. This campaign was the last of the war, as an armistice was signed shortly thereafter.[12] During World War I the 26th Division spent 210 days in combat, and suffered 1,587 killed in action and 12,077 wounded in action.[5] The division returned to the United States and was demobilized on 3 May 1919 at Camp Devens, MassachusettsI WILL PROVIDE ANY FURTHER PICTURES UPON REQUEST.
Description
This is for an excellent identified WWI Patria Trench Watch. This watch is original (and is serviced and working) and is inscribed to the original owner. The inscription on back reads, "For a real Pal Dick Barlow Pals of U.M.C.Co." Dick Barlow is a well known member of the 102nd Ambulance Company., 26th US "Yankee" Division from Bridgeport, Connecticut who published "Letters to the Bridgeport Comfort Club from the Foreign Chapter in France" after the war. Leslie R. Barlow, who went by "Dick Barlow" also published letters during the war in the Bridgeport Telegram (available via Google). Included in the research with this watch is Barlow's State of Connecticut 1917 Military Service record listing his employer as the "Union Metallic Cartridge Co" (aka U.M.C.Co.).Other research, mostly from the Connecticut State Archives, Fold3.com, Ancestry.com, and other sources are Barlow's WWI portrait photograph, service records, application for veteran's headstone, and his "World War Daily Diary of the 102nd Ambulance Company by Serg't L.R. (Dick) Barlow." The diary, unpublished, is almost 100 pages and includes GRAPHIC battle and ambulance response content. The bulk of the diary was acquired by fee through the Connecticut State Archives, and the majority is NOT available in digital form. I can not begin to state the amazing content that Barlow wrote. I was a diary collector for 25 years and this is the best I have ever read. I'll save the content for the buyer of the watch in case they choose to write about this man. The following example passage, however, is listed on ancestry.com along with this portrait photo and is easily available to see:"Oct. 27, 1918 ...Men brought in the ambulances on stretchers placed one above the other, often bleed so freely even after their woulds had been dressed temporarily, that the blood runs down onto the man on the stretcher below and when removed by the men at the dressing station they do not know who is wounded the most seriously. Several of our men were so exhausted they could not dig a hole for themselves and slept on a pile of trap rock...The ambulances are still unable to get up beyond Death Valley and wounded are littered to that point from all directions. The stretcher bearers went ahead to where the 101st Infantry wounded men were. After all these wounded had been taken back to a point where they could be picked up by the ambulances it was found that every one of the sixteen stretcher bearers and been either killed or wounded or so badly gassed that they had to be sent to hospitals (including Captain Thomas D. MacRossie)..."The buyer gets the original WW1 inscribed watch, which is in working order, a newly made reproduction leather trench watch band, as well as the following research (all quality copies): 1917 Military Census record for Barlow at his enlistment, Connecticut War Record from end of war for Barlow (states he was wounded by being gassed), portrait photograph of Barlow in uniform, Application for Headstone (Barlow died Nov. 16, 1940) service summary from state of CT records (via fold3 and copied below), 1934 letter and reply from Barlow to CT State Archives requesting a transcript from his diary, the approx 100 page diary.Summary of Barlow's Service (as per Fold3): Enlisted Bridgeport, Conn. May 23, 1917, Born Watertown, Conn. 30 11/12 years old at enlistment, Ambulance Company No. 1 Connecticut National Guard (102nd Ambulance Company) to discharge. rank of Sergeant Dec. 17, 1917, served at Chemin des Dames Toul, Seicheprey, Chataud Thierry, Champagne-Marne, Aisne-Marne, St. Mihield, Trayon, Meuse-Argonne, Wounded slightly Oct. 28, 1918, AEF Sept. 26, 1917 to April 18, 1919. Discharged April 29, 1919.The following record of the 26th Yankee Division is from wiki:The 26th Infantry Division was first constituted on 18 July 1917, three months after the American entry into World War I, as the 26th Division. It was formally activated on 22 August of that year in Boston, Massachusetts,[1] and it was celebrated by Boston writers and by composers in pieces such as "The Yankee Division March" and "Battery A March." The division commanded two brigades comprising national guard units from Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine. The 51st Infantry Brigade contained the 101st and 102nd Infantry Regiments, while the 52nd Infantry Brigade contained the 103rd and 104th Infantry Regiments, together with supporting units.[2] Shortly thereafter, the division commander, Major General C. R. Edwards, called a press conference to determine a nickname for the newly formed division. Edwards decided to settle on the suggestion of "Yankee Division" since all of the subordinate units of the division were from New England.[3] Shortly thereafter, the division approved a shoulder sleeve insignia with a "YD" monogram to reflect this.[4]On 21 September 1917, the division arrived at Saint-Nazaire, France.[5] It was the second division of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) to arrive on the Western Front at the time, and the first division wholly organized in the United States, joining the 1st Division. Two additional divisions completed the first wave of American troop deployment, with the 2nd Division formed in France and the 42nd Division arriving at St. Nazaire on 29 October.[6] The division immediately moved to Neufchâteau for training, as most of the division's soldiers were raw recruits, new to military service.[6] Because of this, much of the division's force was trained by the experienced French forces.[7] It trained extensively with the other three US divisions, organized as the U.S. I Corps in January 1918,[6] before being moved into a quiet sector of the trenches in February.[8]The 26th Infantry Division remained in a relatively quiet region of the lines along the Chemin des Dames for several months before it relieved the 1st Division near St. Mihiel on 3 April. The line here taken over extended from the vicinity of Apremont, on the west, in front of Xivray-Marvoisin, Seicheprey, and Bois de Remieres, as far as the Bois de Jury, on the right, where the French line joined the American line. Division Headquarters were at Boucq.The stay of the division in this sector was marked by several serious encounters with the enemy, where considerable forces were engaged. There were furthermore almost nightly encounters between patrols or ambush parties, and the harassing fire of the artillery on both sides was very active.On 10, 12 and 13 April, the lines held by the 104th Infantry in Bois Brule (near Apremont), and by the French to the left, were heavily attacked by the Germans. At first the enemy secured a foothold in some advanced trenches which were not strongly held, but sturdy counterattacks succeeded in driving the enemy out with serious losses, and the line was entirely re-established.In late April, German infantry conducted a raid on positions of the 26th Division, one of the first attacks on Americans during the war. At 0400 on 20 April, German field artillery bombarded the 102nd Infantry's positions near Seicheprey before German stoßtruppen moved against the village. The artillery box barrage, continuing 36 hours, isolated American units. The Germans overwhelmed a machine gun company and two infantry companies of the 102nd and temporarily breached the trenches before elements of the division rallied and recaptured the village. The Germans withdrew before the division could counterattack but inflicted 634 casualties, including 80 killed, 424 wounded, and 130 captured, while losing over 600 men, including 150 killed of their own.[9] Similar raids struck the 101st infantry at Flirey on 27 May, and the 103rd Infantry at Xivray-et-Marvoisin on 16 June, but were repulsed. The 26th Division was relieved by the 82nd Division on 28 June, moved by train to Meaux, and entered the line again northwest of Chateau Thierry, relieving the 2nd Division on 5 July.As the size of the AEF grew, the division was placed under command of I Corps in July.[10] When the Aisne-Marne campaign began shortly thereafter, the division, under I Corps was placed under command of the French Sixth Army protecting its east flank. When the offensive began, the division advanced up the spine of the Marne salient for several weeks, pushing through Belleau Wood, moving 10 miles from 18 to 25 July. On 12 August it was pulled from the lines near Toul to prepare for the next offensive.[11] The division was then a part of the offensive at St. Mihiel, during the Battle of Saint-Mihiel. The division then moved in position for the last major offensive of the war, at Meuse-Argonne. This campaign was the last of the war, as an armistice was signed shortly thereafter.[12] During World War I the 26th Division spent 210 days in combat, and suffered 1,587 killed in action and 12,077 wounded in action.[5] The division returned to the United States and was demobilized on 3 May 1919 at Camp Devens, MassachusettsI WILL PROVIDE ANY FURTHER PICTURES UPON REQUEST.