David C. Cottrell was born in California, the son of Lineous Jasper Cottrell, an employee of the State Hospital in Stockton. He had two brothers, Delmer J. and Dell T. In April 1917, he enlisted in the American Expeditionary Forces, and went overseas as a member of Company C of the 18th Engineer Regiment, serving in England and France. In April 1918, he moved to Battery E of the 146th Field Artillery Regiment. He held the rank of private first class. He died in the hospital on April 19, 1918, of injuries sustained during a gas attack.
Ethel M. Jury was born in 1894 in California. Her parents, Frank and Annis, were both born in England and moved to the United States in 1882. She had four siblings: Mae, A. Treleaven, Frank, and Margaret.
From the guide to the Cottrell-Jury correspondence, 1917-1918, (William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan)
