Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General. 1774 - 1985. Photographic Albums Relating to the Pilgrimages of Gold Star Mothers and Widows

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Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General. 1774 - 1985. Photographic Albums Relating to the Pilgrimages of Gold Star Mothers and Widows

1930-1933

https://catalog.archives.gov/id/585286

This series consists of five albums of photographs documenting some of the U.S. government-sponsored visits to gravesites in Belgium, France and England by mothers and widows of deceased World War I servicemen. The majority of the participants in the pilgrimages were members of the all-white segregated Gold Star Mothers Association. Also pictured are African-American women, who while not permitted to join the association, were invited by the federal government to take part in the pilgrimages. Of the 473 photographs in the albums, only 39 images feature African-Americans. Each album contains a table of contents and all of the photographs include captions that indicate the occasion and the site visited. Most of the captions also indicate the group designator for the party pictured. To facilitate touring, the women were organized into small parties that were assigned an alphabetical designator. Recorded in the photographs are visits to Aisne-Marne American Cemetery, Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery, Oise-Aisne American Cemetery, and Brookwood American Cemetery. Also pictured are activities that typically took place during each trip, including placing wreaths on graves or tossing wreaths into the ocean in memory of the loved ones who died at sea; posing for a photograph next to a burial plot; and touring sites, such as Cathedrale Notre Dame de Paris, Les Invalides and Napoleon's tomb, the Arc de Triomphe and the tomb of the unknown soldier, and the ruins at Montfaucon in France. Also included are photographs of the SS George Washington (92-GS-1-1), SS America (92-GS-1-3), and SS Republic (92-GS-1-4), which were used to transport the women to Europe. Several of the pictures also show the hotels, restaurants, and vehicles utilized by the groups. There also are photographs of some of the groups having tea and other meals. Pictures of U.S. military officers and government officials and French officials who assisted or addressed the groups are included. Among the officials pictured are Walter Edge, U.S. Ambassador to France, (92-GS-1-66) and Colonel Benjamin O. Davis, Sr. (92-GS-2-188).

10 linear inches consisting of 473 photographs

eng, Latn

National Archives at College Park

Information

SNAC Resource ID: 6484805

National Archives at College Park

Related Entities

There are 2 Entities related to this resource.

Edge, Walter E. (Walter Evans), 1873-1956

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6bg3b3c (person)

Self made advertising millionaire; Governor of New Jersey, U. S. Senator, Ambassador to France. From the description of Walter Evans Edge letter to Curtis P. Brady [manuscript], 1924. (University of Virginia). WorldCat record id: 174964733 Walter Evans Edge (1873-1956) was a notable New Jersey businessman and politician. He was elected to serve New Jersey as Governor (1917-1919, 1944-1947) and as a United States Senator (1919-1929). Edge was born in Philadelphia...

Davis, Benjamin Oliver, Sr., 1877-1970

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6f209zt (person)

Benjamin Oliver Davis (1877-1970) was born in Washington, DC, to Louis and Henrietta (Stewart) Davis. He was the first African American general officer in the U.S. Armed Forces. Davis's military career began when he left his studies at Howard University in 1897 to serve in the Spanish-American War as a first lieutenant. After the war, he enlisted as a private in the 9th Cavalry in 1901. In 1905 he joined the faculty at Wilberforce University in Ohio as professor of military science and tactic...