By Roger Dahin
This January, I received an email from David Tyler publisher of the Messenger stating that a subscriber was interested in contacting me regarding my WWI doughboy articles. Based upon this inquiry, I talked to Cheryl Curnalia Klein and found out, like my father, her grandfather fought in the 1918 Meuse-Argonne Offensive that is now known as “America’s Deadliest Battle.”
More than a million American soldiers participated resulting in over 26,000 soldiers being killed in action (KIA) and over 120,000 total casualties. More Americans are buried in the American Military Cemetery near the battle scene in northern France than at Omaha Beach in Normandy. For background, the battle is named after a large territory in northern France that includes the Argonne Forest on the west and the Meuse River on the east. The 45-day offensive began on Sept. 26, 1918, and ended on Nov. 11,1918 – Armistice Day.
My father, Carl Dahlin, served as a machine gunner with the 77th Division, which was almost exclusively made-up of men from New York City. However, this included men from Syracuse along with 125 men from Jamestown, N.Y., where my father was inducted. Klein’s grandfather, Frederick Farr Curnalia, served with the 78th Division that trained in Fort Dix, N.J. He fought with 78th Division as a horseman with the 307th Field Artillery. The 77th Division was on the front lines when the battle began, whereas the 78th Division temporarily relieved the 77th in the Argonne area on Oct. 16,1918.
Later, I visited Mrs. Klein’s Village Green home and was introduced to her late grandfather’s WWI treasure trove that included diaries, photographs. postcards, letters and military-related hardware. One of these treasures is an original New York Times magazine section published May 4 ,1919. The cover page is a drawing of 77th soldiers fighting in the Argonne Forest. The trove also includes a 16-page magazine published by the 78th Division in 1919 that includes a map showing the movement of the 78th Division during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Comparing this map to other sources it was easy to determine where the 77th and 78th interconnected during the battle.
The Meuse -Argonne Offensive began at 2;30 AM with the roar of 3,980 guns; that sent a quarter million rounds in three hours. They were distributed about evenly and averaged one gun every 25 feet. The Germans during their July Offensive at Soissons placed one gun every eighty feet. The 77th Division, including my father, served on the extreme left facing the Argonne Forest. On the first day they faced little resistance because the German’s had retreated deeply in the rugged terrain of the Argonne and established fierce defensive positions The 77th confronted the most rugged country of any division in the Meuse-Argonne. The Germans had been there for four years and knew the area well and sited machine guns on what few paths that existed. Artillery was unsuitable for the terrain, and guns had to be fired almost blindly. An illustration to support this statement is the drawing from the front page of May 4,1919 New York Times magazine.
Curnalia’s five WW1 diaries include 368pages. Highlighted below are some of his testimonies during the battle, Armistice Day, Christmas and returning home.
Saturday, Oct.12, 1918
“…Start of the Argonne Forest Region, formerly occupied by Germans and all kinds of evidence of hard fighting along the road…graves of dead German and American soldiers, discarded packs left by the Germans in their retreat.”
Wednesday, Oct. 30, 1918
“…Here on this front, random, harassing fire from both sides all day and night…Was called out to carry ammunition. Battery began firing gas shells and every extra man and the detail had to go out to carry shells. Rate of fire about one every forty seconds per gun. Continued all day and well into night.”
Monday, Nov. 11, 1918
“Overnight in old Barracks in Chevierres…ready to move out…word passed along today “WAR OVER”. Boys had all kinds of bonfires, shooting off guns and rockets and celebrating all night.”
Wednesday, Dec. 25, 1918
Christmas at Buffon, France–”…Went down to Mrs. Moulton’s and had a fine Christmas dinner which we had her arrange. We furnished the chicken. She got us some veal from the butcher. Our supper consisted of roast chicken, veal, French fries, bread, coffee, and a large pie she made for us. She charged us about nine and a half Francs each.”
Tuesday, May 13, 1919
THE GOOD OLE U.S.A.–”…stayed on deck all the P.M. with ever-increasing eagerness to catch a glimpse of land as we were nearing the American shore … came in sight of shore early evening … steamed up the harbor with a beautiful full moon, saw the Statue of Liberty. Dropped anchor … band came out and the boys cut loose.”
Roger Dahlin is a historian, gardener and author based in Baldwinsville.
