Date and place of birth: Oct 2 1896 Philadelphia, Pa
Date and place of death: Feb 1970
Marriage date and place: 1930?
Maiden name:
Names of children: Joseph, Thomas, and Marie
Names of parents: Frank P Brennan , Margaret E Phalen
Marital status: married
Name of spouse: Frances Sullivan
Immigration information: N/A
U.S. military service record:Army air corp. WWI
Places the person lived:N/A
Where the person "fits" in our family tree: My GrandFather |
A transcription of a letter that my Grandfather sent to his Father at the end of WWI while in France.
Sunday Nov. 2 1918
Saizerias, France
Dear old Dad,
Well Dad to start with this is a special letter for you alone. Today is what is known as ??ay?? the A.E.? Every soldier on this side is asked to write a Christmas letter to Dad. We are allowed to tell all about the scrap, and how we made old ?ry??rn his tail, and beat it over the Rhine. We are stationed in the ?t a Mausan??ctor and are about three mile back of the front lines and about six mile?outh of Metz. We started some dri? The morning of Nov. 11 the Armistice was signed, and ? there was some noise. We are the closist ?irdrome to the front, and have heavy artillery in back of us, every time there time there fire a gun of we could hear the shell vohiz over hut. Will that is the only kind of noise we had to put up with every night. ?ry?? to come over in the day time and take pictures of our field and then we could look for some excitement that night, but there was never any blood shead, thanks to the dug out?Now Dad, I will do my best to give you my history from the day I was home.
I arrived back at camp at Garden City about one o?ck that day and tried to sneek through the guard line and just as I got in side, a fellow stepped out and said ?e you got a pass???ll I knew then I was out of luck so I gave him a hard luck story and slipped him ? bits??nd he let me go in.
Well I went over to my barracks and found it empty. Well then I said to myself the ?rd house for you old boy??o I reported to head quarters and they sent me to the ??? stayed there for eight day?and one morning, about three o?ck. I was yanked out of my bunk, and be dressed, and ready to leave in five minutes. When I got outside there was a armed guard waiting for me, so it was then I was in the 86th Airo Squadruon well we were piled into a truck and taken to the station at Garden City, and put on a train. I had no idea where we were going to sail from, well we traveled for three days and nights, and believe me I will never forget that trip. I was still under guard, and had to ride in a day coach, well I wake up in the morning of Nov. 8th, in Halifax and I never felt it so cold, it must of been about forty below. Well we went aboard ship about 9am then we were set free again. I don?now what time we pulled out, because I went to bed just as soon as I was showed my bunk for I didn?o any sleeping on the train. We arrived at Liverpool, Eng. On March 18th.lleft there that afternoon about four o?ck and arrived at Romse about 3am the next morning. Well I had just crawled in my blankets, when the mess sergeant came in and said you?on K.P. report to the kitchen at once. Well that was my first taste of rest camp; the only thing you rest is your belly. Well after a week there we went to Shorehan-by-sea. A little village on the south coast. We stayed there for almost five months. Then one day in August we were told to pack up. We left there and went to Winchester for the over sea inspection and passed 100%. We left and went to South Hampton and sailed the next day for France. We arrived the next morning about four am at La Harve. (another rest camp). Stayed there for three days and then took our first trip in box cars.
We were four days and four night on the trip and run into one air raid. We finished that trip down South France at ST. Maixent. I had a great time down there and the day my squadron was having the order?ame through for my transfer, so I had to dig my bag out of the pile and report to the 1102nd Rep Sqd. I was with them two days and sick, and went to the hospital for a few days and about a week after I got out I got a job in the officers mess. Waiting on a table (pretty soft for me).
We were paid two franc? day and got the best eat?That lasted about tow weeks and I was sent out with a Photo detachment to go to school at Taur? I arrived there about four o?ck the next morning. Well we got up about noon and reported at headquarters reporting to be assigned to school and while waiting to make out a trade card a Lieutenant came out and asked for four men that wanted to go to the front with him the next day. Well that sounded pretty good to me and it was just what I was looking for.
So the next morning we left Taur?nd piled into some more box car?nd traveled on corn wooley and hard tact for three more day?We arrived at Calambey Les lsille and made our self generally useful, such as cutting wood and hauling coal for the headquarters. We were eating with some squadron and then some of the boy?hought we weren?etting enough to eat so we held a meeting one night and decided to have our own mess.
Well we stared our own mess and one fellow said his mother was a good cook so we said we would try him out. Well Dad I wish you could see what we had to eat. We never got any thing but hot cakes or French toast, or hot breakfast and for dinner we had to sit down to roast beef and brown potatoes and rice puddings. Gee that was hard to take after corn beef for almost six weeks. Well we were getting along fine. I was on K.P. one day and the Lieutenant came in the kitchen and said pack up boy?here is a little work up on the front for us and the trucks are here waiting for us. We had a roast in the oven and a stew on.
Well we started to tear down our kitchen and pack up and were on the truck?eady to move on in just one hour some speed eh! Well we traveled by trucks this time and arrived at Saizerias about 11pm.
We started to work in two days and was up to our neck in work and about a week later we were burnt out about three am we couldn?o a thing on account of the shortage of water up here and just had to stand around and watch the fire. At six o?ck we had another building underway. Then a few day?ater they ended the war and now here we are waiting to go home.
Just now we are ? making group pictures of the sqd?Ok expect to make our first move toward home next week. But I can?ay how long it will be before we arrive over there. But first I am ready any time they say. Today is the first day off I have had in five month?We get Sat afternoons and Sunday?ff now. I expect to go up to the front line trenches to-morrow after mass.
Well Dad I think this about all the new I can give you about my experience?ver here. I am still enjoying the best of health and happy as a lark. Give my love and best regard?o all and you have my heartiest and best wishes for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and I hope to be with you as near to Christmas as possible. Good bye Dad with lots of love.
Your son,
Joe
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