World War I
April 17, 2008 – 6:00 amI have several World War I stories in my book, We Knew We Were at War: Women Remember World War II; one from Lee and one from Anna.
Lee was a child living in northern New Jersey, where her father was a caretaker for an estate. When the United States became more involved in the war, her dad had to register for the draft, but was deferred because of his age and because of his farm work. However, a beloved uncle did serve in Europe as a motorcycle dispatcher. He managed to survive the bullets passing through the motorcycle but he suffered the effects of gassing.
Although Lee was only six at the close of the war, she does have some memories. One particular image is that of people gathering coal along the railroad tracks, since coal was so very scarce. She recalls children knitting scarves, mittens and sweaters for the soldiers. At home they used white margarine with the orange button, and purchased sugar and flour in large containers whenever they were available.Anna was a young girl living in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. She recalls going to the Armory where they were giving out free knitting needles and yarn. She found a friend to teach her to knit and she made eight pairs of socks. The pastor’s wife made candy and gave it to every soldier and nurse as they boarded the train on their way off to war.
Victory gardens were popular, and the Burpee Seed Company set aside land for people to grow food. Anna’s grandfather dug up the whole back yard and planted potatoes. Anna, too, remembers the white margarine with the orange button you would squeeze to make the package turn yellow.
There were rallies to sell war bonds and music programs at the Court House. Some of the boys organized a mouth organ band.
And then came Armistice Day, November 11, 1918. The church bells rang and the fire whistle blew. Even though Anna had the flu, she dragged herself to the celebration to join with the other townspeople in that joyous day.
As Lee noted in her story – the war to end all wars was over!
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