mobs that favor self-interest rather than the public good. >> tonight at 8:00 eastern on c-span'd q&a. -- >> next, military historian mark snell talks about "gettysburg's other battle," the ordeal of an american shrine during the first world war. the battlefield was used as a world war i training camp in 1917 and 1918, named camp colt. its commander was a young dwight d. eisenhower. the impactescribes on the battlefield and the community. this is about an hour and 20 minutes. >> we are at the eisenhower national historic site on camp colt weekend. we are here to commemorate world war i as well as the 100th anniversary of camp colt, which was commanded by the kernel -- by colonel eisenhower, here in

gettysburg, pennsylvania. our next speaker is mark snell. he retired from the u.s. army in 1993 and has had several assignments as well as careers after that. he taught history at the united states military academy at west a lecturer atwas the royal academy at sandhurst, in the u.k. he was also a professor of ,istory at shepherd university and shepherds law, in shepherdstown, west virginia, where he was the founder of the center for the study of civil war. he also has written very extensively on world war i and the civil war, especially the civil war in west virginia. book -- he wrote a book on camp colt and

gettysburg during 1917 and 1918, the years that the united states was in the great war. up., why don't you come on introduction -- mark: read that introduction. that is important, the one i sent you. >> he wrote a book about gettysburg, immediate meditations on the history of the place here at gettysburg. [applause] mark: the introduction i thought was going to be read had to do namethe title, seeking the that is historic. it does not make sense when you look at it, but if you understand the context, that is a quote of a young soldier assigned here in the summer of 1917, a private by the name of

joseph stalin, assigned to the 59th united states infantry regiment. he was quite literate, but he was really excited to be training on the same field where robert e ordered pickett's charge. comess what that quote from. it is not going to appear in my he isbut that is what talking about. we are here seeking to master the art that made the name gettysburg historic. first slide, please. an unseasonably cold, yet pleasant summer day on august 1954, braying world war i tank corps veterans were joined by younger comrades from world war ii and the korean war, along with approximately 3000 onlookers, to dedicate a pine in memoryronze plaque of camp colt, and in honor of its famous commander. in the 36 years between 1918 and

1954, captain dwight eisenhower rose steadily through the officer ranks to become the supreme commander of the allied expeditionary force in europe, with the rank general of the army. for world war ii, the five-star general was appointed army chief of staff under president harry truman. upon leaving the service in 1948, he was named president of columbia university, before being recalled to active duty in summer 1949, to take the helm of nato, the north atlantic treaty organization. in 1952, the former camp colt commander was nominated to be republican candidate for president, and went on to win a landslide victory over adlai stevenson. . president and mrs. eisenhower occupied the executive mansion for a little more than a year and a half in the summer of 1954, unable to attend the

reunion in gettysburg. he sent a message to his former comrades, the lieutenant general. please extend my warmest greetings to everyone attending the homecoming reunion of the world war tank corps association. as you review the experience gained in the active service of your country, you can take added satisfaction that your fellow citizens understand and appreciate the importance of your contributions to the security of our nation. i wish you a successful and enjoyable reunion. general ofcommanding the second army had quartered fort meade, maryland, was a fitting surrogate to represent the 34th president. as a young officer, parks had tanknded company a's 333rd battalion and camp colt. , the pine was

planted with soil from all 48 states and territories of alaska and hawaii. in most cases, the soil was taken from a significant historic site. texas sent earth from the alamo. -- first gave art from from the shallow met battlefield, where andrew jackson defeated the british. then, the national commander of the world war ii war tank association presented the bronze plaque. it bore a simple inscription, seen here. car.d states army tank this spot marks the site of camp of the united states army in 1918. hind marker stand trees planted in soil from all 48 states, dedicated to commanding officer captain dwight d. eisenhower. on january 2, 1950 three, was inaugurated president of the

united states. this is living testament to the and high -- affection esteem of his 1918 tank corps comrades, world war tank corps association. includes theso organization's insignia, encircled by a wreath. general.ressed to the hear a case for national military park, we are in the very heart of american military traditions. i can think of no more appropriate spot than america to plant this pine tree, which will commemorate the birth place of the tank corps, and which will be a testimony to the esteem held by the tank corps veterans for their former commander, president eisenhower. parks also mentioned that the living memorial was located on the site of the camp headquarters. in reality, the headquarters was located about a block closer to town, and on the other side of

the road. date on they, a plaque was wrong. the inauguration was on january 20, not january 2. the union came to a close with a banquet at hotel gettysburg. and then they all went home. but how did the camp come to be located on the revered gettysburg battlefield in the first place? on april 6, 1917, congress declared war. emblazoned across the front page of "the gettysburg times" were the words "state of war declared." likewisesburg compiler had the declaration on the front page of its weekly edition. during thed introduction, or were supposed to hear during the introduction,

the legislation that created gettysburg national military park also had an amendment a 1986, that allowed it and other places such as chickamauga and chattanooga to be used as training grounds in cases of a national emergency. these caps, however, were of short duration. with the declaration of war against germany, the chance of comfort gettysburg national military park to host a long-term and perhaps permanent military post. the town fathers would not wait for the army to come to them. they would solicit the federal government to bring the army back to gettysburg. a group of prominent citizens, including the mayor, president of the seminary and college, sent a petition to president wilson and secretary of war newton d baker, requesting that a training camp be established

at gettysburg military park, citing the ample moving space and the satisfactory railroad facilities. baker and his staff are great. how many of you wondered why it is called gettysburg national military park instead of gettysburg national battlefield? now you know why. the war department was responsible for it. it had a dual purpose -- not just to commemorate the battle of 1863, but to be used by soldiers in cases of national emergency, as a training ground. decision,t of this six entire infantry regiments, along with their supporting units, would live and train on the battlefield during the spring, summer, and fall of 1917. the new regiment to be activated, the 58th through 64th builtnfantry, would be around the fourth and seventh regiments of the regular army, which had been posted on the texas-mexican border because of panchovia's 1916 --

raid on new mexico. trainsft el paso on four . because they traveled a longer distance, he pulled into gettysburg station on june 4. the lead article in the second edition of "the gettysburg the united states infantry, numbering 2240 man, with full equipment, arrived in gettysburg last night and today. the seventh of come in late sunday night or early monday morning, and the camp will be busy from now on, through a. period of several months. gettysburg was transformed into a garrison town literally overnight. one recently arrived khaki-clad soldier told a "times" reporter,

"golly, it was awful down there. cactus, rattlesnakes, and tarantulas." instead of the hot, sandy desert, the troops now would be quartered on a revered and finally-manicured national park, with amenities already in place to cater to this new breed of tourists. no attempt was made by the army commanders to immediately establish a camp when the troops arrived, allowing the man to explore their new surroundings as a welcome respite from their cross-country train trip. a compiler reporter observed, "soldier boys are glad to be in what they enthusiastically call god's country. from sand and sagebrush, our country has proven delightful to boys." the rapid mobilization of the armed forces inspired an american composer and lyricist to write the popular song "where

in the army now." -- we're in the army now." i know you all know it. don't break out into song. the popular new song was adopted as gettysburg's own. regiments in town were immediately sent to columbus, ohio, a rendezvous point for troops assigned to the regiments of infantry. the gettysburg times warned its readers that "gettysburg looked quite warlike on sunday, with men in khakis roaming the town." and he remarked, if 2200 make this a big crowd, what will it be like with 12,000 here? indeed, could the town infrastructure support the incursion of so many soldiers? a superintendent of the municipal water company assured his customers there would be ample supply as long as people were not wasteful. of the50th anniversary

battle commemoration had plainly validated. 100,000 spectators and townsfolk and dignitaries came here to commemorate and celebrate -- commemorate the battle and celebrate the unity that followed the war. goes in must come out. p would have' cam its own means for sewage and trash removal. the town would coordinate with camp authorities to assure the disposal of any surplus overflow. toeknownst to most visitors the gettysburg battlefield today, is a ditching crew came -- and this has happened in the past, when they buried the telephone cables along emmitsburg road -- they dug up a sewage system from camp of the u.s. troops. it is still there, buried in the ground, the entire sewage system.

by the end of the same week the soldiers arrived, the camp was beginning to take shape. it would be called officially "camp of the united states troops, gettysburg, pennsylvania." 100 car loads of lumber had been ordered for the construction of latrines, kitchens, offices, stables, storage buildings, and tent floors. on june 7, want ads are posted about town for 500 carpenters to be employed in cam construction, to work 10 hour days, paid at 25 or $.35 an hour, pending on skill level. "times" alluded to the hope the camp would become permanent, and that upon departure of the regulars, it would become a training camp. the same article carried news that the doughboy so far had conducted themselves well. lost in the rush to set up camp was the fact that the ground being occupied had once been a

bloody battlefield, and now was an important national historic site. army trucks and motorcycles climbed rural streets, county roads, park avenues, and the newly-late company streets in the camp. horses and mules continued to arrive by the hundreds in july, carrying thousands of tons of fodder and forage, and an almost equal amount of manure. certainly, the historic significance of the camp was not lost on the soldiers. joseph j stone, a private in 59th united states infantry, cap a detailed journal of his time in service. he was very literate, and had a historic mindedness which is apparent in his journal entries. "the men whohat formed the nucleus of the organization came from company l.

nco's out oftly the old army school, hardened in the service through years of experience in the old regular rmy." after describing their arrival in gettysburg and initial experiences with the other new , we will stone wrote now begin in earnest. the battlefield of gettysburg became a live with men. it made the name of gettysburg historic. on the philosophized past exploits of other american soldiers a half-century before, and the historical importance of the land on which he and his comrades were living and training. "the place was ideal for the purpose, and much in keeping and developing the martial spirit of the company." , andny l was surrounded the boys who made the company,

became full of the spirit which made sacred the place on which they drilled. late summer, laborers found tangible evidence of the grim toll of the battle, when they uncovered the remains of a rebel soldier who had been killed in action more than a half-century before. the workman made a discovery while deepening the camp water supply lines to ensure they would meet needs. "the gettysburg times" reported the doughboy's took great pleasure in the news of the discovery, and many joined in the hunt for more bullets. which they declared they would take with them to france as souvenirs of the earlier war. the next day, workmen uncovered the remains of a union soldier, identified by his uniform and equipment, who was reburied in the national cemetery. gettysburg national military park was suffering a severe environmental impact, and its

cultural resources were threatened. historicn of the landscape for structural foundations, latrines, and sewage lines, and degrading of the land for camp roads and building sites, changed the typography of the battlefield of the confederate onslaughts of july 2 and july 3. not to be forgotten was the fact that a modern railroad bisected the training ground, and its very existence already disturbed the lay of the land. campetritus of the modern would mingle with the civil war relics for generations to come, possibly frustrated future archaeological studies. lots of the battlefield were closed to visitors for security purposes. here, you can see part of the camp. i would like to point out -- can you come up and do it so i don't have to go over there? , right there angle on hancock avenue.

if you take your finger toward me, further down -- keep going. i will tell you when to stop. keep going down this way. ok, go that way, toward yourself. right there. that is the angle. that used to be a road. .ut it is all grassed in sometime in the last 20 years, they changed how they were going to interpret the battlefield, and they grassed that in. just the left is the famous copse of trees. i want you to point and keep of the map.e end keep walking. right there, stop. you see that? that is assuming full. groundground; -- and in -- that is an in-ground swimming pool. it is still there today. you just cannot see it. ok, you can sit down.

hundreds of board and batten structures including with latrines and bathhouses, occupy the battlefield. monuments were surrounded by the bustle of a modern army training to damagesusceptible from vehicular attacks in and and vandalism from board doughboys. captain stuart a howard, united states military class of 1903, in temporary command of the newly activated 61st infantry, sent a note to the national park commission chairman, john nicholson, it barred national military park commission chairman. seven --an, in early early summer, to allay his fears about damage the park. you may be sure that every effort will be made by myself to see that the enlisted man -- men do not molest the monuments, c ofs, shrubbery ,wood, et

gettysburg national park. sacred ands park will see that this nuisance is abated. this regiment already has four noncommissioned officers on duty in the park to assist the park police in regulating the conduct of soldiers. what nuisance was he talking about? well, i want you to picture tens of thousands of young men -- how old were young soldiers, 18, 19, 21? farm boys. some city boys. alcohol is not permitted in camp, but it is permitted in town, even though the camp commander put a prohibition on soldiers drinking in uniform. they still got it. to devilsces, you go den, the towers, little round top, and you will see liquor bottles, beer bottles. what else the young men like? this is being broadcast on c-span, but it is a cable network, so i can say this. they want to have their personal

needs fulfilled, ok? gettysburg is a town of 2500 --0 people, and part of them 25,300 people, and part of them were women. trainf ladies arrived by from philadelphia, baltimore, washington, pittsburgh, york pennsylvania. they have a different type of application. there also were some local places of ill repute. a little farming community and a little catholic committee just outside of gettysburg called bonneville had one of the most famous bawdy houses, as they were called, in 1917, 1918. u.s. marshals and pennsylvania state police were constantly making busts. that is the nuisance the captain is talking about. a week later, colonel dickenson, the park chairman, sent a letter to the war department about military construction that continues to expand the size of camp.

they said the buildings cover the most historic part of any battlefield in the country. continuing, he warns, buildings on the line east and along hancock avenue will destroy the terrain of pickett's charge. isthe park land to the east used for parades and drills, it would destroy grass that could grow again. buildings are unsightly and damaging. many young people residing in such a small town, it was only a matter of time until some of them got into trouble. drinking and prostitution were the biggest problems. in what seems to be a futile effort to keep gettysburg soldiers occupied with legal off-duty activities, federal agency order to counsel for training camp activities worked

diligently with the borough government and the churches of adams county and other agencies to supply various forms of entertainment, including sporting events, speakers, concerts, dances, and visits to family homes. the cap had its own baseball and football teams that played other .amps and nearby colleges track and field meets were held at the college. the sport was pugilistic in nature and prepared the men for hand to hand combat. clubs opened in other nearby localities. the ymca of york and hanover provided rooms for soldiers. dances were organized by the women's club of york. back at the camp proper, a concrete inground sewing pool was built with the dimensions of 110 by 50 feet by 10 feet. it was near the massive pennsylvania memorial.

unfortunately, its construction was not completed until autumn. another swimming hole was created by building a dam from willoughby run over to marsh creek. that is less than a mile as the co--- the crow flies. ctca, and local agencies were doing everything possible to provide wholesome entertainment. of the more than 12,000 soldiers stationed in gettysburg during the summer of 1917, at least two of them deserve special mention. the first one should not even have them in gettysburg, nor should he have been wearing an army uniform. 12-year-old ernest stole away on an east and freight train from his home in farmington, ohio, and landed in altoona, pennsylvania, where he found a recruiting station and enlisted in the regular army.

a half-century later, he recalled, "the day i stepped into an army recruiting office to tell a cap-looking individual my desire to enlist, i was 12 years old." smart, large in frame, and mature for his age, wrentmore was not even a teenager, but convinced the recruiter she was 18 years old. he signed an alias on the enlistment form, henry munroe. train, was on another this time as a legitimate passenger -- destination, gettysburg. wrote in his memoirs, the campsite was situated on the memorable battlefield, gettysburg. our eyes were met with an enlist sea of tents and outbuildings, a site never to be forgotten. he was assigned to company i,

60th infantry. he eventually was shipped to france when his regiment was assigned to the fifth infantry division. during the fighting of the argonne offensive, he was wounded and gassed. he survived his wounds and went on to live a long life. in 1939, he was recommended for the medal of honor. but nominations after the fact at that time had to be made within 10 years of the incident, and the recommendation was denied. activere was recalled to duty during world war ii and served as officer in the u.s. army air forces, and after the conflict served in the u.s. air force reserve. he was recalled to active duty during the korean war. he married several times and had a number of children all across the country, some of which never 1983him, and he died in and is buried in arlington. i have been to his grave site.

on the back of the stone, it says "youngest american soldier, american missionary forces." the other soldier who trained at gettysburg in 1917 that deserves recognition also was assigned to the 60th cannot do states infantry. if you were at the last presentation, you heard about this fellow. 34-year-old sergeant samuel woodville was a seasoned regular who came up from the mexican border with the fourth u.s. infantry. he was promoted to lieutenant and reassigned to the 60th before shipping to france. during the mars argonne offensive, his actions were rivaled only by those of the legendary alan. the actions when both men medals of honor. -- won both men medals of honor. it, not going to read because it is really long. can you see it? over here? can you read the highlighted

parts? anybody on that side? ok, well, let's make a long story short. he single-handedly took out a bunch of machine gun nests. when he ran out of in munition, he picked up a pickax and killed the other germans. he was an unassuming regular soldier. other than the fact that sergeant york was a pacifist, he had a story similar to york in that he was a former farmer, and he had to get out of the army after the war. he was from indiana, but

cincinnati was close by. this guy was quite the warrior. sam would felt returned to the enlisted ranks after world war i. by general named john pershing as the ideal american soldier of the war, he served as one of the pallbearers for the burial of the unknown soldier. during world war ii, whitfield andreturned to active duty placed on recruiting duty. he died in 1951 and is buried at arlington national cemetery. since the men were quartered in tents, planners decided to relocate to charlotte, north carolina until they were ready for overseas deployment.

they left behind numerous temporary buildings that had been constructed. it measured approximately 400 square acres of government-owned or leased land. structures included 101 mess halls of various sizes. this is smack dab in the center of the gettysburg battlefield. bathhouses, 115 multi-hole latrines, one bakery, 18 animal storage sheds, one headquarters, one telephone exchange, three sleeping barracks, two sewage disposal plants, 20 waste incinerators, and two pump houses. all told, more than 400

structures. those sewage treatment plants only processed graywater. that means water from the bathhouses and water from the kitchen. the latrines were similar to the or in thein vietnam rear areas. there were metal containers underneath the holes. somebody had to pull those out, emptied the liquid parts, and then burn the solid waste. in the being stuck detail to do that. to the what that did .attlefield because local civilians contribute it so many to the -- so much to the problems associated with the camp, there was some doubt that they would .end another

the gettysburg times printed an article on february 18 titled, " camp."s on the reporter chronicled the speculation of townsfolk regarding the reopening of the camp. they all wanted to come back. why would they want that? they are tearing up their beautiful battlefield. stuff,e selling them making lots of money. the writer of this article concluded, regarding the street rumor that the times does not vouch, but several of the stories were apparently well-founded. congressman and are brought back, representing the congressional district of which gettysburg was a part, confirmed installed.p would be

one of the rumors that spread through the streets was that it was going to be a camp for 10,000 colored soldiers. back then, they were called knee growldiers or troops p this was a lily white town. there was a very small black population. you can imagine the fears that ran through some of the white folks' minds. the first contingent came from maryland and arrived on friday, march 16. captain eisenhower assumed command of the camp on march 29, 1918. eisenhower hoped in vain to combat in france, but instead, found himself back in

gettysburg. he came here with the class of 1915. memoirs, id in his took a small detachment to the campsite. my mood was black. chargedd to leave them by a man named gardner. he seemed quite capable. eisenhower watched as this small contingent of troops raised the garrison flag on a flagpole used by the previous year camp and by units supporting the 1913 reunion of the blue and gray. continuing his story, ike reminisced about the incident many years later. gardner watching the flag flapping at the top.

he said, captain, the last time i was on this ground was many years ago. at the time, i was standing in front of a court-martial, which sentenced me to six months in the guardhouse. i am a captain in the same army, and i'm standing here is temporary commander of a camp in which i was disgraced. as i look up this former noncombat with tears coming down his face, all i could managed to say was, look, garner. i know you will do a splendid job. eisenhower compiled his memoirs almost 50 years after this episode, but it had a lasting impact. according to ike, to this day, whenever we stand to salute the flag, that memory is with me.

camp called occupied the same ground as the previous year's infantry camp, but more structures were authorized. the target range was situated south of camp. additional hospital accommodations, a conversion of some of the old stables and warehouses, and the procurement of heating camps were required. all to the tune of more than $17,000. there was a request for funding for these projects on april 18. ralph lauren estimated that supplementary funding would left 4000 soldiers to be accommodated

at camp cold. captain eisenhower soon took out an advertisement in the gettysburg times for a four or six-room house, furnished or unfurnished. the only heating source, a potbellied stove on the first floor. the commander's wife did not know how to operate the stove as she had never even seen one before. after a short time, a family

moved to a fraternity house on north washington street. although the accommodations were much approved, the house did not have a kitchen. with the end of the colleges summer recess coming to a close, the eisenhower family built a residence on springs avenue adjacent to the lutheran seminary campus. according to their eldest granddaughter, "it was their first real home." captain eisenhower's immediate task was to establish his new command. in addition, he formed numerous tank company battalions that would deploy to the western front. of course, camp colt would also have share of support personnel, particularly quartermaster troops to provide transportation functions, soldiers who worked

as welders, machinists, ammunition specialists, as well as a headquarters section of medical staff. a so-called casual company was formed for new arrivals. four men who did not meet the physical or mental standards, a development battalion was created where men would be given classes, exercise, and their health monitored by the camp's health officers. it was commanded by a west point classmate, and you saw him in a previous slide. unlike the infantry regiments from the year before, the tank corps was not authorized. eisenhower sanctioned the organization of a fife, bugle,

and drum corps to present musical talents, probably as a know much to the civil war generation who fought on the same ground 55 years earlier. year, a real military band was organized from camp colt men who had the ability to play musical instruments. the camp was approved to conduct its own officer training school. here, thise done gentleman has panoramic photographs of camps of the u.s. troops, and one of them shows the officer training school, and they are all lined up in front of the high water mark. this is the tank training ground for the united states army here in the united states. produced a sheet-metal

mockup. modeled on a heavy tank, the soldiers could get a feel for being inside one of the steel monsters. a short announcement in the brooklyn daily eagle newspaper on thee 7, 1918 reported brooklyn side to camp colt and declared, corporal neville hart directed the building of an imitation tank recently, and it is being used by members of the 328 battalion. else, it made a great backdrop for group photographs. tanks, big ones that would've looked like that -- no heavy tanks were ever delivered, but on june 6, 1918, kind of an ironic day. arrived at, an ft-17

the western maryland depot in gettysburg. that is the depot closest to the college. a reporter wrote, the long suspected tank is here. it was soon unloaded and driven through town or while scores of people watched it with the greatest interest. the tank was built in france, but it was delivered to an automotive factory here so they could look at it. in his memoirs, eisenhower alleged that two more tanks were shipped to gettysburg, recalling that pretty small tanks percent-wise. carry, i should say

-- the tanks arrived without weapons. bit hazy.ry was a no newspapers reported the appearance of the two other tanks, which would've arrived at one of the two train stations in town. evidence to substantiate that one tank was ever assigned to to gettysburg times confirmed soon after the armistice that the loan tank with which the camp colt men got other practice drove through town this afternoon. if you go to some of the at thee exhibits here eisenhower national historic site and gettysburg national military park, those exhibits will tell you two or three tanks. photographs of the kit colt tank indicate that it was a first production model mounting a cast-iron turn it. eventually, it would be mounted with a machine gun. although the new tank's presents

was not a military secret, the times reported that the machine station in an isolated part of the camp, and visitors are not allowed to get a site of it. ae drivetrain was powered by four-cylinder, ray-mounted gasoline engine, allowing it to travel at a lethargic for miles per hour with a maximum range of 40 miles per tank of gas. was installedvoir forward of the engine. tank was manned by a driver and commander/governor. -- commander/gunner. the turk could rotate 360 degrees. the tank's armor was nearly an inch thick bolted onto a steel chassis. detachablented a tail to facilitate trench-crossing. the tale prevented the tank from falling backwards into the trench.

it was propelled by rear drive sprocket wheels, mounting capital -- caterpillar-style steel tracks. its tactical mission on the battlefield was to support the advance of the infantry over no man's land. fortunatesenhower was to welcome to camp colt two british advisors who commanded tank battalions in the battle of cambrai in november of 1917. one of the veteran officers was 46-year-old lieutenant colonel frank sommers who had been awarded his nation's distinguished service cross in march of 1915 and the distinguished service order for his leadership as a tank company commander during the battle of the sun in the summer of 1916.

his son, an officer in the royal navy, have been killed in action during the historic battle of jutland a month before the song battle. lieutenant colonel summers took command of a tank battalion in 1917 and led it to the battle of cambrai where his unit fought with great success, transferred back to the united kingdom in 1918 to organize tank training, he soon departed for the united states and was assigned as a liaison officer at camp colt. take a look at this photograph. i've got everybody identified except the young man on the far right. notice the older officer has a black armband. that is for his son who died at the battle. advisor thattish you see here was major philip cambraiwho served at and as a fellow battalion commander and whose tank

battalion nearly exploded the british breakthrough. the experience that these advisers brought to camp colt's training program would be immeasurable. decades later, eisenhower recalled, "at about the same time we received the tank, two british officers appeared as advisors. thus began my connection with allies, a word that became vitally important to me as the years rolled on. the british officers helped us to understand the uses of these new armored weapons." remembered,ike although we don't have conversations, i learned about a british political figure told winston churchill. this churchill had a hand in producing the first tanks. i must say, from their descriptions, he sounded like a good chap. indeed, the tank concept was churchill's brainchild who, in january of 1915, as first lord

of the admiralty, he recommended to promised her herb or ask special mechanical devices for taking trenches should be developed. thus, long before they came to know and trust each other, eisenhower and churchill shared a common experiential bond. take a look at this. this was his headquarters in 1918. you can see the building behind the flagpole. that's where the photo was taken, the previous photo. this is a long steiner avenue. notice the fourth ohio infantry marker. that is still there today. it's close to the entrance where you would go up to the old orama building. that's what it looks like today thanks to google earth.

the parking lot of general pickets buffet was captain ike eisenhower's headquarters. prior to the arrival of the tank, eisenhower and his staff organized a broad training program that included marksmanship, mechanical maintenance instruction, drill and ceremony tactics, even telegraphy, but more importantly, machine gun and can in training were required. according to eisenhower, a number of machine guns came in. someone had the notion of mounting them on truck trailers or flatbed trucks, so we were able to transport them on mobile platforms. foronly satisfactory place firing them was the groundhog. soon, soldiers were shooting from moving trucks at all kinds of targets, and the firing might've been heavier than

during the great battle 55 years earlier. times" noted in target practice with machine guns give the impression that there was a regular battle underway, but it was only a little demonstration. once the ft-17 arrived in gettysburg, recruits were recruited to drive it. to learn how to negotiate a steep rise, drivers used the to get a feel for driving across a shell-cratered battlefield. you civil war buffs already know this, but those who don't, in 1863, the house and barn of william and adaline bliss were burned to the ground to prevent the buildings being used by

confederate structures. all that remains is the ramp to the barn and the seller. destruction caused by the grinding of steel caterpillar tracks over this historic cultural feature has not been measured, but the ramp and seller are visible today, indicating that adding any damage caused by the contraption was slight. eisenhower saw the training issue, but he also had to deal with vice, venereal disease, and alcohol-related problems. in my book, i cover all the sordid particulars about how problemsr solved these through military discipline and applying the lessons of the progressive-era social reformers. he was assisted in these endeavors by the local police, pennsylvania state police, u.s. marshals, and the u.s. district attorney, as well as the local temperance society, the young

men's jewish association, salvation army, and the camp tca. see tca -- c eisenhower authorized the publication of a weekly newspaper as a way to disseminate army and camp , report the scores of sports teams, announce special event's, spread friendly camp gossip, and improve morale. the title soon became the model of the entire tank corps. 36 years later, a former officer hailing from the territory of alaska recalled how the motto came to be. in alaska, there was much playing during winter months of basketball teams. i was a member of the arctic brotherhood team. in every game, those arctic brothers and friends who were --ctators would yell, of

especially when game points were not in their favor. the blackadder was and still is the icon of the -- black cat was and still is the icon of an organization founded in 1982 whose members are involved in the lumber industry. the arctic brotherhood he mentions was one of its lodges. decades later, during the administration of president dwight d. eisenhower, he served as you as commissioner to alaska, which remained a territory until it obtained statehood in 1959. in the autumn of 1819, eisenhower who by this time was a lieutenant colonel faced the most serious problem of his career. 10 days before the momentous

offensive was scheduled to begin on the western front, and while all eyes were focused on france, camp colt received a detachment camp1 shoulders from devens, massachusetts, an area besieged by the deadly spanish influenza. sufferedsfers headaches, but the doctors believed it was caused by typhoid fever inoculations. , the next recalled morning, alarming reports started to reach me. new men were registering high fevers and were obviously verio. the camp surgeon immediately took countermeasures. because the men had not been confined in quarters, and some were obviously carriers, the whole camp had to be considered exposed.

was. soon, it would spread to gettysburg and the outlying communities. extraordinarily severe. total deaths were estimated at approximately 50 million and were arguably as high as 100 million. scientists have yet to determine where the spanish flu originated, but a consensus is emerging that it probably first appeared in january of 1819 in kansas in the southwest corner of the sunflower state, eventually making its way eastward across the state where it was contracted by soldiers. from there, it was transported to the east coast, and finally, to the western front. therance, it spread through rear areas and frontlines to the allies.

since the warring nations theored news reports about staggering effects that the flu was having on their armies and civilian populations, only when it spread to spain, a neutral country, did news go public. from then on, it was known as influenza. the pandemic you opted in three ways. it flared up when in the spring and summer of 1918. the second was a plague of severe influenza in autumn, and the last wave occurred in the spring of 1919. the flu symptoms usually included a high temperature from 102-104 degrees, sometimes . sometimes,106

vomiting and loose bowels occurred. state, a weakened patients developed pneumonia and a men's pulmonary hemorrhages. the spanish influence of primarily affected people in the prime of their life. the influenza epidemic hit camp devens, massachusetts on september 8, and it was first reported in medical officers on september 12. the first person to die in adams county from complications from the flu was going of the soldiers who had been transferred. two other soldiers died that night.

70 more were hospitalized or the next day, two more men died. three more soldiers died between the 24th and 20th of september, and another three passed in the next 24 hours. "the times" headline blared in all capital letters -- "influenza rages at camp colt." let's move to the next slide. go back to the previous slide. military police were stationed at all the major roads .

soldiers with any sign of sickness were quarantined. the gettysburg fire department even hosed down the streets to cleanse the thoroughfares and gutters of influenza. other churches followed suit. a teacher at a one-room asked her students to solicit donations from the townsfolk and they quickly gathered $100 which bought hot water bottles and other supplies for the cap. according to eisenhower, "the little town had no place to take

care of the dead here there were no coffins. we had no place to put the except in a storage tent until they could be taking care of more suitably. of america's most well-known nursing experts drop when she was doing to come to gettysburg and assist the overburdened medical staff. with lucy burns and alice paul, she was one of the most outspoken of the women suffragists. in early october, tragedy struck. gettysburg,outh of marin ande married -- bari her father succumbed to the flu.

reaperoctober, the grim visited the gross family northeast of gettysburg. amos and jacob, two brothers, were lost three days apart. they were followed by their mother on october 17. mary, 33, ofand centennial, died six days apart. passed on october 23. finally, peter smith of centennial lost to family members within a week's time. 16 andher died october his 16-year-old daughter passed on october 19. by mid-october, the flu crisis was waning, but it continued to

take the lives of soldiers and civilians for the rest of 1918 and even into 1919. four military positions were transferred to attend the victims another camps. a total of 149 deaths the active -- the epidemic struck. the passing of the last soldier on octobera occurred 7, 1918. victim was alian three-year-old girl was from -- a three-year-old girl from butler township. for a total of 133 civilian deaths from influenza or

pneumonia in adams county. that final casualty, the ordeal is over. at the end of the battle of one civilian lay dead. at the end of the tenure of cap call, a total of 100 73 civilian slated. civilian's lay dead. soldiers who perished at camp cold could be very free of charge activities national cemetery. most were returned all met the request of the next of kin. each coffin was accompanied by soldiers from: the return to

gettysburg was this on duty was completed. were destroyed and replaced with new ones. personal facts, other than uniform items, were packaged and mailed to the next of kin. you see some of the flu victims buried from the camp in the national cemetery. the onset of the influenza epidemic had a sad and profound impact on the soldiers and nurses. perhaps the greatest memorial bestowed on its dead was written for a newsletter. "gone west, a tribute by a comrade, "the anonymous author, in the midst of this biological disaster, eloquently articulated his sorrow in the last lines of

his tribute. "we stand a moment with heads bowed, with heavy hearts and silent tribute. eyeswith heads up and front, send words to our bookies across the great divide. we will carry on, fellows, we ."ll carry on and they did carry on, but not for much longer. of the soldiers who saw that issue would see combat in the great war. in a few weeks, it would be over -- over there. armistice went into effect. the next day, the gettysburg times currently predicted in a capnt page article that " cold will probably be a thing of the past within a very few weeks will probably be a

thing of the past within a few weeks." just days later, the newspapers announced to the tankers would be leaving the next day on special trains bound for camp dix, new jersey. cap calledwas no -- -- camp colt was no more. it proved to be an immense undertaking, leaving the battlefield with visible scars of the two camps for years to come. next slide.

click again and again. do you all read that? least 1400 cubic yards of refuse needed to be removed. earth had to be moved to level drains, ditches and coverts. they were raised up, covered sprayed withand tar, all in the middle of the one of the tracks upt had to be plowed [indiscernible] farm -- the tru

farm, phil gramm would be needed to restore land used for trenches. $1400 worth of fencing and gates and walls. is scattered over the different areas that must be removed. they had contractors come in and clean up. they could keep whatever they wanted as part of the contract. most of the junk they did not want went into the swimming pool. that is still there today. i told my former student, your

superintendent, go out there in the springtime and take a look. where did you see? everywhere --s andndhog holes everywhere war debris everywhere. our time this afternoon does not allow me to go to death about the environmental impact. nor do i have enough time to tell you about gettysburg's and adams county's contribution to the war effort. to find out about those things, shameless log coming up, you will have to read my book that just came out, which is the first in-depth social history of any american community during the world war i era. just happens that community was

a pretty famous one. thank you for your attention this afternoon. [applause] yes, sir. that inumming pool, was proximity to the united states regulars monument? >> right in front of it. west. regularstand at monument, through a baseball, and it will land in the swimming pool. that is how close it was. yes, ma'am. soldiers recruited or those who became soldiers in world war i, which percentage of them stayed stateside and which percentage went to europe? >> you got me. i can look it up in i don't know. several million went overseas. the problem is the war was relatively short, from our

perspective, from the united states perspective. the award was declared in april -- the war was declared in april. sent the 26th division in the spring. we sent marines over, too. but most of the troops do not arrive until the early spring of 1918. forcesmbat with american doesn't occur until the last week of may, 1918. the first man who was killed, who came from gettysburg, the first man killed in action was in the first division and he was killed about two weeks prior to the battle of cantina, which is considered the first big american action of the war. his name was albert j lentz. as far as numbers and percentages, i can't tell you.

we would have had the lines share of the forces had the war gone through 1918 in 1920. -- 1918 to 1920. a lot of them were on their way when the armistice was declared. [indiscernible] >> that report was 1920. , no report exists 1926.n 1922 and we don't know if there was any tangible vestiges of the camp remaining. i imagine you can see them with the naked eye. the topography of the battlefield has changed because of these caps. there was -- these camps. there was a railroad line that precedes the civil war. the round topped spur of the

gettysburg railroad. if you look on google earth, you can see where cuts through the middle of the battlefield. the army spurs off of that, where they kept tanks full of tar, the stuff they sprayed the streets with, they kept pay for the horses and mules in railcars. , probably in the mid-1920's, most of that would have gone away. a 1922, the marine corps comes up here from quantico and state maneuvers and create quite a bit of damage. not intentionally. they were only here couple of days. torrential downpours as they are getting ready to leave and they bring in a bunch of tanks and heavy equipment they get stuck. that's over a rent seminary ridge. so they tore up the battlefield quite a bit, too. . was there a permit or established when camp colt was

here? butot a perimeter per se, there would have been guards posted at the main roads where visitors can i go. so it did q-tip -- could not go. visitors.urtail >> i mean visitors to two of the battlefield. >> yeah, i guarantee you, when big round top was being used as a machine gun range, there were no visitors allowed. bullets are going to ricochet. that would have been a dangerous place to be. any other questions? it seems like, on the grounds , there co -- camp colt -- also the >> there were no structures.

gotonly personnel who decent quarters were the officers and they were quartered in the home sweet home hotel, which was torn down 15 years ago. it was contracted out by the army for officers and their families. walkedwo years ago, i through the area where the pow camp was and there were busted milk bottles from world war ii laying in a drainage ditch of the camp. let me pull up some of the slides i did not show. the last time i gave this talk, we had problems with the audiovisual aids. it must be me.

the railroad line did a lot of damage. when you bring in all these soldiers and your digging foundations for buildings and you are greeting the area you're going to the company's -- grati , if you look at it today with the naked eye, it probably looks like when it was charged. but if you are a confederate soldier, it would look completely different because they are taking advantage of the rolling ground of the battlefield to mass themselves from union defensive fire. it is fairly flat out there now. camp did take its toll on the cultural resources here and readies -- and gettysburg. [indiscernible]

you are talking about the marines reenactment. they had a temporary landing strip. those planes could land just about anywhere. themarine plane crashed to ground and both guys that as a result. another one had mechanical problems in almost died. >> how many money myths were destroyed? >> none were destroyed, but a lot were vandalized. somewhere hit by trucks, army trucks. a couple hundred motorcycles and trucks and cars that were driving on company streets in the battlefield. colonel coat, even that he doesn't blame the soldiers, he talks about pieces missing off bayonets busted off of bronze soldiers. >> did they repair them? >> yes, they were all repaired

at the cost of the taxpayer. any other questions? thank you very much. [applause] >> you are watching american history tv, 48-hour's of programming on american history every week and a east and 3. every week on- c-span 3. follow us on twitter. >> next, on american history tv, a look at president woodrow wilson's decision to enter world war i. will england is foreign desk editor for "the washington post." he talks about wilson's views on human rights, world affairs, democracy, and america's role in the world. he spoke at