County honors local World War I heroes
Ceremony held Tuesday afternoon to honor WWI veterans
BALLSTON SPA, N.Y. >> World War I unified people of all backgrounds and walks of life in a way never before seen in American history.
Of the more than 116,000 U.S. soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice – more than half from disease – 120 came from Saratoga County.
But all segments of society contributed, including women who became nurses, drove ambulances and joined the Signal Corps, and children who planted gardens to offset food shipped overseas to supply troops.
“Everyone in the county was affected in one way or another,” said Lauren Roberts, Saratoga County historian. “By the end of the war 500,000 New Yorkers had answered the call to arms. New York provided more tonnage, had more defense contracts and collected more money for the war effort than any other.”
She outlined the impact this had during a Wednesday program, “Saratoga County in World War I,” in conjunction with the recent 100th anniversary of the war’s end on Nov. 11.
The presentation, at county offices, was held in lieu of regular “Honoring Our Deceased Veterans” ceremonies, which recognizes a veteran from a different town or city each month.
When it ended, World War I, was described as
the “War to End all Wars.”
“It’s kind of a momentous occasion,” said Board of Supervisors Chairman Ed Kinowski, R-Stillwater. “Think of the Great War and how long ago that was, and unfortunately the wars that have come after it.”
Kinowski is a veteran of the Global War on Terror.
Roberts presented examples of Saratoga County residents who served on the front lines during World War I such as Thomas Farnan, of Stillwater, who wrote what it was like “going over the top” — leaving trenches to rush headlong into “No man’s land” where he was met by relentless German artillery and machine gun fire.
“We were all living in shell holes waiting for the order to go over,” he said.
During one single-file charge, men in front and behind him were hit by exploding ammunition, while he went unscathed. The Lang brothers from Schuylerville were among the roughly 1,000 Saratoga County residents who served during World War I.
Alice Hagadorn, a nurse from Corinth, wasn’t so fortunate as she was killed in an auto accident on a battlefield in France.
In a detailed written account, published on Sept. 13, 1918 in The Saratogian, she told about some of her experiences.
“Never have I worked so hard,” Hagadorn said in the article. “You can’t imagine what the war is until you get over here.”
She described soldiers fighting for days on end without sleep or food, but never complaining about their hardships. Hagadorn was among the 20,000 American women who served as nurses at home and abroad during the war.
From the Library of Congress, Roberts showed large color posters that encouraged people to grow gardens and eat fresh produce, so there would be enough non-perishable food items for soldiers overseas.
One poster said: “Food is ammunition. Don’t waste it.”
The U.S. Food Administration, led by future President Herbert Hoover, was established during the war to manage America’s food resources, Roberts said.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs hadn’t been created yet. But organizations such as The American Legion, which will celebrate its 100th anniversary next year, were formed to help veterans.
Henry Cornell American Legion Post 234 in Ballston Spa is named for a soldier who died in a gas attack during the summer of 1918.
Likewise, Gurtler Brothers VFW Post 420 in Saratoga Springs is named for brothers, George and William Gurtler who were killed in action on the same day, Oct. 2, 1918 – a month before the war’s end – while fighting on the infamous Hindenburg Line with the 27th Infantry Division.
As he does each month, World War II veteran and former Mechanicville Supervisor Chris Sgambati led attendees in singing “Amazing Grace.”
Officials present included U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko, state Senators Kathleen Marchione and James Tedisco, and Assemblywomen Mary Beth Walsh and Carrie Woerner.
Malta Town Historian Paul Perreault put together a photographic tribute depicting each of the fallen heroes who died during the war from Saratoga County.
Following the indoor portion of the program, attendees moved outside for a flag raising, honor guard rifle salute and playing of Taps.