Historic Hood River
WWI Troop Train
Notes
Here’s a fitting image for this 93rd anniversary of the armistice which ended the first world war. On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month the guns fell silent, and these men were there. This is the troop train bringing the 65th Artillery, C.A.C back to the west coast on February 17th, 1919. The event was reported in the Hood River Glacier:
Schools Dismissed for Occasion.
It is Estimated that 3,000 Assembled at O.-W. R. & N. Station to Welcome the Returned Artillerymen
The armistice day celebration was eclipsed by that Monday in honor of the two long train loads of handsome and hale Northwestern young men, members of the 65th Artillery. Two hours before the trains arrived fire siren, school and church bells spread the tidings. Never has such a crowd assembled at the station. All schools were dismissed. It is estimated that 3,000 people lined the tracks….
The girls of the Canteen committee of the Red Cross Chapter were kept busy seeing that every soldier had all the apples he could eat. The members of Battery E who were aboard the troop trains were: Capt. Edward W. Van Horn, Carl Copper, Rud Imholz, Paul Lancaster, Allyn Button, Roselle Crone, Fred Thomsen, Orville Thompson, Ora Cushman, Albert Miller, Perle Perkins, Gustaf Forsberg, Walter B. Regnell, Corbett Alexander, Delbert Slutz, Everett Swearingen, Earl Dunbar, Gold Dodson and Claude C. Collins….
The 65th Artillery, C.A.C was organized in late 1917. Recruits were assigned to forts on the west coast, and eventually made their way to San Francisco, where they were loaded onto troop ships for Europe. The monument at Overlook Memorial Park tells us that some never returned to their family and friends in Hood River.
The banner on the train displays the motto “Farthest to Fight,” making the claim that these men from the northwest traveled a greater distance to the battle fields in Europe than anyone else. Here’s a compelling history of the 65th Artillery C.A.C, following them to combat and back.
charlott
What a grand and glorious day it must have been as families greeted their love ones back into the fold.
Two names I am familiar with. That of Fred Thomsen of that family in Pine Grove. Albert Miller was one of our family.
God Bless these wonderful men who battled on foreign shores in the name of freedom, as well as those who followed over the decades and still march off in the name of freedom.
Arthur
Though this train passed through Hood River, these soldiers were not quite home yet. They had to continue on to Fort Stevens to finish their service. They returned to Hood River for a real "welcome home" a few weeks later.
Arlen Sheldrake
What a wonderful way to welcome these soldiers back! And a wonderful way Arthur to commerate Veterans Day. I am proud I served but not proud of how some of us welcomed others back following some less popular wars.
It is nice to remind the people of HR of this proud moment in our history.
Arlen
nels
I think Orville Thompson may have been from TD and returned to own a car dealership, orchard and wheat land, an oil distributership.
AndrewB
Good view of the braided Hood River delta. Would have been interesting to tromp around in there.
l.e.
The war to end all wars.
Reading the account of their train trip across Europe, I don’t think the men experienced the same level of comfort that I had on my train trip this summer.
I agree with Andrew. It would be fun to tromp around in the river bottom.
steve
Great views of both side of the river and hills of White Salmon, WA
Is that a UFO in the skyline to the left of Strawberry Mtn- ? or a blemish on the pic ? ( white spot )
Arthur
Nope, no UFO Steve. This is a scan from the negative, so white spots are usually dirt we were unable to remove before scanning. Matt delicately removes surface debris before scanning, but with a 93 year old negative he is careful not to be too aggressive, as the emulsion can just flake off. Frequently these old negatives have all sorts of dust embedded in the emulsion– probably stuff that settled on them while they were drying. I don’t think their darkrooms were very clean.
Patricia Strupp
My great grandfather had three sons in WWI from Hood River–Delbert is noted on this train. Also Sam and Stan, who came home earlier. All were in France and later opened the Slutz Brother’s Repair Shop in Hood River. My great grandfather was Ephraim J. Slutz.
Jeffrey W Bryant
The photos may have been taken by H. O. Kressee.
https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn97071110/1919-02-20/ed-1/seq-5/
ArthurB
Actually this was an Alva Day image.