WW1 Era Letter Written by U.S. Serviceman in Luxembourg. He mentions his Dog being Killed in Action, among other things.

[Heartfeltzero]

This letter was written by a Frank L Clack. He was born on September 18th 1896 in Michigan. He would go on to serve in Company D, 3rd Ammunition Train. The letter reads:

“ Bettembourg, Luxembourg
November 27, 18

Dear Dorothy,

I received your letter two weeks ago but have been so busy moving from one place to another that I have not had time nor place to write, but I have seen plenty to write about.

I was at Dun, France and the armistice was signed and from here we moved to Verdun, which is some fine old French city altho pretty well shot to pieces. From here we moved to Troyon and then we hiked for a couple of days to Chambley and rested one day in that place.

The next place we stopped was Vignolles. I left the company and took rations to the 18th field artillery and on the way home I broke down and stayed in the town of Rossingen(?) Lorraine.

When I reached the company it was at Aumets in Lorraine and the next morning we moved to our present home.

Now I didn’t intend to write a diary but I’ve made a pretty good start. Now I hope that you will pardon me for not writing sooner and if you have a map of France handy I think you will.

I didn’t go to supper tonight, I am saving my appetite for tomorrow as I expect to have a good dinner and lots of it. And I know we are going to have pancakes for breakfast.

I see by tonight’s paper that some soldiers have already left England for the states. I’ll bet they are a happy bunch.

Our next move will take us to Germany i think, to a town named Treves and our objective Coblenz, Germany on the Rhine.

Of course we have another objective that is well you can guess U—S— and we are going to reach that too.

Altho the German language is not very popular in the states but if you can talk it here you generally come closer to getting what you want than, they also speak French and some Italian.

Nov. 28, 1918

Just stretched myself around a good dinner and have nothing to do until tomorrow.

You ask about my dog, he was killed in action about six weeks ago and buried at or near Montfaucon, France. But he was a brave dog and a good comrade.

I suppose you are getting ready for Xmas and your Xmas vacation. I guess you will have a tree at the church now that the war is over and there will be pieces and dialogues and all the things which go to make a real Xmas. Don’t forget to get an Orange for me. And you might hang up an extra sock for me and I’ll try to get there by New Years and I might not meet old st. Nicholas on the Atlantic.

I don’t know when this will reach you for we have a little trouble mailing letters here.

I am sincerely,
Frank L Clack
Co “D” 3rd Amm Train
A.E.F.

I wish you a Merry Xmas and Happy New Year”

Frank would pass away on December 16th 1977 aged 81. He is buried in the Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery in Pennsylvania.

[MAP]

If he ever made it to Coblenz, he might have been one of the many US Soldiers who liberated from the factory some of the many bundles of German "machine gunners" sleeve badges. They typically were brought back in unissued bundles tied up with string. Which over the decades were them broken up and made there way into collectors hands

WW1 Machine gunners sleeve badge