| Bio History Note | The following information was obtained through the internet site "Museum of the Kansas National, Guard Historic Units (http://www.kansasguardmuseum.org/35ww1.html), and is taken from Connelley, William E. History of Kansas: State and People, Volume II; Chicago: The American Historical Society (1928), pp. 889-893. Transcribed by Bryce Benedict.) THE 35th INFANTRY
The 35th Division was a Kansas and Missouri Division. It was composed of the organized National Guard of both states. Ten thousand Kansas men and fourteen thousand Missouri men were gathered into the federal service on August 5, 1917, receiving their training during seven months at Camp Doniphan, adjoining Fort Sill, Oklahoma, near the town of Lawton.
THIRTY-FIFTH DIVISION AT ST. MIHIEL
The first battle in involving the Thirty-fifth Division was St. Mihiel. That battle was easy in that the Reserve was never used. Though under shellfire, the men lay in pup tents in soggy dripping woods, without a chance to see the enemy.
General Peter E. Traub had assumed command of the Division, and General Traub led the Thirty-Fifth into the
Argonne.
THIRTY-FIFTH DIVISION IN THE ARGONNE
Some two hundred French trucks moved the Division from their reserve at St. Mihiel to the area of Grange-le-Conte, in the woods east of Beauchamp, and remained there until the morning of September 26th, when the greatest battle in American military history, the Battle of the Argonne, began.
The Thirty-Fifth formed the left flank of the First Army Corps, under Lieutenant General Hunter Liggett.
The battle was fought in a northerly direction between the Aisne River on the left and the Meuse River on the right. The extreme right of the Americans was to the north of Verdun, and the extreme left of the 35th Division was on the Aire River.
The most experienced troops of the A. E. F.,A[merican] E[xpeditionary] F[orce], were held in reserve.
Opposite the 35th Division was the First Guard Division, perhaps the best in the German army, and the Second Landwehr, composed of men over thirty-five years old. Directly in front of the Americans were four well defined defensive lines; the Hindenburg line - in two parts; the Kriemhilde Stellung; and the unfinished Freya Stellung.
"The attack was by column of brigades, the 69th Brigade leading, the two regiments in each Brigade, side by side, each with one battalion in the front line, one battalion in support and one battalion in reserve."
Artillery preparations began on September 26th at 2:30 a.m. The previous afternoon the infantry had begun the move forward. That night they were up to the guns and awaiting the coming advance in the morning. The advance began at 5:30 a.m. after three hours of artillery preparation. At the end of the day the men had captured Vauquois Hill, Cheppy Very, and had gone about half way between Varennes on the left and Charpentry on the right. The net advance had been about three miles.
An advance was ordered for 5:30 a.m. next morning without artillery preparation because the 60th Field Artillery Brigade of the 35th Division had not been able to get into position due to the terrible condition of the ground over which they had to move and the lack of roads. At 5:30 a.m. the advance was begun but was shortly stopped. The men were ordered to dig in. Word sent back that no further advance could be made without artillery support. The total advance for the second day was about one-half mile, not including Charpentry and Baulny. The night of the second day found the 35th Division with an advance of two and one-half kilometres. This was part of a total advance of seven and one-half kilometres; most of this having been made in the second attack about 5:30 on the first afternoon.
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