Finding aid for the United States Army, American Expeditionary Forces, 37th Division Records, Series II

History of the United States Army, American Expeditionary Forces, 37th Division

The Thirty-Seventh Division, American Expeditionary Force was organized at Camp Sheridan, Montgomery, Alabama, of National Guard troops from the State of Ohio in August of 1917 under the command of Major General Charles G. Treat. Major General Charles S. Farnsworth took command of the Division on May 8, 1918. On May 22, 1918, the Division moved to Camp Lee, Virginia. Here it completed its quota of officers and men. It then embarked for Europe, leaving New Jersey on June 15 and arriving in France on June 22. Six weeks were spent in Bourmont, France, where the Division received its final training. It moved into the Vosges Mountains, where it relieved the 77th American Division in the Baccarat Sector on August 4, remaining in the sector until September 16.

During the Meuse-Argonne Campaign, the Division was deployed in the woods between Ricicourt and Avocourt. On September 26, it pushed its way through the thick underbrush of the Bois de Montfaucon, capturing the town of Ivoiry and the west half of Montfaucon. On October 1 the Division was relieved and sent to the Pannes Sector, where it occupied the trenches until October 16.

The Division then moved into Belgium. On October 31 it broke the German position along the Courtrai-Ghent railroad and forced the enemy back to the Cruyshautem ridge. On November 1, it took this position and drove the Germans to the east bank of the Escaut River. On November 2, small parties of infantry swam the river under fire and improvised a foot bridge which allowed troops to move to the opposite bank. The infantry then rolled the enemy's line back for a considerable distance, and the Division's engineers constructed two bridges across the river.

On November 5, the Division was relieved by French troops. After three days rest, it moved 14 kilometers south of Ghent, on the west bank of the Escaut River at Syngem. Immediately across the river the Germans were entrenched on the Dickelvenne-Laethem-Saint Marie Heights. On the morning of the 10th, a battalion of infantry crossed the river and attacked the Heights. Sharp fighting delayed the construction of bridges east of Syngem, until three o'clock in the afternoon, when American troops pushed forward and broke the German resistance on the Heights. At the time of the Armistice, November 11, the 37th Division had advanced as far east as the villages of Dickels, Zwartenbroek, Keerkem, and Hundlegem.

The 37th Division captured a total of 1502 German prisoners, 29 field pieces, and hundreds of machine guns and special weapons while serving in two defensive zones and three offensive sectors extending from the Vosges Mountains to the North Sea. It lost 704 killed and 4021 wounded. The Division left France in March 1919, and was demobilized between April 5th and May 16th.

Scope and Content

The United States Army, American Expeditionary Forces, 37th Division Records, Series II, 1917-1919, consist primarily of files relating to supplies, troop movements, orders for both the American experience and the French front, maps, and general materials such as training and staff memoranda, official circulars, and reports.

This collection pertains largely to the 37th Division's training in Camp Sheridan, Alabama, and Camp Lee, Virginia, as well as to its service in World War I. The specific topics in this collection are troop movements, battle tactics, and a soldier's daily life.

Statement of Arrangement

Restrictions on Access

None.

The researcher should also consult MS 1870 United States Army, American Expeditionary Forces, 37th Division Records; and MS 5260 United States Army, American Expeditionary Forces, 37th Division Records, Series III.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Preferred Citation

[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 4484 United States Army, American Expeditionary Forces, 37th Division Records, Series II, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio

Acquisition Information

Gift of Otto Miller, ca. 1920.

Processing Information

Processed by Bari Oyler Stith in 1990.

Detailed Description of The Collection