Note: From Joan Speakman Hobernicht Roy Leslie Speakman enlisted in the US Army on September 21, 1917 at Sturgis, SD. He served at the Verdun front and St. Michel in France. He was honorably discharged in Camp Dodge, Iowa on March 3, 1919. The family has two letters he wrote while in the service. I was very young when Dad told me this: One day my Dad and I were outside; it was morning and the birds were chirping and making an awful racket. I said, "shut up, birds!". And then my Dad told me this story. I was on supply detail, several others and me. We took supplies from camp to the front lines. It was very dangerous as the enemy did not want the soldiers to get their ammunition or food. One day we had completed our delivery and were on our way back when it became dark. We found a cave and took shelter there. When I woke up by throat hurt as though it was on fire. It was hard to breathe and I was blind. I called to my companions but no one could answer. I stumbled across their bodies and knew they were dead. I knew then that we had been the victims of mustard gas. Since I had been sleeping close to the entrance of the cave I had some fresh air and so had survived. But I didn't know how long I had been unconscious. I finally found the exit to the cave and stumbled on the railroad tracks. I knew the tracks went east and west. To the east lay the enemy, to the west was camp and safety. But I was totally blind. I didn't know which way to go. I felt the sun shining on my face, but was it morning sun or evening sun? Everything was very quiet. Suddenly the air was filled with the sound of birds, squawking and fighting and calling for food. Ah, I thought, it must be morning, those birds sound so hungry so I turned and let the sunshine on my back and walked back to camp. Roy spent some time in the hospital and was then sent back to the US, regained his eyesight; but the mustard gas permanently affected his lungs. _____________________________________ World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 Name: Roy Leslie Speakman City: Not Stated County: Meade State: South Dakota Birthplace: Iowa;United States of America Birth Date: 21 Mar 1891 Race: Caucasian (White) Roll: 1877797 DraftBoard: 0 _________________________________ U.S. Veterans Gravesites, ca.1775-2006 Name: Roy Leslie Speakman Service Info.: PVT US ARMY WORLD WAR I Birth Date: 21 Mar 1891 Death Date: 2 Jan 1961 Service Start Date: 21 Sep 1917 Service End Date: 3 Mar 1919 Interment Date: 4 Jan 1961 Cemetery: Black Hills National Cemetery Cemetery Address: 20901 Pleasant Valley Drive Sturgis, SD 57785 Buried At: Section C Site 202 _________________________________ CENSUS 1930 Meade County, South Dakota: Joe Mia Torrence 65 Luella c Torrence 25 Patricia Torrence 3 3/12 Roy Speakman 39
RootsWeb.com is NOT responsible for the content of the GEDCOMs uploaded through the WorldConnect Program.
The creator of each GEDCOM is solely responsible for its content.