IJtiE HUE: OjiAHA, FRIDAY, MAY 30, 1919.
Eighty -Ninth Division, Veterans of Three Battle Fronts,
Was Commended and Mentioned in Orders Eighteen Times
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Nebraska National Army
Men, Trained by General
Wood, Great "Shock Troops"
Middle Western Division First Men of New Army to
Enter Major Operation and First to. Reach Ger-
( many Were First Americans to Enter Trenches
Without Being Brigaded With French and British
Troops.
FACTS CONCERNING "FIGHTING FARMERS."
1. First division to move from training area to front by
truck.
2. First division to enter line without previously being
brigaded with French and British troops.
3. . First division to be continuously in the front line for
more than eight weeks.
4. First national army division to participate in a major
operation.
5. First national army division to enter Germany.
Veterans of three battle fronts,
.including four offensives and the
hazardous crossing of the Meuse
river under fire, 1,400 soldiers of
- the 355th infantry, the 354th infan
try and 341st machine gun battal-
,; ion, Nebraska's contribution to the
89th National army division, return
te) be welcomed by the folks at
home.
Commended and "mentioned in
orders" 18 times, three of which
were formal citations by Gen. John
J. Pershing, Maj. Gen. C. P. Sum
meral, Fifth American Army corps
commander, and Maj. Gen. W. M.
' Wright, divisional commander dur
ing the division's 88 days on the
battleline under fire, the "fighting
farmers" have more than proven
their worth as "shock" troops of
the first order.
After tfie St. Mihiel offensive,
September 18, in which the western
ers took a pivotal part, a report of
German intelligence officers was
captured which declared the 89th to
be one of the "enemy's best shock"
divisions one to be reckoned with
in the fighting later. And the men
held that record without the least
bit of nervousness. Their record
of 5,061 German officers and men
captured and casualties of 1,266
Barents who care
for their chil
dren's health will
fgive them
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killed, 5,678 wounded and only 58
missing is proof of this.
Division Organized in 1918.
The division was organized May
8, 1918, at-Camp Funston, Kan., un
der the command of Maj. Gen.
Leonard Wood. Drafted men from
all parts of Missouri, Kansas, South
Dakota, Colorado, New Mexico.
Arizona and Nebraska began arriv
ing as irly as September 6, 1917.
Original officers were selected from
the 14th Provisional Training regi
ment stationed at Fort Riley, Kan.
While General Wood was in
France on an inspection tour of
the front, where he was wounded, in
November, 1917, Brig. Gen. Frank
L. Winn assumed . command, later
being succeeded by Maj. Gen. W.
M. Wright, just before the troops
entered the battle area for active
combat. General Winn regained
command on November 15, the date
the division moved on into Ger
many with the army of occupation
and is coming home still In com
mand. Less the 164th field artillery, the
89th division left Camp Funston
for Long Island, N. Y., May 22.
1918, arriving at CamD Mills. Mav
25. On June 2, various detachments
started for New York City and
Montreal where the troops boarded
transports and sailed for England.
The convoys held to the course di
rected and landed at Liverpool and
London 10 days later. Removal to
le Harve, France, across the Eng
lish channel was accomplished in
15 days.
Division Reaches Training Area.
The command at once repaired
to the Rimacourt-Sr. Blin-Prez sous
la Fouche-Trampot training area,
the soldiers arriving June 30, 1918.
Here they remained until August 5,
when the division was assigned to
the First American army, Fourth
corps. The men embussed at once
and rode into the vicinity of their
WELCOME!
Men of the Eighty-Ninth Division
This firm and every employe welcomes you
home with hearts overflowing with joy.
To those of you who were of us we say,
Come Back Here
Your Job Is Open to You
Welcome to Omaha
Whose citizenship is proud of you for your con
duct abroad and the spirit which called you across
the sea.
To the families of those who will never return,
we offer our most profound sympathy.
To those who were with our own boys we say
doubly welcome, for you now belong partly to us.
May the world be good to you, and your commercial
life be as successful as your overseas service was
strenuous.
Omaha Bemis Bag Company
and
AH Its Employes
Well Bring Our Heroes Home
4rr r n-STDirs
Tempo di majri
And
We're
T
e can do and must-,
we muslshow him how.
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-lack WeSt: sent our boys o
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first battle line position in the Toul
sector, relieving the 82nd American
division at KemenauviHe-Seichprey-Bouconville
sector, north of Toul.
From that time on until November
15, three days after the signing of
the armistice, the division maintain
ed itself for 98 days in positions of
the greatest peril. The first days at
Toul were spent in patrolling, recon
noitering in enemy positions, many
prisoners and identifications being
captured nightly from the Huns. The
casualties were slight and the Ger
mans soon' came to. know them as
careful, daring fighters of the most
pronounced type.
Brief Summary of Record.
A brief summary of the battle rec-!
ord of the division during its 98
days of active service follows:
Under shellfire 93 days.
In front lines, patroling, holding
and attacking in the St. Mihiel and
Argonne-Meuse offensives, 88 days,
of which 65 days were continuous.
In reserve under shell hre five
days.
Moving from sector to another
five days.
A table oreoared from "The Stars
and Stripes." official newspaper of
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bled and died foi u,
coun try needs us now,
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'iid and Music by
ELIZABETH CLAYTON BACON
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1 Our boys have fought foi you and me, TheyVe
2 The time has come ioi us to act. Our
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now iiS op to us to sea What
back of Sam-my with a pact And
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We'll bring those heroes homeward, WhoVe fought for Wc . to
Now that the war is 0 nr. Don't let our ef forts
f i 1 a 1 r-d 1 1 ..i-i mi! J - . J 1 -l-i 1- J i - t- ' -
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pay Fbr Klo-nous lib et tv
ver. We'll bnnu our he roes bark iT
the American Expeditionary Forces,
gives the following summary of
captured prisoners, guns, machine
guns, etc., captured by each division.
The record of the 89th division fol
lows: Captured officers, 192; captured
men, 4,869; artillery pieces, 127; ma
chine guns, 455; kilometers ad
vanced, 38; number of days in lint,
88.
This record, compared with that
of the First, Second and 42d divi
sions, crack "shock" troops of the
American line forces, is highly com
plimentary considering the number
of days the division spent in front
line positions. Laissoned with ma
rines of the Second division in
crossing the Meuse river, Novem
ber 14, the division drew a highly
complimentary statement from Ma
jor General Lejeune, divisional com
mander of the Second regular army,
a marine officer.
Held Sixteen Kilometer Front.
Trior to September 11, the divi
sion held a front of approximately
16 kilometers to the north of the
Metz road, in the Toul sector, from
west of Bouconville to east of
Limey. On September 6, Maj. Gen.
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We'll ba-k this Loan ol Vk-io.r. We
said the Yankee couldrfl do IV
get behind this VictryLoaD. We will fall
W. M. Wright assumed command,
relieving Brig. Gen. Frank L. Winn.
On the night of September 11-12 the
front of the division was reduced in
preparation for the attack in the
St. Mihiel offensive, September 12.
On the morning of the twelfth, the
"fighting farmers" went "over the
top" for their first taste of real fight
ing, operating in a sector extending
from Limey west to two kilometers
west of and including Flirey. The
advance continued 20 days, the divi
sion having gone an average dis
tance of 12 kilometers and an ex
treme depth of 21 kilometers, an
excellent record for ' raw troops,
practically inexperienced in front
line work. During the operation
six towns were taken including the
important German stronghold at
Thiacourt. The towns taken were
Beney, Essey, Bouillonville, Pannes
and Xamm'es.
Besides enormous quantities of ar
tillery and small arms ammunition,
grenades, clothing, blankets and
stores of all kinds, 2,287 German
officers and men were taken prison
er, 72 cannon, 10 minenvverferes, 95
machine guns and 1,000 rifles were
captured. Several large locomotives
and a number of railway cars were
boy Iw died to keepufre. It' now our chance to piy They
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in line and help to pay
Well pay
also taken. Heavy casualties were
imposed on the 10th German divi
sion and the 77th German Reserve
division which were opposite in the
attack.
Exact Casualties Were.
Officers killed 16
Officers wounded 69
Men killed 281
Men wounded 2,040
Men missing 29
Five commendations, two from
General Passaga, commander of
the 32d French division, operating
in the same sector, and another from
President Woodrow Wilson, com
plimenting the First army of which
the 89th was a part on its successful
advance, were received by General
Wright immediately at the close of
the offensive. During this action
the American forces captured 16,000
prisoners, 443 guns and liberated 240
square miles of French territory a
notable achievement.
Immediately at the end of the St.
Mihiel drive, the 89th repaired to
the Flirey sector, which its com
manders reorganized and placed on
a fighting basis. Later the division
relieved the 42d "Rainbow" division
in the Pannes sector and the 78th
Heroes of
it$i$titifi
In Thankful Appreciation
We Welcome You
To the honor of you boys, upon whom the laurels
of victory has fallen.
To you who have made possible for us the per
manence of the higher ideals of humanity and civil
ization. To you who have sheltered posterity from the
Turk and the Hun, that liberty and freedom might
triumph.
To you fighting sons of Omaha in particular,
who have assisted in conquering the mailed fist of
the oppressor, that peace and prosperity might
again be restored to us A
We Welcome You Home
To those martyrs whom God in his immutable
manifestations has chosen for the supreme sacrifice
on the altar of freedom's cause we drop a silent
tear, and extend to their relatives our heartfelt
sympathy.
Iteis Snow White Bakeries
and All
American division in the Limey sec
tor. Large tracts of French soil
were famed and held in patrolling
and asserting a powerful defensive.
On October 9, the division was re
lieved by the 37th American division
and ordered to the Argonne-Meuse
front. Positions were taken in the
vicinity ol Bois de Bathaneville.
Ten days later the 89th moved on
into the Argonne-Meuse line as a
part o( the Fifth army corps, First
American army, relieving the 32d di
vision along the Somnierance-Ro-niange
road. The attack on Bois de
Bathaneville was begun at once and
the town cleared before November
1. For thig the division was cited.
Advanced For Five Days,
Preparations for America's great
advance, the attack of the entire
American army in the Argonne
Meuse which reduced the positions
of the crown prince's armies nd
caused the German debacle and end
ed the war, had been going apace.
On November 1 the great attack be
gan. The 89th was in position
WELCOME
HOME
NEBRASKA'S
OWN.
Browning
the 89th
Employes.
abreast of tht Second regulars at
the north edge of the Bois.
The advance lasted five days. Ir
that time the 89th advanced west tr.
the Meuse river, the line extending
from opposite Stenay, through
Laneuville. Cesse and Luzy to oppo
site Pouilly. Here the men expe
rienced the hardest of fighting, for
the Germans were making a last
stand. From November 5 to 10, the
river and towns opposite were
patrolled nightly and preparations
for further advance across the river
made. The crossing was effected on
the night of November 10.
Without even a bridge, by means
of foot bridges and rafts, the entire
division, under only casual shellfire,
unknown to the enemy, crossed the
river. Parts of the Second regulars
crossed in collaboration with the
89th regiments. At 11 o'clock on
the morning of November 11, Gen
eral Wright reported tothe coips
commander that his men were hold
ing the line on the east side of the
Meuse extending east from Stenay,
(Continued on P(te Five, Column One.)
King & Co.
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