ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 1 October 2019 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20190007640 APPLICANT REQUESTS: on behalf of his father, a former service member (FSM), award of the Purple Heart (PH). APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record), dated 15 May 2019 * Self-Authored Statement, dated 22 April 2019 * Registration Card, dated 5 June 1917 * Headquarters Port of Embarkation, Hoboken, NJ, Passenger List, U.S.S. George Washington, dated 15 June 1918 * Operations Reports, 115th Infantry, 29th Infantry Division, American Expeditionary Forces, October 1918 * Adjutant General's Office Form Number 525 (Honorable Discharge from the United States Army), dated 3 June 1919 * Petition for U.S. Naturalization, dated 17 June 1920 * U.S. Certificate of Naturalization, State of New York, dated 18 June 1920 * Registrar's Report, Local Draft Board No 180, New York, dated 27 April 1942 * Defense Security Service Form 1 (Registration Card), undated * Certificate of Birth, * Transcript of Death, Town of , dated 27 July 1973 * Bureau of Vital Records, Certificate of Birth, dated 15 February 1974 * Certificate of Military Service, dated 22 January 2001 * 115th Infantry Regiment battle movement documents, undated * 115th Infantry Regiment booklet, unattributed, undated FACTS: 1. The applicant did not file within the three year time frame provided in Title 10, United States Code (USC), section 1552(b); however, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) conducted a substantive review of this case and determined it is in the interest of justice to excuse the applicant's failure to timely file. 2. The applicant states: a. He is a 92 year old World War II veteran and the sole survivor of the FSM. b. He recently learned Presidents Harry S. Truman and John F. Kennedy signed Executive Orders which together allowed Army World War I wounded veterans to be awarded the PH retroactively. c. Most of his father's records were destroyed by the 1973 fire at St. Louis, but he was able to piece together information from the National Archives and Records Administration in College Park, MD, from the FSM's unit's history book and his first- hand knowledge. d. His father was an Italian immigrant who came to the United States for a better life and he was working as a restaurant waiter in XXX when war was declared on 6 April 1917. e. On 5 June 1917, the FSM registered for the draft and he was inducted on 2 May 1918. The FSM departed the United States on 11 May 1918 on the USS George Washington while assigned to F Company, 115th Infantry Regiment, 2d Battalion, 29th Infantry Division. He arrived in Mussey, France, on 24 September 1918. On 26 September1918, the Meuse-Argonne Phase I began, but his unit was held in reserve. On 4 October 1918, the Meuse-Argonne Phase II began and his unit supported the assault 4 days later. He fought severely as part of Company F in the Bois de Consevoye on 8 October 1918. f. His father was wounded by a German's bayonet slash on the left side of his head during hand-to-hand combat in the trenches during Phase II. He killed the same German soldier and he then slept near the corpse for warmth and protection during the night. g. On 28 October 1918, the FSM's unit was relieved and moved to the rear the same day the Meuse-Argonne Phase II came to an end. He departed the Meuse- Argonne as Phase III began on 28 October 1918. He continued to train with the French until his unit departed France on 24 May 1919. h. On 2 June 1918, the FSM was discharged. On 18 June 1920, he was granted U.S. citizenship. The presiding immigration official noted the scar on his head from the Meuse-Argonne combat action on his Naturalization Certificate. i. On 27 April 1942, the FSM registered for the World War II draft. The Local Draft Board 180 Registrar's Report documents "bayonet cut to side of right eye from last war." j. On 7 July 1967, the FSM died. k. He understands Congress is preparing to order the Pentagon to review the record of scores of decorated Soldiers who served in World War I to determine if they were denied the nation's highest battlefield honor because of their race or religion. The bipartisan World War I Medals Review Act marks the latest effort to rectify the military's history of discrimination against Black Soldiers and other minorities who fought and died alongside their White comrades but were shunned and often the victims of racial violence. l. His father was a very quiet and humble immigrant who was very unfamiliar with valor and other veterans' entitlements and he appointed him to act on his behalf. 3. The FSM's complete military records are not available for review. A fire destroyed approximately 18 million service members' records at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973. It is believed that the FSM's records were lost or destroyed in that fire. However, there were sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case. These records consist of copies of several documents from the FSM's service record, provided by the applicant and service records provided by the National Personnel Records Center of the National Archives. 4. On 22 May 1918, the FSM was inducted into the Army of the United States. 5. On 15 June 1918, the FSM embarked on the U.S.S. George Washington from the Port of Hoboken, NJ, en route to Europe. He was attached to Company F, 115th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division. 6. The applicant provided Operations Reports for the month of October 1918. These reports show the troop movement and positions held by Company F, 115th Infantry Regiment, and casualty reports to include the number of troops wounded in action during the 100 Days Offensive from 8 October 1918 through 29 October 1918. The FSM's name is not shown on the operations reports. The reports show the FSM's unit was relieved from the battlefield on 29 October 1918 and marched to Cotes des Roches, France. 7. The FSM's Adjutant General's Office Form Number 525 shows he was honorably discharged on 3 June 1919. 8. The applicant provided copies of the FSM's Defense Security Service Form 1 that listed his address, vital information and: a. the FSM's Registrar's Report, Local Draft Board Number 180, Kings County, New York, dated 27 April 1942, that shows the entry, "Bayonet cut side of right eye from last war." b. the FSM's Petition for Naturalization, dated 17 June 1920, c. the FSM's Certificate of Naturalization, dated 17 June 1920, with an entry in item "visible distinguishing marks," showing "wound scar on right temple." d. excerpts from an unattributed, undated book, titled "115th Infantry U.S.A. In The World War." This book outlines the troop movements and strategy of the 115th Infantry Regiment during the Alsace Sector and Meuse-Argonne Offensive Campaign of World War I. On page 225, the FSM's name is annotated as an enlisted man attached to Company F, 115th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division, American Expeditionary Forces. e. 11 pages of thumbnail sized color images of battle maps which indicate troop movements and show map markings of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive Campaign of World War I. 9. The FSM's available records contain a War Department Form 371, dated 3 June 1919, which shows his mustering out final payment. 10. The FSM's available records are void of orders awarding him the PH. BOARD DISCUSSION: After review of the application and all evidence, the Board majority determined there is sufficient evidence to grant relief. 1. Two Board members found the statement by the FSM’s son to be compelling, that the FSM engaged in a bayonet battle with a German soldier in October 1918 during trench warfare in Phase II of the Meuse-Argonne Campaign and incurred a head wound that was severe enough to merit treatment as it left a noticeable scar on his right temple that was annotated on the FSM’s subsequent World War II draft registration/registrar’s report and on the FSM’s naturalization certificate. The Board majority agreed that the nature of World War I trench called for combatants to remain in their trenches to hold territory and that medics were located in the trenches with the fighting soldiers. Notwithstanding the published guidance requiring the medical treatment to have been made a matter of official record, the information provided as supporting evidence, when viewed in its totality, is sufficient to reasonably conclude the applicant was wounded as a result of hostile action and received medical treatment for those wounds in October 1918. 2. The dissenting Board member voted to deny relief stating that despite available evidence that the FSM received his bayonet wound to his right temple during armed conflict with the enemy, there is insufficient evidence that the laceration was severe enough to incapacitate the FSM. BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 : :X :X GRANT FULL RELIEF : : : GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF : : : GRANT FORMAL HEARING :X : : DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined the evidence presented is sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by awarding him the PH for wounds received in action in France in October 1918. I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case. ADMINISTRATIVE NOTE(S): not applicable. REFERENCES: 1. Title 10, USC, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military records must be filed within three years after discovery of the alleged error or injustice. This provision of law also allows the ABCMR to excuse an applicant's failure to timely file within the three-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to do so. 2. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained in action against an enemy or as a result of hostile action. Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify the wound was the result of hostile action, the wound must have required treatment by a medical officer, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20190007640 5 1