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Connecticut Surprise

It all started when my granddaughter, Chloe, told me not to take photos of her during a Lacrosse practice sponsored by college coaches. It wasn’t a real game and I would embarrass her. So, I watched for a while, got a snack, watched some more, got lunch and decided to explore. So, I took my camera and walked up from the field to a main street in Farmington CT where I had seen a historical marker when I drove in.

Unbeknown to me, I had stumbled upon Connecticut’s Freedom trail. According to their web site: The Connecticut Freedom Trail documents and designates sites that embody the struggle toward freedom and human dignity, celebrate the accomplishments of the state's African American community and promote heritage tourism. The Trail officially opened in September 1996, and as of fall 2010, there are more than 130 sites in more than 50 towns, and the Trail continues to grow. To me, it seems like this trail is more of a gulag or archipelago than something to follow one after another.

The marker below the sign that calls attention to the oldest U.S. Society for Foreign Missions denotes that you are on the Freedom Trail.

Next, I walked down the block past the Lacrosse field to the Riverside Cemetery. I was hoping to find an interesting tombstone. I wasn’t disappointed. There was another Connecticut Freedom Trail marker. This time the marker indicated the grave of Foone, one of the black slaves that commandeered the ship Amistad.

The plaque about Foote’s participation in the takeover of the Amistad reminded me that a movie had been make about this incident. I hadn’t seen the movie, but…

I remembered seeing the Amistad Memorial on 165 Church Street in New Haven, CT.

According to the freedom trail web site http://www.ctfreedomtrail.org/trail/amistad/ :

The Amistad Memorial was dedicated in 1992 and pays tribute to Joseph Cinque and the other Mende Africans who escaped slavery in 1839 by commandeering the Spanish ship La Amistad. The three-sided relief sculpture tells the triumphant story of Cinque’s journey. On one side, Cinque is shown in his homeland, in modern-day Sierra Leone, Africa prior to his capture.

The second relief depicts one of the courtroom trials in the United States. The final scene shows Cinque free again, embarking on a ship for his return to Africa. The memorial, created by artist Ed Hamilton, stands where the New Haven Jail was located at the time the Mende African captives were housed there.

Let’s get back to the Riverside Cemetery

I found a site that I knew was sacred ground. It was a memorial to the soldiers from Farmington who had died in WWI, WWII, Korea, and Vietnam.

The Plaque listed the names of the fallen soldiers.

I said a prayer and continued my review of the graves. Then I came across a weather-beaten slab of granite that caught my eye. It was inscribed with the name Ibell. As I looked closer, I noticed that he died in Toul, France in October 1918. I wondered what happen over there at that time.

I went on the internet to do my research and this is what I found:

The Meuse-Argonne Offensive (also known as Battles of the Meuse-Argonne and the Meuse-Argonne Campaign) was a major part of the final Allied offensive of World War I that stretched along the entire Western Front. It was fought from September 26, 1918 until the Armistice of November 11, 1918, a total of 47 days. The Meuse-Argonne Offensive was the largest in United States military history, involving 1.2 million American soldiers. It was one of a series of Allied attacks known as the Hundred Days Offensive, which brought the war to an end.

The battle cost 28,000 German lives, 26,277 American lives and an unknown number of French lives. It was the largest and bloodiest operation of World War I for the American Expeditionary Force (AEF), which was commanded by General John J. Pershing, and the second-deadliest battle in American history.

 U.S. losses were exacerbated by the inexperience of many of the troops and the tactics used during the early phases of the operation. Meuse-Argonne was the principal engagement of the AEF during World War I.

Then I stumbled on this picture of the Hell Fighters from Harlem who were in the same battle as Ibell.

The "Hell Fighters" from Harlem by H. Charles McBarron shows the attack of the 369th U.S. Infantry in the Meuse-Argonne offensive on September 29, 1918.

Again, I thought I remembered seeing a statue to them in Harlem. I looked through my archives and found it. It stands across the street from the 369th Armory on Fifth Avenue and 142nd Street.

I like this photo because it shows their insignia – the coiled rattle snake.

Here’s their story:

During World War I, United States Armed Forces remained segregated by race. In 1913 New York established the 15th New York (Colored) Infantry Regiment, a unit of the National Guard. The U.S. Army mustered the unit into Federal service in 1917, and the 369th (Colored) Infantry Regiment went to France that December, among the first 100,000 troops of the American Expeditionary Force.

Exhibiting extraordinary valor, the 369th, an integral part of the Fourth French Army, fought on the front until the Armistice. During the Meuse-Argonne Offensive the 369th showed exceptional bravery, especially on September 29, 1918, during the liberation of Sechault, when a third of the regiment suffered casualties.

Cited for their heroism, 171 members of the regiment were decorated with the Croix de Guerre (Cross of War) and one officer [1st Lt. George Seanor Robb of Kansas] received the Medal of Honor. Upon their return to the United States, the Harlem Hellfighters were honored by the City with a parade up Fifth Avenue.

During World War II, the 369th distinguished itself at Okinawa, and later fought in the Korean and Gulf Wars. The unit serves today as a sustainment brigade.

One Medal of Honor and many Distinguished Service Crosses were awarded to members of the regiment. The most celebrated man in the 369th was …

Pvt. Henry Lincoln Johnson

a former Albany, New York, rail station porter, who earned the nickname “Black Death” for his actions in combat in France. In May 1918 Johnson and Pvt. Needham Roberts fought off a 24-man German patrol, though both were severely wounded. After they expended their ammunition, Roberts used his rifle as a club and Johnson battled with a bolo knife.

Reports suggest that Johnson killed at least four German soldiers and might have wounded 30 others.

For more information about the Hellfighters, I recommend Historian, Richard Sears Walling’s book: My Year in France: The War-Time Memoir & Diary of Harlem Hell Fighter Sgt. Clinton J. Peterson.

These Hellfighters will be in my thoughts and prayers when I attend future Veterans Day remembrances.

Today’s road trip started in Farmington CT when to New Haven, back to Farmington then to Toul, France and finally we ended up in Harlem. Hope you enjoyed the trip.