Gathering at the

Golden Gate:

Mobilizing for War in the 

Philippines, 1898

Stephen D. Coats

 Combat Studies Institute Press

 Fort Leavenworth, KS 66027
The cover illustration is from The Examiner, 21 May 1898, 1.
Gathering at the

Golden Gate:

Mobilizing for War in the 

Philippines, 1898

	 Stephen D. Coats

	 Department of Joint and Multinational Operations

	 U.S. Army Command and General Staff College

	 Combat Studies Institute Press

	 Fort Leavenworth, Kansas 66027

	 2006
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Coats, Stephen D., Dr., 1950-

Gathering at the Golden Gate : mobilizing for war in the Philippines,

1898 / Stephen D. Coats.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

1..	Spanish-American War, 1898—Philippines. 2. United States. Army—	

History—Spanish-American War, 1898. 3. United States. Army—Mobilization—History—19th century. 4. Soldiers—Transportation—California—San Francisco—History—19th century. 5. San Francisco Calif.)—History, Military—19th century. I. Title.

E717.7.C63 2006

973.8’937—dc22

2006000479
iii

Foreword

As the US Army shifts from being a forward-deployed force to a continental United States (CONUS)-based force, it must concurrently develop

new plans and methods for rapidly deploying large numbers of units to

contingency areas outside CONUS. Historically, the US Army has often

been challenged in trying to rapidly deploy large forces from CONUS to

the theater of operations. One need only review the Army’s deployments

to Cuba in 1898, to France in 1917, to Saudi Arabia in 1990, or most recently to Afghanistan and Iraq since 11 September 2001 and the enormous

complexities associated with such operations to see that the Army has not

always met its, and the nation’s, expectations.

Dr. Stephen D. Coats’s study of the Army’s efforts to assemble a contingency force at San Francisco for deployment to the Philippines in 1898

is an example of how the Army got it mostly right. One could argue that

1898 was a much simpler time and that the complexity associated with deploying ground forces has grown dramatically since then, and that would

be correct. However, the Army of 1898 was not professionally trained to

deploy and fight wars overseas. Additionally, the force that assembled at 

San Francisco was not a professional army. It was largely a volunteer force

led by a few Regular Army generals and managed by a handful of Regular

Army staff officers, none of whom had any appreciable experience in deployment operations. Yet they succeeded.

As in all facets of military art, there are timeless principles that, if

applied correctly, will go a long way toward helping planners achieve success. A careful reading of Dr. Coats’s work will illuminate many of those

principles. We and the author hope that those principles will increase the

likelihood of successful Army deployments in the future. The Past is Prologue!

Timothy R. Reese

Colonel, Armor

Director, Combat Studies Institute

v

Preface

“The Manila expedition was very thoroughly organized. It was a distance of over 7000 miles from our base, and I think that very few mistakes,

if any, were made.”

Major General Francis V. Greene, USV

7 October 1898

Testimony before the Dodge Commission*

Today, as the US military prepares units for conflicts abroad and deploys forces overseas, it is instructive to examine how the Army coped

with similar challenges in the late 19th century. This study analyzes efforts during the Spanish-American War to mobilize expeditions in San

Francisco for the Army’s first major overseas deployment: destination, 

the Philippines. Not since the Mexican War, fought a half-century earlier,

had the American military attempted to prepare a large force to move

to a foreign land. No prewar plans existed to provide a blueprint for

this endeavor in 1898. To compound deployment challenges on the West

Coast, the Army had already moved most of its Regular organizations

Figure 1. The New Pacific.

Harper’s History of the War in the Philippines
vi

and logistics support to Southern assembly areas oriented on objectives

in the Caribbean.

President William McKinley assigned two general officers, Wesley 

Merritt and Elwell S. Otis, to quarter, organize, train, and equip designated forces in San Francisco, the port of embarkation. Drawing on available, but limited, logistics resources from military organizations in the

area, Merritt’s command received thousands of Regulars and Volunteers

who poured into the Golden Gate region for duty overseas. Units initially

camped on military reservations but eventually spilled over into several

locations in the city.

Given the paucity of medical and morale support available to the

troops through the military, the San Francisco community rallied behind

local relief societies and religious organizations on behalf of the expeditionary forces. Citizens donated money, food, goods, and services through

the Red Cross, Young Men’s Christian Association, and Catholic Truth

Society. Each organization established shelters in the encampments to better assist those in uniform.

This study finds that to mobilize effectively, the Army depended on 

fundamentals then that are still prized to this day: leadership, initiative,

and resourcefulness. It also reveals the vital role that private volunteer organizations and the civilian community played in supporting the military

forces assembling at the Golden Gate. Together the American Army and

San Francisco community succeeded in sustaining and deploying expeditionary forces that fought the battle of Manila in August 1898.

*Observations of Major General Francis V. Greene, USV, to the Commission

Appointed by the President to Investigate the Conduct of the War With Spain, 7

October 1898, in US War Department, Report of the Commission Appointed by 

the President to Investigate the Conduct of the War Department in the War With 

Spain, volume 3, Testimony (Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office, 

1900), 112.
vii

Acknowledgments

A sincere thanks to those who rendered invaluable assistance in my

effort to complete this book. Professor Ted Wilson, University of Kansas, guided my research and writing. He provided superb feedback on the

original manuscript.

Colonel (COL) Don Olson, Department of Joint and Multinational

Operations (DJMO), U.S. Army Command and General Staff College

(CGSC), and COL Rick Swain, Combat Studies Institute (CSI), encouraged the project in their capacity as department directors. COL Jerry Morelock, Dr. Larry Yates, Dr. Chris Gabel, and Dr. Robert Baumann offered

suggestions on how to improve the manuscript’s presentation.

Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Steven E. Clay, CSI, supervised the process

that brought the book to publication. Patricia Whitten, also of CSI, applied

her extensive editing skills to polish the manuscript and lay the book out.

The CGSC Research Fellows Program, established to promote research, publication, and individual professional development among the

CGSC faculty, offered a sabbatical to research and write. COL Robert

Mackay and Mr. Chuck Zaruba, DJMO, were very supportive in securing

this opportunity.

The staff at the Combined Arms Research Library (CARL) provided

research resources, gained copyright permission, and secured interlibrary

loan references. Susan Fowler, Alice King, Sharon Strein, Karla Norman,

and Mary Jo Nelson assisted in these endeavors.

Mary Gentry, Park Archives, Golden Gate National Recreation Area,

San Francisco, California, researched maps and photographs that are included in this book.

LTC Jim McLean, US Army Military History Institute, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, helped to locate Spanish-American War veterans’

surveys, letters, and diaries in the institute’s archives.

The visual information specialists at the Fort Leavenworth Multimedia/Visual Information Service Center reproduced numerous pictures and

newspaper sketches for this volume. Barbara Baeuchle, Robin Hall, Don

Middleton, and Glenn McCary brought their considerable skills and talents to this endeavor.

Finally, a very special thanks goes to my family members for their

support throughout the duration of this project.

ix

Contents

Chapter	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 Page

Foreword ...........................................................................................iii

	 Preface ................................................................................................ v

	 Acknowledgments............................................................................ vii

	 Figures................................................................................................ x

I.	 Introduction ........................................................................................ 1

II.	 Assembly...........................................................................................11

	 	 Creating the Force.........................................................................11

	 	 Assigning Regular Units.............................................................. 13

	 	 Assigning the State Volunteer Forces .......................................... 21

	 	 Preparing Volunteer Units: State Musters.................................... 25

	 	 Preparing Volunteers Locally: State Camps................................. 28

	 	 Moving to San Francisco ............................................................. 30

III.	 Getting Organized ............................................................................ 43

	 	 Oakland and the Bay.................................................................... 43

	 	 Arrival in San Francisco .............................................................. 46

	 	 The March to Campsites.............................................................. 50

	 	 The City’s Military Visitors: A Local Perspective ....................... 52

	 	 Into the Camps............................................................................. 55

	 	 Establishing Command and Control ............................................ 67

IV.	 Overseeing and Training the Troops ................................................ 85

	 	 Exercising Command and Control............................................... 85

	 	 Drill and Exercise......................................................................... 96

	 	 Discipline and Diversion............................................................ 108

	 	 Supply and Medical ....................................................................118

V.	 The Relief Societies........................................................................ 139

	 	 The Red Cross............................................................................ 139

	 	 	 Background........................................................................... 139

	 	 	 Organization ......................................................................... 140

	 	 	 Fundraising ........................................................................... 144

	 	 	 Goods and Services .............................................................. 148

	 	 	 Arrivals................................................................................. 149

	 	 	 Departures............................................................................. 154

	 	 	 In Camp ................................................................................ 156

	 	 	 Fitting Out for the Voyage .................................................... 161

	 	 	 Initiatives to Care for Troops Abroad................................... 163

	 Patriotic Home Helpers.............................................................. 166

	 	 	 Organization ......................................................................... 166

	 	 	 Fundraising and Material Donations.................................... 168
x

Chapter	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 Page

VI.	 The Religious Organizations....................................................... 179

	 	 Young Men’s Christian Association........................................ 179

	 	 	 Background	....................................................................... 179

	 	 	 Local Organization............................................................ 180

	 	 	 In the Camps...................................................................... 182

	 	 	 Initiatives to Care for Troops Abroad................................ 185

	 	 	 Fundraising	....................................................................... 187

	 	 Christian Endeavor Society..................................................... 189

	 	 	 Background	....................................................................... 189

	 	 	 Local Organization............................................................ 190

	 	 	 In the Camps...................................................................... 192

	 	 	 Fitting Out for the Voyage................................................. 194

	 	 	 Initiatives to Care for Troops Abroad................................ 195

	 	 	 Fundraising	....................................................................... 196

	 	 	 Goods and Services........................................................... 197

	 	 The Catholic Truth Society ..................................................... 197

	 	 	 Background	....................................................................... 197

	 	 	 Local Organization............................................................ 198

	 	 	 In the Camps...................................................................... 199

	 	 	 Fitting Out for the Voyage................................................. 203

	 	 	 Initiatives to Care for Troops Abroad................................ 203

	 	 	 Fundraising, Goods, and Services..................................... 204

VII.	 Deployment Considerations........................................................ 217

	 	 Securing the Transports........................................................... 217

	 	 Selecting the Units.................................................................. 228

	 	 Restructuring the Camps and Commands............................... 236

VIII.	 Epilogue and Conclusions........................................................... 257

	 	 About the Author	......................................................................... 265

	 Glossary....................................................................................... 267

	 Bibliography................................................................................ 269

	 Appendix A.................................................................................. 279

	 Appendix B.................................................................................. 281

	 References for Figures................................................................. 283

	 Index............................................................................................ 287

Figures

1. The New Pacific ................................................................................. v

2.	 The Nation’s Naval Hero.................................................................... 1

3.	 The Battle of Manila Bay ................................................................... 2

4.	 Naval Games at Newport, RI ............................................................ 4
xi

Page

5.	 President McKinley and the War Cabinet .......................................... 7

6.	 MG Nelson A. Miles, USA................................................................11

7.	 MG Wesley Merritt, USA................................................................. 	12

8.	 Geographical Military Departments, 1898....................................... 14

9.	 BG Thomas M. Anderson................................................................. 15

10.	 Adjutant General BG Henry Clark Corbin, USA............................. 	17

11. COL Thomas H. Barber and His Officers ........................................ 25

12.	 Physical Examinations for California National Guardsmen ............ 27

13.	 Trains From All Over Bearing Soldiers to California	...................... 32

14.	 Nebraska’s Third and Last Battalion of Volunteers

	 Arriving at Oakland Mole ................................................................ 	44

15.	 Battalions of Kansas Volunteers Landing in San Francisco............. 45

16.	 Ferry Building, Circa 1898............................................................... 46

17.	 California Red Cross Room, Ferry Building, San Francisco ........... 48

18.	 Mayor James D. Phelan	.................................................................... 48

19.	 The Vanguard of the Kansas Troops on the Way to

	 Camp Richmond............................................................................... 51

20.	 Iowa Volunteers Unload Their Baggage at Camp Merritt................ 52

21. Sturdy Plainsmen Come to Join the Growing Army of the Pacific .. 53

22.	 A Trio of Mascots............................................................................. 54

23.	 Fort Mason and North San Francisco, 1896..................................... 58

24.	 Presidio of San Francisco, 1897-1909.............................................. 59

25.	 How the Troops Are Camped on the Presidio Parade Ground	......... 60

26.	 Sunday Sightseers Overran the City of the Soldiers

	 at the Presidio ..................................................................................	61

27.	 Fontana Warehouse, 1915................................................................. 62

28.	 Northwest San Francisco, 1896........................................................ 64

29.	 Diagram of the Camp at the Bay District	......................................... 65

30.	 The Brigade Hospital at Camp Richmond ....................................... 66

31.	 51st Iowa at Camp Merritt................................................................ 67

32.	 General Merriam at the Presidio Gates ............................................ 69

33.	 Brigadier General Elwell S. Otis...................................................... 70

34.	 The Commander of the Philippine Forces........................................ 71

35.	 BG Thomas M. Anderson................................................................. 86

36.	 General Francis V. Greene................................................................ 86

37.	 General Charles H. King .................................................................. 87

38.	 General MacArthur Here.................................................................. 87

39.	 Brigadier General Marcus Miller ..................................................... 88

40.	 Brigadier General Harrison G. Otis.................................................. 88

41.	 Headquarters of General Wesley Merritt.......................................... 90
xii

Page

42.	 Major General Wesley Merritt, USA................................................ 	91

43.	 MG E.S. Otis in his Tent at the Camp Headquarters........................ 93

44.	 Major General Otis at Work ............................................................. 	94

45.	 Volunteers at the Presidio Are Being Rapidly Drilled Into

Efficient Form................................................................................... 96

46.	 The Awkward Squad......................................................................... 97

47.	 “Close Order at the Colors”.............................................................. 98

48.	 Utah’s Light Artillery Batteries at Their Daily Gun Practice........... 99

49.	 Regulars at Camp Merritt in a Skirmish Drill	................................ 100

50.	 Volunteers at Drill Near the Park Conservatory............................. 101

51.	 Camp Merritt in Foreground; Soldiers Drilling on the

	 Presidio at the Upper Right ............................................................	102

52.	 Volunteers at Drill on the Grassy Slopes of the

	 Presidio Reservation.......................................................................	103

53. Pennsylvania Volunteers at Rifle Practice Prepare for

	 Actual Warfare................................................................................	105

54.	 Setting Up Exercises ......................................................................	106

55.	 Calisthenic Drill for the New Recruits at Camp Merritt ................ 106

56.	 Scenes of Sham Battle Fought in Oakland..................................... 107

57.	 The General Court-Martial in Session at Camp Merritt................. 110

58.	 Mild Punishment for Soldier Lawbreakers .................................... 111

59.	 Guard Mount of the Montana Volunteer Infantry—

	 Inspection of Arms ......................................................................... 112

60.	 An Artist’s Study of Scenes and Happenings at Camp Merritt ...... 114

61.	 Police Commissioners Call a Halt on Increase of Saloons

	 at Camp Merritt .............................................................................. 115

62.	 Writing Home................................................................................. 116

63.	 51st Iowa Regiment Football Team................................................ 118

64.	 Major Oscar F. Long....................................................................... 119

65.	 Bird’s-Eye View of Camp Merritt, Looking South ........................ 123

66.	 To Aid the Soldiers is Their Patriotic Aim ..................................... 141

67.	 Mrs. Willard B. Harrington ............................................................ 142

68.	 Mrs. John F. Merrill........................................................................ 142

69.	 Mrs. Phoebe Hearst ........................................................................ 143

70.	 Enthusiastic Collectors for the Red Cross...................................... 145

71.	 Minnesota Volunteers at Drill......................................................... 147

72.	 A Soldier’s Comfort Bag................................................................ 149

73.	 Ready for Work at the Ferry Building............................................ 150

74.	 Dispensing Hospitality at the Ferry Building	................................. 151
xiii

Page

75.	 A Cup of Coffee at Ferry Red Cross Room.................................... 152

76.	 Good Cheer at the Ferry Building .................................................. 153	

77.	 Flowers for the Brave .....................................................................154

78.	 Lunching Before Sailing From the Transport Dock.......................155

79.	 “Regular” Surgeons in Charge .......................................................157

80.	 In the Red Cross Hospital Tent of the Third Brigade

	 at Camp Merritt ..............................................................................158

81.	 Correct Method of Bandaging for the Red Cross Society..............159

82.	 Mrs. Oscar Fitzallen Long..............................................................168

83.	 Lieutenant Colonel Louis T. Morris, USA .....................................181

84.	 Will Go to Manila for the Christian Commission ..........................186

85.	 Scene at the Military Mass at Camp Merritt ..................................199

86.	 In the Catholic Ladies’Aid Society Tent........................................200

87.	 Mrs. Howard Teaching Spanish to Iowa Volunteers ......................204

88.	 Big Liner City of Peking Chartered by Government......................218

89.	 Assistant Secretary of War Meiklejohn’s Room.............................219

90.	 Loading the Mules on the Tacoma for the Philippines...................223

91.	 The Second Fleet of Troopships for the Expedition

	 to the Philippines............................................................................225

92.	 Fitting Up the City of Peking for Duty With the

	 Manila Expedition ..........................................................................227

93.	 Loading Utah’s Light Artillery Onboard the Steamer China .........228

94.	 Picture Story of the Transports and Vessels

	 on the Way to Manila......................................................................229

95.	 Regulars and Volunteers Marching Down Post Street ...................230

96.	 When the Peking Started on Her Voyage to the Philippines..........231

97.	 Newly Uniformed Infantry in Heavy Marching Order ..................233

98.	 A Great Jam at Third Street............................................................237

99.	 Volunteers on Transport Rio de Janeiro Leaving

	 San Francisco for Manila ...............................................................238

100.	 General Merritt Goes Aboard the Newport	.................................239

101.	 MG Otis Issues His Last Order at Headquarters.........................240

102.	 Fontana Barracks Deserted by Artillerymen ...............................241

103.	 Admiral Dewey and General Meritt in Admiral Dewey’s

	 Cabin on the Flagship Olympia ...................................................258

104.	 Commodore George Dewey, USN ..............................................259



Chapter I

Introduction

On 30 April 1898, Commodore George Dewey’s Asiatic Squadron approached Manila Bay under cover of darkness. Steaming with “all lights 

masked and gun crews at the guns,” Dewey’s six warships slipped past 

Spanish shore batteries that guarded the bay’s entrance. Aboard his flagship Olympia, the commodore ordered his small fleet to reduce speed. 

Dewey later wrote, “I did not wish to reach our destination before we had 

sufficient daylight to show us the position of the Spanish ships.”1

Just after dawn on 1 May, the 

Asiatic Squadron spotted its objective. Vessels of Admiral Patricio 

Montojo’s Spanish flotilla formed 

“an irregular crescent in front 

of Cavite.” Led by the Olympia, 

Dewey’s squadron eluded the shelling from Spanish gunners and bore 

down on Montojo’s seven warships. 

At 0540, sailors manning Olympia’s

forward turret opened fire, and the 

Asiatic Squadron began the first of 

five passes against Montojo’s command. By late afternoon, the opening engagement of the SpanishAmerican War had ended with a decisive victory for the United States. 

Dewey could write, “The order to 

capture or destroy the Spanish squadron had been executed to the letter. Not 

one of its fighting-vessels remained afloat.”2

Dewey’s attack was the first engagement of a war, some three years 

in the making, between the United States and Spain. In February 1895, 

during President Grover Cleveland’s second administration, Cuban rebels began a new quest for independence from Spanish rule. Rebel leaders implemented scorched-earth tactics designed to weaken Spain’s resolve to maintain control over the island and its economy. Additionally, 

Cuban strategists worked to gain American support for their revolution. 

They knew the war would have some secondary impact on the United 

States’ economy. More important, the rebels believed they could foster the 

growth of American moral outrage over the ongoing subjugation of Cuba 

to Spanish colonial rule. The revolutionaries established a junta in New

Figure 2.

San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898
York City to energize US public opinion against Spain and its efforts to 

retain control over Cuba.3

Spain’s policies toward its Caribbean colony played into the hands 

of revolutionaries and provided Americans with a reason to focus on the 

Cuban revolt. Not long after assuming command of Spanish forces in Cuba 

on 10 February 1896, General Valeriano Weyler y Nicolau instituted his 

“reconcentration” military policy. The strategy, designed to separate revolutionaries from potential bases of support, moved a half million people 

from their homes and villages to resettlement camps. Abysmal living conditions at these locations led to the deaths of at least 100,000 Cubans and 

the suffering of hundreds of thousands more.4

The Cleveland administration pressured Spain diplomatically to alter its policy toward the island. At times, Spain seemed willing to make 

concessions politically and militarily, but the government never suggested 

that independence was in Cuba’s future. William McKinley, who assumed 

the American presidency in 1897, renewed diplomatic efforts to redefine 

the relationship between Spain and its colony. By the end of the year, a 

new Spanish government appeared open to reexamining its Cuban policy 

and solicited US help in supporting its efforts. Tensions lessened between 

the United States and Spain.5

Hopes for diplomatic solutions to the issues that focused on Cuba 

changed dramatically in early 1898. On 9 February, the New York Journal

Figure 3. The battle of Manila Bay.

Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain
published a private letter from Enrique Dupuy de Lôme, Spanish minister 

to the United States, who described McKinley as “weak” and a “would-be 

politician.” The tone of the correspondence called into question Spain’s 

sincerity in restructuring its Cuban policy. Then on 15 February, the USS 

Maine, an American battleship sent to Cuba as a sign of US interest in 

the island, exploded and sank in Havana harbor. Hundreds of sailors were 

killed. Some in the United States suspected that Spain was behind the tragedy.6

About a month after the Maine was destroyed, Senator Redfield Proctor, a friend of the president, reported to colleagues on a fact-finding trip 

he had made to Cuba. Proctor graphically described the Spanish concentration camps that caused so much suffering among the island’s indigenous population. The senator, who was not originally disposed to war, certainly made a case for intervention as he offered passionate descriptions of 

the abysmal living conditions he observed. On 21 March, four days after 

Proctor’s oration, an American court of inquiry the president appointed to 

investigate the Maine disaster reported its findings. The board “concluded 

that an external mine of unknown origins had destroyed the vessel.” Many 

Americans believed the board’s findings confirmed their suspicion that 

Spain was to blame for the loss of 266 US naval personnel.7

Moved to pursue belligerent diplomacy, the McKinley administration 

cabled several demands to Madrid on 27 March: an armistice to end hostilities between Spanish troops and Cuban rebels who wanted independence 

from Spain, Cuban-Spanish negotiations to secure peace, termination of 

the “reconcentration” policy, and relief aid to the Cubans. On 9 April, 

Spain offered some concessions but did not address all of the American 

requirements. Two days later, McKinley, still hoping to avoid war, asked 

Congress for authority to intervene in the Cuban-Spanish conflict “to stop 

the misery and death, protect American lives and property in Cuba, curtail 

the damage to commerce, and end the onerous task of enforcing neutrality.”8

McKinley’s request prompted a surge of decisions and actions on both 

sides of the Atlantic. On Friday, 15 April, the War Department ordered 

Regular Army infantry, artillery, and cavalry to four Southern assembly 

areas oriented on the Caribbean.9

 Military depots across the United States 

moved ordnance and equipment to the same four locations. The following Tuesday, Congress responded to McKinley’s 11 April petition with a 

joint resolution that exceeded the president’s requests. Both houses called 

for Cuba’s independence, Spain’s immediate withdrawal from the island, 

and if necessary, the use of armed force to attain these goals. The Spanish 
government reacted by breaking diplomatic relations on 21 April. The day 

before Spain declared war on the United States on 23 April, American warships initiated a blockade of Cuba, an action recommended during prewar 

naval planning.10

 On 24 April, President McKinley approved another option 

in those plans. Through the Secretary of the Navy, the president ordered 

Commodore Dewey into his attack.11 Twenty-four hours later, Congress 

passed a formal declaration of war on Spain retroactive to 21 April.

The blockade of Cuba, attack at Manila Bay, and assembly of Army 

forces in the South corresponded to prewar planning measures articulated 

by both services. In that capacity, the Navy had taken the lead in preparing 

for conflict. Dewey’s strike was conceived years earlier through evolving 

naval contingency plans that assumed a war with Spain. First developed 

in training exercises during 1894 at the Naval War College, students designed these strategies to achieve American supremacy at sea. Subsequent 

planning revisions called for US Navy squadrons to destroy enemy fleets 

and merchant vessels “and perhaps bombard or blockade Spanish cities and 

colonies,” wrote historians Allen R. Millett and Peter Maslowski.12

 Between 

1896 and 1897, advanced plans outlined several sea operations designed 

to wrestle Cuba from Spanish rule. One secondary naval effort would secure Spain’s Philippine capital, Manila, and gain control over commerce 

with the archipelago. Naval planners envisioned Manila as a bargaining 

chip to end the war. According to their hypothesis, once the United States 

freed Cuba, Spain would be more likely to end hostilities if the Americans 

agreed to depart Manila Bay.13

The Navy had created these plans in a political vacuum. Writing 73 

Figure 4. Naval games at Newport, RI.

The Examiner, 5 June 1898
years after Dewey’s victory, historian Graham Cosmas observed that 

the services readied for war without political guidance from President 

McKinley. No one in the War or Navy Departments knew of the president’s ultimate goals in a conflict with Spain. Cosmas captured the dilemma of the armed services: “They were to prepare for war, but for what kind 

of war and for what political objective?”14

Devoid of input from the president, planners created their own assumptions. One key premise that both the Navy and Army embraced was 

that major territorial acquisitions would not be an objective. A war with 

Spain would be “mainly a naval conflict with little Army activity.” The 

president seemed to accept this supposition when, after Congress dedicated $50 million on 9 March 1898 for national defense, McKinley channeled 

$29 million to the Navy without giving it guidance on how to spend it.15

Army planners, who to that point had little to show for a possible war 

with Spain, took $19 million apportioned to their service from the 9 March 

law and poured much of it into coast defense.16 They also did not ignore 

the possibility that land forces could be assigned an expeditionary mission 

in conjunction with naval operations. Should Spain need additional incentive to sue for peace after American warships struck in the Caribbean, the 

Army intended to send contingents led by its Regular force to secure a 

Cuban beachhead and attack targets in the region.17 As Regulars would be 

pulled from their posts in the United States to constitute the core of ventures into Spanish colonies, National Guardsmen could man the nation’s 

coast defense works. Calling for methodical manpower mobilization that 

would gradually increase the Regular Army from 28,000 to 104,000, the 

War Department found a congressional sponsor in Representative John 

A.T. Hull. The Iowa Republican introduced a bill for an “expansible 

Army” to the Congress on 17 March 1898.18

Influenced in part by inland National Guard advocates who bitterly 

opposed the Hull Bill, Congress had shelved the War Department’s plan 

to create an “expansible” Regular Army for combat operations against 

Spain.19 In lieu of that proposal, a 22 April law, forged out of a compromise 

between the War Department and National Guard leaders, established an 

Army of the United States composed of two branches: the Regular Army 

and Volunteer Army.20 Unlike the Hull Bill, which looked to increase the 

Regular contingent, the new law created a separate force dominated by 

state Volunteers who had served in the National Guard.21

Empowered by the act of 22 April, the president made two decisions 

that surprised the Army. First, one day after Congress gave him the authority, McKinley moved to expand the size of the Army. That initiative was 
expected; however, War Department officials were flabbergasted to learn 

that McKinley asked for 125,000 men. Politically, the call was a stroke of 

brilliance. Estimates placed National Guard enlisted strength at approximately that figure.22 Essentially, the call would allow all guardsmen a 

chance to volunteer. State governors would not have to turn away those 

who wished to participate. Militarily, a call that size caught the Army unprepared. The War Department originally planned a systematic enlistment 

of 75,000 men for its Regular Army. On 23 April, the Army was directed 

to accept that number plus 50,000 more as quickly as National Guardsmen 

could be mustered for federal service.

As the Army arranged to deal with a massive influx of personnel, the 

president made a second decision that the War Department had not anticipated. In early May, McKinley decided to send Army forces to San 

Francisco where they would prepare for missions in the Philippines.23

Lacking political guidance to the contrary, military officers who developed prewar plans had not envisioned the dispatch of Army expeditions 

against Spain’s Pacific holdings. McKinley gave this course of action little 

to no consideration before Dewey’s naval victory at Manila Bay. After all, 

virtually all of the Regular Army had oriented on the Caribbean, having 

been ordered to points in Georgia, Louisiana, Alabama, and Florida on 15 

April. Those units unaffected by the directive to proceed to Southern assembly areas had remained at inland posts or garrisoned coast defenses.

As the Army positioned for an expedition to Cuba, McKinley pondered the extent to which the United States should gain control of the 

Philippines. Dewey’s victory had opened the door to that line of thinking. 

However, nearly 20,000 Spanish troops, based predominately in the environs of Manila, threatened to deny American influence beyond the bay. 

The president therefore ordered an Army contingent to exploit Dewey’s 

success. Still not fully cognizant of the objective he wished to pursue in 

the islands, McKinley nevertheless intended to establish an American 

presence around Manila.24

Beginning in May 1898, Merritt’s Department of the Pacific deployed 

Regular and Volunteer forces to Luzon. Between May and August 1898, 

the Army converted from a frontier constabulary that picketed the Great 

Plains of North America to an expeditionary force stationed 7,000 miles 

west of San Francisco. By the end of August, American troops defeated 

the Spanish garrison at Manila and awaited McKinley’s decision on the 

fate of the Philippines. 

This study examines how the US Army mobilized expeditions for de-
ployment to the archipelago. Much of Chapter II explores several questions related to mobilizing forces for the mission abroad. Specific questions are Why did the president designate San Francisco as the port of 

embarkation for the Philippine expeditions? What considerations influenced the War Department’s process for specifying which units, Regular 

and Volunteer, would be sent to San Francisco? How did states gather and 

prepare their Volunteer organizations for federal duty? How did the Army 

transport regiments to the West Coast, and what did troops encounter on 

their way to California?

Chapters III and IV analyze the military experience by the Golden 

Gate. How did the military in the region receive the troops? What regard 

did San Francisco citizens have for the military, and how did they assist 

soldiers upon their arrival? Where and why were units quartered at several 

municipal locations? Who led within the Department of the Pacific, and 

how was command and control exercised? What did the troops experience 

in terms of drill, discipline, exercise, and diversion? How well did the 

Army sustain its organizations logistically and medically?

Chapters V and VI examine how the Golden Gate community supported Regulars and Volunteers during their stay in San Francisco. What 

relief societies and religious organizations emerged to care for the troops? 

Who led these groups, and what were their ties to the community? Who 

Figure 5. President McKinley and the War Cabinet.

Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain
contributed resource support in the form of money, goods, and services? 

What formal and informal connections were established between civilians 

and soldiers to support the military encamped about the city?

Chapter VII studies preparations for deploying units to the Philippines. 

How was oceanic transportation secured? What factors determined which 

units were selected to sail before others? As expeditions organized to move 

abroad, what impact did departing units have on the encampments in San 

Francisco? Why did the camps and commands undergo restructuring?

This study of the military’s earliest preparations for missions overseas 

has relevance for those who seek to understand the challenges that faced 

America’s armed forces of a bygone era. Today’s service personnel routinely face deployments over vast distances, commitment to hostile environments, murky political objectives, and military operations short of war. 

Learning how earlier generations mobilized to meet deployment requirements for duty overseas without the benefit of recent experience and planning systems should prove enlightening to those of a subsequent age.
Notes

1. George Dewey, Autobiography of George Dewey, Admiral of the Navy

(New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1913) 207-211.

2. Ibid., 212-23.

3. Kenneth E. Hendrickson, Jr., The Spanish-American War (Westport, CT: 

Greenwood Press, 2003), 17-18; David F. Trask, The War With Spain in 1898

(New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1981), 1-6.

4. Hendrickson, 18; Trask, 8-9; Thomas G. Paterson, J. Garry Clifford, and 

Kenneth J. Hagan, American Foreign Relations: A History Since 1895, 4th edition 

(Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath and Co., 1995) 11.

5. Trask, 11-21; Paterson, et al., 11-14; Hendrickson, 18-19.

6. Paterson, et al., 14-16; Hendrickson, 20-21.

7. Trask, xii, 35-36; Paterson, et al., 16.

8. Allan R. Millett and Peter Maslowski, For the Common Defense: A 

Military History of the United States of America, (New York: The Free Press, 

1984) 268-69; Paterson, et al., 16-17.

9. H.C. Corbin to Commanding General, Department East, 15 April 1898, 

in US War Department, Correspondence Relating to the War With Spain and 

Conditions Growing Out of the Same, Including the Insurrection in the Philippine 

Islands and the China Relief Expedition, Between the Adjutant-General of the 

Army and Military Commander in the United States, Cuba, Porto Rico, China, 

and the Philippine Islands, From April 15, 1898 to July 30, 1902, Volume I 

(Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office [GPO], 1902), hereafter cited 

as Correspondence I, 7.

10. Hendrickson, 20-23; Millett and Maslowski, 268-69; Paterson, et al., 17; 

Trask, 70-78.

11. Ibid., 92.

12. Millett and Maslowski, 270.

13. Trask, 75; Ronald Spector, Admiral of the New Empire: The Life and 

Career of George Dewey (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1974), 

32-35.

14. Graham A. Cosmas, An Army for Empire: The United States Army in the 

Spanish-American War (Columbia, MO: University of Missouri Press, 1971) 74-

75.

15. Trask, 78, 82; Cosmas, 73, 75, 83; Millett and Maslowski, 270-71.

16. Cosmas, 83; Millett and Maslowski, 271.

17. Ibid., 271-72.

18. Cosmas, 89-93.

19. Millett and Maslowski, 272; Cosmas, 93-102.

20. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report of the Major-General Commanding the 

Army. Annual report of the adjutant general to the major general commanding the 

Army (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 485; Trask, 151; Cosmas, 100-102.

21. Trask, 151-52.
10

22. Millett and Maslowski, p. 273; Trask, p. 152; Cosmas, p. 109.

23. W. McK. to the Secretary of War, 4 May 1898, in US War Department, 

Correspondence Relating to the War with Spain and Conditions Growing Out of 

the Same, Including the Insurrection in the Philippine Islands and the China Relief 

Expedition, Between the Adjutant-General of the Army and Military Commander 

in the United States, Cuba, Porto Rico, China, and the Philippine Islands, From 

April 15, 1898, to July 30, 1902, Volume II (Washington, DC: GPO, 1902), hereafter cited as Correspondence II), 635; Nelson A. Miles to the Honorable, the 

Secretary of War, 3 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 635.

24. Cosmas, 119-21.
11

Chapter II

Assembly

When President William McKinley decided to send US Army forces 

to Manila, senior political and military officials had to make several critical decisions. Specifically, the War Department needed to settle on the size 

and composition of the Philippine expedition. Secretary of War Russell A. 

Alger and ranking general officers collaborated to determine what Regular 

and Volunteer organizations should be assigned to the Pacific Command. 

State governors worked to meet their manpower quotas. Where troops 

assembled to fulfill overseas missions and how they reached their West 

Coast destination were two other issues that political and military officials 

had to resolve.

Creating the Force

Between May and August 1898, Philippine expeditionary forces, designated the VIII Corps on 21 June, consisted of troops from the Regular 

and Volunteer Armies. At the outset of discussions on task organization, 

the consensus among military officials was that Regular units would 

form the nucleus of US expeditions for Manila. In terms of their numbers, however, state Volunteer organizations would dominate most of the 

overseas contingents. Even the numbers of Volunteers would greatly surpass those of active duty troops. 

Deployed within multiple expeditions, Volunteers would constitute 

at least 75 percent of the force in 

the Philippines before the United 

States and Spain agreed to a peace 

protocol in August 1898.1

First to advocate the approximate force ratio of nearly four 

Volunteers to one Regular was 

Major General (MG) Nelson A. 

Miles, Commanding General of 

the Army. On 3 May 1898, two 

days after Dewey’s stunning victory, Miles recommended that the 

United States deploy three state 

Volunteer infantry regiments and 

two batteries of heavy artillery to 

the Philippines, accompanied by Figure 6. MG Nelson A. Miles, USA.

Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain
12

a smaller Regular contingent of two infantry battalions and two cavalry 

troops.2 Miles’ proposal nicely complemented Dewey’s appeal for 5,000 

troops, a request received in Washington on 13 May.3

By that date new considerations called into question the troop numbers Dewey proposed and the force-mix that Miles suggested. The president had named MG Wesley Merritt to command the Philippine expeditionary force.4

 After conferring with the president about his new assignment, Merritt offered his own appraisal to McKinley on 13 May. The general argued for an Army expedition to Manila nearly three times the size 

that Dewey requested.5 The number of Spanish troops in the archipelago, 

estimated to be as many as 25,000; the recommended ratio of Regulars to 

Volunteers; and McKinley’s growing interest in the Philippines influenced 

Merritt’s assessment.6 The War Department, too, was preparing for a larger presence in the islands. On 13 May, the Adjutant General, Brigadier 

General (BG) Henry C. Corbin notified MG Henry C. Merriam—commander, Department of California and in whose jurisdiction the force 

would assemble—that “it is now thought that it [the expedition] will probably consist of about 12,000 men, or one army corps.”7

In his 13 May correspondence to 

the president, Merritt also expressed little confidence in the proficiency of the 

Volunteer force originally suggested for 

duty in the Philippines. He urged that 

the expedition consist of a much larger 

Regular contingent, some 44 percent 

of the total number, including four active duty infantry regiments. He argued 

that states could provide a large reserve 

force oriented on the Caribbean where, 

by virtue of proximity, objectives 

would be much more easily supported. 

Conversely, the force deploying to the 

Philippines, so distant from its base of 

operations in the United States, must be 

capable of handling challenges without 

assistance. Merritt concluded that this self-sufficiency could be achieved 

only if a skilled, professional force composed of Regulars formed the expedition’s core.8

In correspondence dated 16 May, three days after Merritt expressed 

these views, MG Miles presented a new proposal to the Secretary of War, 

Figure 7. MG Wesley Merritt, USA. Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain
13

one that substantially revised the recommendations he had made two 

weeks earlier. Miles agreed that the expeditionary force should be larger 

than he originally anticipated to maintain “our possession and our flag on 

the Philippine Islands, and at the same time relieve our navy as speedily 

as possible.” Addressing the Secretary of War, Miles calculated that, in 

the main, two Regular infantry regiments; two Regular cavalry squadrons; 

three Regular artillery batteries; and nearly 13,000 Volunteers should comprise the force.9

 Essentially, he increased the force size but maintained the 

ratio of Volunteers to Regulars.

When apprised of Miles’ recommendation, Merritt considered the proposal unacceptable. On 17 May, Merritt responded, noting that the Regular 

force Miles had advocated was “a very small proportion of the 42 regular 

regiments in the Army.” As the core of the expedition, such a force would 

be insufficient to accomplish the tasks of “conquering territory 7000 miles 

from our base, defended by a regularly trained and acclimated army of from 

10,000 to 25,000 men, and inhabited by 14,000,000 of people, the majority 

of whom will regard us with intense hatred born of race and religion.”10

In the end, Miles prevailed. He pointed out that, in his view, Merritt’s 

assessment suffered from two shortcomings. First, Miles believed that 

Merritt overestimated the number of Spanish soldiers and Filipinos in the 

archipelago. Second, and more important, Miles felt that Merritt had misconstrued the mission. Miles wrote that “the force ordered at this time is 

not expected to carry on a war to conquer an extensive territory.” Miles 

viewed the expedition’s task as one of “establishing a strong garrison to 

command the harbor of Manila, and to relieve the United States fleet under 

Admiral Dewey with the least possible delay.”11

Merritt lost his battle with Miles and the War Department but had 

little time to grumble. The challenge of assigning, preparing, and moving 

Army units to a port of embarkation demanded Merritt’s and other military 

officers’ attention and energy. Additionally, political officials and Army 

leaders sought to influence the process of shaping the expeditionary force 

to the Philippines.

Assigning Regular Units

Despite their disagreement over the ratio between active duty troops 

and state Volunteers, both of the Army’s senior generals were of like minds 

on one issue: Regulars should constitute the nucleus of the force deploying 

to the archipelago. The War Department faced a tremendous challenge, 

however, when deciding which units should be allocated for Pacific missions.
14

Reaching that decision would not be easy. A month before the commencement of hostilities with Spain, the War Department exercised administration through eight geographical military departments.12 On 15 April, 

BG Corbin telegraphed orders to department commanders preparing the 

Regular Army for war against Spain.13 In the name of the commanding 

general, Corbin ordered an impressive array of units from the US Army’s 

artillery, cavalry, and infantry regiments to several national assembly stations in the South.14

Essentially, Corbin had stripped seven territorial commands of their 

combat organizations and had poised them for attacks into the Caribbean. 

The beneficiary of this directive, the Department of the Gulf—the eighth 

territorial command—prepared to receive 23 of the Army’s 25 infantry 

regiments, six of 10 cavalry regiments, and the light batteries from all 

five artillery regiments (two more artillery regiments were organizing to 

bring the total to seven). Coast defense obligations and constabulary duty 

responsibilities pursued in other territorial departments simply precluded 

the Army from reassigning all infantry, cavalry, and artillery units.

The president’s decision to dispatch troops to the Philippines required 

the War Department to reexamine its manpower allocations. Senior Army 

officials considered their options and elected to retain Regular forces at 

locations already oriented on possible deployments into the Gulf; they 

Figure 8.

History of Military Mobilization in the US Army, 1775-1945
15

would not be repositioned from Southern assembly areas to West Coast 

sites. That decision left the War Department with the onerous task of moving Regular units away from coast defense or frontier policing and replacing them with federalized state Volunteers.

On 4 May, President McKinley designated San Francisco as the national assembly station for troops marshaling on the Pacific coast. The city by 

the Golden Gate at once became the potential port of embarkation for the 

Philippine expedition.15 Had this announcement occurred a few weeks earlier, the 1st Infantry Regiment would have been an attractive candidate for any 

force deploying to the archipelago. Through the first few months of 1898, 

the regiment had been based at the Presidio of San Francisco performing a 

variety of missions in the Bay Area. By late April, however, Corbin had sent 

the regiment to New Orleans, Louisiana, for possible duty in the Caribbean.

Of the Regular infantry regiments subsequently ordered to San Francisco 

for duty in the Pacific, the War Department initially selected the 14th. Like 

several other regiments in the decade before the Spanish-American War, the 

14th Infantry had been diced into undermanned companies and distributed 

piecemeal throughout several locations in the West to perform a variety 

of missions. With their regimental headquarters at Vancouver Barracks in 

Washington state, several companies took station in northern Idaho during 

1892. When mining disputes in that region erupted into violence, members 

of the regiment served as train guards, protected property, and helped civil 

authorities make arrests. Between 

1893 and 1898, some companies of 

the regiment protected lands allotted 

to American Indians near Tacoma 

and the Indian Territory, and others guarded railroad property in the 

Northwest during the Pullman and 

American Railway strike.16

When the United States went 

to war with Spain, elements of the 

14th Infantry were two months into 

duty in Alaska. In February 1898, 

Colonel (COL) Thomas Anderson, 

the regiment’s commander, and 

four of its companies took station 

in Alaska to maintain order during 

the Klondike gold rush. From the 

regiment’s forward headquarters, Figure 9. BG Thomas M. Anderson.

Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain
16

COL Anderson also took command of the Lynn Canal District, an area of 

land that both Great Britain and the United States claimed. Upon his arrival in the territory, Anderson discovered that a Canadian mounted police 

patrol had established itself in the region, flying a British flag. The colonel 

ordered the police removed. In March, a British vessel arrived with two 

companies of armed Canadian Mounted Police. Anderson deployed two 

companies of the 14th and refused to let the Canadians disembark until 

they agreed to vacate the disputed land. Anderson’s show of force led to 

the withdrawal of the Canadian police.17

When MG Miles recommended two battalions from the 14th Regiment 

as the core infantry force of the first expedition to the Philippines, he must 

have taken into account their availability and location. Of the 25 infantry 

regiments that were active in the Army at the beginning of the war, the 

14th and 15th were the only organizations not ordered to assembly points 

in the South on 15 April 1898. Of the two uncommitted regiments, the 

14th Infantry was the closest to San Francisco.

By mid-May, however, the War Department was anticipating a requirement for a larger Pacific force and an attendant increase in the numbers of Regular infantry to deploy. Nevertheless, as Merritt acknowledged 

in a telegram on 17 May, the 14th Infantry would remain only partially 

available.18 Troubles in Alaska among miners and between the United 

States and Britain could not be ignored. Therefore, the War Department 

ordered two of the 14th Regiment’s eight companies to stay at Dyea and 

Fort Wrangel. Companies B and H remained in Alaska for the duration of 

the war. Companies A, C, D, E, F, and G received orders for San Francisco 

where they were reunited with COL Anderson after he had relinquished 

command of the regiment in early May.19

On 19 May 1898, President McKinley validated the War Department’s 

inclination toward a beefed-up expeditionary force. The president apprised 

Alger of his intent “to send an army of occupation to the Philippines for the 

twofold purpose of completing the reduction of the Spanish power in that 

quarter and of giving order and security to the islands while in the possession of the United States.”20 That same day the War Department reconsidered an earlier decision and began to shift manpower resources away from 

a Southern assembly area. Corbin informed Merritt that two additional 

Regular infantry regiments, the 18th and 23d, had been ordered from New 

Orleans to San Francisco.21 To provide troops for McKinley’s evolving vision for the Philippines, the War Department demonstrated a willingness 

to reallocate manpower from the Caribbean and a desire to meet Merritt’s 

request to assemble additional Regular infantry troops at San Francisco.
17

Despite being assigned the 18th and 23d, Merritt held to a conviction that he was still short one Regular infantry regiment. Apparently he 

viewed as a requirement, rather than a recommendation, his request for 

four Regular infantry regiments identified in his 13 May message to the 

president.22 One of those four regiments he assumed to be the 15th, as had 

Miles.23 When informed that the 15th would not be forthcoming, Merritt 

wrote Corbin that he expected a replacement: “Either the Fourth or the 

Twentieth would be satisfactory to me, or any other regiment that can better be spared.”24 The War Department did not respond to Merritt’s replacement option.

Merritt was undeterred. The general revisited the size of his Regular 

infantry contingent when, at the end of May, Secretary Alger decided that 

McKinley’s goals in the archipelago required a 20,000-man expeditionary force. In notifying Merritt of the decision, Corbin asked the general 

to “intimate the States from which you would like to have the additional 

force sent.”25 From San Francisco, Merritt began his telegraphed response: 

“the additional force should be sent from States having their troops in 

best order for immediate shipment.” Then he revisited earlier requests 

for specific Regular units: 

“The greatest difficulty to 

contend with here is want of 

organization. The addition of 

the Twentieth and Fifteenth 

regiments of infantry would 

be of greatest value.”26 Both 

regiments, however, were in 

the midst of commitments to 

other missions. Corbin had 

ordered the 20th Infantry to 

Mobile nearly a month and 

a half earlier. Merritt knew 

this, but believing that the 

War Department had stopped 

fencing the Caribbean force 

when it reassigned the 18th 

and 23d to San Francisco, he 

forwarded the request.

The status of the 15th 

Infantry was another matter. It 

and the 14th Infantry were the

Figure 10. Adjutant General

BG Henry Clark Corbin, USA.

Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain
18

only two infantry regiments not assigned to assembly points in the South 

a week before the war began.27 Like part of the 14th Infantry, the 15th 

continued to perform missions closer to home. Corbin’s order of 15 April 

to department commanders included a directive that the 15th dispatch 

a company “to proceed to Fort Wingate and take station at that post.”28

Territorial responsibilities in the Southwest required the 15th to maintain 

a presence at locations in Arizona and New Mexico.29

Corbin’s response to Merritt’s request did not address the status of 

the 20th Infantry. Nor did he suggest anticipating the dispatch of any 

other Regular infantry regiment then located in Southern assembly areas. 

Corbin, however, approached the 15th’s assignment in different terms. The 

AG asked Merritt if there was “a regiment of volunteers now on Pacific 

coast that you think would be willing to take post of Fifteenth Infantry. 

. . . Secretary of War desires, far as possible, to ascertain whether this is 

practicable and report accordingly.”30

Corbin’s proposed solution is illuminating for several reasons. First, 

in declining to address the 20th Infantry, Corbin tacitly indicated that any 

further diminution of the Caribbean force’s Regular infantry would not 

be forthcoming in the short term. That resource was now closed to the 

Philippine expedition. Second, the AG’s treatment of the 15th Infantry 

ostensibly indicated that the War Department would consider assigning 

another Regular infantry regiment to the Philippine expedition, something 

Merritt had been pressing to achieve in the past several weeks. While giving a signal that the field commander would have some input into the composition of his command, Corbin also held Merritt responsible for finding 

a Volunteer unit in lieu of the 15th Infantry.

That solution never developed. On 1 June, Merritt telegraphed Corbin 

that he had exhausted efforts to find state substitutes for the 15th. The 

commander wrote, “No regiment will accept this duty voluntarily. I still 

think it important that one should be ordered for this service.”31 On the 

East Coast, War Department officials could not find a solution to their own 

proposal. Corbin wrote Merritt that an effort to secure a Volunteer regiment for the 15th had met with no success “on this side of the continent.”32

He made no reference to ordering any state Volunteer organization to take 

the 15th Infantry’s place. That option was simply politically untenable to 

McKinley’s administration. States were fighting to get their citizen soldiers 

mustered into the Volunteer Army for duty overseas. Ordering a Manilabound Volunteer force to remain at home in lieu of a Regular regiment 

could incur the wrath of voters during an upcoming national election.
19

The War Department, however, did assign other Regular units to Merritt’s command. Although the core of the expeditionary force was composed of Regular infantry units, that nucleus would be augmented with 

Regular artillery and cavalry organizations. In much the same way that 

it had decided to pull part of the 14th Infantry from posts in Washington 

state and Alaska, the War Department took resources from intranational 

constabulary duties and coast defense, leaving the forces assigned to the 

Department of the Gulf intact.

Neither leaders within the War Department nor the Philippine expedition ever advocated taking an entire regiment of Regular cavalry troops 

to the Philippines. Recommendations generally varied between four to 

eight troops out of a possible 12-troop regiment.33 As he had done with 

Regular infantry, Merritt argued for the most cavalry troops. Ultimately, 

the War Department made Merritt and Merriam responsible for solving 

this problem, with the caveat that the cavalry troops would come from 

within Merriam’s department commands.34

Consensus as to how much cavalry to deploy was relatively forthcoming. Merriam and Merritt agreed to allocate six troops of cavalry 

to the Philippine expedition.35 Selecting the regiment that would provide these troops was essentially a foregone conclusion. Like the 14th 

Infantry Regiment, the 4th Cavalry Regiment had not been assigned to the 

Department of the Gulf by the diktat of 15 April.36 Headquartered at Fort 

Walla Walla, Washington, the regiment took up station at various posts 

near the West Coast before the war.37 Also like the 14th Infantry, some 

troops from the 4th Cavalry would continue to perform constabulary missions near home stations while others marshaled in San Francisco preparatory to going abroad.38

Merritt also tried to secure a special detachment of troops from another Regular cavalry regiment. In a note to the Secretary of War on 12 

May 1898, Merritt requested 100 noncommissioned officers and men from 

the 8th Cavalry to man a battery of six Hotchkiss mountain guns pledged 

to his expedition. The general asked for men from this unit because they 

“had experience in handling and packing this peculiar weapon.”39

The commander of the Philippine expeditionary forces got his guns 

but not his 8th Cavalry men. On 13 May, Corbin instructed MG John 

R. Brooke, commander, Provisional Army Corps, Chickamauga Park, 

Georgia, to ship six Hotchkiss guns to Merritt.40 Corbin’s directive, however, did not reassign cavalrymen. When soldiers were not forthcoming, 

Merritt queried Corbin, stating that the Secretary of War had pledged these 
20

specific troops.41 On 4 June, the expeditionary commander received some 

unwanted news. The assistant AG informed Merritt that due “to the reported serious condition of the frontier bordering the Sioux Indian reservations 

and the trouble between the Apaches and reservation Indians in Indian 

Territory, it is regarded as absolutely necessary to keep the Eighth Cavalry 

at their present stations.”42 The response from the AG’s office indicated 

that domestic missions still commanded a priority even when the United 

States engaged in war outside its borders.

No senior military official suggested deploying a complete Regular 

artillery regiment to the archipelago. To the contrary, the first proposal 

MG Miles offered to constitute the Philippine force failed to contain any 

reference to Regular artillery units.43 Not that the function was ignored; 

Miles wanted two heavy artillery batteries from the California Volunteers 

to accompany infantry and cavalry forces sailing for Manila. What Miles’ 

message did reflect, however, was that light artillery batteries—those most 

appropriate to deal with conditions in the Philippines—were unavailable. 

The existing light batteries—the 1st through 5th Artillery Regiments—had 

been concentrated at Chickamauga Park to prepare for operations in the 

Caribbean.44

In subsequent messages, Miles, Merritt, and War Department officials 

argued repeatedly over the artillery to be designated for Philippine duty. 

On 13 May, Merritt requested two Regular field batteries; on 15 May, he 

amended the request to include an additional siege battery.45 Miles was 

first to recommend specific types of field artillery when on 16 May he 

advocated one heavy and two light batteries from the newly organized 

7th Artillery Regiment.46 The War Department subsequently settled on a 

solution similar to the one involving the cavalry. On 1 June, the Secretary 

of War ordered MG Merriam, who commanded both the California and 

Columbia Departments, to provide Merritt with four batteries from the 3d 

Artillery Regiment.47

Three days after communicating the secretary’s decision to Merriam, 

Corbin offered Merritt an additional light artillery unit just formed, the 

Astor Battery.48 This unique organization “was presented to the United 

States by Mr. John Jacob Astor, and was manned by the assignment to it 

of three officers of the Regular Army, and by a complement of men who 

were enlisted in the Regular service for a period of three years.”49 Merritt 

quickly accepted.50

The Astor Battery, authorized at 98 enlisted troops, initially inducted 

96 men by 1 June. Captain (CPT) F.A. Whitney, a New York recruiting 
21

officer, estimated that “at least 80 per cent of this Battery is made up of 

educated men, a great many of them graduates of Colleges and professional men. Some of them wealthy.”51 Using resources of the Astor estate, 

Lieutenant Peyton C. March, the battery commander (and later Chief of 

Staff, US Army, during World War I), purchased Hotchkiss mountain guns 

and uniforms for his men.52 On 11 June, the Secretary of War ordered 

March and his troops to San Francisco.53 Later in the month, two light 

batteries from the newly formed 6th Artillery Regiment joined Merritt to 

complete his complement of artillery forces.54 No other Regular artillery 

unit would be assigned to the VIII Corps before the protocol with Spain.

Assigning the State Volunteer Forces

MG Wesley Merritt never warmed to the reality that Volunteer units, 

often formed from state National Guard organizations, dominated his 

command’s force structure. As the expeditionary force evolved, the general tried to increase Regular Army strength in his organization. His effort 

in that regard intensified when, on 13 May, he learned the War Department 

had tapped the American Northwest for state Volunteers. Merritt believed 

those mustered from this region were “not as well drilled or disciplined as 

those from any State in the East or interior.”55

The general likely formed these impressions from personal experiences. As the former commander, 5th Cavalry, and later, commander, 

Department of Dakota, Merritt observed militia actions in the transMississippi West. He was not impressed with the National Guard’s lackluster attempts to quell violence growing out of labor disputes in 1877 and 

the 1890s. Some militiamen and their units refused to serve; others joined 

strikers and contributed to the chaos.56

Regulars, including Merritt, had also witnessed the National Guard 

increase its political clout. The National Guard Association emerged in the 

late 19th century to lobby Congress successfully for more federal support. 

The Guard had also worked to kill the Hull Bill in Congress on the eve of 

the war with Spain. Some active duty officers viewed the Guard’s growing influence as a challenge to the Army’s status as the nation’s primary 

military force.57 Friction between the Regulars and militia or National 

Guard—a tension that could be traced to the Revolutionary era—had only 

seemed to escalate in the last quarter of the 19th century.58

Merritt’s low opinion of Guard organizations in general, however, did 

not apply to all state units in particular. His recollection of the northwestern Guard contrasted sharply with his image of East Coast organizations. 

Pennsylvania and New York maintained two of the strongest militia programs 
22

in America.59 The War Department organized military activities of both 

states in the Department of the East, a command Merritt held from April 

1897 to May 1898. The general was obligated to be familiar with National 

Guard proficiency in his territory. As a department commander, Merritt 

“was responsible for training militia and volunteer forces called into federal service.”60

With Merritt’s preferences in mind, several explanations account for 

why a state Volunteer unit received orders to report to San Francisco instead of a federal camp in the South or East. Geography influenced this 

consideration, particularly during May 1898 in the haste to assemble 

troops for Pacific duty. Merritt’s misgivings notwithstanding, the closer 

the state was to the western port of embarkation, the more likely that its 

units would head for that destination. Hence, Volunteers from California, 

Oregon, and Washington were among the first to be assigned for duty in 

San Francisco. In a recommendation to the Secretary of War, MG Miles 

suggested that an infantry battalion from Idaho and a cavalry troop from 

Nevada be added to the force list as well.61 Again, proximity to the West 

Coast may have been a factor in making these suggestions.

Evolving national interests and military concerns combined with geographic considerations to summon additional Volunteer units as the month 

wore on. By the middle of May, Dewey had issued his formal request for 

land forces, and President McKinley’s intent to establish a presence in the 

archipelago had begun to solidify.62 Miles, Merritt, and the War Department 

had already articulated their respective arguments, all of which advocated 

assembling a larger force to send to the Philippines.

Cobbling together additional units meant tapping into extra manpower, and War Department officials looked to the nation’s interior for 

resources. In a memorandum dated 16 May, the Secretary of War assigned more Volunteer organizations to San Francisco. These units came 

from states deep within the trans-Mississippi West, including Kansas, 

Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Utah, Wyoming, North Dakota, and 

South Dakota.63 All newly assigned organizations were infantry except 

those from Utah. That state was directed to provide the first light artillery batteries to the force gathering at the Golden Gate. Merritt needed 

artillery, especially light artillery, and those kinds of state Volunteer units 

were at a premium.

Of the states that eventually sent Volunteers to the Bay Area, all but 

three were located west of the Mississippi River. Geography, evolving national interests, and military needs necessitated gathering units from west-
23

ern states. Other factors, however, contributed to assigning forces from 

states east of the Mississippi.

Political influence assisted in bringing the first East Coast Volunteer 

unit to San Francisco. Merritt added a Pennsylvania regiment to his command because the general’s need for additional troops coincided with a 

US congressman’s personal request. On 17 May, the 10th Pennsylvania 

received instructions to proceed to Chickamauga Park to be integrated 

into the invasion force bound for Cuba.64 That same day, Pennsylvania 

Congressman J.B. Showalter, US House of Representatives, sent a message to Secretary Alger. Showalter urged, “Should you decide to send 

any Eastern troops to Manila, I would respectfully request that the Tenth 

Pennsylvania Volunteers be taken. They are anxious to go.” The following day, the Army’s AG changed the unit’s destination to San Francisco.65

Showalter again petitioned the War Department for another Pennsylvania 

unit to be included in the Pacific force but this time to no avail.66 The War 

Department was growing concerned that it should not give the impression 

of favoritism by assigning multiple units from one state to Merritt’s command.

Political and domestic considerations accounted for the assignment 

of a regiment from another state east of the Mississippi—Tennessee. 

Providing Merritt with Volunteers out of a former Confederate state could 

gain Southern support for the McKinley administration and mend sectional wounds that had lingered from the Civil War. The president had already 

chosen to pursue these aims by supervising Army commissions. For example, former Confederate cavalrymen Joseph Wheeler and Fitzhugh Lee, 

both strong Southern Democrats, received general officer appointments.67

Opportunity afforded the McKinley administration another way to 

achieve these same goals. In late May, when Secretary Alger decided to 

increase the Philippine expeditionary force to 2,000 men, Corbin, as a 

courtesy, asked Merritt for his preferences on the states from which additional forces should be drawn to augment the expedition.68 The general 

fired back a reply the same day with one request: those states that had units 

prepared to make the trip.69 Merritt essentially gave the War Department 

carte blanche authority to make assignments, and the Secretary of War 

acted accordingly.

On 1 June, Alger wrote a confidential note to the governors of Iowa and 

three Southern states: Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. He inquired of 

each “if it would be agreeable for a regiment from your State now awaiting 

assignment to be ordered to report to General Merritt, San Francisco, for 
24

duty with expedition to the Philippines.”70 Iowa responded favorably and 

sent the 51st.71 Of the three former Confederate states solicited, Tennessee 

subsequently dispatched an infantry regiment to California.

Administration officials must have delighted in the San Francisco reception accorded Tennessee Volunteers. Surely President McKinley became aware of the enthusiastic coverage the city’s print media accorded 

Southern Volunteers. “Cheered for the ‘Boys in Gray’” proclaimed The 

Examiner when the regiment arrived in mid-June.72 The San Francisco 

Call quoted COL William C. Smith, commander, 1st Tennessee, and a 

former captain in the Confederacy: “I know now that there is no longer 

any North, or South, or East, or West. The reception accorded my regiment 

at every point amply demonstrates that sectional lines are forever obliterated.”73 The colonel proved to be the darling of locals with ties to the Civil 

War. Local newspapers noted his presence at activities featuring veterans 

from that war.74

Finally, general officer preference brought another Volunteer regiment to San Francisco from a state east of the Mississippi. Although Alger 

and Corbin did not honor all of Merritt’s appeals, the War Department 

solicited and attempted to act upon many of his manpower requests. One 

of Merritt’s petitions involved a unit from New York. By the middle of 

June, Merritt had calculated that even with the inclusion of regiments 

from Pennsylvania, Iowa, and Tennessee, his command warranted additional units to reach the 20,000 men Alger had promised. For the first time, 

Merritt requested specific Volunteer organizations: the 1st Maine and the 

9th New York.75 Both units hailed from states associated with the general’s 

former command, the Department of the East. These regiments, however, 

had already been committed to Southern assembly areas. Just as it had 

done with Regular forces, the War Department was not about to reposition 

these units when other state forces remained unassigned in state camps.

With both units unavailable, Merritt was not about to leave the choice 

of regiments to the War Department as he had done on 29 May. That decision inspired the McKinley administration to send the 1st Tennessee, a 

regiment that Merritt deemed unsuitable for duty overseas. In a 20 June 

message to Corbin, Merritt faulted Tennessee troops, describing them as 

“unlikely to be fit for some time to become a part in this expedition.”76

In the same correspondence, he asked the AG to send the 1st New York. 

Corbin had informed Merritt of the regiment’s availability in a telegram 

transmitted on 19 June.77

On 28 June, the AG’s office assigned the 1st New York to Merritt’s 
25

command.78 Before the regiment departed for the West Coast in July, a 

newspaper correspondent asked COL Thomas H. Barber an obvious question: Why would the government assign his command to San Francisco 

and incur the cost of a cross-country move? Barber’s answer focused on 

Merritt. He explained that Merritt, while commanding the Department of 

the East, “inspected the regiment, saw it drill,” and decided to ask that it 

be assigned to the expeditionary force.79

Preparing Volunteer Units: State Musters

To challenge Spain’s hold on islands in the Caribbean or the Pacific, 

the United States needed more troops than the Regular Army could supply. The president, through the War Department, directed state and territorial governments to furnish manpower in the form of Volunteer units that 

would be mustered into federal service. How these units were assembled 

and prepared for movement to national camps hinged upon decisions left 

to governing authorities at the state or territorial level.

Figure 11.

San Francisco Call, 14 July 1898
26

Within days of the 23 April 1898 presidential call for 125,000 men, governors moved quickly to meet their allotted manpower quotas. In most instances, the National Guard apparatus worked to concentrate militia units at 

various state assembly points. These staging areas became the locus for mustering activities that included recruiting, equipping, and organizing Volunteer 

forces. Often using existing militia as a foundation, numerous states reshaped 

their National Guard organizations into the specific type and number of units 

the War Department required. These tasks could be quite challenging.

Oregon, for example, received an allocation of one infantry regiment.80

Governor William P. Lord immediately confronted a dilemma: how to 

take the state’s Guard (consisting of two regiments, an additional battalion, and three separate companies) and meet the smaller requirement from 

Washington. One option Lord explored was to increase Oregon’s allocation with an offer of one additional light battery.81 BG Corbin, the Army’s 

AG, immediately rejected that proposal.82 The governor then decided to 

assemble the Guard in Portland and consolidate it into one regiment.83

Across the Rocky Mountains, Iowa officials faced a similar problem. 

When the president issued his first call for Volunteers, the state’s four 

National Guard infantry regiments converged on Camp McKinley at the 

State Fair Grounds in Des Moines. The problem for state officials was that 

the Secretary of War had levied Iowa for three infantry regiments and two 

light batteries.84 Private John Snure, one of Iowa’s Volunteers, wrote that 

“there was much talk of consolidation—much dissatisfaction at the prospect of four regiments merging into three. Such a step would have thrown 

out many officers of the guard.” Governor L.M. Shaw telegraphed Iowa’s 

influential Republican senator in Washington, W.B. Allison, for help in 

mustering four regiments, explaining, “Any other course now would create such a ruction as we nor you have ever known in Iowa. For God’s sake 

see Sec’y of War at once. . . . You cannot imagine excitement here and in 

the State.” Alger approved the request, and on 30 April, BG Corbin sent 

the good news to the governor. Senatorial leverage paid dividends.85

Elsewhere in the Midwest, another state chief executive chose to gather Volunteers in a manner considerably different from his peers. Governor 

John W. Leedy distrusted the Republican-dominated National Guard in his 

state of Kansas. A Populist serving a two-year term when the war began, 

Leedy opted to mobilize without using the existing Guard organization. 

To achieve the state’s Volunteer quota, the governor determined to form 

regiments from the state’s citizenry at large.86 Leedy’s decision prompted 

Kansas AG L.E. Walker to seek justice from sources outside the state. As 

the senior National Guard officer in the state, Walker appealed directly 
27

to President McKinley. Claiming guardsmen “ready to answer the call,” 

Walker wrote that “apparently an effort is being made to run politics into 

this matter by ignoring them and calling for entirely new volunteers.”87

Walker’s petition elicited a response from the Secretary of War. In 

a telegram to Leedy, Alger wrote “to express the earnest wish that the 

National Guard of your State, as is done in all other States, shall be first recognized and organized; this because they are drilled, officered and armed, 

and will be soon ready for active service.”88 Leedy exercised his prerogative as the state’s chief executive and refused to change his mobilization 

plan. Although some Kansas militiamen eventually became Volunteers, 

Leedy did not allow the Guard to shape muster activity.

Those states that chose to create Volunteer organizations from existing 

National Guard units faced an additional challenge: manpower shortages. 

The War Department calculated that, on the average, state Volunteer companies included among their numbers only 30 National Guardsmen or 50 

percent of the manpower assigned to the original Guard company. In his 

annual report for 1899, BG Corbin observed that militia companies usually 

carried a maximum strength of 60 men. Among those seeking federal service, about 25 percent failed to pass physical examinations before muster.San Francisco Chronicle, 5 May 1898

Figure 12. Physical examinations for California National Guardsmen.
28

Another 25 percent declined to volunteer or were rejected upon physical 

examination after muster. Corbin calculated that each Volunteer company 

required a minimum of 77 troops for induction into federal service, “in 

many instances about 47 recruits, mostly untrained and without uniform 

or equipment, were hastily obtained and physically examined.”89 This revelation suggested that even the most proficiently drilled and thoroughly 

equipped National Guard companies likely absorbed untrained men into 

their ranks on the way to becoming state Volunteer organizations.

Preparing Volunteers Locally: State Camps

Units tagged for San Francisco mustered, drilled, and to varying degrees equipped in their local camps before boarding trains bound for the 

Golden Gate. The time each unit spent in its respective state or territory 

varied. Gaining sufficient manpower to admit the unit into federal service 

constituted the principal local task. Equipping and drilling began in state 

camps and continued more vigorously on the West Coast.

The 10th Pennsylvania Infantry concentrated at Pittsburgh and Greensburg before traveling to Mount Gretna, Pennsylvania, on 28 April 1898. 

For the next two weeks, the organization, along with other Pennsylvania 

regiments, worked to increase manpower in each company from 60 to 75 

men.90 One of the men, Private William S. Christner, wrote his sister: “There 

is (sic) over ten thousand eight hundred soldier boys here and we are eating 

hard tack and drinking black coffee. . . . To day (sic) we enter in to (sic) the 

United States service providing we can pass the examination. There is (sic) 

a great many of the boys leaving the ranks for home but as I write there are 

thousands going cheering past me who have mustered in.”91

On 13 May, Governor Daniel H. Hastings informed the Secretary of 

War that the 10th Pennsylvania Regiment, commanded by COL Alexander 

L. Hawkins, had been mustered into the Volunteer Army. Hawkins’ organization consisted of 36 officers and 604 enlisted men spread over eight 

companies.92 Although the regiment had not finished equipping, Hawkins 

reported the 10th en route to San Francisco by 19 May.93

Tennessee Volunteers, representing the only Southern state assigned to 

Merritt for duty in the Pacific, began their assembly into three regiments on 

24 April. The state tried to use guardsmen to man Volunteer organizations, 

but that practice proved difficult. Governor Robert L. Taylor wrote of the 

medical standards that each prospective serviceman had to meet: “The 

examination which is being held is more rigid than was expected for our 

national guards and is materially reducing the number of men in the regiments.”94 Camping at Cherokee Park, 8 miles outside of Nashville, those 
29

forming the 1st Tennessee Infantry would not complete their muster into 

federal service until 26 May. The unit remained in-state another two weeks 

conducting various drills before boarding trains for San Francisco.95

Iowa engaged in a muster that BG Corbin described as “much behind that of other States.”96 Volunteers spent more than a month in their 

state camp at Des Moines. Private John Snure wrote of the duty routine: 

“Battalion drills each morning with the afternoons reserved for regimental drills. Training also included numerous marches, skirmish drills and 

outpost duty.” The 3d Regiment, renamed the 51st Iowa at the governor’s 

request to “save existing numbers sacred to Old soldiers,” took shelter in 

old horse barns on the fairgrounds. Cold and rainy weather diminished the 

comfort of most, but visitors and Sunday excursions into town helped to 

brighten the troops’ spirits.97 The Volunteer infantry regiment departed for 

San Francisco on 5 June 1898.98

North Dakota’s Volunteers assembled at Camp Briggs in Fargo on 2 

May where they remained for the better part of the month. Not having had a 

National Guard encampment in nearly five years, the men drilled in squad and 

platoon movements, then company and battalion skirmish drills. In summarizing his comrades’ logistics readiness, First Sergeant Phil H. Shortt observed 

that “they were poorly equipped in all military supplies. Arms in sufficient 

numbers were unobtainable, many men were ununiformed.” Nevertheless, 

they used available resources to conduct the best training possible.99

Two factors determined how quickly a unit could leave its home station. The first consideration dealt with getting organized—the time needed 

to assemble minimum numbers of personnel who met the physical requirements for muster. That process could take days or weeks. Some organizations moved to San Francisco with decidedly fewer troops than others. 

When the War Department subsequently increased the personnel strength 

of each Volunteer company, units already in San Francisco dispatched recruiting parties to fetch additional men, some from their home states.

The second factor that affected the timing of an organization’s departure from state camps was equipment status. Corbin encouraged each unit 

to equip itself with the requisite arms, ammunition, clothing, and tentage 

before moving toward the West Coast. The AG could waive that practice 

if an organization’s stay in its home state threatened to delay departures 

from San Francisco for the Philippines. In that case, Corbin encouraged 

immediate deployment to the Golden Gate. Once there, Benicia Arsenal 

would provide arms, ammunition, and tentage to those Volunteer organizations with shortages.100
30

Moving to San Francisco

Nearly a week before the United States declared war on Spain, War 

Department officials ordered most of the Regular Army to four assembly 

points in the South: Chickamauga Park, Georgia; New Orleans, Louisiana; 

Mobile, Alabama; and Tampa, Florida.101 There the Army organized commands, received Volunteer forces, and readied seaborne assaults against 

Cuba and later Puerto Rico.

Tampa, augmented by the other three staging areas, offered ready 

access to the Gulf of Mexico. In geographic terms, each area presented deployment advantages as long as the McKinley administration focused on Caribbean objectives. Once the president’s priorities 

expanded to include goals in the Pacific, however, the Army needed a 

western assembly point where forces could be gathered preparatory to 

movement overseas. Securing a Pacific Coast port for this undertaking became essential if forces were to reach the Philippines in a timely 

manner.

Boosters from Oregon seized the opportunity to nominate Portland 

for such a role. On 5 May, H.R. Lewis, secretary of the city’s Chamber of 

Commerce, sent a telegram addressed to Oregon’s senator in Washington, 

George W. McBride. Lewis asked McBride, the Chairman, Committee on 

Coast Defenses, to “Suggest to the war department the advisability of out 

fitting and starting one or more Philippine transports from Portland sailing distance same, markets equal to San Francisco, north-western troops 

easily concentrated at Portland.”102 The following day, McBride attached 

the telegram to a personal letter to Alger, closing with the sentiment “I 

trust you will favorably consider Portland as a point of departure for 

Northwestern troops.”103

By 5 May, however, arguments favoring Portland were moot. The 

preceding day, McKinley verified with the Secretary of War that troops 

“should be assembled at San Francisco, Cal., for such service as may be 

ordered hereafter.”104 Several factors account for San Francisco’s selection 

as the port of embarkation for troops deploying into the Pacific.

By 1898, San Francisco was the premier city on the West Coast, 

boasting a population of more than 330,000. It possessed first-rate 

municipal utilities as well as telephone and telegraph service. As a terminus on the transcontinental railroad, the community offered ready 

access to Regular and Volunteer forces traveling west for rendezvous. 

The location featured one of the country’s best ports; transportation 

overseas could be secured through oceanic steamship companies that 
31

maintained headquarters or offices in the city.105

San Francisco also sported one of only six Army general depots in 

the United States over which the quartermaster-general had direct control. 

Depending on available stocks, the military could use this facility and its 

organization to outfit both Regular and Volunteer forces converging on 

the West Coast. Additionally, since the 1870s the Subsistence Department 

maintained a purchasing depot in the city. Through this facility, the commissary acquired fresh beef, flour, and other commodities largely through 

local sources. Subsistence officers could secure forage, lumber, and other 

products to establish Bay Area campsites.106

San Francisco offered one other feature no community could claim on 

the West Coast: an entire infantry regiment. CPT Frank de L. Carrington, a 

Regular Army officer attached to duty with the California National Guard, 

submitted a very strong evaluation on the state’s 1st Infantry Regiment. 

In his “Statement of the Condition of the National Guard of California in 

1897,” Carrington noted that the regiment, organized into three battalions 

composed of four companies each, maintained its headquarters in the city. 

The organization paralleled that of the Regular infantry in other important 

ways; its uniforms and equipment generally replicated that of active duty 

forces.

Carrington rated as “excellent” the National Guard’s personnel and 

discipline. He observed that the 1st California’s central location gave it 

“great advantage” in drill over other state regiments. He emphasized the 

progress he observed during encampments, writing, “They were all much 

better than I have ever seen before in the California National Guard.”107

San Francisco therefore offered transport, supply, and manpower resources that the War Department could easily tap.

The task of moving troops, animals, and freight to San Francisco 

belonged to the Quartermaster Department. Beginning with the order to 

reposition Regulars in April 1898, chief quartermasters of geographical 

departments worked with railroad companies to arrange transportation.108

When apprised by the AG of destinations for Volunteer units, department 

quartermasters advertised for and contracted with the rail carriers who 

generally offered the lowest bids.109 Total costs to the government depended on several variables, including the magnitude of the shipping order, the 

distance to be traveled, and the railroad companies involved. Several of 

the more expensive Volunteer rail movements to San Francisco involved 

the 1st Tennessee for $20,454.90, the 51st Iowa for $15,981.81, and the 1st 

Nebraska for $15,808.80.110
32

As the troops relocated from state or territorial encampments to rendezvous with expeditionary forces staging out of the Bay Area, virtually all experienced an outpouring of support from local citizens. Most 

Volunteer organizations broke camp and paraded to train depots surrounded by cheering crowds. Private Madison U. Stoneman of the 1st Wyoming 

wrote, “We were marched down through thronged streets, amidst men and 

women, some joyous, others weeping. . . . Here and there squads of citizens fired salutes from double barrelled shot guns.” Reaching the depot 

platform, Stoneman and his comrades were presented with “pies, cakes, 

fruits and other articles of food; musical instruments, testaments and mementoes.”111

As they moved through the state of origin, troop trains occasionally 

stopped in the larger towns or cities where their passengers were treated 

to foods and speeches of all types. Men of the 51st Iowa, who experienced a 2,200-mile rail journey to San Francisco, remembered the special 

treatment accorded them during their trip through the state. Private John 

Snure wrote of traveling through Iowa’s towns, “Flowers fairly strewed 

their path, and the proverbial hunger of the soldier was never forgotten or 

allowed to go unsatisfied.” Citizens at Council Bluffs and Red Oak fed the 

men.112 The celebrations did not stop when crossing state boundaries but 

Figure 13. States shaded, including New York and Pennsylvania,

sent Volunteers to San Francisco.

The Examiner, 21 May 1898
33

frequently continued along the routes to California.

For numerous young men, the trip to state assembly camps was their 

first journey, and adventure, away from home. Revelations followed as 

newly mustered Volunteers formed into units and then loaded onto trains 

that made their way across hundreds, even thousands, of miles to the West 

Coast. Their odyssey, however, was just beginning. The San Francisco 

community waited, preparing to host the military guests about to converge 

on the city.
34

Notes

1. John K. Mahon, History of the Militia and the National Guard (New 

York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1983), 131-32; US War Department, Annual 

Reports of the War Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report 

of the Secretary of War. Miscellaneous Reports. Report of the Adjutant-General to 

the Secretary of War (Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office [GPO], 

1898), 268-69.

2. Nelson A. Miles to The Honorable, the Secretary of War, 3 May 1898, 

in US War Department, Correspondence Relating to the War with Spain and 

Conditions Growing Out of the Same, Including the Insurrection in the Philippine 

Islands and the China Relief Expedition, Between the Adjutant-General of the 

Army and Military Commander in the United States, Cuba, Porto Rico, China, 

and the Philippine Islands, From April 15, 1898, to July 30, 1902, Volume II 

(Washington, DC: GPO, 1902), hereafter cited as Correspondence II), 635.

3. David F. Trask, The War With Spain in 1898 (New York: Macmillan 

Publishing Co., 1981), 382-83.

4. H.C. Corbin to MG Wesley Merritt, 12 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 

637.

5. W. Merritt to His Excellency William McKinley, 13 May 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 643-44.

6. W. Merritt, Respectfully Returned to the Adjutant-General of the Army, 

17 May 1898, in US Senate, Report of the Commission Appointed by the President 

to Investigate the Conduct of the War Department in the War With Spain, volume 

II, Appendixes (Washington, DC: GPO, 1900), hereafter cited as Report II, 1204.

7. H.C. Corbin to General Merriam, 13 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 

639; Trask, 383.

8. Merritt to McKinley, 13 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 643-44.

9. Miles to the Secretary of War, 16 May 1898, in Report II, 1203-1204.

10. Merritt to the Adjutant-General of the Army, 17 May 1898, in Report II, 

1204.

11. Miles to the Secretary of War, 18 May 1898, in Report II, 1204-1205.

12. Marvin A. Kreidberg and Merton G. Henry, History of Military 

Mobilization in the United States Army, 1775-1945, Department of the Army 

(DA) Pamphlet No. 20-212 (Washington, DC: DA, November 1955), 150-51; 

US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the Fiscal Year 

Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the Major-General Commanding the Army, 

Annual Report of the Adjutant-General to the Major-General Commanding the 

Army (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898) 495-96.

13. Exchange between COL Charles Denby and Corbin during the latter’s 

testimony before the Commission Appointed by the President to Investigate the 

Conduct of the War with Spain, 22 December 1898, in Report of the Commission 

Appointed by the President to Investigate the Conduct of the War Department 

in the War With Spain, Volume VII, testimony (Washington, DC: GPO, 1900), 

hereafter cited as Report VII, 3280-83. Through his questions, Denby attempted 
35

to elicit from Corbin why the Regular Army was ordered to assembly points more 

than a week before the United States declared war. Corbin repeatedly parried the 

questions, observing at one point, “It is only fair to the Adjutant-General to add 

that a great many things are often said to him that would be a question of propriety for him to testify before this commission.” The committee deferred to BG 

Corbin’s judgment.

14. H.C. Corbin to Commanding General, Department East, 15 April 1898, 

in US War Department, Correspondence Relating to the War With Spain and 

Conditions Growing Out of the Same, Including the Insurrection in the Philippine 

Islands and the China Relief Expedition, Between the Adjutant-General of the 

Army and Military Commander in the United States, Cuba, Porto Rico, China, 

and the Philippine Islands, From April 15, 1898 to July 30, 1902, Volume I 

(Washington, DC: GPO, 1902), hereafter cited as Correspondence I, 7.

15. W. McK. to the Secretary of War, 4 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 

635.

16. Captain L.S. Sorley, History of the Fourteenth United States Infantry

(Chicago: Privately printed, 1909) 7-8.

17. Ibid., 9-10.

18. W. Merritt, Respectively Returned to the Adjutant-General of the Army, 

17 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 648.

19. Sorley, 11, 25.

20. William McKinley to the Secretary of War, 19 May 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 676.

21. H.C. Corbin to General Merritt, 19 May 1898—11:45 p.m., in 

Correspondence II, 662.

22. Merritt to McKinley, 13 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 643-44.

23. Miles to the Secretary of War, 16 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 647-

48; Merritt to Corbin, 17 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 648.

24. Merritt to the Adjutant-General of the Army, 21 May 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 666.

25. Corbin to Merritt, 29 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 680.

26. Merritt to the Adjutant-General of the Army, 29 May 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 680.

27. The telegram dated 15 April 1898 from Corbin to territorial department commanders ordering infantry regiments to assembly areas in the South 

omitted reference to the 25th Infantry. See Corbin to the Commanding General, 

Department East, 15 April 1898, in Correspondence I, 7. One reason for the 

omission may have been that units of the 25th received orders to converge on 

Chickamauga as early as 10 April. See Captain John H. Nankivell, The History of 

the Twenty-Fifth Regiment, United States Infantry, 1869-1926 (Fort Collins, CO: 

The Old Army Press, 1972), 65-67.

28. Corbin to Commanding General, Department East, 15 April 1898, in 

Correspondence I, 7.

29. Corbin to Merritt, 30 May 1898—Midnight, in Correspondence II, 682.

30. Ibid.
36

31. Merritt to the Adjutant-General of the Army, 1 June 1898 (Received 5:46 

p.m.), in Correspondence II, 684.

32. Corbin to Merritt, 3 June 1898, in Correspondence II, 687.

33. Miles to the Secretary of War, 3 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 635; 

Merritt to McKinley, 13 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 643-44; Miles to the 

Secretary of War, 16 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 647-48; Merritt to the 

Adjutant-General of the Army, 17 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 648.

34. Corbin to Merritt, 31 May 1898—12 midnight, in Correspondence II, 

683; Corbin to Merriam, 1 June 1898, in Correspondence II, 683-84; Corbin to 

Merritt, 2 June 1898, in Correspondence II, 685.

35. General Merriam to the Adjutant-General of the Army, 2 June 1898 

(Received 4:56 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 685; Merritt to the Adjutant-General 

of the Army, 3 June 1898 (Received 3:41 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 688.

36. Corbin to the Commanding General, Department East, 15 April 1898, in 

Correspondence I, 7.

37. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1897, Report of the Secretary of War. Miscellaneous 

Reports, Report of the Major-General Commanding the Army (Washington, DC: 

GPO, 1897) 115; US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for 

the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the Major-General Commanding 

the Army, Report of MG Henry C. Merriam, Commanding the Department of the 

Columbia (Washington DC: GPO, 1898), 179-81.

38. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the Major-General Commanding the 

Army, Annual Report of the Adjutant-General to the Major-General Commanding 

the Army (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 488.

39. W. Merritt to Mr. Secretary, 12 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 638.

40. H.C. Corbin to MG John R. Brooke, 13 May 1898, in Correspondence 

II, 639.

41. Merritt to the Adjutant-General of the Army, 3 June 1898 (Received 7:26 

p.m.), in Correspondence II, 688.

42. Carter to General Merritt, 4 June 1898, in Correspondence II, 689.

43. Miles to the Secretary of War, 3 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 635.

44. Corbin to the Commanding General, Department East, 15 April 1898, in 

Correspondence I, 7.

45. Merritt to McKinley, 13 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 643-44; 

Merritt to McKinley, 15 May 1898 (Received 16 May 1898), in Correspondence 

II, 645-46.

46. Miles to the Secretary of War, 16 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 647-

48.

47. Corbin to Merriam, 1 June 1898—12:15 a.m., in Correspondence II, 

683-84.

48. H.C. Corbin to Major General Merritt, 4 June 1898, in Record Group 94, 

Office of the Adjutant General Document File, Document Number 82934, Box 

612: 82867-83122 (Washington, DC: National Archives).
37

49. H.C. Corbin to Hon. John Murray Mitchell, US House of Representatives, 

Peyton C. March to The Adjutant General, USA, 24 February 1899, in Record 

Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Document File, attached to Document 

Number 286981, Box 612: 82867-83122 (Washington, DC: National Archives).

50. Merritt, Major General, Commanding., to Adjutant General, 4 June 1898, 

in Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Document File, Document 

Number 126599, filed with 82934, Box 612: 82867-83122 (Washington, DC: 

National Archives).

51. F.A. Whitney to Adjutant General, US Army, 1 June 1898, in Record 

Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Document File, Document Number 

84401, filed with 82934, Box 612: 82867-83122 (Washington, DC: National 

Archives).

52. March to The Adjutant General, June 1898; Edward M. Coffman, The 

Hilt of the Sword: The Career of Peyton C. March (Madison: University of 

Wisconsin Press, 1966) 12-13; Peyton C. March to The Adjutant General, USA, 

7 June 1898, in Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Document File, 

Document Number 88160, filed with 82934, Box 612: 82867-83122 (Washington, 

DC: National Archives).

53. H.C. Corbin to Commanding Officer, Astor Battery, 11 June 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 698.

54. “Camp Miller,” San Francisco Call, 29 June 1898, 5.

55. Merritt to McKinley, 13 May 1898, in Report II, 1199-1200.

56. Donald E. Alberts, Brandy Station to Manila Bay: A Biography of 

General Wesley Merritt (Austin, TX: Presidial Press, 1980), 247, 292, 298.

57. Peter Karsten, “Armed Progressives: The Military Reorganizes for the 

American Century,” in The Military in America From the Colonial Era to the 

Present, Peter Karsten, ed. (New York: The Free Press, 1980) 248; Allen R. Millett 

and Peter Maslowski, For the Common Defense: A Military History of the United 

States of America (New York: The Free Press, 1984) 248-49.

58. Mahon, 262.

59. US War Department, Adjutant General’s Office, The Organized Militia 

of the United States: Statement of the Condition and Efficiency for Service of the 

Organized Militia From Regular Annual Reports and other Sources, Covering the 

Year 1897 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 226-35, 257-75.

60. William G. Bell, et al., American Military History, (Fort McNair, DC: 

Center of Military History, 1989), 185.

61. General Miles to the Secretary of War, 6 May 1898, Record Group 94, 

Office of the Adjutant General Document File, Box 601, Documents 80846 to 

81158, Document No. 80916 (Washington, DC: National Archives).

62. Graham A. Cosmas, An Army for Empire: The United States Army in the 

Spanish-American War (Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1971), 119.

63. Memorandum of assignments of volunteers to various camps, no date, in 

Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Document File, Document No. 

80518, filed with Document No. 80916, Box 601: 80846 to 81158 (Washington, 

DC: National Archives).
38

64. Annual Report of the Adjutant General of Pennsylvania for the Year 1898

(PA: State Printer of Pennsylvania, 1900), 232; History of the 10th Pennsylvania 

Volunteer Infantry: Its Forebearers and Successors in the Spanish-American War, 

World War I, World War II, and the Korean Emergency, n.p., n.d., 65.

65. J.B. Showalter to General Alger, Secretary of War, 17 May 1898 

(Received 18 May 1898), in Report II, 1214; H.C. Corbin to COL A.S. Hawkins, 

18 May 1898, in Report II, 1214.

66. Showalter to Alger, 19 May 1898 (Received 20 May 1898), in Report II, 

1219.

67. Cosmas, 148-49.

68. Corbin to Merritt, 29 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 680.

69. Merritt to the Adjutant-General, 29 May 1898 (Received 6:15 p.m.), in 

Correspondence II, 680.

70. R.A. Alger to the Governor of Iowa (and Governors of Tennessee, 

Kentucky, and Virginia), 1 June 1898, in Correspondence II, 684.

71. COL John C. Loper to the Adjutant General, USA, 3 June 1898, in 

Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 182, Muster 

in War With Spain, 1st Call, Document Number 249516, Inclosure 81, filed with 

Iowa Documents, Box No. 2: Florida through Iowa.

72. “Cheered for the ‘Boys in Gray,’” The Examiner, 18 June 1898, 8.

73. “Brave Battalions From Tennessee,” San Francisco Call, 17 June 1898, 

5.

74. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 11 July 1898, 3; “War 

Incidents,” San Francisco Call, 26 June 1898, 7.

75. Merritt to the Adjutant-General of the Army, 13 June 1898 (Received 

9:45 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 699.

76. Merritt to the Adjutant-General of the Army, 20 June 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 707.

77. Corbin to Merritt, 19 June 1898, in Correspondence II, 706.

78. Heistand to the Commanding General, Department of the East, 28 June 

1898, in Correspondence II, 716.

79. “Colonel and Regiment,” San Francisco Daily Report, 14 July 1898, 3.

80. “The Following Apportionment Has Been Made for the Several States, 

and Territories and the Dist. of Columbia” in Record Group 94, Office of the 

Adjutant General Document File, Document No. 84869, filed with Document No. 

74259, Box 534: 74121 to 74321.

81. William P. Lord to the Secretary of War, 26 April 1898, in Record Group 

94, Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 182, Muster in War With Spain, 

1st Call, Document Number 253366, Inclosure 6, filed with Oregon Documents, 

Box No. 6: Columbus, Ohio through South Carolina.

82. H.C. Corbin to Governor William P. Lord, 27 April 1898, in Record 

Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 182, Muster in War 

With Spain, 1st Call, Document Number 253366, Inclosure 6, filed with Oregon 

Documents, Box No. 6: Columbus, Ohio through South Carolina.

83. BG C.U. Gantenbein, The Official Records of the Oregon Volunteers in 
39

the Spanish War and Philippine Insurrection, n.p., n.d., 16-18.

84. “The Following Apportionment Has Been Made For the Several States, 

and Territories and the Dist. of Columbia” in Record Group 94, Office of the 

Adjutant General Document File, Document No. 84869, filed with Document No. 

74259, Box 534: 74121 to 74321.

85. Private John Snure, Official History of the Operations of the Fifty-First 

Iowa Infantry, U.S.V. in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, n.p., n.d., 1-3; 

R.A. Alger, Secretary of War, to the Governor of Iowa, 30 April 1898, in Record 

Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 182, Muster in War 

With Spain, 1st Call, Document Number 249516, Inclosure 5, filed with Iowa 

Documents, Box No. 2: Florida through Iowa.

86. Frederick Funston, Memories of Two Wars: Cuban and Philippine 

Experiences, (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1911), 150-51; Thomas W. 

Crouch, A Leader of Volunteers: Frederick Funston and the 20th Kansas in the 

Philippines 1898-1899 (Lawrence, KS: Coronado Press, 1984), 5.

87. L.E. Walker to Hon. Wm. McKinley, 26 April 1898, in Record Group 94, 

Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 182, Muster in War With Spain, 

1st Call, Document Number 247203, Inclosure 13, filed with Kansas Documents, 

Box No. 3: Kansas through Massachusetts.

88. R.A. Alger to Governor John W. Leedy, 28 April 1898, in Record Group 

94, Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 182, Muster in War With Spain, 

1st Call, Document Number 247203, Inclosure 20, filed with Kansas Documents, 

Box No. 3: Kansas through Massachusetts.

89. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1899: Reports of Chiefs of Bureaus, Report of the 

Adjutant General to the Secretary of War (Washington, DC: GPO, 1899), 10-11.

90. Annual Report of the Adjutant General of Pennsylvania for the Year 

1898, 232.

91. William S. Christner, 10th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment, to “Dear 

Sister,” 3 May 1898 (Carlisle Barracks, PA: US Army Military History Institute).

92. Hastings, Governor of Pennsylvania, to the Secretary of War, 13 May 

1898, in Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 

182, Muster in War With Spain, Document Number A31 249946, filed with 

Pennsylvania Documents, Box No. 6: Columbus, Ohio through South Carolina.

93. COL Hawkins to the Adjutant General, US Army, 19 May 1898, in 

Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 182, Muster 

in War With Spain, Document Number A81 249946, filed with Pennsylvania 

Documents, Box No. 6: Columbus, Ohio through South Carolina.

94. Robert L. Taylor, Governor, to Hon John A. Moon, 9 May 1898, in 

Record Group 94 Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 182, Muster 

in War With Spain, 1st Call, Document Number 261669, filed with Tennessee 

Documents, Box No. 7: South Dakota through Washington.

95. Allan L. McDonald, The Historical Record of the First Tennessee 

Infantry, U.S.V. in the Spanish War and Filipino Insurrection, n.p., n.d., 2-5.

96. H.C. Corbin to Captain Olmstead, Mustering Officer, 10 May 1898, in 
40

Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 182, Muster in 

War With Spain, 1st Call, Document Number 249516, Inclosure 32, filed with 

Iowa Documents, Box No. 2: Florida through Iowa.

97. Snure, 2; L.M. Shaw, Governor of Iowa, to Honorable W. B. Allison, 

Senate, 5 May 1898, in Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Checklist 

Entry 182, Muster in War With Spain, 1st Call, Document Number 249516, 

Inclosure 19, filed with Iowa Documents, Box No. 2: Florida through Iowa.

98. COL Jno. O. Leoper to the Adjutant General, US Army, 5 June 1898, 

in Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 182, Muster 

in War With Spain, 1st Call, Document Number 249516, Inclosure 82, filed with 

Iowa Documents, Box No. 2: Florida through Iowa.

99. First Sergeant Phil H. Shortt, Official History of the Operations of the 

First North Dakota Infantry, U.S.V. in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, 

n.p., n.d., 1.

100. H.C. Corbin to COL James A. Smith, 14 May 1898, in Report II, 1196; 

H.C. Corbin to Commanding Officer, 14th US Infantry Battalion, 14 May 1898, 

in Report II, 1197; H.C. Corbin to COL L.S. Babbitt, Benicia Arsenal, 14 May 

1898, in Report II, 1197; H.C. Corbin to COL Hawkins, 18 May 1898, in Report 

II, 1215.

101. Corbin to the Commanding General, Department East, 15 April 1898, 

in Correspondence I, 7.

102. H.R. Lewis to George W. McBride, 5 May 1898, in Record Group 94, 

Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 182, Muster in War With Spain, 

1st Call, Document Number 629918, Inclosure 19, filed with Oregon Documents, 

Box No. 6: Columbus, Ohio through South Carolina.

103. George W. McBride to Honorable Russell A. Alger, Secretary of War, 

6 May 1898, in Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Checklist Entry 

182, Muster in War With Spain, 1st Call, Document Number 253366, Inclosure 

18, filed with Oregon Documents, Box No. 6: Columbus, Ohio through South 

Carolina.

104. McKinley to the Secretary of War, 4 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 

635.

105. William Doxey, Doxey’s Guide to San Francisco and the Pleasure 

Resorts of California (San Francisco: Doxey Press, 1897), 17-21, 88-93.

106. Erna Risch, Quartermaster Support of the Army: A History of the Corps, 

1775-1939 (Washington, DC: Office of the Quartermaster General, 1962), 427, 

457, 492.

107. US War Department, Adjutant General’s Office. The Organized Militia 

of the United States. Statement of the Condition and Efficiency for Service of the 

Organized Militia. Regular Annual Reports, and other Sources, Covering the Year 

1897, (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898) 32-39.

108. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report of the Secretary of War. Miscellaneous 

Reports. Report of the Quartermaster General of the Army (Washington, DC: 

GPO, 1898), 386-87.
41

109. Testimony of COL Charles Bird, 2 December 1898 in US Senate, Report 

of the Commission Appointed by the President to Investigate the Conduct of the 

War Department in the War With Spain, volume VI, Testimony (Washington, DC: 

GPO, 1900), 2608-2609, hereafter cited as Report VI.

110. Record Group 92, The Textual Records of the Office of the Quartermaster 

General. Entry 1496, Register of Transportation of Troops and Their Equipment, 

1898-1900 (Washington, DC: National Archives), 110, 135, 173.

111. Madison U. Stoneman, Official History of the Operations of the First 

Battalion Wyoming Infantry, U.S.V. in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, 

n.p., n.d., 3.

112. Snure, 4; Joseph I. Markey, From Iowa to the Philippines: A History 

of Company M, Fifty-First Iowa Infantry Volunteers (Red Oak, IA: Thomas D. 

Murphy Co., 1900), 55-56.

43

Chapter III

Getting Organized

Army units moved from points around the country to converge on San 

Francisco between May and August 1898. Their efficient reception at the 

port city became the next step in a process designed to organize overseas 

expeditions. Local military and civilian authorities contemplated the appropriate actions that should be taken to receive troops and move them to 

assigned campsites near the Golden Gate. A routine gradually developed 

that pooled resources from the San Francisco military and civilian communities.

Trains bearing forces from the east carried organizations into California 

as far as Oakland. Troops detrained and boarded vessels for a trip across 

the bay. After disembarking near the Ferry Building, soldiers received a 

meal or refreshments that volunteers from the state Red Cross Society 

served. Following Red Cross festivities, military escorts guided Regular 

and Volunteer organizations through the city to their designated campsites. 

These areas could be at any of several locations: the Presidio, Bay District 

Racetrack, Jordan Tract, or Fontana warehouse. Time of arrival in the city 

and, later, unit mission dictated assignment to a specific location on or 

near the Presidio.

Preparing the force for wartime missions also required suitable command and control. In early May, the War Department established a new 

department-level command to preside over the expeditions. Later in the 

month, a division command structure emerged to organize, train, and 

equip the units designated for overseas duty.

Oakland and the Bay

Most of the units that gathered at the Golden Gate had traveled by 

rail to Oakland. Train sections made their way to the city’s 16th Street 

station, not far from the Oakland mole—a terminal where railroad passengers could connect with ferry transportation to San Francisco. Troops 

could use the ferry service that operated from early morning through late 

afternoon.1 The Southern Pacific, a railway company that managed ferry 

service, agreed not to dispatch units across the bay after 1600.2

 The reason 

was that soldiers still had to disembark, handle equipment, march to camp, 

and establish their campsites. Reaching the city late, only to be transported 

across the bay, meant the deeper into an evening they would take to get 

settled.

At least one regiment, the 10th Pennsylvania, arrived to be welcomed 
44

by a group of citizens at the Oakland station. Remarkably, when the train 

pulled into the mole at 0100, “500 people, the remnants of a much larger 

crowd, were waiting under the electric lights to cheer and to distribute 

flowers.” However, most of the troops were sound asleep and missed their 

warm reception.3

How quickly organizations embarked for the trip across San Francisco 

Bay depended principally on the time they reached the Oakland terminus. 

Part or all of several regiments remained overnight in Oakland because 

ferry operations had ceased for the day. Troops from Kansas, Pennsylvania, 

New York, Utah, Montana, Iowa, Tennessee, Minnesota, Wyoming, and 

the Astor Battery slept in railroad cars on sidetracks and awaited ferry 

service the next day.4

 At least one unit that stopped in Oakland established 

security around its train; the 1st Battalion, 13th Minnesota, posted armed 

guards with ammunition chambered. A reporter for the San Francisco Call

wrote, “No one was allowed to approach nearer than twenty feet to the 

train until he had been admitted by a commissioned officer.”5

When ferry service resumed, most organizations detrained, and the 

men walked aboard vessels like the Piedmont.

6

 Each passenger ferry accommodated about 250 men.7

 Troops boarded and could share their 6-

mile excursion across San Francisco Bay with civilian passengers.8

 Ferries 

were not chartered for military use; units took available vessels that made 

routine runs between Oakland and San Francisco.

Not all troops took passenger ferries. Exceptions included mounted 

units from Utah and the 4th Cavalry. These organizations arrived fully 

equipped with horses, saddles, and bridles. Specifically, the Utah Cavalry 

transported 84 Volunteers and 87 horses on six railway cars.9

 All six cars, 

Figure 14.

The Examiner, 21 May 1898
45

including troops and animals, were run aboard the freight boat Transit, 

which took an hour to reach San Francisco’s docks. The same procedure 

occurred with Troop E, 4th Cavalry.10

Whether conveyed by passenger or freight vessels, troops formed diverse impressions about their jaunt across the bay. Private James Camp, 

1st Idaho, wrote that he and his comrades arrived in Oakland “somewhat 

cranky” after being cramped in crowded rail cars for three days. Camp 

observed, “Our trip across the bay did not improve our tempers.”11

For others, the excursion was another segment of a revealing odyssey 

that began with assemblies in state camps. The San Francisco Chronicle

suggested that bay sights must have been particularly spectacular for those 

coming from origins east of the Rocky Mountains. After 1st Nebraska men 

docked at the Ferry Building, a Chronicle reporter wrote, “Strangers to the 

far West and to deep water, hundreds of them never having seen a ship or 

an ocean steamer before in their lives, these newcomers marveled at what 

they beheld while crossing from the Oakland side.” Troops strained to see 

“the warlike Monterey and the forest of towering masts of merchantmen 

and the scores of funnels of big passenger liners lying peacefully all along 

the extensive water-front. It was a novel experience in a new country.”12

Figure 15.

The Examiner, 21 May 1898
46

Arrival in San Francisco

Starting on 7 May 1898, units that had formed outside of San Francisco 

began to close on the city. By the peace protocol of 12 August, Volunteer 

organizations from 18 states, Regular troops representing seven active 

duty units, and the special military force that John Jacob Astor funded 

had poured into the Bay Area. (See appendix A.) Authorities were busiest 

receiving troops over the last two weeks of May. During that period, men 

from 11 infantry regiments, two batteries of artillery, one troop of cavalry, 

and one company of engineers reached the Golden Gate. Military organizations arrived before and after those hectic 14 days but never at the same 

pace.

Reception activities for those reaching San Francisco started at the 

Ferry Building. In this newly constructed, spacious depot funded by 

California state, troops experienced a special greeting that for many created lasting memories.13 The men were treated to a lavish spread of refreshments that had been organized, and in some cases prepared, by members 

of the Red Cross Society. Volunteer histories compiled after the war often 

regarded the Red Cross welcome as the noteworthy event of their organizations’ San Francisco experience.14

Figure 16. Ferry Building, circa 1898.

Golden Gate National Recreation Area, National Park Service
47

Individual soldiers accorded this Red Cross activity with similar recognition. Private William S. Christner of the 10th Pennsylvania Infantry 

wrote his parents on 26 May 1898: “When we arrived at Frisco the ladies 

of the Red Cross Society met us and such a breakfast the boys had not 

eaten for some time. Then they packed our haversacks with sandwiches, 

oranges, and bananas. Grapes and apricots were given us in plenty.”15

Private A.G. Baker of the 1st Colorado recalled the event in his personal 

narrative of the war. As Colorado Volunteers disembarked near the Ferry 

Building on 21 May, Baker observed, “Our coming had been anticipated 

by the noble ladies of the Red Cross Society of California, who had provided an excellent dinner for us.”16

Unlike Pennsylvania and Colorado Volunteers, the first troops to reach 

San Francisco entered the city and marched to camp on empty stomachs. 

On 7 May, the 7th Californians crossed the bay after a tiresome 24-hour 

railway journey. They believed that food awaited them at the Presidio. 

The Examiner reported that “somebody played ‘Philippine’ with the provisions,” and the troops received “nothing at the end of the trip but sea 

breeze and dirt.”17 Companies of men from the 14th US Infantry and 6th 

California followed over the next four days and also went into camp without refreshments.

A similar experience befell troops of the 2d Oregon’s first battalion 

who docked at the city’s wharf on 13 May. Their neglect elicited criticism 

from two city newspapers. A San Francisco Daily Report article decried 

the apathy accorded those in uniform. Another publication, the Call, observed, “The men were hungry and tired from their long trip from Oregon, 

and they were obliged to tramp all the way to the Presidio with no one to 

even offer them a drink of water.”18

Spurred by this lack of consideration and supported by the Salvation 

Army, the city’s Red Cross Society established a suitable welcome. On 

18 May, the society positioned civilian volunteers at the Ferry Building to 

greet incoming troops shortly after they stepped off vessels from Oakland. 

Fittingly, the remainder of Oregon’s Volunteers were the first to enjoy this 

reception. Thereafter, Red Cross representatives, surrounded by tables 

of refreshments, awaited dockside to offer military arrivals “a practical 

California welcome.”19

The dockside fiasco of 13 May also energized the mayor and other 

civic organizations. On 22 May, the Knights Templars conferred with 

Mayor James D. Phelan on “how to provide for the incoming troops that 

the Government seems so powerless to provide” for. The Knights asked 

the mayor “what had been done by the city and by himself toward properly 
48

receiving the troops.” The mayor highlighted several steps he had taken 

to furnish bands and escorts, and cited the program the Red Cross had undertaken. Phelan urged the Knights to become involved and to support the 

society, and they did so with alacrity.20

The Ferry Building provided a backdrop for some memorable scenes. 

One highly publicized incident involving the Red Cross Society and an 

Army captain occurred at the depot in June 1898. When the Astor Battery 

docked on 20 June, the society’s 

welcome for troops had reached 

obligatory status. Red Cross volunteers and the city that supported 

them expected new arrivals to 

participate in reception activities. Allegedly, Peyton C. March, 

commander, Astor Battery, and 

recently promoted to captain of 

Volunteers, had not been apprised 

of the expectation that this ritual 

would be observed. In an article titled “A Discourteous Lieutenant” 

(the demotion itself a written jab 

at the Astor captain), the Call acFigure 17. California Red Cross Room, Ferry Building,

San Francisco, September 1898.

Figure 18. Mayor James D. Phelan.

Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope Golden Gate Nat’l Recreation Area, Nat’l Park Service
49

cused March of rendering “a snub so direct and given with such studied 

discourtesy as to stamp the offender as totally lacking every qualification 

of a gentleman.”

March, it seemed, had the audacity to decline the Red Cross breakfast. 

Pressured anew to allow his men inside the Ferry Building’s dining area, 

the captain “did unbend enough to march his men into the room, and the ladies offered each a bunch of flowers and an orange, which were gratefully 

accepted.” While hot food was also available to the men, a correspondent 

wrote that March forbade them to indulge. The Astor’s commanding officer felt that the artillerymen, having had their fill of hardtack and coffee 

before crossing the bay, required no more food. Branding him “an obscure 

lieutenant of artillery, lifted into momentary conspicuousness by the favor 

of a millionaire,” the Call wished the worst for March. “It is to be hoped 

he will be assigned to the next expedition and given every opportunity to 

extinguish himself on the field of battle,” judged an editorial.21

The incident found its way into additional newspapers. Private Joseph 

I. Markey, 51st Iowa, wrote a state newspaper claiming the Astor Battery 

“refused to accept lunch proffered by the kind ladies of the Red Cross, on 

the ground that it was not good enough for them.”22 Other reporters described the incident in less sensational terms than those the Call employed. 

A writer for The Examiner quoted one Red Cross volunteer who characterized March as “high-toned” and “curt.” The same reporter acknowledged 

that the captain, despite his perceived aloofness, relented and permitted his 

men to take refreshment.23

Unlike other newspapers, the Daily Report came to March’s defense. 

In an article titled “The Ladies not Snubbed,” the paper offered observations from another society volunteer, Mrs. Mark Requa. She confirmed 

that although March at first declined the society’s hospitality, he subsequently consented. Mrs. Requa added that the captain “had no intention 

of acting discourteously” and expressed his appreciation to the Red Cross 

ladies.24 The following day, the Daily Report went so far as to offer an 

editorial defense of March and his unit, concluding, “The Astor Battery is 

all right.”25

The Ferry Building was also the scene for another incident involving 

a different unit, the 1st Tennessee. Portending racial incidents to come, the 

Tennesseans docked in San Francisco with “a prisoner . . . the colored porter” 

from one of the Pullman cars carrying Southerners to the Golden Gate. The 

Call alleged that troops from one company had coerced the porter to smuggle liquor aboard the train, but guards caught and confined him. Apprised 
50

by telegraph of the situation, a Pullman Company superintendent secured 

his employee’s release when the 1st Tennessee arrived in the city.26

The last regiment to dock at the ferry depot before the peace protocol 

was also the only organization of that size to be feted at a special reception. After the 1st New York Regiment reached San Francisco on 15 July, 

it marched to the Mechanics’ Pavilion where the New York Association of 

San Francisco treated the troops to a breakfast banquet. The event offered 

the first signs of special treatment that would be accorded New Yorkers 

during their stay in the city.27

The March to Campsites

Led by the Red Cross, the city worked to improve the welcome bestowed upon Volunteers and Regulars. Army officials, too, needed to reassess their reception activities. The 2d Oregon’s arrival on 13 May highlighted shortcomings in Army plans to accept units at the Golden Gate. To 

the embarrassment of the military, the Daily Report informed readers that 

Oregonians “were surprised at not being met at the ferry by an army officer to guide them through the streets out to the Presidio. While the officers 

knew something about San Francisco, they did not know the best route to 

reach camp and had to inquire their way.”28

The 2d Oregon and every Volunteer unit that followed neglected to 

dispatch anyone to San Francisco who could coordinate their organization’s arrival. Perhaps more grievous, no one from the US Army already at the Golden Gate routinely met every force debarking in early 

May. Instead a “to each his own” philosophy prevailed. Members of the 

California National Guard tended to California units, and the 4th Cavalry 

sent a representative to meet companies of the 14th Infantry. That method 

worked well until Volunteer forces outside of California approached the 

bay city.29

Arguably, the Army should have addressed this oversight in receiving incoming Volunteers no later than 9 May. On that date, MG Henry C. 

Merriam, commander, Department of California, wired his adjutant general in San Francisco: “Instruct the commanding officer at the Presidio 

to designate one officer to aid each volunteer regimental commander in 

drawing and issuing arms, clothing and general outfit, and accounting for 

same, as these regiments arrive and go into camp, and give all other aid 

necessary to start administration.”30 Unfortunately, the order was strictly 

interpreted. Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Louis T. Morris, commander of the 

Presidio, appointed CPT James Lockett, 4th Cavalry, to fulfill these tasks. 

The captain discharged his responsibilities—but only after Volunteers 
51

reached their campsites. Between the waterfront and the Presidio, units 

were on their own.

With some additional prompting, Army officials adjusted their reception procedures. The Daily Report article from 13 May, plus Merriam’s 

return to San Francisco on 16 May, provided the incentive to resolve the 

dockside glitch. By 18 May, Army escorts, assigned to guide units into 

designated campsites, met organizations as they disembarked near the 

Ferry Building.31

The march to camp constituted the final stage of a unit’s welcome to 

San Francisco. After being presented with food and flowers by Red Cross 

volunteers, troops vacated the ferry depot sporting blossoms on their 

uniforms and in gunbarrels.32 Often a civilian crowd, anxious to catch a 

glimpse of the city’s newest military visitors, gathered just outside the 

gated docks. Atop the Claus Sprekels Building a cannon fired to announce 

that another unit had set out for camp.33 Accompanied by military guides 

and frequently preceded by bands, units journeyed to bivouac sites.34 Most 

marched to the cheers of flag-waving, clapping citizens. Municipal police 

assisted in crowd control.35

The trek was lengthy: 3 to 4 miles along the city’s avenues.36 It had 

its challenges beginning with Market Street’s cobblestones, which some 

troops quietly cursed.37 From Market, 

units traveled along Golden Gate, then 

Van Ness Avenue and Lombard Street 

into the Presidio.38 Others took Golden 

Gate or Geary into camp if their organization was given a site away from 

the military reservation.39

Figure 19.

San Francisco Call, 21 May 1898
52

One unit took a circuitous route to camp because its Army escorts became disoriented. On 10 June, Iowa’s Volunteers started their march led by 

two orderlies from Merriam’s command. The Daily Report claimed that the 

escorts, who lacked familiarity with the encampment, took the regiment “on 

a wild goose chase.” After the 51st Iowa engaged in considerable marching 

and endured numerous catcalls from troops in camp, the newspaper reported 

that “a sergeant was detailed to pilot the Iowans to their proper position.”40

Even if guided by the most knowledgeable of sergeants, units needed assistance moving unwieldy cargo from docks to camps. Troops used 

heavy wagons, or trucks, located near the Ferry Building to convey their 

baggage and weightier items. Sometimes the demand for wagons exceeded the supply. On 21 May, for example, elements from four state Volunteer 

organizations docked in San Francisco. Soldiers from two organizations, 

the 13th Minnesota and 1st Colorado, nearly came to blows over who 

would first use the trucks. The Minnesotans prevailed, filled their wagons 

with equipment, and got to camp as storms threatened. While hurrying 

to unpack shelters, troops discovered much to their dismay that the gear 

belonged to the 1st Colorado Infantry.41

The City’s Military Visitors: A Local Perspective

City newspapers offered critiques and colorful descriptions of units 

during their welcome to the city and their march to camp. The Call wrote of 

the Oregonians: “The men are fine looking soldiers, and are a magnificent 

body of physical manhood. Tall, strong and brawny with a determined look 

Figure 20.

San Francisco Chronicle, 11 June 1898
53

on their countenances.”42 On 20 May, The Examiner dubbed Nebraskans 

“brave boys” though “rather smaller than the Oregon volunteers.”43 Ten 

days later, the same newspaper wrote respectfully of the “bronzed troops 

from the South,” the Regulars of the 18th and 23d Infantry Regiments: 

“their sinewy figures bespoke the health and vigor of men inured to life 

on the frontier.”44 “Husky men, all these,” proclaimed the Chronicle in its 

assessment of the 1st Montana.45 The Call in particular employed vivid descriptions to delineate Volunteers: the “hardy miners and mountaineers” of 

Idaho; “the crack troops of the Keystone State,” Pennsylvania; the “finelooking lot of men, big strapping plainsmen,” who hailed from Iowa; and 

“the Gotham Regiment” from New York.46

Local journalists also delighted in identifying the mascots that accompanied Volunteers and Regulars. Many regiments and a number of 

smaller organizations sported some type of bird or animal. Company D, 

7th California, arrived in early May with an American eagle.47 Nebraska’s 

second battalion brought “Nebraska,” a huge golden eagle that William 

Jennings Bryan presented to the regiment.48 Company F, 51st Iowa, toted 

a black eagle.49 Two companies from the 1st Idaho brought their eagles, 

Figure 21.

San Francisco Chronicle, 21 May 1898
54

“Pocatello Joe” and “Admiral Dewey.”50 One company from the 1st New 

York carried a “bird of a different feather”—a crow named “Hobson.”51

Dogs were another favorite mascot among the troops. “Bummer,” a 

great dane, trotted alongside his masters in the 1st Battalion, 2d Oregon.52

Four dogs came with the troops from Idaho.53 A fox terrier, “Boojum,” 

accompanied the Astor Battery.54 Another artillery unit, the Alger 

(Wyoming) Battery, brought an Irish spaniel, “Jeff,” noteworthy for his 

“long legal history” in Cheyenne courts. The Chronicle observed “hord[e]s 

of other canine company mascots, most of which are named ‘Dewey.’”55

The 10th Pennsylvania had a large black-and-white dog that bore the 

admiral’s name.56 So, too, did a bulldog accompanying the 1st New York 

and a mutt with one company from the 51st Iowa.57

Other units adopted less domesticated animals. One company from 

Idaho brought a five-week-old coyote.58 The 1st Tennessee carried a raccoon.59 One of the men in Nebraska’s second battalion marched to camp 

with a wolf pup, “Sampson,” cradled in his arms.60

Perhaps the most novel of these mascots were teenage boys who accompanied three regiments. George Froam, a 64-pound “orphan waif from 

the streets of New Orleans,” connected with the 23d US Infantry during 

its brief stay in Louisiana. When the regiment departed for the Bay Area, 

Froam decided to tag along. Acting as willing accomplices, several troops 

smuggled the boy aboard the train. By the time the 23d Infantry reached 

the Golden Gate, Froam had earned a reputation for being a “hustler” who 

could make money singing, dancing, and polishing officers’ footwear.61

Figure 22.

San Francisco Chronicle, 20 May 1898
55

The ability to shine shoes endeared “Boots,” a 13-year-old bootblack, 

to the men of Company D, 10th Pennsylvania. Before leaving the East 

Coast, each of the troops contributed 25 cents to buy their mascot an outfit, then tried to sneak him onto the trains. Occasionally, the men paid his 

fare when railway authorities discovered the stowaway. Apparently, troops 

purchased the cheapest seat, for Boots nearly froze atop railroad cars when 

riding through snowsheds on the way to California.62

The 1st Tennessee was the last regiment to cross the bay with a teenage mascot. Zeke Carsey, 13, began his association with Tennessee units 

in 1896. A native of Nashville, where he lived with his parents, Zeke endeared himself to the troops by employing “his ready wit and his superior musical abilities.” He had a reputation for being adept at playing the 

piccolo, drums, and banjo. Allegedly, his mother gave her permission for 

Zeke to go with the 1st Tennessee to the West Coast. Unlike his fellow 

mascots in the 23d Infantry and 10th Pennsylvania, Zeke traveled in style 

on the troop train; he rode in “the colonel’s car and was a constant source 

of entertainment to the officers.”63

Into the Camps

The question of where to locate Volunteers and Regulars upon their 

arrival in the city had to be answered in relatively short order. Logically, 

the first places to consider were those military posts that were already 

established in the Bay Area. Evolving from military plans first conceived 

in 1850, the Army, by May 1898, possessed a network of installations designed for coast defense.64

Two locations sat astride the Golden Gate straits: Fort Winfield Scott 

and Fort Baker. On the Marin County side north of the straits, Fort Baker 

occupied part of the Lime Point Military Reservation and its 1,335 acres of 

rugged, coastal terrain. A battery-size unit of artillery manned the fort’s crewserved weapons.65 MG Miles had dubbed Lime Point “the Gibraltar of the 

Pacific.”66 To the south, across the waterway, Fort Scott included coast artillery weapons and the old Fort Point fortress. The brick structure could accommodate several companies of infantry or comparable units of artillery.67

Deeper into the Bay Area, the Army occupied smaller outposts that had 

been built to support Forts Baker and Scott during an attack. If enemy ships 

fought through the crossfire from these two forts and successfully negotiated minefields that protected the straits, US troops on Alcatraz Island could 

engage the seaborne force. Should a belligerent land force attempt to besiege Fort Scott, the works at Fort Mason protected Fort Scott’s vulnerable 

flank. Mason overlooked the bay about a mile and a half to the east of the 
56

Presidio. Any land force threatening Marin’s Fort Baker would have to 

contend with artillery and the small garrison positioned on Angel Island. 

Theoretically, troops at Angel Island and Fort Mason could also engage 

direct threats against the Alcatraz force.68

In an emergency, Alcatraz and Angel Islands, as well as Fort Baker 

across the bay, offered potential bivouac sites for incoming forces. 

Establishing campgrounds at these locations, however, presented unattractive challenges of accessibility and support. Incapable of logistics selfsufficiency, these positions were sustained by San Francisco Bay watercraft. Each locale would eventually maintain small garrisons during the 

war, but these existed to man and maintain defense works.69 In early May, 

local military officials needed suitable grounds quickly to accommodate 

the thousands of troops that President William McKinley was about to 

send to the Golden Gate.70

The Presidio of San Francisco, the facility that provided manpower 

resources for these bay outposts, at once emerged as the most attractive 

site to locate incoming Volunteers and Regulars. Occupied continuously 

by American forces since May 1849, the military reservation encompassed 

1,479 acres of land northwest of the city’s more populous areas. It lay 

within walking distance of docks that could both receive and dispatch military forces. By May 1898, the Presidio tied into a mass transit system that 

provided access to parts of the city via cable car. A series of wells kept the 

post supplied with water. In addition to maintaining a small hospital, the 

reservation served as home to the US Marine Hospital, Fort Winfield Scott 

complex, and recently constructed brick barracks that sheltered Regulars 

assigned to the Bay Area.71

The Presidio was also close to MG H.C. Merriam’s headquarters. 

Alerted that troops would stage in his California area of responsibility, 

Merriam issued a 4 May order to the reservation commander, LTC Louis 

T. Morris, to select campsites for an estimated 6,000 troops who were expected to converge on the city.72 That figure included Regulars of the 14th 

Infantry and Volunteers from California, Oregon, and Washington.

Morris looked over the Presidio for space to accommodate such a large 

contingent. Grounds located in elevated areas where water would “have to 

be brought, either by piping or by water carts,” appeared most suited for an 

encampment.73 The reservation’s water wells, however, barely possessed 

the capacity to provide for the garrison currently assigned. The thousands 

of troops expected momentarily in the city would simply overwhelm the 

Presidio’s water supply.74
57

Morris’s encampment options were not limited just to the Presidio 

or other Bay Area military outposts such as Angel Island that could take 

about 500 men.75 Some citizens in the San Francisco community stepped 

forward to render assistance by offering shelters or real estate. Fontana 

and Company, local canners, offered a large brick warehouse on the bay 

shore near the foot of Van Ness Avenue. Once home to the Mission Woolen 

Mills, the warehouse had the added advantage of being located close to Fort 

Mason, part of the Bay Area defense network.76 (See figure 23.) Other sites 

tendered included “the old race-track property, a site on the hills dividing 

the Richmond District from the Presidio and another on the hospital tract.”77

Like the Fontana warehouse, all were within a mile of the Presidio.

By 6 May, Morris had chosen his preferred campsite—along the 

southern periphery of the Presidio’s spacious drill field (labeled “Parade 

Ground” by the Call) that bordered a stretch of road just inside the 

Presidio’s Lombard Street entrance not far from the Union Street cable 

line terminus.78 That decision unquestionably received the endorsement of 

officers affiliated with the California regiments, the first units to go into the 

designated location. CPT Frank de L. Carrington, the Regular Army officer 

directed to muster California Volunteers into federal service, preferred that 

“the new soldiers should at once accustom themselves to camp life,” an 

environment best developed on a military reservation.79 (See figure 24.)

LTC Victor D. DuBoce of the 1st California Infantry also supported 

the Presidio option. Indeed, the Call reported that Morris’ decision turned 

on DuBoce’s plea “to put them at the Presidio, where the military surroundings as well as the presence and example of the regular troops and of 

the other regiments would help to infuse the military spirit into the organization.”80 In a separate article, the same paper reported: “The camp will 

be independent of the Presidio proper, but the troops will be compelled to 

obey the post regulations.”81

Merriam endorsed Morris’s selection and published General Orders 

Number 8, which specified 120,000 square feet of camping space for a 

regimental-size force. The order directed First Lieutenant (1LT) John M. 

Neall, 4th Cavalry, to assign plots to arriving units “keeping in view, first, 

facilities for water supply, and, second, economy of space.”82 Subsequently, 

Regulars of the 4th Cavalry “laid out the camp grounds, marked off the 

company streets and in various ways did all in their power to make officers 

and men comfortable.”83

On Saturday, 7 May, the 1st California Infantry commanded by COL 

James F. Smith marched onto the Presidio and then into camp. 1LT Neall 
58

Figure 23. Fort Mason and north San Francisco, 1896. Arrow points to general vicinity of Fontana warehouse.

Crocker’s Guide Map of the City of San Francisco, 1896
59 Figure 24. Presidio of San Francisco, 1897-1909 (campsite location added).

National Park Service, GOGA, Presidio Army Records Center
60

showed the colonel his regiment’s designated location, just inside the 

Lombard Street gate.84 COL John R. Berry’s 7th California Infantry arrived 

later in the day and established its bivouac area to the west of Smith’s regiment. Soon units from the 14th Infantry, 6th California, and 2d Oregon, in 

succession, joined the Presidio encampment. By 13 May, the military reservation boasted a campsite composed of approximately 3,200 Regulars 

and Volunteers.85

Starting at the southeast edge of the large, somewhat barren drill field, 

the camp’s bivouac sites sprang up by regiment with approximately 50 

feet separating each organization. Company streets ran north and south; 

tents faced and opened to the east because of strong, westerly winds that 

prevailed in the afternoon. The Chronicle reported that what little vegetation existed on the plain soon disappeared in the wake of “detached groups 

of men marching and wheeling and squatting and aiming their rifles, according to the manner prescribed for an outlying skirmish line.” Clay and 

sand turned quickly to dust. When San Franciscans flocked to visit the 

camps during early May, they churned up a dark haze of dust that engulfed 

the bivouac area.86

While other areas of the reservation may have offered greater protection against the elements, access to water effectively dictated the camp’s 

location. When LTC Morris first conducted his reconnaissance for suitable campsites, Hermann Schussler, chief engineer of the Spring Valley 

Water Works, always seemed near at hand. 1LT Neall’s instructions regarding site selection placed a premium on access to water. Ultimately, the 

Figure 25.

San Francisco Call, 18 May 1898
61

Presidio’s cavalry drill field emerged as the top choice because there the 

military could tap into water more quickly and cheaply than in other areas. 

The Chronicle quoted a Presidio officer who stated, “There is a large main 

at the Lombard-street entrance, and to supply any ground below that level 

nothing but pipes was necessary. To supply the slope above the road every 

drop of water would have to be pumped. The mains above the hillside are 

a long way off, and to have chosen them would have involved delay, which 

was inadmissible, and expense, which was unjustifiable.”87 Beginning 6 

May, Presidio officials arranged to have workers from the Spring Valley 

Water Company lay 6-inch pipe off the Lombard Street main to give the 

new encampment its source of water.88

Spring Valley water could quench the thirst of those soldiers who 

were equipped to establish their own bivouac sites. That condition distinguished the first regimental organizations that marched onto the Presidio. 

Each possessed sufficient quartermaster blankets, uniforms, and tentage 

Figure 26.

San Francisco Chronicle, 9 May 1898
62

to establish outdoor dwellings. Such was not the case with all units closing on San Francisco in early May, including one of California’s own, the 

heavy artillery.

Hastily organized, these four batteries of 600 men had no mess equipment, uniforms, or other quartermaster gear. Part of the reason was that 

when the California National Guard reorganized in 1897, artillery regiments and light batteries disappeared from state rolls.89 Nevertheless, the 

War Department directed the state to provide four heavy batteries in addition to its infantry commitment.90 Assessing the situation, CPT Carrington, 

the mustering officer, telegraphed BG Corbin from San Francisco on 9 

May: “I think it advisable to hold batteries of heavy artillery here for a few 

days until they are fully equipped to go into camp complete. . . . I have the 

use without cost to the government of a building for quartering them and 

can feed them as at present at seventeen cents per meal per man.”91 That 

building of which he wrote was the warehouse Fontana and Company had 

offered.

On 11 May, the artillerymen, attired in civilian clothes, marched out 

of their armory looking “more like a column of the unemployed.”92 The 

Volunteers converged on the old Mission Woolen Mill, which Private 

Charles R. Detrick of the 1st California described as “under the old 

smooth-bores of Fort Mason.”93 There the troops took up quarters in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Nat’l Park Service

Figure 27. Fontana warehouse, 1915.
63

four-story structure. With the cannery still conducting business on the first 

floor, artillerymen spread over the upper three levels. Mark J. Fontana, one 

of the owners, offered the facility to the military for as long as needed.94

Within a week, the Californians were joined in the warehouse by units 

from the 1st Washington, a regiment that MG Merriam judged to be “half 

uniformed and half armed.”95

Merriam likely formed his impression of the 1st Washington before 

leaving Vancouver Barracks for San Francisco to oversee the assembly of 

forces. By the time he arrived in the city on 16 May, troops from California, 

Washington, Oregon, and the 14th Infantry had taken shelter at two locations: the Presidio and the Fontana warehouse. But other troops were coming by the thousands, and Merriam had to decide where to quarter those 

units that were scheduled to arrive starting 18 May.96

After making a quick inspection of the Presidio encampment and conferring with LTC Morris, Merriam chose the site of the old Bay District 

Racetrack. The location, less than a mile due south of the Presidio, could 

be accessed easily by foot or streetcar. Bounded by Point Lobos Avenue to 

the north, Fulton Street to the south, and 1st through 6th Avenues running 

east to west, the site and its environs promised to accommodate many regiments that were about to arrive in the city.97 (See figure 28.)

Merriam chose the location for several reasons. The military preferred 

to keep regimental organizations together at campsites. Smaller posts in 

the Bay Area could not host organizations that size. Another option, the 

Fontana warehouse, could be dismissed because of the number of troops 

already located there. When Merriam reached San Francisco, more than 

1,000 men had found shelter in the building.

Expanding the Presidio encampment seemed the most likely choice, 

but the general was not persuaded that such a step was needed. Merriam 

wrote, “sufficient ground, suitable in all respects for so large an encampment, could not be made available on the Presidio reservation and supplied with water without considerable time and an expenditure of more than 

$50,000.” Additionally, Merriam conducted his arrival inspection at a time 

when the Presidio camp did not look its best. Deluged by rain and crowds 

of visitors during the 48 hours preceding his arrival, the campsite had been 

transformed into what the Call described as a veritable quagmire of mud, 

sand, and standing water.98 Sandy soil, water, and thousands of additional 

troops would likely produce similar results anywhere else on the reservation. That mix of men with elements could have had catastrophic effects on 

the post forestation project begun nine years earlier. Congress had provided 
64

Crocker’s Guide Map of the City of San Francisco, 1896

Figure 28. Northwest San Francisco, 1896. Arrow A–Old Bay District Racetrack. Arrow B–Jordan Tract.
65

some $10,000 for a Bay Area firm to plant 400,000 eucalyptus, cedar, pine, 

and acacia to reclaim sand dunes and protect the installation’s water supply.99 Preserving the effects of this program provided an additional incentive to finding accommodations elsewhere for incoming troops.

The old Bay District Racetrack site possessed attractive features in its 

own right. Like the Fontana warehouse, the grounds would come at virtually 

no cost to the military. The Crocker Estate Company owned the property and 

required only “that the army authorities shall leave the premises in as good 

condition as they find them.” City mains in the vicinity could readily provide 

sufficient water for the site, which could hold as many as 10,000 troops.100

Beginning 18 May, Volunteers and Regulars poured onto the old 

Bay District Racetrack, officially dubbed Camp Merritt.101 Over the next 

several days, Merritt became the campground for units from Nebraska, 

Kansas, Colorado, Minnesota, Idaho, Pennsylvania, California, Utah, and 

Wyoming. Regular engineers and infantrymen from the 14th, 18th, and 

23d Regiments joined the campsite. A week after opening, the bivouac absorbed the old Bay District Racetrack and several surrounding city blocks. 

It boasted a population of more than 7,000 troops.102

Figure 29.

The Examiner, 31 May 1898
66

So great was the influx of forces to the Golden Gate that the military sought additional space to position troops. James Clark Jordan, a San 

Francisco real estate entrepreneur, owned land just northeast of the old 

Bay District Racetrack. In late May, Jordan offered the military an area 

bounded by California Avenue to the north, Point Lobos Avenue to the 

south, and Maple to Michigan Streets running east to west. On 25 May, 

MG Elwell S. Otis wrote Jordan, “I am in receipt of your communication 

tendering the free use of the land known as ‘The Jordan Tract’ [see figure 

28, arrow B] to the government for camping purposes of its troops now being assembled at this point. The tract is most convenient for such purposes 

and is gladly accepted.”103 On 28 May, the Army spilled across 1st Avenue 

into this new section of Camp Merritt. Eventually, the Jordan Tract included the division hospital and troops from Montana, North Dakota, South 

Dakota, Nevada, and Iowa.

Figure 30. Some streets are mislabled.

San Francisco Call, 30 May 1898
67

By 14 June, nearly 15,000 Regulars and Volunteers were assembled in 

San Francisco. Military officials spread the troops about four sites: 2,180 

soldiers on the Presidio, including the original bivouac area subsequently 

called Camp Miller; 680 Volunteers at the Fontana warehouse; and just 

under 12,000 men at the two locations constituting Camp Merritt.104

Establishing Command and Control

MG Henry C. Merriam would be the first, and several months later the 

last, senior Army two-star commander to influence the forces assembled 

in San Francisco for the war against Spain. A career officer who received 

a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Colby College in Maine, Merriam 

entered the service as a captain during the Civil War. In that conflict, he 

earned several brevet promotions and the Medal of Honor for gallantry 

on the battlefield. Beginning in 1866, Merriam spent the next 30 years 

performing various duties on the frontier. He participated in combat operations against Mexican forces during 1876, the Nez Percé in 1877, and the 

Sioux from 1890 to 1891.105

Promoted to brigadier general on 30 June 1897, Merriam took command 

of the Department of Columbia a month later. In that position, the general 

assumed responsibility for operations in Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and 

Alaska. The attendant problems created by a rush of miners into Yukon 

territory demanded the use of departmental resources. In early 1898, the 

Figure 31. 51st Iowa at Camp Merritt.

Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Nat’l Park Service
68

spat over boundaries between the United States and Canada described in 

chapter II that involved COL Thomas Anderson’s 14th US Infantry occurred within Merriam’s command.106

Due south of Merriam’s Columbia Department, Brigadier General 

(BG) William Shafter headed the Department of California at the beginning of the war with Spain. Shortly after ordering the 1st US Infantry 

Regiment from the California territory to an assembly area in the South, 

the War Department directed Shafter to leave his post at San Francisco and 

take command of troops assembling at New Orleans.107

With Shafter’s departure, Merriam assumed responsibility for the 

Department of California while retaining control of the Department of 

Columbia.108 His combined territory encompassed the entire West Coast 

of the United States, Alaska, Idaho, and Nevada. Merriam was, therefore, at once responsible for the Army’s portion of Pacific coast defense. 

Merriam initially elected to remain at Vancouver Barracks in Washington 

state where, in addition to coast defense, he was also ordered to “supervise 

organization of volunteers in Washington, Oregon and California.”109

Merriam’s choice of locations from which to exercise command may 

have been appropriate through late April. By early May, however, he 

should have reconsidered his decision. The president’s directive to send 

Army forces to the Philippines through San Francisco had considerable 

implications regarding the Department of California. A senior officer 

needed to be present to supervise the reception, quartering, and equipping 

of forces due into that port of embarkation. Coast defense and state militia 

mobilization could be monitored just as easily from San Francisco as it 

could from Vancouver Barracks. Merriam tried to establish a de facto presence by communicating via telegraph with the department’s staff, but that 

action did not allow for a personal assessment of actions.

Merriam’s decision did not rest well with the War Department. Between 3 and 16 May, Corbin, Miles, and Alger had no general officer 

contact at the Golden Gate to render status reports on the assembly of 

forces. They received information piecemeal and from numerous sources 

by wire. Finally, on 13 May, Corbin telegraphed Merriam, “The General 

Commanding the Army would like for you to repair to San Francisco soon 

as possible and give the organization of these troops your personal attention.”110

To his credit, Merriam, reacting to Corbin’s message, departed for the 

city within 24 hours.111 Nevertheless, to ensure that Merriam fully understood his priorities, the AG’s office followed up with a message on 16 May: 
69

“Secretary of War directs that until further orders you establish your headquarters at San Francisco, Cal. You will continue to exercise command of 

both the Departments of the Columbia and of California.”112

Merriam’s first major decision after his arrival on 16 May would be 

his most controversial: selecting the Bay District Racetrack as a campsite. Before he made his choice, Call accounts looked for the Presidio to 

absorb additional forces reaching the Golden Gate beginning mid-May.113

The newspaper even cited 1LT Neall as saying incoming troops would 

be accommodated at the Presidio “upon the slope south of the Union car 

line.”114 Given his responsibility to establish campsites, Neall was certainly in a position to know where troops would most likely be quartered.

After moving to establish an additional encampment away from the 

Presidio, Merriam’s influence over all the forces positioned in San Francisco diminished due to the presence of MG E.S. Otis. On 11 May 1898, 

Secretary of War R.A. Alger offered Otis “second in command” of the 

Philippine expedition.115 (See figure 33.) Alger’s proposal was not due to 

happenstance; the War Department knew firsthand of Otis’s talents. He 

was an experienced senior leader, and he held both regimental and brigade 

command positions during the Civil War. In the 1880s, Otis led the Regular 

Army’s 20th Infantry Regiment. After his promotion to brigadier general 

in 1893, he took command of the Department of Columbia. In 1897, he left 

that post to become commander of the Department of Colorado.116

Figure 32.

The Examiner, 17 May 1898
70

Otis also possessed superb 

organizational and administrative skills. In 1881, MG 

William T. Sherman directed 

Otis to develop the new School 

of Application for Cavalry and 

Infantry at Fort Leavenworth, 

Kansas. For four years, he 

served as the school’s first commandant, helping to introduce 

a formal system of education 

to officers within the military 

profession. In 1896, he worked 

in the War Department revising 

US Army regulations. When 

asked to become a part of the 

Philippine endeavor, Otis was 

finishing duty as president of a 

court-martial proceeding, using analytical skills acquired on his way to 

earning a law degree from Harvard.117

After accepting Alger’s offer, Otis received a twofold directive 

from the Secretary of War. First, as a newly promoted major general of 

Volunteers, he was ordered to take command of forces assembling in San 

Francisco, assisting “in their organization and equipment as rapidly as 

possible.”118 Later, Alger instructed Otis to join the first force leaving for 

the Philippines. He wanted Otis to confer with Admiral Dewey and then 

occupy “such part of the islands as you may be able to do with this force 

until the arrival of other troops.”119 The War Department urged Otis to depart for the archipelago as soon as possible.120

Otis acted quickly following his arrival at the Golden Gate on Tuesday 

evening, 17 May. He spent Wednesday making personal inspections and 

developing a sense of what had been accomplished and what needed to 

be done.121 That evening he dashed off a superb report to Washington, 

the first of its kind to come from the West Coast, highlighting the status 

of vessels, troops, and supplies designated for the Pacific. He concluded 

with one recommendation based upon his onsite observation and assessment: Otis requested permission from the War Department to remain in 

San Francisco, “putting the troops here in condition” for service abroad.122

He assessed that the Army needed a senior officer to organize the effort at 

the port of embarkation.

Figure 33.

The Examiner, 18 May 1898
71

Wisely, after consulting with the president, Secretary Alger directed 

Otis to remain.123 On 20 May, the general established Headquarters, US 

Expeditionary Forces, and assumed command of all troops “for contemplated expeditionary purposes.”124 Over the next several days he prepared 

the first expedition for departure, readying the troops and their vessels. He 

apprised the War Department of coordination that should be conducted 

with the Navy over convoy support and raised concerns about acquiring 

transports for subsequent deployments. By 24 May, troops of the first expedition were onboard and prepared to steam for the Philippines.125

With that accomplished, Otis learned that the Secretary of War had 

renewed his desire to have the general sail with the next expedition.126 The 

secretary’s preference would not be fulfilled in the short term. Instead, Otis 

assumed command of a new organization established on 1 June 1898: the 

Independent Division, Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces.127 More 

important, he established his headquarters at Camp Merritt on the grounds 

of the old Bay District Racetrack.128 From that location, Otis would be in a 

position to exercise command and control over his newly organized division that was composed of four brigades. The division was created in part 

to ensure Otis’s retention in San Francisco, even after the arrival of the 

Army’s second-highest ranking officer, Wesley Merritt.

Figure 34.

The Examiner, 27 May 1898
72

Like Merriam and Otis, Merritt was a career soldier; however, he came 

into the service under circumstances quite different from those of the other 

two generals. Born in New York City on 16 June 1836, Merritt entered the 

Army after graduating from West Point on the eve of the Civil War. During 

the conflict, he commanded a cavalry division as a brevet major general 

of Volunteers.

After the war, Merritt reverted in rank to a Regular Army lieutenant colonel but continued to serve in the cavalry. In 1887, he completed 

a tour as superintendent of his alma mater, then assumed control of the 

Department of the Missouri as a brigadier general. In 1895, Merritt received a promotion to major general and, subsequently, command of the 

Department of the East.129

Merritt had presided over the East’s jurisdiction for about a year when 

the war began in April 1898. Early in the month, he completed an inspection of the Army’s coast installations with a view toward sustaining 

a possible maritime attack mounted by the Spanish.130 As had Merriam 

on the West Coast, Merritt prioritized eastern seaboard defense from 

Maine through Virginia. For the first 10 days of May, he remained oriented on his responsibilities in the East as that department’s commander. 

Correspondence with the Governor of Pennsylvania indicated that he was 

concerned with protecting docks and harbors, particularly around Newport 

News, Virginia.131

On 12 May, the War Department abruptly shifted Merritt’s focus. 

The AG, BG H.C. Corbin, informed Merritt that he had been relieved 

as commander, Department of the East. Acting on directives that filled 

key command positions, Corbin notified Merritt that “by direction of the 

President you are assigned to the command of the expedition being sent to 

the Philippine Islands. You will repair to San Francisco, Cal., and assume 

command of and organize troops assembling there.”132

Merritt did not reach the West Coast until 26 May, which is why the 

locations and actions of Merriam and Otis were so important. At least one 

of the three general officers needed to be in San Francisco, directing the 

efforts of those units reaching the city and coordinating troops’ departure 

for the Philippines. Despite Merriam’s proximity to these activities, Otis 

emerged early as the key general officer to shape the Philippine command 

evolving in San Francisco.

While Otis worked to reach the bay city and establish control, Merritt 

elected to fight other battles. In the two weeks preceding his arrival at the 

Golden Gate, Merritt visited Washington, DC on two occasions, conversing 
73

with the president and Secretary of War on details related to the Philippine 

expedition. During these meetings and in subsequent correspondence, 

Merritt advanced his requests for more Regulars, fewer Volunteers, and 

specific kinds of equipment for the force.133 His running debate with the 

Commanding General of the Army over Regular versus Volunteer force 

ratios culminated in a partial victory for Merritt.134 In a sense, his efforts 

during these two weeks represented his focus for much of the war. Merritt 

concentrated on squeezing Washington for more manpower resources; 

Otis received, shaped, and shipped them.

By the time Merritt joined Otis in San Francisco, the Philippine expedition had achieved departmental status.135 On 30 May 1898, Merritt 

established in San Francisco the Headquarters, US Expeditionary Forces 

and Department of the Pacific.136 With this step the general assumed command of all forces allocated for duty in the Philippines, including the 

Independent Division at Camp Merritt that MG Otis commanded.

He also established a departmental staff to coordinate actions between 

Washington and San Francisco. When Merritt received orders to take 

command, Corbin telegraphed, “You will be accompanied by your authorized aids (sic). General staff officers will be assigned you hereafter.”137

McKinley had the power to appoint staff members when circumstances 

permitted him to name general officers.

McKinley’s authority did not deter Merritt from initiating requests of 

the president. Just as he had been prone to do for units and equipment, 

Merritt appealed for specific individuals. In a succinctly written letter to 

the president prepared on 15 May, Merritt addressed several concerns 

relating to his command, including the “urgent necessity that the chiefs 

of the staff departments be appointed at once to assist in organizing and 

equipping their specialties. They will need time to get information of the 

conditions and to study their respective problems. We are going too far 

from our base to permit of any guess work.” Merritt then submitted a list 

of staff officers “being those that I would select, but any capable men, 

chosen by their respective chiefs, would be agreeable to me.”138

In this instance, the president honored many of Merritt’s requests. 

The general submitted his preferences for 10 general staff positions; 

seven of those he asked for joined his department. Equally significant, 

he urged the commissary general in Washington on 15 May to expedite the assignment of his chief commissary, LTC David L. Brainard, to 

San Francisco “in order to make every preparation for the subsistence of 

the command going to the Philippines.”139 Brainard received orders and 
74

reached the Golden Gate on 24 May, two days before Merritt arrived.140

Two other officers noteworthy for their role in preparing troops to 

deploy joined Brainard on the Pacific department staff. COL Robert P. 

Hughes, Inspector General (IG), charged with examining each unit assembled, assessed what Merritt described as “all matters relating to its operations and involving its efficiency.”141 At the outbreak of the war, Hughes 

served Merritt as the IG for the Department of the East. The Call reported 

that Hughes also acted as a courier between Merritt and Secretary Alger 

when the two negotiated force mix.142

LTC James W. Pope served as the department’s chief quartermaster. 

In writing a description of the supply departments in an 1893 publication, 

Merritt singled out the quartermaster for its significance. He assessed the 

department as “second to none in importance. On it depends the supply of 

the army of clothing, forage, transportation, and everything that is required 

by the soldier in barracks or in the field connected with these.”143

Pope and other quartermasters worked closely with one officer who 

already operated in San Francisco at the beginning of the war, CPT Oscar 

F. Long. In April 1898, Long served as acting Depot Quartermaster, San 

Francisco. In this position, he maintained close ties with designated territorial departments while working directly for the Quartermaster-General, 

US Army. Long managed a general supply depot from which divisions 

and departments could, on order from the War Department, draw essential 

clothing and equipment.144

By early June, many of the troops destined for service abroad had arrived in the city. They were assigned to one of four quartering sites: a section of the Presidio, the Fontana warehouse, or either of two locations that 

constituted Camp Merritt. Three major generals interacted to accomplish 

the major missions pursued on the West Coast. MG Merriam commanded 

the Department of California and Department of Columbia, facilitating the 

establishment of coast defense; the mobilization of western Volunteers; and 

the support of units marshaling in San Francisco for duty in the Philippine 

archipelago. MG Merritt commanded the Department of the Pacific, gathering resources from Washington, DC and the Department of California to 

outfit his expedition abroad. MG Otis led the Independent Division, a part 

of Merritt’s command, and coordinated receiving, equipping, training, and 

shipping the force bound for duty in the Pacific. That process of preparing and deploying the Philippine expeditionary force for war against Spain 

spanned three and one-half months and drew upon all three commands’ 

resources.
75

Notes

1. “Troops Pouring Into the City,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 May 

1898, 2; “Fifty-First Iowa Regiment is Here,” San Francisco Chronicle, 10 June 

1898, 7.

2. “Willing to Help,” San Francisco Call, 22 May 1898, 14; H.S. Crocker 

Company, Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory for Year Commencing May 

1899 (San Francisco: H.S. Crocker Co., 1899), 1611.

3. “Fighting Tenth Here From Pennsylvania,” San Francisco Chronicle, 25 

May 1898, 4.

4. Lieutenant Martin Tew, Official History of the Operations of the 13th 

Minnesota Infantry, U.S.V., in the Campaign in the Philippines, n.p., n.d., 3; 

“Troops Massing for the Manila Expedition,” San Francisco Chronicle, 21 May 

1898, 9; “Fighting Tenth Here From Pennsylvania,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

25 May 1898, 4; “Astor’s Guns on the Mole,” San Francisco Chronicle, 20 June 

1898, 5; “Volunteers All the Way From New York,” San Francisco Chronicle, 14 

July 1898, 12; “Another Utah Battery Here,” San Francisco Chronicle, 2 August 

1898, 7; “Pennsylvania’s Crack Regiment is Here,” San Francisco Call, 25 May 

1898, 3; “Stalwart Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898, 8; “Iowans 

at Oakland,” San Francisco Call, 10 June 1898, 5; “Brave Battalions From 

Tennessee,” San Francisco Call, 17 June 1898, 5; “Astor Artillery at Oakland 

Mole,” San Francisco Call, 20 June 1898, 5; “Volunteers From the Empire 

State,” San Francisco Call, 14 July 1898, 8; “Will Sail This Afternoon,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 25 May 1898, 1; “Tennessee Men Arrive Today,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 17 June 1898, 1; “The First New York,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 14 July 1898, 3; “Penn’s Sons at Our Doors,” The Examiner, 25 

May 1898, 3; “Iowa’s Men Arrive at the Camp,” The Examiner, 11 June 1898, 

3; “Astor’s Battery Pitches Tents,” The Examiner, 21 June 1898, 3; “Wyoming’s 

Volunteer Artillery Battery,” The Examiner, 28 June 1898, 14.

5. “Over Night in Oakland,” San Francisco Call, 21 May 1898, 5.

6. “Troops Gathering in This City,” San Francisco Daily Report, 9 May 

1898, 1.

7. “The Montana Regiment Arrives,” San Francisco Daily Report, 28 May 

1898, 3; “Troops Pouring Into the City,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 May 

1898, 2.

8. Joseph I. Markey, From Iowa to the Philippines: A History of Company 

M, Fifty-First Iowa Infantry Volunteers (Red Oak, IA: Thos D. Murphy Co., 1900) 

57.

9. Record Group 92. The Textual Records of the Office of the Quartermaster 

General. Entry 1496, Register of Transportation of Troops and Their Equipment, 

1898-1900 (Washington, DC: National Archives), 178.

10. “Troopers Came From Far Utah,” The Examiner, 27 May 1898, 5; “First 

Cavalrymen of the Volunteer Army Arrive,” San Francisco Chronicle, 27 May 

1898, 7; “Utah Mounted Men,” San Francisco Call, 27 May 1898, 5; “Utah 

Troopers Here,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 May 1898, 3; “Cavalry Arrive,” 
76

San Francisco Daily Report, 6 June 1898, 3; “New Artillery Camp Formed at the 

Presidio,” San Francisco Chronicle, 7 June 1898, 4.

11. Private James Camp, Official History of the Operations of the First Idaho 

Infantry, U.S.V. in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, n.p., n.d., 3.

12. “All the Way From Nebraska,” San Francisco Chronicle, 20 May 1898, 

12.

13. William Doxey, Doxey’s Guide to San Francisco and the Pleasure 

Resorts of California (San Francisco: Doxey Press, 1897), 89-90.

14. Volunteer unit histories from Oregon, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, 

Wyoming, Minnesota, Montana, Tennessee, and Utah praised the Red Cross reception.

15. William S. Christner, 10th Pennsylvania Regiment, “Dear Dady and 

Mother,” 26 May 1898 (Carlisle Barracks, PA: Military History Institute).

16. A.G. Baker, 1st Colorado Infantry, The Colorado Volunteers (Carlisle 

Barracks, PA: Military History Institute), 10.

17. “From the Presidio to the Philippines,” The Examiner, 8 May 1898, 15.

18. “Oregonian Volunteers,” San Francisco Daily Report, 13 May 1898, 2; 

“Soldiers Will be Welcomed,” San Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 7.

19. “Soldiers Will be Welcomed,” San Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 7; 

“Red Cross Work,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 1898, 3.

20. “Willing to Help,” San Francisco Call, 22 May 1898, 14.

21. “A Discourteous Lieutenant,” San Francisco Call, 21 June 1898, 5.

22. Markey, 66.

23. “Astor’s Battery Pitches Tents,” The Examiner, 21 June 1898, 3.

24. “The Ladies not Snubbed,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 June 1898, 2.

25. “The Astor Battery,” San Francisco Daily Report, 22 June 1898, 4.

26. “San Francisco Falls to Tennessee’s Troops,” San Francisco Call, 18 

June 1898, 7.

27. “A Great Reception,” San Francisco Call, 9 July 1898, 5; “The New 

Yorkers,” San Francisco Call, 12 July 1898, 5; “Volunteers From the Empire 

State,” San Francisco Call, 14 July 1898, 8; “New York Breakfast,” San Francisco 

Call, 15 July 1898, 8.

28. “Oregonian Volunteers,” San Francisco Daily Report, 13 May 1898, 2.

29. “Hail Soldiers From Sunland!” The Examiner, 6 May 1898, 3; “From 

the Presidio to the Philippines,” The Examiner, 8 May 1898, 15; “Going to 

the Presidio,” The Examiner, 9 May 1898, 3; “More Volunteers Arrive,” The 

Examiner, 10 May 1898, 3; “Reception to the Boys of the Seventh,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 7 May 1898, 16; “Seventh in Camp,” San Francisco Call, 8 May 1898, 

10; “The Angelenos March In,” San Francisco Daily Report, 7 May 1898, 3; 

“Troops Gathering in This City,” San Francisco Daily Report, 9 May 1898, 1.

30. “Advance Guards of Manila’s Invaders Ready for the Front,” San 

Francisco Call, 10 May 1898, 7.

31. “Washington Troops,” San Francisco Daily Report, 17 May 1898, 3; 

“Troops Pouring Into the City,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 May 1898, 2; 

“At the Presidio Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 23 May 1898, 1; “Arrival of 
77

Pennsylvania’s Crack Regiment, the Tenth,” San Francisco Daily Report, 25 May 

1898, 1; “In the Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 10 June 1898, 3; “All the 

Way From Nebraska,” San Francisco Chronicle, 20 May 1898, 12; “Volunteers 

From the Empire State,” San Francisco Call, 14 July 1898, 8.

32. “Pennsylvania’s Regiment in Camp,” San Francisco Call, 26 May 1898, 2; 

“A Regiment From Iowa Arrives,” San Francisco Daily Report, 10 June 1898, 3.

33. “Pennsylvania’s Regiment in Camp,” San Francisco Call, 26 May 

1898, 2; “Utah Mounted Men,” San Francisco Call, 27 May 1898, 5; “Stalwart 

Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898, 8; “San Francisco Falls to 

Tennessee Troops,” San Francisco Call, 18 June 1898, 7.

34. “Nebraska Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 20 May 1898, 5; “Marching 

on to Camp Richmond,” San Francisco Call, 21 May 1898, 5; “Stalwart 

Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898, 8; “Are Not Mendicants,” San 

Francisco Call, 1 June 1898, 4; “San Francisco Falls to Tennessee Troops,” San 

Francisco Call, 18 June 1898, 7; “Nebraska’s Volunteers,” The Examiner, 20 

May 1898, 3; “Merritt Shapes Up His Army,” The Examiner, 1 June 1898, 4; 

“Southern Dakota’s Soldiers,” The Examiner, 3 June 1898, 3; “Warm Welcome 

for Washington Troops,” The Examiner, 26 July 1898, 7; “Oregon’s Levy Now 

Complete,” San Francisco Chronicle, 19 May 1898, 3; “Troops Massing for 

the Manila Expedition,” San Francisco Chronicle, 21 May 1898, 9; “The South 

Dakota Troops Arrive,” San Francisco Daily Report, 2 June 1898, 3; “Astor’s 

Battery Has Arrived,” San Francisco Daily Report, 20 June 1898, 1; “The First 

New York,” San Francisco Daily Report, 14 July 1898, 3.

35. “From the Presidio to the Philippines,” The Examiner, 8 May 1898, 15; 

“Troops Pouring Into City,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 May 1898, 2.

36. “Oregon’s Levy Now Complete,” San Francisco Chronicle, 19 May 

1898, 3; “All the Way From Nebraska,” San Francisco Chronicle, 20 May 1898, 

12.

37. Private James Camp, 3.

38. “Seventh in Camp,” San Francisco Call, 8 May 1898, 10; “Oregon 

Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898, 5.

39. “Nebraska Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 20 May 1898, 5; “Delayed 

by a Wreck,” San Francisco Call, 21 May 1898, 5.

40. “In the Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 10 June 1898, 3.

41. “Five States in One Camp, San Francisco Chronicle, 22 May 1898, 23.

42. “Troops Arrive From the North,” San Francisco Call, 14 May 1898, 7.

43. “Nebraska’s Volunteers, The Examiner, 20 May 1898, 3.

44. “Bronzed Troops From the South,” The Examiner, 30 May 1898, 3.

45. “Making Soldiers of the Boys at Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

29 May 1898, 23.

46. “Idaho Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 23 May 1898, 5; “Pennsylvania’s 

Regiment in Camp,” San Francisco Call, 26 May 1898, 2; “Iowans at Oakland,” 

San Francisco Call, 10 June 1898, 5; “A Great Reception,” San Francisco Call, 9 

July 1898, 5.

47. “More Volunteers Arrive,” The Examiner, 10 May 1898, 3.
78

48. “Nebraska Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 20 May 1898, 5; “At Camp 

Richmond,” San Francisco Call, 22 May 1898, 14.

49. “Fifty-First Iowa Regiment is Here,” San Francisco Chronicle, 10 June 

1898, 7.

50. “Idaho Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 23 May 1898, 5.

51. “Volunteers All the Way From New York,” San Francisco Chronicle, 14 

July 1898, 12.

52. “Making Soldiers Out of the State’s Volunteers,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 14 May 1898, 9.

53. “Idaho and Utah Troops Arrive,” San Francisco Chronicle, 23 May 

1898, 7.

54. “Astor Battery in Camp,” San Francisco Chronicle, 21 June 1898, 7.

55. “Wyoming Battery Joins the Troop,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 June 

1898, 3.

56. “Pennsylvania’s Regiment in Camp,” San Francisco Call, 26 May 1898, 2.

57. “Volunteers All the Way From New York,” San Francisco Chronicle, 14 

July 1898, 12; “Fifty-First Iowa Regiment is Here,” San Francisco Chronicle, 10 

June 1898, 7.

58. “Idaho and Utah Troops Arrive,” San Francisco Chronicle, 23 May 

1898, 7.

59. “Sons of the Men in Gray,” San Francisco Chronicle, 18 June 1898, 9.

60. “Nebraska Volunteers, San Francisco Call, 20 May 1898, 5; “First 

Troops From Across the Rockies,” San Francisco Chronicle, 20 May 1898, 12.

61. “The Mascot of the Twenty-Third,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 June 1898, 

7; “Re-Enforcement of Regulars,” San Francisco Chronicle, 30 May 1898, 3.

62. “Six Hundred From Far Pennsylvania,” San Francisco Chronicle, 26 

May 1898, 2.

63. “King’s Brigade for the Philippines,” San Francisco Call, 18 June 1898, 

7; “First Regiment From the South,” San Francisco Chronicle, 17 June 1898, 7.

64. John Phillip Langellier, “Bastion by the Bay: A History of the Presidio 

of San Francisco, 1776-1906,” unpublished dissertation (Manhattan, KS: Kansas 

State University, 1982), 87-129.

65. Ibid., 228; Workers of the Writers’ Program of the Work Projects 

Administration in Northern California, The Army at the Golden Gate: A Guide to 

Army Posts in the San Francisco Bay Area, n.p., n.d., 85, 109.

66. “The Artillery Camp,” San Francisco Call, 8 June 1898, 8.

67. John A. Martini, Fort Point: Sentry at the Golden Gate (San Francisco: 

Golden Gate National Park Association, 1991), 22, 27.

68. Ibid., 7-8; Langellier, 97-98, 214-20, 227-31; John A. Martini, Fortress 

Alcatraz: Guardian of the Golden Gate (Kailua, HI: Pacific Monograph, 1990), 

16-17, 83-86.

69. Langellier, 168.

70. William McKinley to the Secretary of War, 4 May 1898, in 

Correspondence Relating to the War With Spain and Conditions Growing Out of 

the Same, Including the Insurrection in the Philippine Islands and the China Relief 
79

Expedition, Between the Adjutant-General of the Army and Military Commander 

in the United States, Cuba, Porto Rico, China, and the Philippine Islands, From 

April 15, 1898, to July 30, 1902, volume II (Washington, DC: US Government 

Printing Office [GPO], 1902), hereafter cited as Correspondence II, 635.

71. Map, Reservation, the Presidio of San Francisco, California, 1897-1909, 

Post Engineer; Langellier, 191-197.

72. “Mobilizing Western Troops in San Francisco,” San Francisco Call, 5 

May 1898, 2.

73. Ibid.

74. “In Camp With the Volunteers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 11 May 1898, 4.

75. “Mobilizing Western Troops in San Francisco,” San Francisco Call, 5 

May 1898, 2.

76. “Military Taps,” The Examiner, 10 May 1898, 3; “To-Day the Newly 

Made Soldiers Will go Into Camp at the Presidio,” San Francisco Chronicle, 6 

May 1898, 9.

77. “The First is Under Orders,” San Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 8.

78. Ibid.; “Regular Army,” San Francisco Call, 6 May 1898, 7; “The First in 

Camp,” The Examiner, 8 May 1898, 16; Sketch, “How the Troops are Camped on 

the Presidio Parade Ground,” San Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 7.

79. “To-Day the Newly Made Soldiers Will go Into Camp at the Presidio,” 

San Francisco Chronicle, 6 May 1898, 9.

80. “The First is Under Orders,” San Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 8.

81. “Orders From General Merriam,” San Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 8.

82. General Orders No. 8, Department of California, 6 May 1898, as published in the Army and Navy Journal, 21 May 1898, 743 and San Francisco Call, 

8 May 1898, 10.

83. “Worn and Weary Southern Boys,” San Francisco Call, 8 May 1898, 11.

84. “Orders From General Merriam,” San Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 8; 

“Worn and Weary Southern Boys,” San Francisco Call, 8 May 1898, 11.

85. “One Army to Go and One to Wait Orders,” San Francisco Chronicle, 13 

May 1898, 4.

86. “Thousands Visit the Boys in Blue,” San Francisco Call, 9 May 1898, 

5; “Regulars Arrive and Volunteers Drill at the Presidio Growing Camp,” San 

Francisco Chronicle, 10 May 1898, 9; “Worn and Weary Southern Boys,” San 

Francisco Call, 8 May 1898, 11.

87. “In Camp With the Volunteers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 11 May 1898, 

4; “Mobilizing Western Troops in San Francisco,” San Francisco Call, 5 May 

1898, 2.

88. “The First in Camp,” The Examiner, 8 May 1898, 16; “Worn and Weary 

Southern Boys,” San Francisco Call, 9 May 1898, 10.

89. US War Department, Adjutant-General’s Office, Document No. 61, 

Military Information Division, The Organized Militia of the United States. 

Statement of the Condition and Efficiency for Service of the Organized Militia. 

From Regular Annual Reports, and other Sources, Covering the Year 1897

(Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 32.
80

90. “The Following Apportionment Has Been Made For the Several States, 

and Territories and the Dist. of Columbia,” in Record Group 94, Office of the 

Adjutant General Document File, Document No. 84869, filed with Document No. 

74259, Box 534: 74121 to 74321 (Washington, DC: National Archives).

91. Captain Carrington to Adjutant General, USA, Washington, DC, 9 May 

1898, in Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General, Checklist Entry 182, 

Muster in War With Spain, 1st Call, Document Number 247387, Inclosure 30, filed 

with California Documents, Box No. 1: Alabama through District of Columbia 

(Washington, DC: National Archives).

92. “Uncle Sam in a Hurry,” San Francisco Daily Report, 11 May 1898, 3.

93. Charles R. Detrick, History of the Operations of the First Regiment, 

California U.S. Volunteer Infantry in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, 

n.p., n.d., 96.

94. “The ‘Heavies’ Now at Work,” San Francisco Call, 12 May 1898, 7; 

Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory for Year Commencing May 1899, 

656.

95. Merriam, Major General Commanding, to Gen. Corbin, Adjt. Gen., 

U.S.A., 13 May 1898, in Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General, 

Checklist Entry 182, Muster in War With Spain, 1st Call, Document Number 

253960, filed with Washington Documents, Box 7: South Dakota through 

Washington (Washington, DC: National Archives).

96. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report of the Major-General Commanding 

the Army, Report of Maj. Gen. H.C. Merriam, Commanding, Department of 

California (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 176.

97. “Diagram of the Camp at the Bay District,” The Examiner, 31 May 1898, 3.

98. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report of the Major-General Commanding 

the Army, Report of Maj. Gen. H.C. Merriam, Commanding, Department of 

California (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 176; “A Moist Camp,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 16 May 1898, 2; “Hurry-Up Orders Have Come,” San Francisco 

Call, 15 May 1898, 7; “Anxious to Move on to the Philippines,” San Francisco 

Call, 16 May 1898, 5.

99. Langellier, 190.

100. “General Otis is in Command,” San Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 5; 

“Troops to Camp at the Bay District,” San Francisco Chronicle, 18 May 1898, 3.

101. General Orders, No. 7. Headquarters, U.S. Expeditionary Forces, San 

Francisco, California, 29 May 1898 in US Army, Department of the Pacific and 

Eighth Army Corps, Adjutant General’s Office, Index to General Orders and 

Circulars: Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, 1898.

102. “Seven Thousand Men,” San Francisco Call, 26 May 1898, 2.

103. San Francisco: Its Builders Past and Present, volume I (Chicago-San 

Francisco: S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1913), 161-62.

104. “Quite an Army Here,” San Francisco Daily Report, 3 June 1898, 

2; “Fourteen Thousand,” San Francisco Call, 3 June 1898, 7; “Iowans at 
81

Oakland,” San Francisco Call, 10 June 1898, 5.

105. The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography, volume XIII (New 

York and New Jersey: James T. White and Co., 1984), 338; American Council of 

Learned Societies, Dictionary of American Biography, volume XII, (New York: 

C. Scribner’s Sons, 1943), 553-54.

106. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1897. Report of the Secretary of War. Miscellaneous 

Reports, Report of Brig. Gen. Henry C. Merriam, Headquarters, Department of 

the Columbia, Vancouver Barracks, Wash., September 14, 1897, (Washington, 

DC: GPO, 1897), 197-200; US War Department, Annual Reports of the War 

Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report of the Major-General 

Commanding the Army, Report of Maj. Gen. Henry C. Merriam, Commanding 

the Department of the Columbia, Headquarters, Department of the Columbia, 

Vancouver Barracks, Wash., October 1, 1898 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 

179-81.

107. H.C. Corbin, Adjutant General, to Generals Brooke, Shafter, Coppinger, Wade, 15 April 1898, in Correspondence Relating to the War With Spain and 

Conditions Growing Out of the Same, Including the Insurrection in the Philippine 

Islands and the China Relief Expedition, Between the Adjutant-General of the Army 

and Military Commander in the United States, Cuba, Porto Rico, China, and the 

Philippine Islands, From April 15, 1898, to July 30, 1902, volume I (Washington, 

DC: GPO, 1902), hereafter cited as Correspondence I, 7-8.

108. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report of the Major-General Commanding 

the Army, Report of Maj. Gen. H.C. Merriam, Commanding, Department of 

California. Headquarters, Department of California, San Francisco, California, 10 

October 1898 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 174-75, 179.

109. Merriam, Brigadier General, Commanding, Vancouver Barracks, 

Washington, to Adjutant General, U.S. Army, 30 April 1898, in Record Group 94, 

Office of the Adjutant General, Checklist Entry 182, Muster in War With Spain, 

1st Call, Document Number 253960, filed with Washington Documents, Box No. 

7: South Dakota through Washington (Washington, DC: National Archives).

110. H.C. Corbin to General Merriam, 13 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 

639.

111. Special Orders No. 79, Department of Columbia, 13 May 1898, as 

published in Army and Navy Journal, 28 May 1898, 767.

112. Schwan, Assistant Adjutant-General, to Major-General Merriam, 16 

May 1898, in Correspondence II, 647.

113. “Hurry-Up Orders Have Come, San Francisco Call, 15 May 1898, 7; 

“Camping in the Rain,” San Francisco Call, 15 May 1898, 7.

114. “Anxious to Move on the Philippines,” San Francisco Call, 16 May 

1898, 5.

115. H.C. Corbin to General Otis, 11 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 

636.

116. Thomas F. Burdett, “A New Evaluation of General Otis’ Leadership 
82

in the Philippines,” Military Review, January 1975, 79-80; American Council of 

Learned Societies, volume XIV, 94-95; The National Cyclopaedia of American 

Biography, 29-31.

117. Burdett, 79-80; American Council of Learned Societies, 94-95; The 

National Cyclopaedia of American Biography, 29-31.

118. H.C. Corbin to General Otis, 12 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 

637.

119. H.C. Corbin to Major-General Otis, 14 May 1898 (received 4:45 p.m.), 

in Correspondence II, 639-40.

120. Ibid.; H.C. Corbin to Commanding General, Department of California, 

14 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 641.

121. “Charleston Off for Manila,” San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898, 

5; Otis to Adjutant-General, 18 May 1898 (received 19 May, 1:32 a.m.), in 

Correspondence II, 659.

122. Otis to Adjutant-General, 18 May 1898 (received 19 May, 6:45 a.m.), 

in Correspondence II, 659-60.

123. H.C. Corbin to Gen. E.S. Otis, 19 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 

661-62.

124. General Orders, No. 1, Headquarters, U.S. Expeditionary Forces, San 

Francisco, California, 20 May 1898 in US Army, Department of the Pacific and 

Eighth Army Corps, Adjutant General’s Office, Index to General Orders and 

Circulars: Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, 1898.

125. Otis to Adjutant-General, 20 May 1898 (received 21 May, 2:11 a.m.), 

in Correspondence II, 664-65; Otis to Adjutant-General, 20 May 1898, 11:20 p.m., 

in Correspondence II, 667-68; Otis to Adjutant-General, 21 May 1898 (received 

22 May 1898, 6 a.m.), in Correspondence II, 668; Otis to Adjutant-General, 23 

May 1898–12 midnight, in Correspondence II, 669; Otis to Adjutant-General, 

23 May 1898 (received 24 May 1898, 4 a.m.), in Correspondence II, 670; Otis 

to Adjutant-General, 24 May 1898 (received 5:24 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 

671.

126. H.C. Corbin to Major-General Otis, 27 May 1898–12 midnight, in 

Correspondence II, 675.

127. General Orders, No. 1, Headquarters, Independent Division Philippine 

Islands Expeditionary Forces, Camp Merritt. San Francisco, California, 1 June 

1898 in US Army, Department of the Pacific and Eighth Army Corps, Adjutant 

General’s Office, Index to General Orders and Circulars: Philippine Islands 

Expeditionary Forces, 1898.

128. Ibid.

129. American Council of Learned Societies, volume XII, 572-74; The 

National Cyclopaedia of American Biography, 28-29.

130. Donald E. Alberts, Brandy Station to Manila Bay: A Biography of 

General Wesley Merritt (Austin, TX: Presidial Press, 1980), 305.

131. Telegram, Merritt, Major General, to Governor Hastings, Mt. Gretna, 

via Lebanon, Pennsylvania, 6 May 1898, as published in Annual Report of 

the Adjutant-General of Pennsylvania for the Year 1898 (PA: State Printer of 
83

Pennsylvania, 1900), 24; Special Orders, No. 101, Headquarters, Department of 

the East, 9 May 1898, as published in Annual Report of the Adjutant-General 

of Pennsylvania for the Year 1898, 30; Telegram, W. Merritt, Maj. Gen. to His 

Excellency Gov. Hastings, Mt. Gretna, Pennsylvania, via Lebanon, Pennsylvania, 

10 May 1898, as published in Annual Report of the Adjutant-General of 

Pennsylvania for the Year 1898, 34.

132. H.C. Corbin to Maj. Gen. Wesley Merritt, 12 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 637.

133. Memorandum, W. Merritt, Major-General, to the Honorable, the Secretary of War, 12 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 638; Letter, W. Merritt, MajorGeneral, to His Excellency William McKinley, 13 May 1898, in Correspondence 

II, 643-44; Letter, W. Merritt, Major-General, to His Excellency William 

McKinley, 15 May 1898 (Received 16 May 1898), in Correspondence II, 645-46; 

Telegram, H.C. Corbin, Adjutant General, to Major General Merritt, 17 May 1898, 

in Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Document File, Document 

No. 80950, filed with Document No. 81545, Box 604: 81394-81577 (Washington, 

DC: National Archives).

134. Second Endorsement, W. Merritt, Major-General, Commanding, to 

Adjutant General of the Army, 17 May 1898 and Third Endorsement, Nelson A. 

Miles, Major-General, Commanding, to the Secretary of War, 18 May 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 648-49.

135. Telegram, Schwan, Assistant Adjutant-General, to Maj. Gen. Wesley 

Merritt, 16 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 649.

136. General Orders, No. 1, Headquarters, U.S. Expeditionary Forces and 

Department of the Pacific, 30 May 1898 in US Army, Department of the Pacific 

and Eighth Army Corps, Adjutant General’s Office, Index to General Orders and 

Circulars: Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, 1898.

137. H.C. Corbin to Maj. Gen. Wesley Merritt, 12 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 637.

138. Letter, W. Merritt, Major-General, to His Excellency William McKinley, 

15 May 1898 (Received 16 May 1898), in Correspondence II, 645-46.

139. Merritt to the Commissary-General, 16 May 1898 (Received 4:43 

p.m.), in Correspondence II, 647.

140. “Brief Military Items,” San Francisco Chronicle, 26 May 1898, 2.

141. General Orders, No. 1., Headquarters, U.S. Expeditionary Forces and 

Department of the Pacific, San Francisco, California, 30 May 1898 in US Army, 

Department of the Pacific and Eighth Army Corps, Adjutant General’s Office, 

Index to General Orders and Circulars: Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, 

1898; Wesley Merritt, et al., “The Army of the United States,” in The Armies of 

To-Day: A Description of the Armies of the Leading Nations at the Present Time

(London: McIlvaine & Co., 1893), 9-10.

142. “Merritt in Open Rebellion,” San Francisco Call, 17 May 1898, 1.

143. General Orders, No. 1., Headquarters, U.S. Expeditionary Forces and 

Department of the Pacific, San Francisco, California, 30 May 1898 in US Army, 

Department of the Pacific and Eighth Army Corps, Adjutant General’s Office, 
84

Index to General Orders and Circulars: Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, 

1898; Brigadier-General Wesley Merritt, U.S.A., “The Army of the United States,” 

The Armies of To-Day, 10.

144. Erna Risch, Quartermaster Support of the Army: A History of the 

Corps, 1775-1939 (Washington, DC: Office of the Quartermaster General, 1962), 

427-28; 457.
85

Chapter IV

Overseeing and Training the Troops

Organizing, training, and equipping units for expeditions overseas became a top priority for those in command at San Francisco. The task to 

prepare and move troops thousands of miles across the Pacific, having no 

precedent in US Army history, had to be addressed quickly, efficiently, and 

spontaneously. Military and political officials in Washington were pushing 

for rapid deployments to the Philippines.

To exercise effective leadership within his department, MG Wesley 

Merritt needed the services of general officers to lead new brigades and 

assembled expeditions. He had to establish suitable command and control 

facilities capable of linking his command to the War Department and various local contacts. He also had to execute several responsibilities that put 

him in touch with Bay Area political, economic, and social leaders.

As the commander of Camp Merritt, MG Elwell S. Otis faced his own 

challenges. To Otis fell much of the burden of training the force to achieve 

proficiency as a military organization. To that end, he and other commanders worked to establish good order and discipline within the Independent 

Division. They also had to identify those diversions that would be appropriate and suitable for units to maintain their men’s morale. Welfare of the 

troops quickly emerged as a major test for the command. Officers from the 

ordnance, subsistence, quartermaster, and medical departments grappled 

with how to equip, feed, and care for Volunteers and Regulars as they prepared to deploy overseas.

Exercising Command and Control

When apprised of his selection as commander of the Philippine expedition, Merritt petitioned the War Department to ensure that his command reflected a greater ratio of Regulars to Volunteers. Along with more 

Regulars, he solicited additional artillery and cavalry units to augment the 

sizable infantry forces already committed to his command. To assist in 

the tasks of receiving, staging, and deploying the force of nearly 20,000 

troops, the general recognized the need for ample senior leadership.

Before reaching San Francisco, Merritt initiated a request for additional general officers. On 21 May, during his final trip to the nation’s 

capital before heading west, Merritt submitted to the AG, BG Corbin, a 

by-name request for one-star officers that would be “necessary to the success of my expedition.” Again showing his preference for active duty military, the Pacific department commander began his petition asking for three
86

Regular Army colonels: George 

W. Davis, Adna R. Chaffee, and 

Samuel S. Sumner. Each had recently received a promotion to 

brigadier general of Volunteers; 

all had a cavalry connection. 

Then Merritt added that he would 

welcome two from civilian life 

should the president appoint them 

general officers: COL Francis 

V. Greene and COL George A. 

Garretson. Both possessed military experience and were graduates of West Point.1

Merritt did not receive his Regular Army preferences. The War 

Department’s assignment of general officers illustrated how the administration emphasized Caribbean over Pacific missions. On 16 May, Alger 

approved a command list that assigned seven of eight major generals of 

Volunteers to camps gathering resources for operations against Cuba or 

Puerto Rico. The only major general named for Philippine duty via San 

Francisco was MG Otis.2 Of 19 Regular colonels appointed brigadier generals, including the three that Merritt requested, only one received orders 

for the Golden Gate: Thomas M. Anderson, former commander of the 14th 

US Infantry, who was already on the West Coast.3

 Merritt knew at the time 

of his request that both Otis and Anderson belonged to his command.

MG Merritt fared about the same with 

regard to his petition for specific civilian 

appointees. Garretson dodged an assignment to the Philippines, admitting that “I 

do not care particularly for the detail.”4

Greene was already with Shafter’s command in Florida, but the War Department 

ordered him to San Francisco. Unlike 

Garretson, Greene welcomed the directive: “Will leave to-night unless otherwise instructed.”5

 Greene and Merritt 

shared a common history. Both had written on military subjects for professional 

publications.6 Both had graduated from 

the US Military Academy. Greene subFigure 35. BG Thomas M. Anderson.

Figure 36.

San Francisco Call, 5 May 1898

San Francisco Chronicle, 29 May 1898
87

sequently taught military engineering at 

the academy during part of Merritt’s tour 

as superintendent.7

Merritt later pursued and secured the 

services of two other brigadier generals 

with whom he had served. BG Charles 

King was adjutant of the 5th US Cavalry 

when Merritt commanded the regiment in 

the late 1870s.8

 Upon learning that King 

had been nominated as brigadier general 

of Volunteers, Merritt telegraphed his 

congratulations and asked him to join his 

command, which the War Department arranged.9

 Another of his by-name requests, 

BG Arthur MacArthur, had served with Merritt at Fort Leavenworth in the 

1880s.10 MacArthur reached San Francisco in June 1898.11

Two additional general officers joined Merritt. BG Marcus P. Miller, 

like Anderson a commander on the West Coast at the outbreak of the 

war, transferred to the Department of the Pacific from the Department of 

California.12 BG Harrison Gray Otis reached Merritt’s command through 

a favor of the president. The law to raise a Volunteer Army, passed by 

Congress on 22 April 1898, empowered McKinley to nominate one- and 

two-star general officers for each division formed by Regular and Volunteer 

regiments. The president took a personal interest in filling these billets. He 

used the law to name Otis, editor of the Los Angeles Times, to Merritt’s 

command. Described by one of the Volunteers, Karl Kraemer of the 51st 

Iowa, as “a tall heavy set man with 

light hair and a goatee and mustache,” 

Otis had served with the 23d Ohio during the Civil War.13 The regiment provided Otis with a key connection to the 

president; McKinley belonged to the 

23d Ohio during the same conflict.14

(See figures 39 and 40.)

By mid-June, Merritt’s department 

therefore consisted of an additional major general, Elwell S. Otis, and six brigadier generals. Before deploying to the 

archipelago, Miller, King, H.G. Otis, 

Figure 37.

Figure 38.

San Francisco Chronicle, 29 May 1898

San Francisco Call, 13 June 1898
88

and MacArthur each commanded one of the Independent Division’s four 

brigades in San Francisco. Anderson and Greene led the first two expeditions into the Pacific shortly after they reached the Golden Gate.

As the commander of the department’s Independent Division and 

Camp Merritt, MG Otis was entitled to a staff. When the Secretary of War 

ordered Otis to San Francisco to take charge of the expedition pending 

Merritt’s arrival, Alger authorized the general “to take with you such staff 

officers and clerical assistance as you may desire.”15 Otis quite correctly 

interpreted that offer to include more than personal aides. He brought with 

him four officers and seven noncommissioned officers.16

Staff members who accompanied MG Otis assumed critical responsibilities. Major Francis Moore performed some quartermaster functions, 

and CPT John S. Mallory served as acting IG. Two aides attended Otis: 

CPT John L. Sehon and 1LT Fred W. Sladen. Others who subsequently joined the division staff included CPT George Ruhlen and CPT C.A. 

Devol, acting quartermasters, and Major W.O. Owen, chief surgeon, who 

also supervised the division field hospital. Some of these men changed 

duty positions or held several titles simultaneously during their tours in 

San Francisco.17

After Otis and some of his staff reached the Golden Gate in mid-May, 

they established the Headquarters, US Expeditionary Forces in downtown San Francisco.18 The city’s Phelan Building at O’Farrell and Market 

Streets would serve as the command and control center for expeditionary 

force leadership before deployment. Otis and his staff occupied offices at 

Figure 39. Figure 40.

San Francisco Chronicle, 16 August 1898

The Examiner, 28 May 1898
89

the site until the end of the month.19 On 30 May, Merritt’s entourage constituting Headquarters, Department of the Pacific, took up residence on the 

fourth floor.20 Otis and the staff personnel of the newly created Independent 

Division relocated to Camp Merritt.21 When MG Merritt sailed for the 

Philippines in late June, Otis returned to downtown San Francisco.22

The Phelan Building had specific features that appealed to Philippine 

expeditionary leaders looking to establish a headquarters site. Part of the 

building already served as the Headquarters, Department of California. 

The commander and his staff occupied much of the second floor.23 Officers 

from the Department of the Pacific occupied office space in rooms adjacent to those of Merriam’s organization.24 Coordination between the two 

commands became a matter of walking down the hall or tapping into the 

building’s communications system. Officers of both commands could 

reach national contacts telegraphically and local authorities by using the 

telegraph or telephone.25

The Phelan Building’s physical location offered advantages as a command and control center. Less than a mile from the docks, the structure 

afforded easy access to transports or the steamship companies that leased 

them.26 Forces arriving and departing via the bay could be monitored readily. San Francisco’s municipal centers were close by, as were offices of 

the California National Guard. Most important, the headquarters of the 

depot quartermaster on New Montgomery Street was within easy walking 

distance.27

The headquarters location, however, had some drawbacks. The Phelan 

Building was located about 5 miles from Camp Merritt. LTC Henry 

Lippincott, Chief Surgeon, Department of the Pacific, noted that although 

the headquarters was connected to the camps by “the excellent street railway system of San Francisco, communication with the officers there was 

somewhat inconvenient.”28

MG Merritt stayed in San Francisco for 35 days, many of them at 

work in the Phelan Building. “Surrounded by a cordon of sentries, aides 

and staff officers,” Merritt spent much of his time communicating telegraphically with superiors in Washington. Behind a glass door bearing the 

inscription “Commander Philippine Expedition,” Merritt dictated letters 

to a stenographer and periodically met with visitors who waited for an opportunity to talk with him.29 (See figure 41.) 

Some visitors included members of the press. Merritt made himself 

quite accessible to reporters who delighted in quoting the general. Locally, 

his relationship with correspondents evolved after a slow beginning. When 
90

Merritt arrived in the city on 26 May, he had little to say.30 By 5 June, 

the San Francisco Chronicle went so far as to observe: “There is no censorship of news at General Merritt’s headquarters, for the reason that no 

news whatever is given out.”31 M.H. de Young, editor and proprietor of the 

Chronicle, may have regretted the timing of that observation because the 

same day Examiner reporter Alice Rix published her interview with the 

general. Rix was able to elicit Merritt’s views regarding officer leadership 

and the quality of Volunteer units.32 Days later, as he prepared to depart for 

the Philippines, Merritt used an interview to thank the Red Cross, Catholic 

Truth Society, and citizens of San Francisco for supporting the troops.33 In 

another interview with the Chronicle, he told of some plans for occupying 

the Philippines.34

For good reason, Merritt shied from Bay Area newspaper reporters at 

the outset of his stay in San Francisco. Before he reached the Golden Gate, 

the general voiced concern over the paucity of Regular forces assigned 

to his command. Those misgivings appeared in New York and California 

newspapers on 17 May. The next day Merritt telegraphed Secretary Alger, 

Figure 41.

The Examiner, 31 May 1898
91

“I desire you to know that the interviews published in the New York papers this morning are in every way incorrect and unauthorized.”35 Merritt’s 

protestation appeared to be not so much a statement of denial as an effort 

to avoid trouble with superiors. This instance would not be the last time he 

felt compelled to address public statements attributed to him with the War 

Department. Merritt allegedly made some remarks on Philippine policy at 

an “informal” banquet Mayor James Phelan hosted at the Pacific-Union 

Club in early June. Later that month, Merritt responded to an inquiry from 

the Secretary of War and denied that he had made such remarks.36

Although Merritt may have entertained reporters, the soldiers of his 

command did not often see him at Fontana warehouse, Camp Merritt, or 

the Presidio. Little evidence exists to suggest that Merritt spent much time 

observing how the troops, be they Regular or Volunteer, trained or lived 

at these encampments. Local papers reported on four trips that the general made to Camp Merritt, all undertaken principally to confer with MG 

Otis.37 Three of the four visits coincided with the departure of the second 

expedition to the Philippines. Only once did a reporter observe Merritt “informally inspecting the camp.”38 Months later, when queried about Camp 

Figure 42.

San Francisco Call, 3 June 1898
92

Merritt, the general exhibited at best only a vague familiarity with the bivouac site. He said the location used to be “fair grounds.” Merritt described 

the site as “a concentrated camp. The sewerage was good, but it had been 

established (the Bay District Racetrack area) before I got there, and there 

was no other place to go except to the other side (the Jordan Tract).”39

Merritt may have formed a different opinion of the “sewerage” had he 

lived there or maintained a headquarters at the campsite, but he did not. 

He established his residence at the Palace Hotel, not too far away from 

the Phelan Building. In 1898, the Palace was San Francisco’s finest hotel 

and reputedly the most opulent of any in the West.40 Merritt must have felt 

quite at home in such exclusive surroundings, for his biographer, Don E. 

Alberts, later suggested that the general possessed a “fondness for comfortable urban living.”41

That affinity manifested itself in other ways. Merritt appeared as 

the guest of honor at several dinner parties.42 At one point, city officials 

planned to host a public banquet in Merritt’s honor at the Palace. The general subsequently requested a smaller, more informal affair, which Mayor 

Phelan and other civic leaders sponsored at the city’s Pacific-Union Club 

on Thursday, 9 June.43 Eight days later, he appeared at the Mechanics’ 

Pavilion for a Red Cross benefit that featured an exhibition drill by the 

13th Minnesota.44 On 19 June he attended a performance at the Orpheum, 

a variety theater on O’Farrell Street. As Merritt took his front seat, “the 

band struck up a patriotic strain and the people arose and cheered the commander to the echo.”45

The general spent five weekends on the West Coast; parts of two he 

used to escape the city. On Saturday, 11 June, he departed for the Monterey 

Bay Area. After spending 24 hours at the beach, he returned to San 

Francisco late Sunday afternoon.46 A reporter for The Examiner wrote of 

the general’s holiday: “The General has been very closely confined to his 

headquarters in the Phelan Building and his trip to Monterey is the only 

recreation he expects to have before his departure for the Philippines.”47

That expectation may have been accurate at the time, but the following 

weekend Merritt left town again. On Saturday, he traveled to Burlingame, 

southeast of San Francisco, where he was the guest of Henry T. Scott. 

Scott was president and treasurer of the Union Iron Works, “an immense 

shipbuilding and iron manufacturing corporation capitalized at millions 

and employing thousands of men—the largest enterprise of the kind on 

the coast.” 48 On Sunday he spent time in Menlo Park, hosted by Major 

Rathbone, before returning to the Palace Hotel that evening.49
93

While MG Wesley Merritt fulfilled the political, military, and social 

roles of a department commander, MG Elwell Otis labored to bring organization to the forces assembled in San Francisco. Otis was the perfect complement to Merritt. As Merritt worked out of the Phelan Building engaged 

in correspondence with authorities in Washington, Otis and the staff of the 

Independent Division toiled and slept at Camp Merritt, administering to 

assigned units and preparing to deploy forces abroad incrementally.

Upon establishing Headquarters, US Expeditionary Forces, Otis tackled the challenge of dispatching the command’s first expedition to the 

Philippines on 25 May. After Merritt arrived the following day, Otis shifted his focus to the condition of Regulars and Volunteers that remained. 

Although expeditionary forces had begun to assemble in San Francisco as 

early as 7 May, no central command exercised control over those organizations. That situation changed on 1 June when Otis assumed command of 

the newly created Independent Division and established his headquarters 

at Camp Merritt.

The staff took several days to prepare the site for operation. Acting IG 

CPT John S. Mallory and Acting Chief Quartermaster Major Francis Moore 

supervised site preparation in the southwest section of Camp Merritt.50 The 

specific location at Fulton Street and 4th Avenue offered several advantages.51

At the time of its construction, the headquarters was in a more remote part 

of camp where noise and dust levels were somewhat diminished. Directly 

south across Fulton Street lay the “blossoming shrubs and ornamental trees” 

of Golden Gate Park, one of the more rustic, scenic areas of the city.52 An 

additional 

feature was 

that the location allowed easy 

access to the 

McAllisterStreet Line, 

a cable car 

s e r v i c e 

that linked 

the park 

to Market 

Street and 

the ferries.53

Figure 43.

The Examiner, 3 June 1898
94

While Otis found a somewhat secluded spot for his headquarters, he 

was by no means removed from the troops in his division. The site rested 

on slightly elevated ground that permitted him to observe the encampment 

to the north.54 He and his staff shared the immediate vicinity of his bivouac 

with the men of Company G, 14th Infantry. Eventually Regular engineers 

and infantry from the 18th and 23d Regiments established their campsites 

in the undeveloped city blocks nearby.55

MG Otis was also linked to superiors and subordinates through a 

comprehensive communications network. A reporter from The Examiner

observed, “the tents of the Major-General, his lieutenants, adjutants and 

clerks have been pitched. From them there is telegraphic and telephonic 

communication with the city and the headquarters of each regiment.”56

Otis’s headquarters complex comprised 12 tents, including one for the 

general’s office, another for his sleeping quarters, and a third for storage. 

At least one tent served as the telegraph center, which likely stood near 

Otis’s headquarters. The others belonged to staff officers and clerks.57

The general’s staff endured lengthy workdays. That condition was likely 

a reflection of Otis’s penchant for detail as well as the situation encountered 

upon arriving in the city. One reporter wrote: “There are no men in San 

Francisco who are harder worked at present than the officers at United States 

Army headquarters. They are kept busy from early morning until 10 o’clock 

at night in carrying out the instructions received from Washington in regard 

to the fitting out of the Manila expedition.”58

Lengthy workdays focused on 

outfitting expeditions, and organizing the Independent Division consumed Otis and his staff. Unlike 

his boss at the Phelan Building, the 

commander of Camp Merritt neither appeared at social events nor 

ventured outside of San Francisco. 

One reporter observed that “only 

fleeting glimpses may be had of 

Major-General Otis, as he trudges 

from his headquarters tent to an 

adjoining one. An orderly is ever at 

his door, the tent flaps are closed, 

and General Otis is alone with his 

plans, maps and responsibilities.”59

Figure 44.

San Francisco Chronicle, 6 June 1898
95

Absorbed in his tasks, Otis made little time for the press, which journalists did not appreciate. In particular, the San Francisco Daily Report

took exception to Otis’s ostensible indifference toward news personnel. 

Shortly before the first expedition sailed on 25 May the paper criticized his 

headquarters for failing to publicize departure information.60 When Otis established his headquarters at Camp Merritt, the Daily Report complained, 

“This morning a sentry was on duty and allowed no one to come within 

fifty feet of the General’s tent. Even newspapermen were not admitted.”61

The paper continued to snipe at Otis in early June. At one point, a 

reporter wrote sarcastically, “There was joy among the newspapermen at 

Camp Merritt this morning. General Otis braved the persistency of the 

reporters and walked from his tent to the street cars. He even condescendingly bowed.”62 By this time, another paper had fired a verbal volley at 

the general. The San Francisco Call suggested that if Otis succeeded “in 

holding off the Spaniards at Manila as he is now doing the press of San 

Francisco, he can sustain a siege there of indefinite length without any 

base of supplies.”63

Otis had reason to distance himself from the press. He knew how 

Merritt’s “incorrect and unauthorized” interviews printed in New York 

newspapers had generated some unwelcome attention from superiors in 

Washington.64 That situation reinforced the value of discretion in dealing with reporters, a lesson Otis grasped from the outset of his arrival 

in the city. Shortly after detraining on 17 May, the general offered a few 

observations about receiving orders for the coast and traveling west from 

Colorado. When asked about the controversy surrounding Merritt, Otis 

declined to comment. According to a Call reporter, the general stated that 

“military courtesy prevented him from passing any opinion on the subject.”65

Otis’s leadership position relative to Merritt’s also accounted for the division commander’s reluctance to talk to newspapermen. As a subordinate 

to Merritt, Otis wisely referred journalists to officials at the Department 

of the Pacific. On one occasion when the Daily Report criticized Otis’s 

inaccessibility, the paper noted, “A ‘D.R.’ reporter was told that all information would be given out at army headquarters in the Phelan building.”66

The journalist chose to interpret Otis’s decision as a rebuff; that notwithstanding, the general exercised his prerogative to defer press inquiries to 

Merritt’s headquarters.

Reporters eventually gained some access to Otis. On 6 June, the 

Chronicle published some remarks he made about the encampment he 
96

commanded and the status of BG Greene.67 After Merritt sailed aboard 

the Newport on 29 June, Otis became more communicative with the press 

as the expedition’s senior officer in San Francisco. On 8 and 10 July, The 

Examiner cited his views on topics that included Camp Merritt, Hawaii, 

transports, and California troops.68

Drill and Exercise

While MG Otis gave little time to the press, he spent hours tending 

to the details of preparing expeditionary forces for duty overseas. One 

dimension of that preparation dealt with drill and exercise. When Otis 

took command of Camp Merritt and the Independent Division, he defined 

guidelines that systematized the manner in which units under his command approached these fundamentals. To the credit of those Regular and 

Volunteer regiments that went into camp before the division command 

structure evolved, units vigorously pursued drill programs. The Daily 

Report observed on 16 May, “Drill in the manual of arms, drill in signaling, drill in music, the setting up exercises—drill, drill, drill all day long. 

That is the order of things in the camps at the Presidio—nothing but drill 

and lots of it.”69

Figure 45.

San Francisco Chronicle, 17 May 1898
97

Each regimental commander grappled with a most vexing challenge 

to his training program: inexperience. Not one regiment, Volunteer or 

Regular, reached the port city with an organization composed entirely 

of seasoned soldiers. In every case, new recruits who had never donned 

uniforms populated the ranks. For example, when a guard organization 

federalized in its home state, new men were added to replace those who 

were unwilling or unable to volunteer for service. In another case, the 

president issued his second call for Volunteers on 25 May. Infantry companies, artillery batteries, and cavalry troops increased their authorized 

manpower. This executive decision meant that units then mobilizing in 

states, assembling in San Francisco, or deploying to the Philippines would 

absorb an additional number of raw recruits after they had already begun 

their drills.

This challenge called upon infantry commanders, for example, to pursue a drill regimen that took into account the varied expertise within each 

squad, platoon, company, and battalion. That condition called for organizations to plan and execute a variety of drills concurrently, from those that 

transformed raw recruits into green soldiers to exercises that focused on 

brigade movements.

Varied drill routines appeared among the first Volunteer and Regular 

regiments quartered on the Presidio. The 14th US Infantry and two 

California regiments each trained “awkward squads” of recruits at the battalion or regiment level.70 These new men received instruction in marching, 

the manual of arms, 

and physical exercises. After gaining a certain proficiency, men 

shed their “awkward” 

status and moved into 

the permanent organizational structure.

As these troops 

worked their way 

through this rite of 

passage, others engaged in more advanced activities. On 

11 May, seasoned 

California Volunteers 

worked at extended Figure 46.

The Examiner, 11 May 1898
98

order movements and skirmisher deployment; Regulars conducted guard 

mount and company maneuvers.71 On 13 May, COL Smith took his 1st 

California through close order and extended order drill at the company and 

battalion levels.72

When Otis brought many of these units under his control, he wisely 

maintained this decentralized approach to drill while routinizing the training program of units belonging to the Independent Division. On 2 June, he 

published General Orders No. 2 that stated, “For the present the practical 

military instruction of the troops of the Division will be of the character 

which Brigade, Regimental, or Battalion Commanders think most essential.” He did, however, add several stipulations that obligated commanders to conduct the following: drill at a minimum of 3 hours per day; daily 

personnel inspections, including the troops, their arms, clothing, and hygiene, in lieu of formal dress parades; assemblies with arms at reveille and 

retreat; and guard mount, the only daily ceremony required.73

Otis gave his command about one month to work on its priorities in 

drill. Essentially, that permitted brigade and regimental commanders 34 

days to achieve some level of proficiency in close and extended order drill 

as they accepted new personnel and blended them with veterans to mold a 

specific unit identity.

Figure 47.

San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898
99

Taking his lead from Otis, BG Marcus Miller, commander of the division’s 1st Brigade, looked to his regimental commanders for the drills 

most needed in their respective commands.74 Although his was the only 

command to be composed of Regular infantry, Miller received quite a diverse response from the 14th, 18th, and 23d Regiments because of each 

command’s unique characteristics.

Major Charles Robe, acting commander, 14th Infantry, had just seen 

five companies of the regiment dispatched with the first expedition to the 

Philippines. Other companies from the organization had either recently 

arrived or were converging on the city, and recruits were joining the ranks 

to reach the 14th’s authorized strength. Robe observed, “the instruction 

most needed is that now being given, viz: the schools of the soldier, and 

company, in close, and in extended order, ‘the squad.’ All troops of this 

command are receiving four hours daily instruction in the above.” He anticipated challenging his command to evolve into platoon, company, and 

extended order.75

COL D.D. Van Valzah, 18th Infantry, reported that “heavy guard duty” 

responsibilities and recruit training had stripped two battalions of “old soldiers.” “We have now over two hundred recruits and expect four hundred 

and twenty-two more, and the instruction of these men will require all the 

command (the 2d. and 3d. battalions) to assist.” He preferred “that all the 

companies be required to drill all their men three hours a day and recruits 

four hours a day, and that as the drills and instruction progress the regimental 

Figure 48.

The Examiner, 4 June 1898
100

commander advance the instruction from squad drill to company and battalion drill, giving especial attention to extended order exercises.”76

COL Samuel Ovenshine, 23d Infantry, suggested drill hours that mirrored the 18th Infantry’s. He already had four companies of “drilled men” 

tagged for the next expedition, and he anticipated he would lose their expertise shortly. Ovenshine wrote, “After the arrival of the recruits now en 

route to the regiment, the eight companies to remain in camp will be virtually recruit companies.” Given the circumstances, Ovenshine intended to 

concentrate on “company or squad drills.”77

Commanders needed time to get their units into fighting order starting 

with drill fundamentals. Otis and his brigade commanders understood this 

reality but expected their organizations to gain proficiency quickly. On 3 

July, Miller published a circular with more detailed guidance. He wanted his 

commanders to submit unit “schemes of instruction” over a 10-day period. 

While they had the latitude to design their own programs, Miller directed, 

“The instruction should be progressial (sic), the last three or four days for 

Cavalry, Infantry and Battalion of Heavy Artillery, California, devoted to 

marching with advance and rear guards and flank parties establishing pickets and reconnoitering the streets of a city or village.”78 Miller’s circular reflected the expectation that units should be engaged in more sophisticated 

training, particularly along the order of likely missions overseas.

Miller either knew or anticipated his boss’s expectations. Two days after distribution of the 1st Brigade circular, MG Otis published new training 

guidance, challenging his units to tackle more advanced drills. New general orders issued on 

5 July formalized 

drill periods and 

specified instruction subjects within the Independent 

Division. Otis 

expected organizations to engage 

in three drill periods each day, two 

scheduled for the 

morning. In the 

first session of 45 

minutes, infantry, 

cavalry, and artil- Figure 49.

San Francisco Chronicle, 7 July 1898
101

lery units conducted school of the soldier. During the 90 minute second 

period, infantry commanders executed school of the company, emphasizing platoon movements and “the preliminary target practice drills in aiming and pointing.”79

Otis directed that infantry commanders give the single, 2-hour period 

in the afternoon to “the school of the battalion and evolutions of the regiment, and in the battalion and regimental extended order.” The division 

commander expected cavalry and light artillery to use the second and third 

drill periods to pursue training that was unique to their arm of service. The 

cavalry would train in school of the trooper and troop in both close and 

extended order, and light artillery would train in school of the cannoneer 

and battery dismounted. Heavy artillery was the only arm directed to train 

outside of its area of expertise. Men in this branch of service would likely 

not have siege guns in their possession in an attack against Spanish-held 

Manila. Not wanting to waste the manpower, Otis directed that they be 

trained “in the school of the company and battalion for infantry.”80

Drill at close or extended order required training areas. For those quartered at Camp Merritt, that need presented a challenge. Located near the 

Richmond District in the northwest part of the city, the campsite offered 

only limited space for training activities. Regiments used roads within the 

confines of Camp Merritt for some drills. In late May, the 20th Kansas 

took to the gravel and pebble streets adjacent to camp for their training.81

Figure 50.

San Francisco Chronicle, 28 May 1898
102

Writing after the war, Private James Camp, 1st Idaho, recalled “many 

drills over sandy or broken rock-covered streets.”82 Commissioners of the 

Golden Gate Park opened “the main drive of the park up to 9 A.M. each 

day and the use of the other drives for all day for purposes of drill.”83

Access to streets assisted in executing close order or guard mount, but 

larger formations and more complex drills required additional space. The 

Call pointed out on 26 May that “soldiers will have to take a long march 

before they can secure room enough to maneuver.”84 That “long march” 

oriented on the Presidio and a few of the reservation’s 1,400 acres.85

On 31 May, The Examiner reported that “the Nebraska troops will 

begin their drills in extended order on the Presidio hills north of the camp 

at Richmond.”86 On 14 June, the 1st Montana used Presidio terrain to fight 

a “sham battle,” a sort of intramural attack and defense among the regiment’s battalions.87 One member of the regiment, Lieutenant Alexander 

Haist, recalled that one drill site on the Presidio consisted of “a gently 

sloping hillside” that overlooked the Pacific Ocean. “When the regiment 

first marched to it,” wrote Haist, “many of its members got their first view 

of saltwater.”88 CPT Frank W. Medbery, 1st South Dakota, remembered 

spending 5 hours each day on a Presidio drill site where “the grass was 

short and slippery” and the terrain uneven.89

Collectively, the drills pursued in the space allocated and orders governing their execution were revealing for several reasons. First, beginning

Figure 51. Camp Merritt in foreground;

soldiers drilling on the Presidio at the upper right.

Golden Gate Nat’l Recreation Area, Nat’l Park Service
103

in May, commanders challenged their units to gain proficiency. Leaders 

started with the most fundamental exercises as organizations accepted new men. In relatively short order, however, commanders pursued more complicated company and regimental maneuvers expected of seasoned units even as recruits learned how to march and salute.

Second, regimental commanders worked to attain proficiency at “extended order.”90 These tactical skills reflected the most current doctrinal 

thinking of the era. In 1891, Fort Leavenworth published references for 

the infantry, cavalry, and light artillery that “were the United States Army’s 

first true tactical manuals, providing officers with advice on how to fight, 

on both offense and defense.”91 Both the infantry and cavalry manuals 

featured instruction on “extended order,” which Perry Jamieson, in his 

1994 book Crossing the Deadly Ground, called “the most important single 

innovation of the new volumes, basing the battle tactics on loose-ordered 

squads of eight men each.” Extended order “deployed soldiers into loose 

formations, spreading them out to minimize the targets they would present 

to the destructive firepower of breech-loading repeaters, Gatling guns, and 

improved artillery.”92 The infantry manual advised teaching “the mechanism of the movements on the drill ground.” Once familiar to troops, extended order would then be “executed on varied ground, making use of 

the accidents of the surface for cover, etc., and observing the conditions of 

battle.”93 The instruction had its effect. CPT Medbery wrote of the training, “Men learned to keep step over difficult ground, to execute quickly 

and accurately all commands and, in a manner that afterward proved most 

Figure 52.

San Francisco Chronicle, 3 June 1898
104

successful, to deploy as skirmishers, take advantage of all accidents of the 

ground and finally with impetuous charge capture a sand-pit a mile from 

the starting place.”94

Finally, drills and orders revealed the Army was at least a generation away from engaging in combined arms training.95 That is, infantry, 

cavalry, and artillery did not train with each other to learn how they could 

support other arms in offensive or defensive operations. As the orders reflected, infantry troops worked to gain infantry skills, cavalry at cavalry, 

and so forth. The only exception Otis made was to train the heavy artillery 

as infantry.

The training experience among units in San Francisco exhibited other 

common features as reflected in newspaper accounts, letters, and regimental 

histories from the era. Some troops saw drill as one of the dominant occurrences of their encampment. Private Madison U. Stoneman, 1st Wyoming, 

wrote, “Drill was the order twice each day until it seemed that the most 

awkward specimen of humanity ought to be quite proficient in tactics.”96

Private James Camp, 1st Idaho, observed that “our stay in ’Frisco had two 

sides to it; the one made of many drills. . . . The other side was made up 

of pleasant acquaintances.”97 Writing in his diary several days after Otis 

issued his 5 July training guidance, Private William H. Barrett noted, “6 

hours drill per day.”98 Private Karl Kraemer, 51st Iowa, wrote a letter to 

his sister on 7 July and observed, “We have not much time anymore.” 

He remarked how a clearly defined schedule featuring drill dominated the 

routine day for his unit.99

In that same letter, Kraemer also referred to sighting, an exercise designed to improve each soldier’s marksmanship.100 Marksmanship training 

was another common feature in the San Francisco drill experience. The 

Coloradans were among the first units assembled to engage in “dummy 

rifle practice” during the latter part of May.101 On 6 June, several days after 

assuming command of the Independent Division and Camp Merritt, Otis 

issued special orders that both encouraged and enabled units to conduct 

marksmanship training: “All volunteer organizations of the encampment 

are authorized to expend in target practice from ammunition on hand, ten 

rounds of the same for each man of their respective organizations” at the 

Presidio target range.102

After Otis published his guidance, units marched to the Presidio to engage targets beginning on 8 June. Volunteer regiments went to ranges most 

often in the order of their departure for the Philippines. The 1st Colorado 

and 10th Pennsylvania, regiments chosen for the second expedition, fired 
105

first.103 Organizations composing the third expedition, including the 1st 

Idaho, 1st North Dakota, and 1st Wyoming, followed between 12 and 22 

June.104 Units that joined subsequent expeditions began to fire in late June. 

Among those participating were the 1st Tennessee, 51st Iowa, and several 

companies from the 14th and 18th US Regular Infantry Regiments.105 The 

Regular organizations got their turn at the range because recruits dominated the ranks.106 Most of the experienced men had shipped with the first 

and second expeditions. 

Whereas marksmanship drills sharpened the eyes, physical training 

worked on the body. This activity was another experience the troops commonly shared, especially recruits. Private Kraemer wrote to his grandfather on 9 July 1898, “When we get up before breakfast, we have gymnastic exercises. There are 17 different movements.”107 Kraemer referred to 

“setting up exercises,” so dubbed by the 1891 Leavenworth drill manuals. 

Infantry Drill Regulations described them as arm, hand, trunk, leg, and 

foot exercises intended “to retain a proper set-up and to keep the muscles 

supple.”108 (See figure 54.)

Almost from the outset of the San Francisco encampments, newspapers 

Figure 53.

San Francisco Chronicle, 10 June 1898
106

commented on physical training. On 9 May, the Daily Report observed 

how recruits in both the 1st and 7th California Regiments received instruction “in the mysteries of setting up and the manual. “109 The following day 

the Call reported on activities at the Presidio: “The new men received 

special instructions from the sergeants in the setting up exercises and that 

part of the manual of arms relative to loading and firing.”110 More than 

a month later, the same paper observed in a paragraph on the 1st South 

Dakota how “physical exercise drill” had become “a feature of regular 

camp practice.”111 On 20 June, the Chronicle printed a drawing that illustrated “Calisthenic Drill for the New Recruits at Camp Merritt.”112 Nine 

days later, the Chronicle commented on the training received by the new 

men who filled the ranks of the 14th and 18th Infantry Regiments: “These 

regulars get daily one hour of calisthenics, two hours of drill without arms 

and two hours with arms.”113

Figure 54.

The Examiner, 11 May 1898

Figure 55.

San Francisco Chronicle, 20 June 1898
107

As tedious as the training in drill, marksmanship, and calisthenics may 

have become for them, soldiers nevertheless shared common incentives 

to earn a reputation for military proficiency. Unit pride and the competitive spirit inspired some. In a letter to his father on 31 May, Corporal 

Hugh E. Clapp, 1st Nebraska, surveyed unit rivals in drill at Camp Merritt 

and wrote, “I say none of them can come up to us, and as a drilled man I 

will say that while they have companies that can beat some of ours, still 

we have companies that can beat any of them.”114 Quartermaster Sergeant 

Louis Hubbard, 1st South Dakota, wrote his mother on 28 June, “Co E is 

very well at present and they are coming right to the front with their drill. 

They are considered the best in the regiment at the time.”115 Just before the 

peace protocol of 12 August, Private Kraemer questioned a “heavy marching order” exercise in a letter to his sister, “I don’t know what this drill is 

for only to see who is the best regiment and then I don’t know what they 

will do with it.”116

Performing drills for the public provided another incentive to becoming 

adept at training. Units participated in San Francisco’s holiday parades. The 

7th California, 1st Colorado, and 13th Minnesota marched in the Memorial 

Day review on 30 May.117 MG Otis directed the 7th California, 51st Iowa, 

1st South Dakota, 1st Tennessee, and 20th Kansas Volunteer Regiments 

to join the Independence Day parade on 4 July.118 That same day, the 1st 

Montana Regiment ferried to Oakland where it led a holiday procession along 

the city streets.119 Later that afternoon while still across the bay, Montana 

Volunteers fought a sham battle for spectators gathered about the heights near 

Lake Merritt. Using blank cartridges, troops from six companies attacked 

comrades reluctantly playing the role of Spaniards.120 Some participants 

dropped as if hit 

by gunfire. The 

Examiner observed that “the 

drill in which 

able-bodied Red 

Cross operatives 

shouldered supposedly wounded men and carried them to the 

rear was particularly interesting.”121

Figure 56. Scenes of sham battle fought in Oakland.

San Francisco Chronicle, 5 July 1898
108

Other regiments performed a variety of training exercises for the public in an enterprising collaboration between the Army and philanthropy. 

The Red Cross Society and Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) 

mounted an impressive volunteer effort to physically and morally care for 

the soldiers during their stay in the city. To assist in fundraising for both 

organizations, the military agreed to present exhibition drills for a paying 

audience at the Mechanics’ Pavilion.122 The structure, measuring 150 feet 

by 300 feet, could accommodate a crowd of 10,000.123

Between the middle of June and the August protocol, five regiments 

conducted a benefit drill for either the Red Cross or YMCA. The 13th 

Minnesota performed on 17 June before a “comfortably filled” pavilion. 

Individual companies demonstrated setting up exercises, a bayonet exercise, physical exercise with arms, company drill, and guard mount.124 A 

Daily Report editorial called the performance a “great exhibition” and “the 

finest drill ever seen in San Francisco.”125

On 28 June, troops from the 51st Iowa Regiment performed drills before 5,000 people on behalf of the Red Cross.126 The 51st presented a program similar to that of the Minnesotans but added extended order drill to its 

performance.127 About two weeks later the 1st Tennessee executed similar, 

though fewer, drills on behalf of the YMCA.128 Men of the 7th California 

and 20th Kansas offered benefit drills on 21 July and 4 August respectively.129

Discipline and Diversion

Drill and exercise taught raw recruits fundamental military skills. 

New men and seasoned veterans learned or relearned tactical procedures 

that facilitated an organization’s maneuver, firepower, and protection 

against enemies. Drills also contributed to developing another important 

component of unit proficiency: discipline. Order, conduct, and obedience 

exhibited by individual soldiers and their regiments influenced how well 

the Army performed its tasks. As units assembled and encamped near the 

Golden Gate, leaders worked to establish or reinforce discipline within 

their organizations.

The first troops to gather in San Francisco marched into a structured 

routine at their campsite on the Presidio. Both California regiments and elements of the 14th Infantry were obligated to conform to installation regulations.130 LTC Victor D. DuBoce, 1st California, welcomed locating at the 

Presidio where he anticipated “the military surroundings” would have a 

positive effect on his unit.131 Those “surroundings” were augmented by a 

prescribed schedule that established three drill periods and several other 
109

activities at specified times—0545, first call; 0735, guard mount; 2145, 

call to quarters; and 2200, taps.132

Initially, men from the 1st California who encamped on the Presidio 

could freely come and go. After two days, however, COL Smith, commander, 1st California, required his men to secure passes to leave post. He 

allowed up to five men per company to depart at any one time.133 Getting 

away from the Presidio became increasingly more difficult, particularly 

the closer a soldier’s unit came to being deployed overseas. The Chronicle

noted on 17 May that Smith “permitted only five men of the 1000 in his 

command to leave camp. Theirs were particularly urgent cases.”134

When more units converged on San Francisco, the encampment expanded, as noted, to include several undeveloped city blocks of an area 

formerly known as the Bay District Racetrack. Each arriving organization established an autonomous campsite generally contiguous to those 

belonging to other Volunteers or Regulars. Through May, regiments essentially created their own training schedules. Conducting drills or other 

activities at times different from one’s neighbor was really quite acceptable, except in cases warranting centralized execution. One exception involved flag ceremonies at reveille and retreat. When regiments failed to 

raise and lower the colors simultaneously, the Daily Report commented 

on the ostensible confusion “about the time of sunrise and sunset.” The 

paper observed, “Each regimental commander has a different time for the 

ceremonies, as there is no head to the organization as yet.”135

The observation “no head to the organization” was more correct in inference than fact. A week earlier, on 20 May, Otis had assumed command 

of all troops tentatively designated to deploy overseas.136 His headquarters, 

however, had focused primarily in preparing the first expedition for its departure on 25 May. With that task accomplished and Merritt’s arrival, Otis 

was in a position to turn his attention to the newly established Independent 

Division’s good order and discipline.

On 1 June, Otis assumed command of Camp Merritt and announced 

in General Orders Number 1 that his headquarters would determine a daily 

schedule to “prevail throughout the division.”137 The following day he issued 

an order that outlined his drill guidance and prescribed times for meals, sick 

call, assemblies, and call to quarters. The second general order specified when 

units would observe reveille and retreat, noting that the Utah Light Artillery 

would fire “a morning and evening gun” to coincide with both ceremonies. 

Sunday duties would be “confined to those necessary in and about the several camps, and to the ceremonies of guardmounting and inspection.”138
110

Whereas a centralized schedule contributed to the camp’s “good order,” courts-martial worked to establish a properly disciplined division. 

On the first day of his command, Otis directed brigade commanders to 

appoint “the necessary Field Officer’s Court for the trial of offenders.” 

Otis referred his subordinates to the 1895 courts-martial manual when reviewing awarded sentences. He also directed that cases outside brigade 

jurisdiction come to his headquarters for action.139

During June and July, several brigade courts-martial boards sat to 

adjudicate specific allegations.140 On 28 June, MG Otis ordered a board 

convened, specifying, “It being necessary for the sake of immediate example the court is authorized to sit without regard to hours.”141 Several 

cases brought to trial involved insubordination.142 One board found a 1st 

Tennessee private guilty of disregarding orders and sentenced him “to 

three days hard at labor, a $5 fine and forfeiture of the privilege of leaving 

camp for a period of twenty days.”143 Another board dishonorably discharged a 23d Infantry private for insubordination.144

Some soldiers accused of desertion or drunkenness appeared before boards. A private from the California Heavy Artillery received a 

two-year sentence in the military prison at Alcatraz for an unauthorized absence from his unit. One 14th Infantry Regular got a year for 

committing a similar offense. For being drunk and disorderly, a 1st 

Montana soldier had to forfeit $20 of his pay and spend two months in 

prison at hard labor. Another trooper from the 1st California received 

Figure 57.

The Examiner, 8 June 1898
111

a $10 fine and 10 days confined at hard labor for his drunkenness.145

Not all disciplinary matters warranted trial by courts-martial. Lesser 

infractions could be addressed within units, and Otis did nothing to discourage this alternative. Major Frank White, 1st North Dakota, presided 

over a field court that tried his regiment’s “petty offenders.”146 Lieutenant 

Alexander Laist wrote of the 1st Montana field officer’s court convened 

by a major in the regiment. Laist observed, “The minor offenses were followed by a few days’ work in the kitchen, and some had employment there 

so steadily that by the time they were mustered out, they had learned the 

worthy trade of cooking.”147

COL Alexander L. Hawkins, 10th Pennsylvania Regiment, dealt with 

recalcitrant men in imaginative ways. On 30 May, the regimental guardhouse held 23 men “for extending the limit of their leaves from camp.” 

While the rest of his unit drilled, Hawkins ensured that his prisoners received special training. The men “were compelled to march for two hours 

in double-quick time through the six-inch-deep sand of one of the company streets.”148 On 1 June, the eight to 10 men still under guard “were 

compelled to march up and down one of the company streets shouldering 

a log of wood.” At the end of the street “they deposited the log on the 

ground, about faced and picked it up again and continued the walk.”149

Hawkins’ attention to prisoners inspired others to gainfully employ those 

who were serving sentences. By late July, military authorities used prisoners to police Camp Merritt.150

Prisoners required guards, as 

did encampments, 

pay officers, and 

transports preparing to depart for the 

Philippines. Private 

Kraemer, 51st Iowa, 

discovered that his 

regiment found another task for sentries. On 11 August, 

one day before the 

peace protocol, he 

wrote his sister, 

“The next morning Figure 58.

San Francisco Chronicle, 14 June 1898
112

after you are on guard we have to go around the ground and pick up the 

paper that is laying around.”151

Guard duties emerged as an integral component of a program to instill 

and preserve discipline in the ranks. By 9 May, COL Smith, 1st California, 

ensured guard mount routinely occurred in his regiment each day at the 

Presidio.152 Just to the west of Smith’s regiment, 14th Infantry Regulars 

practiced guard mount as a part of their training.153 When Otis assumed 

command of the division and Camp Merritt on 1 June, he ensured that 

subordinate units conducted guard mount ceremonies each day, including 

Sundays.154 LTC Edward C. Little, acting commander, 20th Kansas, ordered 

the ceremony conducted twice each day to give the men “experience.”155

Some units used the guard mount ceremony to exhibit their military 

proficiency. Men from the 4th US Cavalry executed a “mounted guard 

mount” on the Presidio for the benefit of a “large crowd of spectators.”156

The Call announced a “crack company of the 13th Minnesotas” would 

give an exhibition ceremony.157 When the 13th Minnesota and 51st Iowa 

performed benefit drills in the Mechanics’ Pavilion, both regiments included guard mount as a part of their programs.

Other indicators offered evidence as to the emphasis given guard duties by military units at the Golden Gate. Private Kraemer again wrote his 

sister on 7 July 1898, observing, “We can’t get off as easy now as we could, 

Figure 59.

San Francisco Chronicle, 10 July 1898
113

but we can get off at nights if we know General Orders for Sentinels.”158

COL Frederick Funston, commander, 20th Kansas, “provided all of his 

men with copies of general instructions to the sentries” and required each 

man “to commit the instructions to memory” before leaving camp.159

Commanders of the 1st Colorado and 1st South Dakota Regiments each 

appointed a major as an “instructor of the guard” who would apprise “the 

men as to the formalities expected of them.”160

Some “formalities” and instructions issued to guards addressed those 

civilians to be barred from camp to preserve the good order of bivouacs. 

The Chronicle noted on 15 May that the Presidio camp was closed to visitors five days a week. The newspaper reported that a visitor could “not 

go a rod without being stopped by a bayoneted young person.” Only a 

pass from headquarters could guarantee passage through the posted sentinels.161

After encampments sprang up in the city, banning undesirables became even more of a challenge. Public roads and streetcars ran throughout Camp Merritt, giving what the Daily Report called “loose women” 

unwanted access to the troops.162 COL Harry C. Kessler, 1st Montana, 

was also concerned with other miscreants. According to the Call, Kessler 

observed that “bakers and venders were making themselves a nuisance, 

and that a number of soldiers had become ill by the unwholesome fruit 

purchased from peddlers. Disreputable persons of both sexes” should be 

barred from camp.163

Commanders and city officials empowered sentinels to preserve discipline within the camps. Sentries continued to admit only those with 

passes. 1st Wyoming guards permitted ladies in their camp only if properly escorted. Private Stoneman endorsed the provision, writing, the “rule, 

while it may have seemed a peculiar one, was certainly commendatory and 

worthy to be enforced.”164 The Daily Report noted that “in a great many 

of the camps ladies are not permitted after sundown.”165 In late June, the 

city’s street committee acted on COL Kessler’s concerns and allowed the 

military to restrict traffic along public avenues in the northeast section of 

camp.166 On 29 June, Kessler’s brigade commander, BG Harrison Gray 

Otis, published general orders for sentries that outlined who could or could 

not enter regimental campsites.167

Through sentinels, commanders excluded undesirables from camp 

and just as frequently prevented troops from leaving the Presidio or Camp 

Merritt. Stoneman wrote, “Guards were put to pacing up and down on the 

four sides of our camp and only those who obtained passes were allowed 
114

out.”168 Sometimes passes were difficult to acquire. About two weeks after 

the 1st Nebraska arrived in the Bay Area, Corporal Clapp wrote his father, 

“Have seen but little of Frisco as it is very hard to get a pass.” Clapp hypothesized, perhaps sarcastically, that the situation may have had something to do with the enemy: “We are under pretty strong guard now as they 

seem to be afraid of Spain here.”169

Any perceived Spanish threat notwithstanding, military authorities 

were most likely concerned with the actions of some troops in the city. 

Saloons or “groggeries” quickly popped up around Camp Merritt after 

it was established. These popular enterprises rankled citizens, including 

members of the Point Lobos Avenue Improvement Club, who registered 

complaints with the Police Commission and MG Merritt.170 Sometimes 

soldiers, having had too much to drink, created trouble for themselves 

Figure 60.

San Francisco Call, 7 June 1898
115

and others. The Daily Report observed on 8 June that “as might naturally 

be expected, some of the soldiers who patronize the saloons are getting 

a little too lively for the peace and comfort of quiet and orderly citizens. 

Therefore the Richmond folks have asked or are about to ask General Otis 

to establish a provost guard in order to gather in the boys in blue who are 

out for a lark.”171

Provost guards became a disciplinary tool for commanders. The 

Chronicle reported on 10 June that a provost guard patrolled “business 

streets” the preceding day looking for troops who had stayed out all 

night.172 COL Funston employed such a guard later in June to “free” some 

of his men. Funston dispatched an officer and eight troops “to a saloon on 

Grant avenue where three of his men were held captive.” The proprietor 

willingly released his prisoners.173 When COL John R. Berry, commander, 

7th California Infantry, learned the whereabouts of one of his troops who 

was absent without leave, he sent an armed provost guard into the city to 

get him.174

Confronted by so many guards and so few passes, some of the troops 

Figure 61.

San Francisco Chronicle, 9 June 1898
116

found diversion at the expense of sentries. Private Stoneman wrote, “The 

boys did not take kindly to being kept in, and frequently took the desperate chances of ‘running the guard line.’”175 Soldiers willingly took the risk, 

particularly before shipping out to the Philippines. An article in the Daily 

Report observed on the eve of the second expedition’s departure, “Many 

of the soldiers, knowing it to be their last night in the city for many months 

perhaps, ran the guard lines and spent the time down town.”176 Not all were 

successful at eluding the sentinels. On 25 June, Private S.F. Pepper, 20th 

Kansas, was wounded “in the back by a bayonet . . . while attempting to 

run the guard lines.”177

Other more organized and authorized diversions existed to help troops 

find relief from the constant grind of drill and discipline. Within the major 

encampments, civilian volunteers established reading and writing tents, 

libraries, and assembly shelters where soldiers could relax and enjoy the 

company of others. A number of 

regiments stationed at the Presidio or 

Camp Merritt brought bands that offered camp concerts in the evening.178

On weekends, those permitted to 

leave encampments could take the 

street cars to various points in the city 

to enjoy the sights of San Francisco. 

That could amount to quite a number 

of soldiers. The 1st Nebraska camp, 

for example, allowed most of its men 

to leave camp on Sundays between 

0900 and 1900.179

Several points of interest in San Francisco captured many troops’ attention. Just south of Camp Merritt, Golden Gate Park provided a kind of 

oasis from the sand and grime of encampment life. Once in the park, soldiers could climb Strawberry Hill or enjoy the conservatory, playgrounds, 

lawns, shrubberies, statuary, avery, and other attractions.180 The Chronicle

reported on Sunday, 22 May, that attendance at the park museum exceeded 

4,000, “the greater part of this number being volunteers from the interior states.”181 Troops from the 1st Wyoming, 51st Iowa, and 1st Nebraska 

wrote affectionately of visits to the park.182

The Sutro Baths, a facility less than 3 miles from Camp Merritt, was another favorite troop spot.183 Doxey’s Guide called it “the finest and most extensive inclosed baths and winter-garden in the world.” The L-shaped structure, made from 600 tons of iron and 100,000 “superficial feet” of glass, 

Figure 62. Writing home.

Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope
117

measured 500 feet long by 100 to 175 feet wide. An amphitheater inside 

contained 3,700 seats; the building could hold as many as 25,000 visitors. 

Palms, shrubs, and flowering plants adorned the entrance. Although the bath 

structure housed both a museum and picture gallery, troops most commonly 

frequented the six swimming tanks, one of which was 300 feet long.184

During their stay at the Golden Gate, many regiments organized 

trips to the Sutro Baths. The 20th Kansas, 1st Montana, 1st New York, 

1st Tennessee, 14th Infantry, 1st Washington, 51st Iowa, Nevada Cavalry, 

and both Dakota regiments conducted unit visits.185 By early July, Sutro 

hosted weekly swimming contests that pitted soldiers against each other 

and “some of the local professionals.”186 Several of the regiments held 

their own meets and awarded medals for top performances.187 At least one 

trooper found his visit a little overwhelming; he slipped and put his arm 

through one of the many glass windows that adorned the baths.188

Although the Sutro Baths proved to be the most popular swimming facility among the troops, soldiers enjoyed taking a dip elsewhere around the 

city. On 23 May, the Lurline Salt Water Baths at Bush and Larkin Streets 

opened its doors to uniformed visitors. The Call reported, “They marched 

in, a half dozen companies at a time, from Camp Richmond, and enjoyed 

themselves in the large swimming tank.”189 The bay provided yet another 

alternative for some. Volunteers encamped at the Presidio took the plunge 

as early as 16 May.190 Sometimes the troops did not use their best judgment when swimming there. In early August, the proprietor of the Harbor 

View Gardens registered a complaint “against soldiers bathing in the bay 

in front of the gardens without any bathing suits on.” The Call reported, 

“The necessary orders to prevent this were immediately issued by General 

Miller.”191

Besides swimming, the troops enjoyed other sports, either as spectators or participants. On 28 May, the president of the Pacific Coast Baseball 

League invited Merritt’s command to attend all games held in San 

Francisco. Eugene F. Bert, the league president, wrote to MG Merritt, “Our 

gate-keepers have been instructed to admit all uniformed soldiers free.”192

To raise money for the Red Cross, the league’s San Francisco Baseball 

Club challenged a Volunteer team from the 13th Minnesota to a game at 

Recreation Park. The city team soundly thrashed the Minnesotans, 26 to 5, 

but the game attracted considerable attention, reported the Chronicle, “for 

sweet charity’s sake.”193 On 6 August, the 51st Iowa and 6th California dueled at the Presidio Athletic Grounds in the first inter-Volunteer baseball 

game.194 A number of regiments also formed basketball and football teams 

that played either local organizations or other military units.195
118

Supply and Medical

If regiments were to drill effectively or engage in organized diversions, commanders first had to address fundamental troop necessities. 

Regular and Volunteer organizations, hastily dispatched to the West Coast, 

frequently reached San Francisco with soldiers lacking essential equipment. MG Merritt observed, “The regiments that reported at San Francisco 

were of various characters. They all contained good material, but quite a 

number of them were poorly prepared for service—some came there without uniforms, some without arms; but everything was supplied as quickly 

as possible.”196 Thousands of men, quartered in tent communities on the 

Presidio and its environs, required daily rations and adequate medical 

care. The Golden Gate area possessed the military facilities and civilian 

infrastructure capable of meeting many units’ needs. The challenge for the 

military leadership was to tap into those sources of aid that would provide 

for their men’s welfare.

The US Army Ordnance Department supported Benicia Arsenal, a 

major depot on the Pacific Coast, stocked with large quantities of ammunition and .45-caliber Springfield rifles.197 Located about 43 miles northeast 

of San Francisco, Benicia afforded easy access to military organizations in 

need of weapons or munitions.198 For example, the arsenal’s commander, 

COL L.S. Babbitt, received orders on 14 May to assist two units belonging to the first expedition. Adjutant General BG Corbin directed Babbitt to 

provide the 1st California and 14th Infantry Battalions with “400 rounds 

per man” and “such arms as necessary to fully arm” the Californians.199

Four days later, Corbin hastened a partially armed 10th Pennsylvania to 

San Francisco, knowing that ordnance shortfalls could be made up on the 

coast.200 While in camp by the bay, the 7th California, 1st Tennessee, 8th 

Figure 63. 51st Iowa Regiment football team.

Golden Gate Nat’l Recreation Area, NPS
119

California, 2d Oregon recruits, 1st Nebraska, and 1st Montana received 

Springfield rifles.201 The arsenal also served as a receiving facility for ordnance and ordnance stores that organizations would not take when they 

were deployed to the Philippines.202

The Army’s Subsistence Department operated a purchasing depot in 

San Francisco.203 Through this facility, the commissary could obtain and 

dispense fresh beef, flour, and other commodities that were often produced locally.204 By 1 June, the department’s commissary planned to store 

a three-month supply of subsistence for 20,000 men.205 COL William H. 

Baldwin, the purchasing commissary colocated with the depot quartermaster, ordered “immense quantities of supplies in San Francisco.”206 The 

chief commissary for Camp Merritt estimated that during July “an average 

of 9366 men were fed at a cost to the Government for the food materials 

of $43,416.” The Chronicle speculated that much of that sum went to city 

suppliers.207 Drawing rations every 10 days, unit commissaries provided 

their men with an assortment of items, including beef, bacon, salmon, 

flour, potatoes, vegetables, coffee, 

sugar, and baking powder.208

The Quartermaster Department maintained one of only six 

Army general depots in San Francisco. The depot quartermaster, 

Major Oscar F. Long, was charged 

with a twofold responsibility. He 

had to arrange oceanic transportation for expeditionary forces and 

provide assembled organizations 

with military stores and supplies, 

including clothing, tents, blankets, 

and “all materials for camp and for 

shelter for troops and stores.”209

The second task seemed formidable because by 1 May, “nearly 

all war material available had 

been sent from San Francisco to 

the East.”210 When the Army ordered Regular forces to Southern 

camps for possible operations in 

the Caribbean, the Quartermaster 

General also moved tons of stores Figure 64. Major Oscar F. Long.

Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope
120

for their support. Long wrote that repositioning these goods left “this depot almost wholly without any stock to speak of, except tents, on hand, 

with which to meet the emergency.”211

To compound Major Long’s problem, in early May the McKinley 

administration urged governors to dispatch Volunteer organizations with 

all speed. If regiments were not fully equipped but able to travel, War 

Department officials suggested “that it is best they go ahead and complete 

their equipment at San Francisco.”212 Additionally, before May ended, the 

depot quartermaster learned that the projected force to gather by the bay had 

increased from 6,000 to 20,000.213 As a result, Long reported, “Regiments, 

battalions and detachments arrived from 20 States and Territories of the 

Union, some even without shoes and wearing bandannas in lieu of hats—

without tentage, with nothing for comfort and even without the few necessities which suffice for the simple needs of the soldier.”214

Long specifically cited several regiments that were in dire need of help. 

He wrote, “The troops from Montana, Kansas and Tennessee were almost 

entirely unequipped.” Even those from Colorado, Iowa, and Pennsylvania 

who had telegraphed that they had their basic gear “were found, when their 

requisitions were filled, to be deficient in the most essential requirements 

of equipment.”215 A reporter for The Examiner wrote about the 1st Idaho 

Regiment’s clothing deficiencies when the unit reached San Francisco: 

“Many of the men had no uniforms, some of them were poorly dressed, 

but all of them looked well. The fact is that but two companies of the eight, 

that is to say 168 men out of 672, are fully equipped.”216

To address these equipment shortfalls, Long acted quickly to replenish 

stocks in his depot, and San Francisco reaped the dividend. He flooded the 

Golden Gate and other West Coast cities with quartermaster requests. On 

16 May, Long told a Chronicle correspondent:

Our orders for clothing and supplies for the expedition are 

keeping busy every factory that makes them in this city 

and on the Pacific Coast. We have reached out to Portland 

and other cities, wherever there are mills. The government 

is spending a vast amount of money in this affair. At least 

10,000 workingmen and women in San Francisco are today occupied on Government contracts. We have ordered 

8000 uniforms, identical in color with the ordinary fatigue 

uniforms but lighter in weight. We have also ordered 1200 

canvas uniforms for wear in Manila, all to be delivered in 

a few days.217
121

In addition to uniforms, the depot quartermaster let contracts for the manufacture of shoes, overcoats, overalls, and drawers.218 To expedite procurement, Long acquired “all other supplies which were obtainable ready 

made in the market.”219 Articles obtained in this manner included blankets, 

shoes, stockings, suspenders, undershirts, axes, and bedsheets.220

The depot quartermaster issued supplies as quickly as they could 

be purchased or “as promptly as 6000 workmen employed in this City 

night and day in manufacturing could furnish them.”221 Men from the 

1st California Regiment received shoes on 17 May. The 7th California 

acquired more than 900 complete uniforms on 27 May. Volunteers from 

Kansas obtained uniforms, and the 1st Tennessee finally secured trousers, 

shirts, blouses, underclothes, and shoes. Soldiers from the 1st Colorado 

and 7th California welcomed an issue of underwear.222 The challenge for 

the quartermaster was to meet the troops’ needs before shortages led to operational or welfare problems. Given the paucity of stocks combined with 

organizations arriving without equipment, Long and Pacific Department 

quartermaster officers did not always have the means to supply soldiers 

quickly.

The medical department confronted a situation similar to that of the 

quartermaster. Given limited military assets, it had to provide essential 

health care for troops. Organizations that converged on San Francisco 

brought their own medical support. Each Volunteer regiment was authorized one surgeon, two assistant surgeons, and three hospital stewards.223

Such a small staff could be easily overwhelmed should virus or disease 

infect the 600 to 1,000 soldiers commonly manning these units.

Complicating the challenge facing regimental surgeons, higher headquarters possessed scant facilities to render medical assistance. The 

Department of California could access one military healthcare asset in the 

Bay Area: the Post Hospital, Presidio of San Francisco. The structure consisted of a small frame building large enough to accommodate “the ordinary number of sick of two companies.”224 Fortunately, the Presidio also 

served as home to a US Marine Hospital. Established on the reservation 

in 1875 “to combat cholera, yellow fever, and general unsanitary conditions existing among seamen,” the Treasury Department operated the hospital. During the war, the Treasury Secretary allowed the Army Surgeon 

General to use vacant beds at this facility. Merritt’s command tapped into 

the Marine Hospital shortly after camps were organized in the city.225

The Department of the Pacific did not establish a division hospital until 30 May. Composed of three large double hospital tents, the field facility 
122

was “capable of accommodating forty men.”226 Before that, military medical treatment came through meager unit resources or a brigade hospital 

formed from pooling regimental holdings.227

Unfortunately, sickness could not be postponed until Merritt’s department prepared itself to meet medical emergencies. On 19 May, the 

Call reported a 2d Oregon Volunteer had been hospitalized with a case 

of measles.228 By 21 May, several other cases developed within the regiment. A “rigid quarantine” helped to prevent the communicable disease 

from reaching epidemic proportions.229 Nevertheless, measles infection 

spread to others. The 20th Kansas reported a case on 23 May.230 Major 

W.O. Owen, chief surgeon in charge of the division hospital, noted that 50 

patients were being treated for measles on 11 June.231 Shortly thereafter, 

the disease threatened to infect much of the camp when the 1st Tennessee 

arrived at the Golden Gate with 18 cases already developed.232 The field 

hospital, by that time in operation for nearly three weeks, took the lead to 

ensure the contagion stayed in check.

Over time, other maladies appeared among the troops. Unit surgeons 

reported treating nonlife-threatening “minor diseases usual in military 

camps” such as diarrhea, bronchitis, mumps, gonorrhea, and syphilis. 

Medical officials surmised that diarrhea could be traced to assorted causes: 

“exposure to cold and dampness” at campsites; poorly cooked food combined with an “irregularity of diet in the shape of overindulgence in pies, 

sweetmeats, fruits, etc., procured by the men or forced upon them by injudicious friends”; and “the excessive use of alcoholic stimulants in various forms indulged in by some of the men.”233 Surgeons believed that 

the health of the command would improve with an assault on wretched 

camp hygiene and poor personal habits. Until such corrections were made, 

however, medical officers feared that unchecked “minor disease,” such 

as diarrhea, could exacerbate “epidemic diseases” like typhoid fever.234

According to the Board of Medical Officers convened in September 1898 

to investigate disease at Camps Merritt and Merriam (established on the 

Presidio as Camp Merritt closed), measles, pneumonia, cerebrospinal 

meningitis, and typhoid fever accounted for the most serious illnesses and 

deaths among the men.

This same board and several Army officers believed that Camp Merritt 

was a breeding ground for sickness in the expeditionary force. BG George 

M. Sternberg, US Army Surgeon General, described the location of Camp 

Merritt as “unsuitable. Its surface was a cold damp sand, continually exposed to chilly winds and heavy fogs, which saturated the tents, clothing, and bedding of the men with moisture.”235 LTC Henry Lippencott, 
123

chief surgeon, Department of the Pacific and VIII Corps, wrote how Camp 

Merritt was located on high ground that exposed it to winds and mists that 

perpetuated pneumonia.236

Some units’ poor sanitary habits compounded the ills fostered by the 

camp’s location. The Board of Medical Officers wrote, “It is known that 

great neglect existed among the men in this camp as regards the use of 

company sinks. It frequently occurred that men taken with diarrhea during 

the night would defecate in the company streets near and among the tents, 

covering up the deposit with a thin layer of sand.” The board observed that 

“the longer this camp was maintained in one place the greater would be the 

amount of area of contaminated soil.”237 LTC Lippencott wrote that “vaults, 

covered with sheds, were dug for privies, but in many cases they had been 

put too near the kitchens and sleeping quarters of the men, no doubt due in 

many instances to the limited area of the camp. They were also not properly 

cared for.” He would subsequently observe, “Another criticism in regard 

to the sinks is the closeness of most of them to the company kitchens, the 

distance between the two in many instances not exceeding 10 yards.”238

Strong breezes could blanket the campsite with sand, dried fecal matter, 

varied contaminants, and garbage that the men discarded. 

MG Elwell S. Otis believed that one of the causes of sickness was the 

camp’s location in “San Francisco, to which hucksters and immoral and 

depraved persons within the city had access. The camp should have been 

placed several miles from the city limits, where temptations for evil doing 

would have been farther removed.”239

The Board of Medical Officers appeared to support Otis’s views in 

Figure 65. Bird’s-eye view of Camp Merritt, looking south.

Golden Gate Nat’l Recreation Area, NPS
124

part. Its report, dated 3 September 1898, found that “The general hygienic 

condition of Camp Merriam is much superior to that of Camp Merritt, 

owing to the fact that it being on a military reservation it is impossible 

to surround the men with and bring into their immediate view rum shops 

and other alluring means of debauchery, which circumstances it is known 

were important in lowering the general vitality of the command at Camp 

Merritt.”240

Treatment for those sick within the encampments demanded medical aid that exceeded the military facilities’ capabilities. To address this 

void, the Red Cross and several local civilian hospitals offered support. 

Their assistance proved an invaluable supplement to the Department of the 

Pacific’s inadequate medical resources.

MG Merritt worked to secure the services of other general officers 

who could lead the department’s brigade organizations in San Francisco 

and expeditions preparing to deploy overseas. MG Otis assumed command of Merritt’s major subordinate unit, the Independent Division. Otis 

and his staff established procedures to organize, train, quarter, and equip 

the division’s Regular and Volunteer forces assembling at the Golden Gate. 

In completing the latter tasks, the Department of the Pacific tapped into 

resources belonging to the Presidio and depot or arsenal assets that several staff departments—quartermaster, ordnance, subsistence, and medical—managed.

Merritt’s command, however, did not depend exclusively upon military assistance in tending to expeditionary forces. Members of the San 

Francisco community donated land, facilities, goods, and services to support the many uniformed newcomers. In particular, several public and private organizations emerged to help clothe and care for troops when Army 

resources were lacking.
125

Notes

1. W. Merritt to the Adjutant-General, United States, 21 May 1898, in 

Correspondence Relating to the War With Spain and Conditions Growing Out of 

the Same, Including the Insurrection in the Philippine Islands and the China Relief 

Expedition, Between the Adjutant-General of the Army and Military Commander 

in the United States, Cuba, Porto Rico, China, and the Philippine Islands, From 

April 15, 1898, to July 30, 1902, volume II (Washington, DC: US Government 

Printing Office [GPO], 1902), hereafter cited as Correspondence II, 667; Francis 

B. Heitman, Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army, From its 

Organization, September 29, 1789, to March 2, 1903, volume 1 (Washington, DC: 

GPO, 1903), 292, 358, 448, 474-75, 936-37; Nelson A. Miles to the Honorable, 

the Secretary of War, 16 May 1898: “I have the honor to recommend the following assignments of general officers to commands” in Record Group 94, Office 

of the Adjutant General Document File, Document No. 81545, Box 604: 81394-

81577 (Washington, DC: National Archives). Chaffee and Sumner were cavalrymen. Davis, an infantryman, had served as aide-de-camp to Lieutenant General 

Phillip Sheridan, a cavalryman.

2. R.A. Alger, 16 May 1898: “The following assignment of General Officers 

to command is hereby made by the President,” in Record Group 94, Office of the 

Adjutant General Document File, Document No. 81545, Box 604: 81394-81577 

(Washington, DC: National Archives).

3. General Orders, No. 50, Headquarters of the Army, Adjutant General’s 

Office, 20 May 1898, in Record Group 94, Office of the Adjutant General Document 

File, filed with Document No. 81545, Box 604: 81394-81577 (Washington, DC: 

National Archives).

4. G.A. Garretson to Gen. H.C. Corbin, 28 May 1898 (Received 29 May 

1898), in Correspondence II, 679-80.

5. F.V. Greene to Adjutant-General, 28 May 1898—4:36 p.m., in Correspondence II, 679.

6. Theo. F. Rodenbough, General Index, Journal of the Military Service 

Institution of the United States, volumes I-XXXIV, 29, 45.

7. “Generals King, Greene and H.G. Otis to go With Philippine Reenforcements,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 May 1898, 15.

8. Don E. Alberts, Brandy Station to Manila Bay, A Biography of General 

Wesley Merritt (Austin, TX: Presidial Press, 1980), 248.

9. Merritt to Brig. Gen. Charles King, 27 May 1898, Army and Navy 

Journal, 4 June 1898, 798.

10. W. Merritt, Major-General, Commanding, to Adjutant-General, 31 May 

1898 (Received 4:20 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 683; Kenneth Ray Young, 

The General’s General: The Life and Times of Arthur MacArthur (Boulder, CO: 

Westview Press, 1994) 152-57. MacArthur instructed in the Infantry and Cavalry 

Training School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, from September 1886 until July 

1889; Alberts, 271-84. Merritt served at Fort Leavenworth between July 1887 and 

July 1890 as commander of the Department of the Missouri.
126

11. “General MacArthur is Here,” San Francisco Call, 13 June 1898, 5; 

“General M’Arthur has Reached Here,” The Examiner, 12 June 1989, 15.

12. H.C. Corbin to Major-General Merritt, 28 May 1898, in Correspondence 

II, 678; W. Merritt, Major-General, Commanding, to Adjutant-General, 31 May 

1898 (Received 4:20 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 683.

13. Letter, Karl Kraemer, Co H, 51st Iowa Infantry, to “Dear Grand. Pa.”, 9 

July 1898 (Carlisle Barracks, PA: US Army Military History Institute).

14. Heitman, 673, 762.

15. H.C. Corbin, Adjutant-General, to Major-General Otis, 14 May 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 641.

16. “General Otis Arrives,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 1898, 3; 

“General Otis Arrives,” The Examiner, 18 May 1898, 3.

17. General Orders, No. 2, Headquarters, U.S. Expeditionary Forces, 

San Francisco, Cal., 20 May 1898, in US Army, Department of the Pacific and 

Eighth Army Corps, Adjutant General’s Office, Index to General Orders and 

Circulars: Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, 1898; General Orders, No. 

1, Headquarters, Independent Division, Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, 

Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 1 June 1898 in US Army, Department of the 

Pacific and Eighth Army Corps, Adjutant General’s Office, Index to General 

Orders and Circulars: Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, 1898; General 

Orders, No. 12, Headquarters, Independent Division, Eighth Army Corps, San 

Francisco, Cal., 29 June 1898 in US Army, Department of the Pacific and Eighth 

Army Corps, Adjutant General’s Office, Index to General Orders and Circulars: 

Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, 1898.

18. General Orders, No. 1, Headquarters, U.S. Expeditionary Forces, San 

Francisco, Cal., 20 May 1898 in US Army, Department of the Pacific and Eighth 

Army Corps, Adjutant General’s Office, Index to General Orders and Circulars: 

Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, 1898; “General Otis in Charge,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 1898, 3; “Transfer of the Troops,” San Francisco 

Call, 24 May 1898, 12.

19. “Generals Consult,” San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898, 7.

20. Apparently Merritt and his staff first occupied part of the Phelan 

Building’s fourth floor. Later, they moved to offices on the second floor, which 

Otis took upon Merritt’s departure for the Philippines. “Headquarters of General 

Wesley Merritt,” The Examiner, 31 May 1898, 3; “Major-General Otis Changes 

His Headquarters,” The Examiner, 30 June 1898, 2.

21. “Camp Merritt Inspected,” San Francisco Call, 31 May 1898, 5; “Troops 

in Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Call, 1 June 1898, 4.

22. “Wyoming Battery Joins the Troops,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 June 

1898, 3; “Major-General Otis Changes His Quarters,” The Examiner, 30 June 

1898, 2; “Headquarters Changed,” San Francisco Call, 29 June 1898, 5; “Army 

Headquarters,” San Francisco Call, 30 June 1898, 5.

23. H.S. Crocker Company, Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory For 

Year Commencing April 1896 (San Francisco: H.S. Crocker Co., 1899), 1558.

24. “Major-General Otis Changes His Headquarters,” The Examiner, 30 
127

June 1898, 2; H.S. Crocker Company, 1558.

25. “The First California,” San Francisco Call, 10 May 1898, 7; “Oregon’s 

Volunteers Now in Camp,” San Francisco Call, 14 May 1898, 7.

26. William Doxey, Doxey’s Guide to San Francisco and the Pleasure 

Resorts of California (San Francisco: Doxey Press, 1897), 91; Crocker’s Guide 

Map of the City of San Francisco, Compiled from the Official Surveys and for the 

Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory, 1896.

27. H.S. Crocker Company, 1558; “Thousands Visit the Boys in Blue,” San 

Francisco Call, 9 May 1898, 5; H.S. Crocker Company, Crocker-Langley San 

Francisco Directory For Year Commencing April 1899 (Washington, DC: GPO, 

1898), 68.

28. Report of Lieut. Col. Henry Lippincott, U.S.A., Chief Surgeon, 

Department of the Pacific and Eighth Army Corps, dated Manila, P.I., January 

31, 1899, in US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1899. Reports of the Chiefs of Bureaus. Report of the 

Surgeon-General (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 469.

29. “Headquarters of General Wesley Merritt,” The Examiner, 31 May 1898, 

3; “The Stars at Camp Merritt,” The Examiner, 11 June 1898, 2.

30. “On His Way to Rule the Isles that Dewey Won,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 27 May 1898, 9.

31. “Fleet Not Likely to Move for a Week Yet,” San Francisco Chronicle, 5 

June 1898, 23.

32. Doxey, 82; “General Merritt Talks About the Volunteers to Alice Rix,” 

The Examiner, 5 June 1898, 5.

33. “General Merritt’s Words of Farewell to San Francisco,” The Examiner, 

30 June 1898, 1.

34. “Governor of the Philippines Departs To-Day,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

29 June 1898, 3.

35. Wesley Merritt to Hon. R.A. Alger, 17 May 1898, as published in San 

Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 3.

36. W. Merritt to Secretary of War, 27 June 1898, in Correspondence II, p. 

715.

37. “Monday in the Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 6 June 1898, 

3; “At Camp Merritt” and “At Headquarters,” San Francisco Daily Report, 13 

June 1898, 6; “Troops Inspected,” San Francisco Call, 14 June 1898, 5; “Army 

Headquarters,” San Francisco Call, 17 June 1898, 5; “King’s Brigade for the 

Philippines,” San Francisco Call, 18 June 1898, 7.

38. “Troops Inspected,” San Francisco Call, 14 June 1898, 5.

39. Testimony of Maj.Gen. Wesley Merritt, 21 December 1898, in US 

Senate, Report of the Commission Appointed by the President to Investigate the 

Conduct of the War Department in the War with Spain, volume VII, Testimony

(Washington, DC: GPO, 1900), hereafter cited as Report VII, 3272.

40. Doxey, 25; Michelin Travel Publications, Michelin Green Guide to San 

Francisco, 1st edition (Fort Worth, TX: Motheral Printing Co.), 51-52.

41. Alberts, 284.
128

42. “In Honor of Gen. Merritt,” San Francisco Call, 9 June 1898, 7.

43. “Citizens Will Greet General Merritt,” The Examiner, 2 June 1898, 

4; “What is Won Must be Kept,” The Examiner, 10 June 1898, 12; “General 

Merritt Wants No Big Public Banquet,” San Francisco Chronicle, 4 June 1898, 9; 

“Banquet in Honor of General Merritt,” San Francisco Chronicle, 10 June 1898, 

7; “Troops at Richmond Will be Moved to the Reservation,” San Francisco Call, 

10 June 1898, 5.

44. “Minnesota Volunteers at Drill,” San Francisco Call, 18 June 1898, 14.

45. “General Merritt at the Orpheum,” San Francisco Call, 20 June 1898, 5.

46. “Ready for the Second Movement to Manila,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

13 June 1898, 5.

47. “Greene Ready for Manila,” The Examiner, 12 June 1898, 15.

48. “Sudden Change of Plans for the Third Fleet,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

19 June 1898, 23; H.S. Crocker Company, Crocker-Langley San Francisco 

Directory for Year Commencing May 1899, 1550; San Francisco: Its Builders 

Past and Present, volume I, 99.

49. “Sudden Change of Plans for the Third Fleet,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

19 June 1898, 23.

50. “Rivalry Among the Regiments,” San Francisco Call, 28 May 1898, 5; 

“Visitors Soon to be Barred,” The Examiner, 31 May 1898, 3.

51. “Diagram of the Camp at the Bay District,” The Examiner, 31 May 1898, 3.

52. Doxey, 99-106.

53. Ibid., 29-30.

54. “Major-General E.S. Otis in His Tent at the Camp Headquarters,” The 

Examiner, 3 June 1898, 3.

55. “Diagram of the Camp at the Bay District,” The Examiner, 31 May 1898, 3.

56. “Major-General E.S. Otis in His Tent at the Camp Headquarters,” The 

Examiner, 3 June 1898, 3.

57. “Visitors Soon to be Barred,” The Examiner, 31 May 1898, 3; “The Stars 

at Camp Merritt,” The Examiner, 11 June 1898, 2.

58. “Army Headquarters,” San Francisco Call, 21 May 1898, 5.

59. “The Stars at Camp Merritt,” The Examiner, 11 June 1898, 2.

60. “Will Sail To-Morrow,” San Francisco Daily Report, 24 May 1898, 1.

61. “The Day in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 31 May 1898, 3.

62. Ibid.; “In the Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 3 June 1898, 2.

63. “Troops at Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Call, 2 June 1898, 5.

64. Wesley Merritt to Hon. R.A. Alger, 17 May 1898 as published in San 

Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 3.

65. “General Otis in Command,” San Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 5.

66. “The Day in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 31 May 1898, 3.

67. “Notes of the Camps,” San Francisco Chronicle, 6 June 1898, 5.

68. “Has Asked for No Report on the Camp,” The Examiner, 8 July 1898, 7; 

“Our Boys Are Favored by Gen. Otis,” The Examiner, 10 July 1898, 16.

69. “When Will the Transports Sail?” San Francisco Daily Report, 16 May 

1898, 2.
129

70. Ibid.; “The Charleston Has Sailed,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 

1898, 3.

71. “Drilling at the Presidio,” The Examiner, 11 May 1898, 3.

72. “One Army to Go and One to Wait Orders,” San Francisco Chronicle, 13 

May 1898, 4.

73. General Orders, No. 2, Headquarters, Independent Division, Philippine 

Islands Expeditionary Forces, Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 2 June 1898.

74. Letter, Charles F. Robe, Major, 14th Infantry, Commanding, to Adjutant 

General, First Brigade, 8 June 1898, in Record Group 395, Preliminary Inventory 

of the Records of U.S. Army Overseas Operations and Commands, 1898-

1942, Entry 887: 8th Army Corps, Independent Division, July-December 1898, 

Letters Received June-September 1898, Box No. 1: General, Special Orders and 

Circulars, 1898 (Washington, DC: National Archives); Letter, D.D. Van Valzah to 

the Adjutant General, 1st. Brigade, Ind. Division, Camp Merritt, 8 June 1898, in 

Record Group 395, Preliminary Inventory of the Records of U.S. Army Overseas 

Operations and Commands, 1898-1942, Entry 887: 8th Army Corps, Independent 

Division, July-December 1898, Letters Received June-September 1898, Box 

No. 1: General, Special Orders and Circulars, 1898 (Washington, DC: National 

Archives).

75. Letter, Charles F. Robe to Adjutant General, First Brigade, 8 June 1898, 

in Record Group 395.

76. Letter, D.D. Van Valzah to the Adjutant General, 1st. Brigade, Ind. 

Division, Camp Merritt, 8 June 1898, in Record Group 395.

77. Letter, Samuel Ovenshine, Colonel 23d Infantry, Commanding, to 

Adjutant General, 1st Brigade, 8 June 1898, in Record Group 395, Preliminary 

Inventory of the Records of U.S. Army Overseas Operations and Commands, 

1898-1942, Entry 887: 8th Army Corps, Independent Division, July-December 

1898, Letters Received June-September 1898, Box No. 1: General, Special Orders 

and Circulars, 1898 (Washington, DC: National Archives).

78. Circular, Headquarters, 1st Brigade, Independent Division, Eighth Army 

Corps, Camp Merritt, 3 July 1898, in Record Group 395: Preliminary Inventory 

of the Records of U.S. Army Overseas Operations and Commands, 1898-1942, 

Entry 887: 8th Army Corps, Independent Division, July-December 1898, Letters 

Received: June-September 1898, Box No. 1: General, Special Orders and 

Circulars, 1898.

79. General Orders, No. 14., Headquarters Independent Division, Eighth 

Army Corps, San Francisco, Cal., 5 July 1898.

80. Ibid.

81. “The Army at the Old Track,” The Examiner, 25 May 1898, p. 5.

82. Private James Camp, Official History of the Operations of the First Idaho 

Infantry, U.S.V. in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, n.p., n.d., 3.

83. “No Place to Drill,” San Francisco Daily Report, 28 May 1898, 4.

84. “Seventh California,” San Francisco Call, 26 May 1898, 2.

85. Map, Presidio of San Francisco, California, 1897-1909, Post Engineer.

86. “Visitors Soon to be Barred,” The Examiner, 31 May 1898, 3.
130

87. Edward S. Farrow, A Dictionary of Military Terms (New York: Thomas 

Y. Crowell Co., 1918) 550; “Vigorous Sham Battle,” San Francisco Call, 16 June 

1898, 8.

88. Lieutenant Alexander Laist, Official History of the Operations of the 

First Montana Infantry, U.S.V. in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, n.p., 

n.d., 5-6.

89. Captain Frank W. Medbery, Official History of the Operations of the 

First South Dakota Infantry, U.S.V. in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, 

n.p., n.d., 5.

90. “Drilling at the Presidio,” The Examiner, 11 May 1898, 3; “One Army 

to Go and One to Wait Orders,” San Francisco Chronicle, 13 May 1898, 4; 

“Presidio Camp Routine,” San Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 5; “Visitors Soon to 

be Barred,” The Examiner, 31 May 1898, 3; “The Day in Camp,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 28 May 1898, 3.

91. Perry D. Jamieson, Crossing the Deadly Ground: United States Army 

Tactics, 1865-1899 (Tuscaloosa, AL: University of Alabama Press, 1994), 112.

92. Ibid., 104.

93. US War Department, Infantry Drill Regulations, United States Army

(New York: D. Appleton and Co., 1898), 14.

94. Medbery, 5.

95. Captain Jonathan M. House, Toward Combined Arms Warfare: A Survey 

of 20th-Century Tactics, Doctrine, and Organization, Research Survey No. 2 

(Fort Leavenworth, KS: Combat Studies Institute, August 1984), 17-18.

96. Madison U. Stoneman, Official History of the Operations of the First 

Battalion Wyoming Infantry, U.S.V. in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, 

n.p., n.d., 5.

97. Camp, 3.

98. Diary of Private William Henry Barrett, 2d Oregon Infantry, entry for 11 

July 1898 (Carlisle Barracks, PA: US Army Military History Institute).

99. Letter, Karl Kraemer, Co H, 51st Iowa Infantry, to “Dear Sister,” 7 July 

1898 (Carlisle Barracks, PA: US Army Military History Institute).

100. Ibid.

101. “Doings in the Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 May 1898, 3.

102. Special Orders, No. 6, Headquarters, Independent Division, Philippine 

Islands Expeditionary Forces, Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 6 June 1898, in 

Record Group 395, Preliminary Inventory of the Records of U.S. Army Overseas 

Operations and Commands, 1898-1942, Entry 887: 8th Army Corps, Independent 

Division, July-December 1898, Letters Received June-September 1898, General, 

Special Orders and Circulars, 1898 (in bound stack labeled “Independent Division 

8th A.C. G.O., S.O., & Circulars 1898”) (Washington, DC: National Archives); 

“The First Pay Day,” San Francisco Daily Report, 7 June 1898, 3; “Seventh’s 

Men Are Hopeful,” The Examiner, 8 June 1898, 6.

103. “General Greene at Work,” San Francisco Call, 9 June 1898, 5; 

“Rifle Practice for Keystone Regiment,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 June 

1898, 3; “The First Pay Day,” San Francisco Daily Report, 7 June 1898, 3; 
131

“Seventh’s Men Are Hopeful,” The Examiner, 8 June 1898, 6.

104. “Camp Merritt Troops,” San Francisco Call, 12 June 1898, 8; “Camp 

Merritt Notes,” San Francisco Call, 20 June 1898, 5; “Division Headquarters,” 

San Francisco Call, 22 June 1898, 5; “Tennesseans Hold a Levee,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 20 June 1898, 5; “At Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 

June 1898, 2.

105. “A Gap in the Camp,” San Francisco Call, 27 June 1898, 10; “Camp 

Merritt,” San Francisco Call, 25 July 1898, 5; “Wyoming Battery Joins the 

Troops,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 June 1898, 3; Letter, Kraemer to Grand.

Pa., 9 July 1898.

106. “Echoes From the Camp,” San Francisco Chronicle, 28 June 1898, 4.

107. Letter, Kraemer to Grand.Pa., 9 July 1898.

108. US War Department, Infantry Drill Regulations, United States Army, 

14.

109. “At the Presidio,” San Francisco Daily Report, 9 May 1898, 1.

110. “The First California,” San Francisco Call, 10 May 1898, 7.

111. “Notes of the Camp,” San Francisco Call, 16 June 1898, 8.

112. “Calisthenic Drill for the New Recruits at Camp Merritt,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 20 June 1898, 5.

113. “Wyoming Battery Joins the Troops,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 

June 1898, 3.

114. Letter, Hugh E. Clapp, 1st Nebraska Infantry, to “Lieben Dad,” 31 May 

1898 (Carlisle Barracks, PA: US Army Military History Institute).

115. Letter, Louis W. Hubbard, 1st South Dakota, to “My Dearest Mother,” 

28 June 1898.

116. Letter, Kraemer to Sister, 11 August 1898.

117. “Camp Merritt Inspected,” San Francisco Call, 31 May 1898, 5.

118. “Troops for the Parade,” San Francisco Daily Report, 2 July 1898, 2; 

“The Parade by Divisions,” San Francisco Chronicle, 5 July 1898, 9.

119. “Fine Parade on Oakland Streets,” The Examiner, 5 July 1898, 10.

120. Laist, 6; “Oakland Celebrates the Glorious Fourth,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 5 July 1898, 10.

121. “Parade of Soldiers and Civilians,” The Examiner, 5 July 1898, 10.

122. “Minnesota Men to Give an Exhibition,” The Examiner, 12 June 1898, 

21; “Iowa Boys Drill to Pleased Crowds,” The Examiner, 29 June 1898, 3; “Native 

Daughters Arrange a Drill,” The Examiner, 13 July 1898, 5; “Tennessee Regiment 

Drill in the Pavilion,” The Examiner, 14 July 1898, 4; “Kansas Regiment in Fancy 

Drill,” The Examiner, 27 July 1898, 9; “Drilled for Charity,” San Francisco Call, 

31 July 1898, 8.

123. Joseph I. Markey, From Iowa to the Philippines: A History of Company 

M, Fifty-First Iowa Infantry Volunteers (Red Oak, IA: Thos. D. Murphy Co., 

1900), 62-63.

124. Lieutenant Martin E. Tew, Official History of the Operations of the 

13th Minnesota Infantry, U.S.V. in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, n.p., 

n.d., 3-4; “The Red Cross Benefit Draws Thousands to Mechanics’ Pavilion,” 
132

San Francisco Call, 18 June 1898, 14; “Were Praised By Merritt,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 18 June 1898, 14; “Drilled for the Red Cross,” The Examiner, 18 June 

1898, 18.

125. “A Crack Regiment Needed,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 June 

1898, 4.

126. “Honors for Iowa’s Sons,” San Francisco Call, 29 June 1898, 7; “The 

Iowa Men Will Drill,” San Francisco Chronicle, 28 June 1898, 7; “Drill and 

Review for the Red Cross Benefit,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 June 1898, 5.

127. Markey, 63; “Drill and Review for the Red Cross Benefit,” San 

Francisco Chronicle, 29 June 1898, 5; “Iowa Boys Drill to Pleased Crowds,” The 

Examiner, 29 June 1898, 3.

128. “Tennessee Boys Drill Before a Large Audience at the Pavilion,” 

San Francisco Call, 15 July 1898, 9; “Tennessee Drill Tonight,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 14 July 1898, 5; “Madly Cheered for Dixie Land,” The Examiner, 15 

July 1898, 14; “Drill of Tennessee Troops,” San Francisco Daily Report, 15 July 

1898, 2.

129. “Seventh Regiment Drill,” San Francisco Call, 21 July 1898, 5, 7; 

“Southern Californians in an Exhibition Drill,” San Francisco Chronicle, 22 

July 1898, 5; “The Seventh Drills for the First,” The Examiner, 22 July 1898, 2; 

“Drill of the Kansans,” San Francisco Call, 5 August 1898, 7; “Kansas Regiment 

to Drill,” San Francisco Chronicle, 26 July 1898, 7; “Kansas Regiment Drill,” 

San Francisco Chronicle, 27 July 1898, 8; “Kansas Boys Drill,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 5 August 1898, 7; “Exhibition Drill by the Kansas Men,” The Examiner, 

5 August 1898, 5.

130. “Orders From General Merriam,” San Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 8.

131. “The First is Under Orders,” San Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 8.

132. “The First California,” San Francisco Call, 10 May 1898, p. 7; “Answer 

the Call to Arms,” The Examiner, 9 May 1898, 3.

133. “The First California,” San Francisco Call, 10 May 1898, 7.

134. “Discipline Now Strict,” San Francisco Chronicle, 17 May 1898, 5.

135. “Doings in the Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 May 1898, 3.

136. General Orders, No. 1, Headquarters, U.S. Expeditionary Forces, San 

Francisco, Cal., 20 May 1898.

137. General Orders, No. 1, Headquarters, Independent Division, Philippine 

Islands Expeditionary Forces, Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 1 June 1898.

138. General Orders, No. 2, Headquarters, Independent Division, Philippine 

Islands Expeditionary Forces, Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 2 June 1898.

139. General Orders, No. 1, Headquarters, Independent Division, Philippine 

Islands Expeditionary Forces, Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 1 June 1898.

140. “At Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 23 June 1898, 1; 

“Immediate Example,” San Francisco Call, 29 June 1898, 5; “Eighth Army 

Corps,” San Francisco Call, 22 July 1898, 5.

141. “Immediate Example,” San Francisco Call, 29 June 1898, 5.

142. “At Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 9 June 1898, 3; 

“Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 June 1898, 2; “Will Sail on 
133

Monday,” San Francisco Daily Report, 22 June 1898, 2; “The Orders to Embark,” 

San Francisco Call, 21 June 1898, 5.

143. “Health of Soldiers,” San Francisco Call, 4 August 1898, 7.

144. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 30 June 1898, 2.

145. “Military Justice for Enlisted Men,” San Francisco Chronicle, 6 

July 1898, 3; “A Brigade Drill,” San Francisco Daily Report, 11 July 1898, 3; 

“Soldiers Imprisoned,” San Francisco Daily Report, 13 July 1898, 3; “CourtMartial Cases,” San Francisco Call, 6 July 1898, 5; “Local War Notes,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 13 July 1898, 3.

146. “Tennessee Men,” San Francisco Daily Report, 17 June 1898, 6.

147. Laist, 6.

148. “Holiday and No Holiday,” San Francisco Chronicle, 31 May 1898, 3.

149. “The South Dakota Troops Arrive,” San Francisco Daily Report, 2 

June 1898, 3.

150. “Eighth Army Corps,” San Francisco Call, 22 July 1898, 5.

151. Letter, Kraemer to Sister, 11 August 1898.

152. “The First California,” San Francisco Call, 10 May 1898, 2.

153. “Drilling at the Presidio,” The Examiner, 11 May 1898, 3.

154. General Orders, No. 2, Headquarters, Independent Division, Philippine 

Islands Expeditionary forces, Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 2 June 1898.

155. “Richmond’s Tented Field,” San Francisco Call, 3 June 1898, 7.

156. “The Band and the Guard Were Mounted,” San Francisco Call, 19 

June 1898, 7.

157. “Camp Merritt Notes,” San Francisco Call, 20 June 1898, 5.

158. Letter, Kraemer to Sister, 7 July 1898.

159. “Eighth Army Corps,” San Francisco Call, 14 July 1898, 8.

160. “The First Pay Day,” San Francisco Daily Report, 7 June 1898, 3; 

“Seventh’s Men are Hopeful,” The Examiner, 8 June 1898, 6; “Troops at Camp 

Merritt,” San Francisco Call, 3 July 1898, 7.

161. “City of the Soldiers Drenched and Soaked,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

15 May 1898, 23.

162. “The Second Expedition,” San Francisco Daily Report, 15 June 1898, 2.

163. “Camp Streets to be Closed,” San Francisco Chronicle, 24 June 1898, 5.

164. Stoneman, 5.

165. “The Day at the Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 8 June 1898, 3.

166. “The Presidio Scandal,” San Francisco Daily Report, 24 June 1898, 4; 

“Camp Streets to be Closed,” San Francisco Chronicle, 24 June 1898, 5.

167. “More Rigid Rules for Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Chronicle, 30 

June 1898, 3; “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 30 June 1898, 2; 

“Stringent Orders Issued,” San Francisco Call, 30 June 1898, 5.

168. Stoneman, 5.

169. Letter, Clapp to Dad, 31 May 1898.

170. “Too Many Groggeries Around Camp Merritt,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 8 June 1898, 5; “Police Commissioners Call a Halt on Increase of 

Saloons at Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 June 1898, 3.
134

171. “Richmond Asks Relief,” San Francisco Daily Report, 8 June 1898, 3.

172. “Military Items Condensed,” San Francisco Chronicle, 10 June 1898, 9.

173. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 June 1898, 2.

174. “The Provost Guard Waited,” San Francisco Chronicle, 25 June 1898, 

9.

175. Stoneman, 5.

176. “Four Thousand More Soldiers Now on Transports for Manila,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 14 June 1898, 1.

177. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 June 1898, 2.

178. “News of the Camps,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 May 1898, 23.

179. History of the Operations of the First Nebraska Infantry, U.S.V. in the 

Campaign in the Philippine Islands, n.p., n.d., 6.

180. Doxey, 99-106; “Soldiers’ Sunday in Golden Gate Park,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 6 June 1898, 7.

181. “Soldiers at the Park,” San Francisco Chronicle, 23 May 1898, 10.

182. Stoneman, 5; Markey, 63; History of the Operations of the First 

Nebraska Infantry, U.S.V. in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, 5.

183. Crocker’s Guide Map of the City of San Francisco, Compiled from the 

Official Surveys and for Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory, 1896.

184. Doxey, 112-113.

185. “The Day in Camp,” San Francisco Chronicle, 30 May 1898, 3; 

“Military News in Brief,” San Francisco Chronicle, 7 June 1898, 4; “Welcome 

Paymaster,” San Francisco Call, 7 June 1898, 7; “Shoddy Clothing,” San 

Francisco Call, 14 June 1898, 5; “The Presidio Camp,” San Francisco Call, 17 

July 1898, 8; “Crowds at the Presidio,” San Francisco Call, 18 July 1898, 5; “The 

Presidio Camp,” San Francisco Call, 20 July 1898, 7; “Monday in the Camp,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 6 June 1898, 3; “The Second Expedition,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 15 June 1898, 2; “At Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 

16 June 1898, 1.

186. “Soldiers in the Swim,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 July 1898, 8.

187. “Military News in Brief,” San Francisco Chronicle, 7 June 1898, 4; 

“Volunteers Race for Prizes in the Swim,” San Francisco Chronicle, 20 June 1898, 

5; “Shoddy Clothing,” San Francisco Call, 14 June 1898, 5; “Soldiers at Sutro 

Baths,” San Francisco Call, 27 June 1898, 10; “Tennessee Men,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 17 June 1898, 6; “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 

20 June 1898, 2.

188. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 30 June 1898, 2.

189. “Soldier Guests at the Lurline Baths,” San Francisco Call, 22 May 

1898, 7; “Soldiers in the Swim,” San Francisco Call, 24 May 1898, 2.

190. “When Will the Transports Sail?” San Francisco Daily Report, 16 May 

1898, 2.

191. “Camp at the Presidio,” San Francisco Call, 9 August 1898, 12.

192. Letter, Eugene F. Bert to Major General Wesley Merritt, 28 May 1898, 

in Memorandum to the Commanding General, 1st Brigade, from Headquarters, 

Independent Division, 8 June 1898, in Record Group 395, Preliminary Inventory 
135

of the Records of U.S. Army Overseas Operations and Commands, 1898-1942, 

Entry 887, No. 33: 8th Army Corps, Independent Division, July-December 1898, 

Letters Received June-September 1898, Box No. 1: General, Special Orders and 

Circulars, 1898 (Washington, DC: National Archives).

193. “Baseball for Red Cross,” The Examiner, 8 June 1898, 5; “Soldiers 

to Play,” San Francisco Daily Report, 3 June 1898, 6; “Military Baseball,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 7 June 1898, 3; “Minnesota Loses to San Francisco,” San 

Francisco Chronicle, 10 June 1898, 9.

194. “California Bests Iowa,” San Francisco Chronicle, 7 August 1898, 

32.

195. “Volunteer Athletes Arranging Contests,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

12 June 1898, 23; “Minnesota Soldiers Against Montana Men,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 18 June 1898, 7; “Soldiers on the Gridiron,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

19 June 1898, 22; “The Soldiers Defeated,” San Francisco Call, 22 June 1898, 5; 

“Will Sail on Monday,” San Francisco Daily Report, 22 June 1898, 2; “Memorial 

Day in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 30 May 1898, 3; “Local War Notes,” 

San Francisco Daily Report, 14 June 1898, 2; “Soldiers Play,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 18 June 1898, 3; “The Soldiers at Football,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 20 June 1898, 2.

196. Testimony of Maj.Gen. Wesley Merritt, 21 December 1898, in Report 

VII, 3265.

197. James J. Huston, The Sinews of War: Army Logistics, 1775-1953

(Washington, DC: Office of the Chief of Military History, 1966) 280; Robert 

B. Roberts, Encyclopedia of Historic Forts: The Military, Pioneer, and Trading 

Posts of the United States (New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1988), 61-62; 

Workers of the Writers’ Program of the Work Projects Administration in Northern 

California, The Army at the Golden Gate: A Guide to Army Posts in the San 

Francisco Bay Area, nd, np, 96-98.

198. Roberts, 62.

199. H.C. Corbin to Col. L.S. Babbitt, 14 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 

641.

200. H.C. Corbin to Colonel Hawkins, 18 May 1898, in Correspondence 

II, 659; H.C. Corbin’s Memorandum for the Chief of Ordnance, 18 May 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 659.

201. “Equipping the Regiments,” San Francisco Chronicle, 28 May 1898, 9; 

“Memorial Day in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 30 May 1898, 3; “Troops 

at Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Call, 1 July 1898, 7; “Eighth California,” San 

Francisco Call, 23 July 1898, 5; “Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Call, 25 July 

1898, 5; Laist, 7.

202. General Orders, No. 6, Headquarters, Independent Division, Philippine 

Islands Expeditionary Forces, Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 13 June 1898.

203. Erna Risch, Quartermaster Support of the Army: A History of the 

Corps, 1775-1939, (Washington, DC: Office of the Quartermaster General, 1962), 

492; US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the Fiscal 

Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report of the Secretary of War. Miscellaneous Reports. 
136

Report of the Commissary-General of Subsistence (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 

582.

204. Risch, 492.

205. “To Increase the Army at Bay District,” San Francisco Call, 1 June 

1898, 5.

206. H.S. Crocker Company, 57; “A Timely Lesson,” San Francisco Call, 

11 June 1898, 5.

207. “Affairs at Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Chronicle, 6 August 1898, 9.

208. “The Presidio Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 20 May 1898, 3; 

“The Day in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 28 May 1898, 3; “Salmon for 

Soldiers,” San Francisco Daily Report, 6 June 1898, 3; “Camp Merritt Will Not 

be Quite Deserted,” San Francisco Chronicle, 14 June 1898, 14; “Affairs at Camp 

Merritt,” San Francisco Chronicle, 6 August 1898, 9; “Division Headquarters,” 

San Francisco Call, 23 June 1898, 5.

209. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report of the Secretary of War. Miscellaneous 

Reports. Report of the Quartermaster-General (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 

380.

210. Letter, E.S. Otis to Col. Charles Denby, 19 November 1898, in US 

Senate, Report of the Commission Appointed by the President to Investigate the 

Conduct of the War Department in the War With Spain, volume VIII, Correspondence (Washington, DC: GPO, 1900), p 178, hereafter cited as Report VIII, 178.

211. Oscar F. Long to Quartermaster General, U.S. Army, 25 August 1898, 

in Record Group 92, Office of the Quartermaster General Document File, 1800-

1914, Case 115533 (Washington, DC: National Archives).

212. “Preparing for an Early Movement,” San Francisco Chronicle, 12 May 

1898, 1.

213. Oscar F. Long to Quartermaster General, U.S. Army, 25 August 1898, 

in Record Group 92, Office of the Quartermaster General Document File, 1800-

1914, Case 115533.

214. Oscar F. Long to Quartermaster General, U.S. Army, 1 October 1898, 

in Record Group 92, Office of the Quartermaster General. Document File, 1800-

1914, Case 120579.

215. Ibid.

216. “Came in From Other States,” The Examiner, 23 May 1898, 2.

217. “Outfitting the Soldiers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 17 May 1898, 5.

218. “Shoes for the Soldiers,” San Francisco Call, 10 July 1898, 8; US War 

Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the Fiscal Year Ended 

June 30, 1898. Report of the Secretary of War. Miscellaneous Reports. Report of 

the Quartermaster-General (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 451.

219. Oscar F. Long to Quartermaster General, U.S. Army, 25 August 1898, 

in Record Group 92, Office of the Quartermaster General Document File, 1800-

1914, Case 115533.

220. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report of the Secretary of War. Miscellaneous 
137

Reports. Report of the Quartermaster-General (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 

462.

221. Oscar F. Long to Quartermaster General, U.S. Army, 1 October 1898, 

in Record Group 92, Office of the Quartermaster General Document File, 1800-

1914, Case 120579.

222. “The Presidio Camp Completed,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 

1898, 3; “Doings in the Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 May 1898, 3; 

“The Day in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 1 June 1898, 2; “Monday in the 

Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 6 June 1898, 3; “Equipping the Expedition,” 

San Francisco Chronicle, 28 May 1898, 9; “Hard Service at the Camp,” San 

Francisco Chronicle, 8 July 1898, 7; “Division Headquarters,” San Francisco Call, 

23 June 1898, 5; “Eighth Army Corps,” San Francisco Call, 23 July 1898, 5.

223. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report of the Secretary of War. Miscellaneous 

Reports. Report of the Surgeon-General (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 703.

224. John Phillip Langellier, “Bastion by the Bay: A History of the Presidio 

of San Francisco, 1776-1906,” Unpublished Dissertation (Manhattan, KS: Kansas 

State University, 1982), 102-103; Workers of the Writers’ Program, 71.

225. Workers of the Writers’ Program, 76; US War Department, Annual 

Reports of the War Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report 

of the Secretary of War. Miscellaneous Reports. Report of the Surgeon-General 

(Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 716.

226. “The Field Hospital,” San Francisco Call, 30 May 1898, 5.

227. “Camp of the Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 11 May 1898, 7; 

“Oregon’s Volunteers Now in Camp,” San Francisco Call, 14 May 1898, 7.

228. “Nurses to Go With the Soldiers,” San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898, 8; 

Report of the Board of Medical Officers Convened at the Presidio, San Francisco, 

3 September 1898, in Report VIII, 170.

229. “A Significant Detail,” San Francisco Call, 21 May 1898, 5.

230. “The Richmond Camp,” San Francisco Call, 24 May 1898, 2.

231. General Orders, No. 12, Headquarters, Independent Division, Eighth 

Army Corps, San Francisco, Cal., 29 June 1898; “Measles in Camp,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 13 June 1898, 6; “Fighting a Threatened Epidemic of 

Measles,” San Francisco Call, 12 June 1898, 8.

232. Report of the Board of Medical Officers Convened at the Presidio, San 

Francisco, 3 September 1898, in Report VIII, 170; “War Incidents,” San Francisco 

Call, 18 June 1898, 7.

233. Report of the Board of Medical Officers Convened at the Presidio, San 

Francisco, 3 September 1898, in Report VIII, 171-72.

234. Ibid.

235. Geo. M. Sternberg, Reply of Surgeon-General, in US Senate, Report of 

the Commission Appointed by the President to Investigate the Conduct of the War 

Department in the War With Spain, volume 1, 658.

236. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1899. Reports of the Chiefs of Bureaus. Report of the 
138

Surgeon-General (Washington, DC: GPO, 1899), 472.

237. Report of the Board of Medical Officers Convened at the Presidio, San 

Francisco, 3 September 1898, in Report VIII, 171.

238. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1899. Reports of the Chiefs of Bureaus. Report of the 

Surgeon-General (Washington, DC: GPO, 1899), 472.

239. Letter, E.S. Otis to Col. Charles Denby, 19 November 1898, in Report 

VIII, 177-78.

240. Ibid., 172.
139

Chapter V

The Relief Societies

President William McKinley directed the Philippine expeditions to 

concentrate in San Francisco and prepare for overseas duty. McKinley 

chose the site because the Bay City featured excellent port facilities and an 

established military infrastructure. Unfortunately, the Army did not possess sufficient resources to accommodate the welfare needs of all soldiers 

assembled at the Golden Gate. San Franciscans rallied to offer assistance. 

One unforeseen and fortuitous dividend of the president’s selection was 

the extent to which the civilian community embraced its uniformed visitors.

Specifically, citizens supported relief societies that emerged to care for 

soldiers in myriad ways. Politicians, businessmen, entrepreneurs, educators, and clergymen joined Bay Area residents to establish and sustain Red 

Cross organizations that were devoted to troop welfare. Working closely 

with the military, the state association and local society embarked on projects that augmented the medical care, equipment issue, and dietary offerings extended to thousands of soldiers encamped about San Francisco.

Some of these same civilian patrons supported another relief society 

that formed to look after Volunteers’ family members. The Patriotic Home 

Helpers offered food and shelter to needy wives and children of community men who joined the military. San Francisco demonstrated a willingness 

to support others as well as its own during the war against Spain.

The Red Cross

Background

On 24 December 1897, Secretary of State John Sherman petitioned the 

general public on behalf of the President of the United States. In an open 

letter to the American citizenry, Sherman appealed for support in providing humanitarian assistance to the Cuban people. Many of the island’s 

inhabitants suffered materially in the wake of their revolution against 

Spain begun in February 1895. Thousands of Cubans faced terrible sanitation conditions, inadequate food, and deadly disease in “reconcentration” 

camps that General Valeriano Weyler y Nicolau established.1

Clara Barton’s American National Red Cross responded to Sherman’s 

plea by committing to relief efforts on behalf “of the sufferers in Cuba.”2

Yet only four months after the secretary of state solicited help for Cubans, 

the United States’ declaration of war substantially altered the scope of 

assistance needed from benevolent organizations. The president’s call for 
140

thousands of military Volunteers expanded support requirements to include 

those Americans gathered to join the Army who were located in state and 

federal camps. By 1 May 1898, the geographic magnitude of the welfare 

task changed as well, embracing an island 90 miles off the Florida coast 

and a Pacific archipelago more than 7,000 miles west of San Francisco.

The National Red Cross responded to American servicemen’s needs 

by pledging “to render auxiliary medical and hospital service during the 

war.”3

 Representatives served “oral notice of the intention of the Red 

Cross to be ready to furnish any supplemental aid that might be required 

by the armies in the field.”4 On 9 June 1898, Secretary of War Russell 

A. Alger officially accepted the Red Cross’s offer to assist in caring for 

troops. Through a letter issued by the Surgeon General, he alerted chief 

surgeons in the field that Barton’s organization had “full authority to send 

agents and supplies to all our camps.”5

Alger’s official sanction merely confirmed what had already been practiced thousands of miles from Washington, DC for nearly a month. During 

May 1898, Red Cross societies in the trans-Mississippi west had begun 

their work in support of units mobilizing to serve in the war. Specifically, 

San Francisco Bay Area organizations evolved to assist the Regular and 

Volunteer units that concentrated about the Golden Gate.

Organization

California’s Red Cross effort to support Volunteers appeared shortly 

after Congress declared war on Spain. Throughout the state, local societies 

took root. Most commonly, these organizations developed in communities preparing to send federalized National Guardsmen to war. The city 

of San Francisco had one complete infantry regiment intent upon gaining 

Volunteer Army status. Although this goal provided enough incentive to 

establish a Red Cross organization in the city, Alger offered an additional 

stimulus on 26 April 1898. In a letter to California governor James H. 

Budd, Secretary of War Alger announced that California National Guard 

units would rendezvous at San Francisco.6

In response to these developments, citizens were invited to attend 

the first meeting of the “Red Cross League and Sanitary Commission of 

California” on 2 May 1898. Members of the San Francisco community 

were encouraged to support a society dedicated to providing for state 

Volunteers. The invitation to constitute a Red Cross indicated that “This 

organization has been formed to provide California troops, called to defend their flag and country, with medical and other supplies, and to care for 

our soldier boys in camp and hospital.”7
141

The 2 May meeting at the California Hotel actually welcomed representatives from Bay Area Red Cross organizations. One woman who 

attended proclaimed, “We’re fighting as surely for our country in this full 

membership of ours under the Red Cross as though we had shouldered 

muskets and marched away.”8

 Other delegates who shared her sense of 

duty joined in chartering the California Red Cross Society. Representatives 

empowered the league to pursue local branch issues. An executive committee composed of key political figures and spiritual leaders, “the leading 

philanthropic women and foremost business men of the city,” was named 

to supervise the organization’s activities.9

Executive committee women, led by the society’s president, Mrs. 

Willard B. Harrington, established numerous Red Cross subcommittees 

that defined the league’s special areas of interest: constitution, finance, 

schools, subscription solicitations, nurses, entertainment, and clubs. These 

groups toiled to achieve the league’s main objective to care for California 

men going to war. Pursuing this goal was no small task, given the military’s questionable ability to clothe, equip, and care for thousands of 

new soldiers. Harrington observed that the federal government provided 

Figure 66.

The Examiner, 1 July 1898
142

the “barest of necessities” for its Volunteers. 

She added, “It is our 

duty . . . to see that the 

boys who go to fight for 

us, while we remain at 

home in comfort and 

safety, should be provided for to the best of 

our ability.”10 The society, therefore, intended 

to work closely with 

the military to identify 

and meet the needs of 

soldiers who marshaled 

in San Francisco.

Harnessing suitable resources to assist the military simply exceeded the 

capacity of only one Red Cross chapter. The San Francisco-based California 

Red Cross Society therefore set out to coordinate the work of branches 

across the state. Two developments assisted the society in realizing this 

goal: emerging Red Cross branches in Los Angeles, Visalia, Alameda, and 

Vallejo supported establishing a state-wide organization and the designation of San Francisco as the assembly point for Regular and Volunteer units 

bound for the Philippines.11

On 25 May 1898, the California Red Cross Society assisted in setting up a coordinating 

authority when it reorganized 

into two bodies.12 The first organization, the San Francisco 

Red Cross Society, emerged to 

supervise activities that had a 

local focus. Mrs. John F. Merrill 

was elected president. The second organization, the California 

State Red Cross Association or 

Auxiliary, evolved to orchestrate the efforts of organizations 

across the state. Harrington asFigure 67. Mrs. Willard B. Harrington. Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope

Figure 68. Mrs. John F. Merrill.

Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope
143

sumed the presidency of the new state body. In keeping with its broader 

charter, the state association announced that local Red Cross organizations 

should “equip their own troops. . . . In the field the general society would 

look after all the troops and thus there would be no conflict of the main and 

subordinate organizations.”13

Red Cross personnel who formed the California state association 

chose to be administered by a board of managers. Composed of 15 members, the board represented the state’s largest local organizations. Given 

their proximity to “the scene of embarkation,” San Francisco and Alameda 

county achieved the greatest numeric advantage on the board. The association accorded San Francisco six members and Alameda county four representatives (Oakland, two; 

Alameda, one; Berkeley, one). 

The remaining five delegates 

hailed from Los Angeles, 

Sacramento, Marin, Santa 

Clara, and San Joaquin.14

The state association 

established a headquarters 

in two rooms on the second floor of The Examiner, 

or Hearst, Building.15 Mrs. 

Phoebe A. Hearst, a noted 

philanthropist and William 

Randolph Hearst’s mother, 

donated rooms rent-free to 

the Red Cross.16 The state 

organization did not employ 

salaried officers. Volunteer 

workers attended the offices 

between 0900 and approximately 1800.17 Operating out of rooms at this 

location gave Red Cross officials easy access to critical military agencies. 

The Hearst Building was positioned at the southeast corner of Market and 

Third Streets in downtown San Francisco. It stood less than a block from 

Phelan Building offices of the US Army’s Pacific and California territorial 

departments and only several blocks from the depot quartermaster at 36 

New Montgomery Street.18

The San Francisco Red Cross Society also enjoyed a favorable proximity to the same military facilities. The local society established its headquarters in the Claus Spreckels Building on Market and Third Streets, adjacent 

Figure 69. Mrs. Phoebe Hearst.

Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope
144

to the Hearst Building and state association offices.19 League volunteers 

operated from second-floor rooms provided by Spreckels, a wealthy entrepreneur who amassed a fortune through investing in the sugar industry.20

Beginning 7 May, a local Red Cross representative moved about Rooms 

204 to 207, tending to society business from 1000 to 1700.21

The state association and local society operated in tandem. Key 

members occasionally held positions in both organizations. Harrington, 

Merrill, and Mrs. L.L. Dunbar, secretary of the California State Red Cross 

Association, collaborated to orchestrate the subcommittees’ efforts; they 

met daily with civilian volunteers.22 Both the state and local Red Cross 

shared the use of a 16 Post Street warehouse loaned by the estate of 

“Bonanza King” James G. Fair. There, the organizations received donations and stored a “multiplicity of things received.”23

Fundraising

Initially, the California Red Cross Society sought a type of donation 

that would have been better stored in a safe than a warehouse—money. 

Doctor William E. Hopkins, Surgeon General, California National Guard, 

estimated that “about $9000 would be required . . . to fit the medical corps 

for a campaign.”24 That figure pertained to requirements generated by 

California Volunteers only. As the War Department designated more units 

for service in Manila, the financial obligation to care for additional units 

increased. To generate monetary support intended to care for troops, the 

Governor of California, Mayor of San Francisco, and Red Cross officials 

issued a proclamation on 5 May 1898: “Let us rally to the aid of our country’s defenders. We need money for necessities, not for luxuries. And as 

time is pressing, the money should be given at once.”25

Mrs. F.G. Sanborn, chairman of the California Red Cross Society’s 

subscription committee, circulated her own announcement. On 9 May, 

she and other Red Cross officials asked for assistance in raising a fund to 

provide “such articles for the care of the sick and wounded soldiers and 

sailors as are not provided for by the Government of the United States.” 

Members of her committee thrust pledge books into the hands of eager 

volunteers prepared to solicit and record contributions. The organization 

also maintained subscription lists at several newspaper offices and placed 

donation boxes at various points in the city.26

Revenues “began to flow in slowly but surely” to Red Cross headquarters.27 Starting in mid-May, the San Francisco Call and San Francisco 

Daily Report published information on Red Cross activities, solicitations, 

and funds several times a week. By 17 May, less than two weeks after 
145

announcing its initial appeal, the California Red Cross Society gathered 

subscriptions of $13,662.28 On 27 June, Mrs. W.P. Morgan, the local organization’s finance chairman, listed revenues at $47,277.29 Just over two 

weeks later, the San Francisco Red Cross Society reported $51,866.30 By 

the time of the peace protocol, the finance committee accounted for revenues that totaled $58,139.31

The San Francisco society secured funds through a variety of sources. 

Morgan organized her 31 May statement of contributions in eight categories: general subscriptions; schools; clubs, churches, and associations; San 

Francisco Fire Department; San Francisco Produce Exchange; Stock and 

Bond Exchange; monthly subscriptions; entertainment; and benefits. Of 

Figure 70.

San Francisco Call, 25 May 1898
146

the total receipts, “general subscriptions” accounted for slightly more than 

66 percent.32

The dominance of “general subscriptions” could be traced to individual contributors’ donations. Some were among the more noteworthy of the 

San Francisco region; others gave anonymously or subscribed from afar. 

Mayor James D. Phelan was among the first to respond to the early May 

solicitation when he wrote a check for $200.33 Claus Spreckels contributed 

$1,000 toward the end of the month. Mrs. A.S. Townsend, a local philanthropist and one of the Red Cross’s greatest supporters, gave $1,000 on 

26 May.34 Spreckels and Townsend accounted for the largest single donations given in spring and summer 1898. Many others gave smaller sums, 

including A.B. McCreery, $100; three little girls’ fireworks money, $10; a 

“friend”, $27; and a soldier, $1.35

Schools, too, routinely made contributions. At the organizational meeting on 2 May, discussion included how to include school children in the 

Red Cross effort. During May and June, the local society seldom released 

a report on its finances without noting money, no matter how seemingly 

insignificant, that the school children offered. For example, the Golden 

Gate Primary School gave 75 cents for its second subscription.36 The Sutro 

Primary School delivered $10.37 Others contributing included the school 

children of Mill Valley, $20; Monroe School, $10; Humbolt School, $1; 

and Girls Mission High School, $38.38 Schools also participated in “entertainments and benefits,” activities that generated revenue for the Red 

Cross. The Strawberry Festival at Clement Grammar School, for example, 

netted more than $112.39

Sports, cultural events, and military activities raised the most money 

in this category. “Red Cross Day” observed on Friday, 27 May, at the 

Oakland Race Track yielded $1514 from the California and Pacific Coast 

Jockey Clubs.40 A 9 June baseball game at Recreation Park between the 

13th Minnesota Volunteers and the San Francisco Baseball Club produced 

$77.41 Mr. Fritz Scheel conducted the San Francisco symphony orchestra at a 2 June matinee performance in the Baldwin Theater. The concert 

before an audience described as “not over large” generated proceeds of 

$219.42 The San Francisco Press Club hosted the sale of pictures by artists 

and art students in mid-June, raising $706.70 for the Red Cross.43

The San Francisco Red Cross Society also conceived of a benefit that 

tapped Volunteer regiments’ services. On Friday evening, 17 June, the local organization sponsored a “reception” for 13th Minnesota Volunteers 

at the Mechanics’ Pavilion. Society members invited the public to purchase admission tickets and watch the regiment perform various drills. 
147

The program included physical exercise with arms, guard mount, bayonet 

exercise, company drill, and a review by MG Wesley Merritt.44 The benefit 

raised nearly $700.45 Eleven days later, troops from the 51st Iowa offered 

a similar fundraising program at the Mechanics’ Pavilion. MG Elwell Otis 

served as reviewing officer. The Native Daughters of the Golden West, 

who sponsored the Red Cross benefit, charged patrons 25 cents for a seat 

in the gallery or 50 cents for one on the main floor. Proceeds netted more 

than $322.46

A number of donations from various professional, business, and government organizations also added revenues to the local Red Cross. The 

Retail Liquor Dealers gave a whopping $1,132 in early July.47 During June, 

the San Francisco Post Office Branch of the Red Cross Society pledged 

$100 per month.48 Its August contribution reached $150.49 Other notable 

donors were the Japanese Society, $160; the Japanese Bank, $25; the 

Figure 71.

San Francisco Call, 18 June 1898
148

Sam Yups of Chinatown, $112; Risdon Iron Works employees, $110; San 

Francisco Bar Association, $25; and not to be outdone, Merrill, Barker, 

and Hill’s Guinea Pig Show, $50.50

Goods and Services

In addition to cash, the Red Cross encouraged gifts of goods and services. Early donations included essentials to get the Red Cross operational. 

Mrs. Phoebe Hearst and Claus Spreckels offered rent-free rooms in Market 

Street office buildings for use as Red Cross headquarters. To furnish state 

association offices, the Fuller Desk Company provided chairs and desks. 

Sloane and Company gave rugs.51 A telephone company installed a phone 

“and allowed the use of it absolutely free for eight months.”52 The HicksJudd Company, a publishing enterprise that subsequently printed Volunteer 

unit histories as part of Campaigning in the Philippines by Karl Irving 

Faust, supplied the league with stationery and printing free of charge.53

Western Union and Postal Telegraph Companies allowed the Red Cross 

to use their wires at no cost.54 John Monahan and Company, commercial 

book and job printers, contributed 1,000 subscription blanks, enabling the 

Red Cross to collect pledges.55

Once organized, the society asked citizens for clothing and personal 

articles or the materials to make them. In some instances, civilian volunteers solicited specific items based on requests made by the military of the 

Red Cross. On 18 May, the Daily Report announced that “the society has 

issued a call for donations of muslin for pillow cases and sheeting. . . . A 

large supply of flannel is wanted for abdominal bandages. The Government 

has asked the society for 6000 of them.”56

Organizations and individuals responded. The Needlework Guild donated 4,234 handkerchiefs and towels. Greenbaum, Weil, and Michels, 

importers and manufacturers of men’s furnishing goods, offered the society one day’s work on the factory’s 200 sewing machines.57 Mrs. A.S. 

Townsend sent 500 yards of muslin for bandages.58 The Oregon Red 

Cross donated 600 caps and 1,000 bandages in early June.59 Redington 

and Company, importers and jobbers, provided 500 fans.60 The Native 

Daughters of the Red Cross furnished 300 caps and bandages.61

The Red Cross also regularly asked for “comfort bags.” These personal items were made of denim and measured 7 inches long and 2 inches 

wide when opened. The bags contained buttons, thread, needles, pins, and 

safety pins. Society volunteers encouraged the public to include “coarse 

needles . . . as men at best are never good sewers, and it would be a difficult matter for the soldiers to thread a fine needle.”62
149

The Red Cross also solicited and received assorted other goods and services 

from numerous donors. “All mothers of the 

soldiers are requested to go to the society’s 

rooms, 16 Post Street, and assist in sewing.”63 The Red Cross also conceived of a 

role for children beyond their school relief 

projects: “Boys can do good service at 16 

Post street, as messengers, on Saturday afternoons or after school hours.”64 Merchants, 

manufacturers, and producers were urged to 

contribute canned and preserved fruits, beef 

extracts, and other foods.

The public responded in much the same 

way as they had to requests for money. 

Townsend donated 5,000 pounds of dried 

fruit.65 The State Board of Trade sent 225 boxes of fruit to the society’s 

hospitality rooms at the Ferry Building by the bay. The Union Ice Company 

contributed all the ice needed in the hospital department.66 Belmont School 

sent 12 gallons of milk daily to Camp Merritt to be apportioned among the 

regiments.67 The American Union Fish Company dispatched 3,000 pounds 

of fish to the Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, and Montana Volunteers.68 Fish 

and Game Warden Joseph A. Mogan conducted “another” raid on fishermen and sent 1,000 pounds of confiscated fish to the Red Cross.69 The 

Trinity Church ladies prepared 565 lunches, and Grace Church sent 124 

packages of food to the Ferry Building hospitality rooms.70

Others who offered donations included Messieurs Grey, Mitchell, and 

A.A. Hold who secured wood for hospital tent floors at Lime Point, Fort 

Baker, and other areas that accommodated troops. These men inspired six 

lumber companies to each donate 1,500 feet of lumber.71 The Pacific Pine 

Lumber Company subsequently presented floor covering for five hospital 

tents.72 Mrs. Alferitz and sons donated 1,700 postals, a popular item among 

the soldiers. The Red Cross noted toward the end of June that 10,316 postals had been distributed to the Volunteers.73 G.M. Joselyn and Company 

of San Francisco, ship chandlers, donated a large quantity of bunting “for 

Red Cross flags to go to Manila.”74

Arrivals

After the 2d Oregon’s lead units slipped unnoticed into San Francisco 

on 13 May, California Red Cross Society volunteers resolved to establish 

Figure 72.

San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898
150

a welcome for troops. The organization learned at a meeting on 17 May 

that large numbers of soldiers were expected to arrive within 24 hours. 

Reverend Jacob Voorsanger, rabbi of the Temple Emmanu-El Synagogue 

and member of the Red Cross advisory board, “had already proposed that 

something be done in the way of cheer for the stranger at the ferry landing.”75 A Red Cross executive committee report recorded concern that men 

were likely to arrive “hungry and travel worn, with the prospect of a long 

march through a strange city, and the further probability of waiting for 

food for hours after arriving at their destination.”76 Spurred by offers of 

assistance from the Salvation Army and Mayor Phelan, the society elected to provide refreshments for newly arrived forces. Through this activity, the organization intended to offer uniformed newcomers “a practical 

California welcome” and “an introduction to the Red Cross Society.”77

On 18 May, society volunteers implemented the program. Perhaps a 

little overzealous in their execution, Red Cross personnel crossed the bay 

and fed one of Oregon’s battalions just after the troops reached Oakland. 

When other comrades arrived from the same state and boarded a bay ferry 

at Oakland, the Red Cross embarked and served refreshments during the 

short trip to San Francisco.78

That venture was the only instance in which members of the San 

Francisco society crossed the bay to greet troops. Thereafter, the local organization instituted welcoming festivities at San Francisco’s Ferry Building. 

To prepare for inbound units, members of the Red Cross hospitality committee coordinated with Southern Pacific officials who operated both railroad 

and ferry services. Exact arrival times were often difficult to establish; therefore committee volunteers gathered at the 

depot around 

0600 when 

the first ferries departed 

Oakland for 

San Francisco.79

The Call

described a 

typical Red 

Cross wel- Figure 73. Ready for work at the Ferry Building.

Record of Red Cross Work on Pacific Slope
151

come. Normally troops offloaded ferries, then stacked their weapons 

and grounded other pieces of equipment. After forming into ranks, the 

men moved to the Ferry Building, marching to music the Merchants’ 

Association band or a recently arrived regiment provided. Soldiers entered 

Red Cross hospitality rooms that had the “appearance of a flower show 

owing to the great quantity of exquisite blossoms hanging in garlands” 

and adorning tables.80

Once inside, men passed through lines of volunteer servers who offered hot coffee and an assortment of food: stew, hard-boiled eggs, pork 

and beans, hot bread and butter, sandwiches, cheeses, doughnuts, fruits, 

pies, and cakes.81 Many troops devoured their first home-cooked food in 

weeks. Acting on requests from the Red Cross, local churches, synagogues 

and the general public provided much of the food.82 On one occasion when 

the number of soldiers served virtually exhausted supplies, restaurants 

near the Ferry Building sent provisions.83

The Red Cross welcome made an immediate, lasting impression on 

troops. Private William S. Christner, 10th Penn-sylvania, wrote his parents 

on 26 May 1898, “When we arrived at Frisco the ladies of the Red Cross 

society met us and such a breakfast the boys had not eaten for some time. 

Then they packed our haversacks with sandwiches, oranges, and bananas. 

Grapes and apricots were given us in plenty.”84

Figure 74. Dispensing hospitality at the Ferry Building.

Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope
152

Another Volunteer, Private A.G. Baker, 1st Colorado, recalled the experience in his personal narrative of the war. As he prepared to disembark 

near the ferry depot on 21 May, Baker and his fellow Coloradans believed 

they would not be fed until completing the 4-mile march to Camp Merritt. 

To their surprise, the ladies of the Red Cross awaited with food prepared. 

Members of the regiment were ushered into a large room “decorated with 

flags and patriotic colors. In the center of the room was an immense lunch 

counter laden with everything a hungry soldier could desire.” Baker wrote 

that the ladies “served rich brown coffee, dainty sandwiches, cold meats 

of all kinds, cakes, cookies, pies and other deserts. Then apples, oranges, 

bananas, peaches and grapes, products of our modest sister state, were 

passed around.”85 Other Volunteer and Regular forces enjoyed a similar 

experience.

As troops prepared to depart the Ferry Building for their camps in 

the city, the Red Cross and military units exchanged salutes. Mr. James 

B. Stetson, president of the California Street Cable Railroad and North 

Pacific Coast Railroad, usually served as toastmaster. Dubbed the “Ferry 

Figure 75. A cup of coffee at ferry Red Cross room.

Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope
153

Godfather” by fellow Red Cross volunteers, Stetson organized and led the 

festivities.86 Each unit honored its hostesses with “three cheers and a tiger” for tendering such a splendid welcome. Other regiments offered more 

tangible expressions of thanks. For example, the 1st Montana presented 

“a beautiful gold mounted watch chain, made of sorrel horsehair, for the 

president of the Red Cross, Mrs. Merrill.”87 One soldier among recruits of 

the 18th and 23d Infantry Regiments left a dollar in appreciation for the 

society’s reception.88

As troops moved out of the ferry depot, some with food stuffed in their 

pockets, the Red Cross offered blank postal cards to soldiers who could 

then write friends and relatives at home. The ladies also presented each 

soldier “with choice flowers with which to adorn themselves, giving them 

a picturesque appearance along the line of march.”89 The Call recorded 

that “the boys like to decorate and adorn their belts with roses, and embellish their gun barrels with calla lilies.”90 (See figure 77.) 

Between 18 May and the battle for Manila on 13 August, Red Cross 

volunteers stood watch at San Francisco’s Ferry Building, ready to greet 

every unit that entered the city. On at least one occasion, the society’s 

workers offered more than the usual welcome of food and flowers. When 

16 recruits from Texas arrived for duty with the Regular Army, they 

brought nothing but the clothes they wore. Red Cross members provided 

Figure 76. Good cheer at the Ferry Building.

Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope
154

the men with food, clothing, and streetcar fare to the Presidio where they 

were assigned to their units.91

Departures

As expeditions prepared to leave San Francisco for the Philippines, 

Red Cross volunteers worked on several fronts to ready troops for their 

journey. The society gathered meals to give to soldiers who awaited dockside. The ladies also provided other services intended to comfort the troops 

as they braced for their long voyage overseas.

Units of the first expedition began to break camp and converge on 

three steamers during the fourth week of May. Near the ferry depot, Mrs. 

C.S. Wright managed the distribution of 11,000 lunches that were collected 

after the First Presbyterian Church issued a call for support.92 Members of 

the 1st California Regiment boarded a troop transport, the City of Peking, 

to find chests and ammunition boxes “arranged on deck, in lieu of tables, 

and on these was spread the repast for officers and men.”93 When a bagFigure 77. San Francisco Call, 22 May 1898
155

gage mix-up forced the 2d Oregon Regiment to remain dockside for hours 

before boarding the Australia, the Red Cross provided food.94 After troops 

completed loading the City of Sydney, all three ships entered the stream 

and prepared to depart. While at anchor, each transport received a visit 

from Red Cross volunteers aboard the tugboats Reliance and Monarch. 

The organization’s workers aboard these vessels transferred packages to 

troops on the steamers.95

The Red Cross offered additional aid to units that departed in June. 

Mrs. Merrill, president of the San Francisco society, appealed to the public for food donations as soldiers marshaled for the second expedition.96

Response from the citizenry enabled a Red Cross delegation to provide 

the men with a lunch of coffee and sandwiches.97 The Oakland and San 

Francisco societies distributed identification (ID) badges to Volunteers and 

Regulars who embarked the same month.98

The society renewed its call for public assistance as the third expedition prepared to sail. On 26 June, the Call published an announcement 

that solicited help: “As the soldiers will go aboard the transports to-day, it 

is asked that all lunches be sent to Mrs. Lowenberg, chairman of the hospitality committee.”99 Local community organizations and churches answered the appeal. Sherith Israel Congregation, St. Luke’s Episcopal, First 

Presbyterian, and Temple Emanue-El collectively provided thousands of 

lunches.100 Each soldier accepted homemade meals in individual packages 

“consisting of two meat sandwiches, a hard-boiled egg, cheese, cakes and 

doughnuts, and an orange or an apple.” Troops also received pencils and 

postcards to write friends and loved ones farewell messages.101

R e d 

Cross preparations for 

July’s fourth 

expedition 

f o l l o w e d 

much the 

same course. 

The day before units 

boarded vessels, Trinity 

and Grace 

C h u r c h e s 

p r e p a r e d 

Record of Red Cross Work on Pacific Slope

Figure 78. Lunching before sailing from the transport dock.
156

lunches and delivered them to the Red Cross. Food donations poured into 

the organization’s hospitality quarters at the Ferry Building.102 On 15 July, 

the river steamer Alvira, with Red Cross representatives and friends of 

soldiers aboard, cruised the bay to visit departing transports.103

In Camp

The Red Cross was the most visible and active relief organization in 

the encampments. Troops saw the society’s volunteers everywhere. The 

Call observed, “There is no day of rest for the ladies of the Red Cross. 

Visiting hospitals, comforting the sick and supplying the many wants of 

the boys in blue in these busy war times gives them very little time for 

recreation.”104

Much of the Red Cross work in the various San Francisco camps focused on providing “necessaries for the care and comfort of the soldiers 

in cases where the Government does not supply such necessaries.”105 That 

broad mandate covered medical care, food and clothing, and in some cases, strong advice to the Army on how to improve troop welfare. The Red 

Cross exerted influence over the military unlike any other private organization of the era. While careful not to abuse its relationship with the Army, 

Red Cross officials nevertheless prodded the service to take action on issues related to the well-being of those in uniform.

Certainly, the Red Cross prioritized medical care. Work in this area 

constituted the organization’s greatest contribution to soldiers who assembled in San Francisco. During May, in particular, when Merritt’s command 

struggled to establish adequate medical facilities, the Red Cross moved 

to assist the military. On 13 May, members of the society’s executive 

committee secured permission from the Presidio’s chief surgeon to erect 

a large hospital tent on the military installation.106 Through this activity, 

the organization offered to manage the “more serious cases” admitted to 

the installation’s brigade hospital.107 By 18 May, the Red Cross tent on 

the Presidio included 13 patients who variously suffered from a fractured 

ankle, measles, and tonsillitis. Three experienced male nurses volunteered 

their services to help oversee operations.108

As more troops poured into San Francisco and expanded the camps, 

demand for medical care became even more acute. Using vacant beds 

in the Treasury Department’s Marine Hospital on the Presidio assisted 

military surgeons; it did not, however, alleviate the need for more facilities.109 To cope with this predicament, both the military and the Red Cross 

welcomed assistance from local civilian hospitals. The hierarchy of the 

California Red Cross Society played a critical role in both encouraging 
157

and securing support from several of the city’s care facilities. Mrs. Willard 

B. Harrington, Mrs. John F. Merrill, and Mrs. L.L. Dunbar, the leading 

officials and advocates of Red Cross work, served together on the Board 

of Directors, Hospital for Children and Training School for Nurses.110

Their ties to other medical enterprises in the city reaped dividends for MG 

Merritt’s beleaguered medical staff.

As early as 21 May, three days after troops poured into the Bay District 

Racetrack area, San Francisco’s French Hospital offered to open a ward 

to military patients.111 The proposal was attractive to Merritt’s command 

for several reasons. First, the facility promised to relieve pressure on the 

Hospital Corps at a time when scant military dispensaries existed. Second, 

the French Hospital accorded medical care at no charge to the Army. Third, 

the facility, located at 5th and Point Lobos Avenues, was situated next to 

the new encampment selected by MG Merriam.112 Patients could be evacuated expeditiously from the camp to the hospital.

Merritt’s command consented, and the Red Cross assisted in moving 

soldiers who were afflicted with serious maladies to the French Hospital. 

Major Clayton H. Parkhill, brigade surgeon, referred four soldiers to the 

civilian facility for treatment on 25 May. Parkhill observed, “We were 

without proper means to care for the men at the time and we appreciated 

their generous offer very much.”113 Over the next 10 days, the hospital 

tended a total of 100 troops.114 Major W.O. Owen, commander of the division hospital, would subsequently convey his appreciation to the superintendent of the French Hospital. Owen wrote of “the gratitude I entertain 

for you and the hospital 

under your direction for 

your benevolence in receiving our many sick 

when we were located 

at Camp Merritt.” Owen 

referred to the serious 

cases taken “without 

charge and with that unfailing courtesy which I 

shall never cease to remember with the deepest gratification.”115

On 13 June, the 

French Hospital reported Figure 79.

San Francisco Call, 13 June 1898
158

that 40 soldiers occupied beds in its free ward.116 Troops sent to the hospital often suffered from pneumonia, meningitis, typhoid fever, and bronchitis.117 To alleviate some of the demand for care, the Red Cross opened 

another medical tent furnished with “iron bedsteads, bed clothing, wardrobes, and other necessary equipments” adjacent to the French Hospital.118

By 20 July, the French Hospital patient count had dropped to 23 soldiers, 

in part because other civilian hospitals had volunteered to assist the military.119

One week after the French Hospital tendered its services, the German 

Hospital followed suit. The facility extended free care to troops who were 

too ill to be treated in the Red Cross tents.120 Later, St. Luke’s Hospital 

made a similar offer.121 Essentially, the Red Cross and San Francisco area 

medical facilities joined in a patient evacuation process that dispatched 

soldiers through four progressive stages: regimental, brigade/division, 

Red Cross, and local civilian hospitals.

Sometimes hospital care could not prevent death. Even in those instances, the Red Cross extended comfort to the affected troops. On 30 May 

1898, a Minnesota Volunteer who had battled typhoid pneumonia passed 

away at the French Hospital. The Call described the Red Cross assistance 

that was rendered: “The young man was without friends in this State. . . . 

The Red Cross Society provided delicacies and their representative, Miss 

Figure 80.

San Francisco Chronicle, 14 July 1898
159

Frank, was at his bedside when the final moment came. The Red Cross 

will immediately write to the mother of the unfortunate boy, telling her of 

the care that was shown him and of the efforts to save his life.”122

Red Cross volunteers worked to enhance medical care in other ways. 

The society erased medicine shortages that plagued the 1st Nebraska 

Infantry.123 Surgeons of the 20th Kansas asked the organization to provide nourishment for hospitalized troops because the unit had no means 

to prepare sustenance for the sick.124 The Oakland Red Cross also assisted 

military patients who were recovering from measles and pneumonia by 

securing appropriate food for them. The organization’s hospital committee solicited the public for “clam juice, jelly, canned soup, fresh eggs, beef 

extract and malted milk.”125

Another way the Red Cross looked after the welfare of Merritt’s command was to provide each soldier with two bandages and the expertise 

on how to dress them. Volunteers from the Red Cross and Sanitary Corps 

conducted 30-minute drills in camp on how to use emergency bandages. 

Civilians conducting the class employed a chart to exhibit how to care for 

wounds. Soldiers used a “square of muslin cut diagonally” without stitching to practice their dressing.126

Troops needed little instruction in finding more practical uses for bandages. When the Red Cross distributed two per man within the 1st South 

Dakota Infantry, the Call reported that Volunteers welcomed the dressings. 

Figure 81.

The Examiner, 4 June 1898
160

Wrappings proved “to be as great a preventive against cold in this climate 

as against more serious complaints in the tropics.”127

In addition to medical care, the Red Cross also busied itself looking 

after the troops’ quality of life. Units frequently arrived in camp with men 

who lacked essentials. Red Cross representatives furnished camp equipment, clothing, and financial assistance to many in need. The organization 

donated stoves to the California Heavy Artillery Batteries quartered in the 

Fontana warehouse.128 The society also advanced artillerymen $500 to purchase basic supplies.129 Some Volunteers from the 6th California Infantry 

lacked proper shoes; the Red Cross provided footwear.130 In July, the society distributed “shoes and other necessities” to 1st Nebraska Infantry 

recruits who arrived at Camp Merritt partially equipped.131 On 11 August, 

the Red Cross furnished meal money to several 1st Tennessee Infantry 

troops who were going home on sick leave.132

The organization also worked to provide all Volunteers and Regulars 

with an ID badge. Inspired by “the long list of unknown dead of the Civil 

War,” the San Francisco Red Cross Society claimed the idea originated 

locally “and that no such means of identification were taken in the east.” 

About the size of a “half dollar,” the aluminum badge was “inscribed 

with the company, regiment, and number of each soldier.”133 Some badges displayed a cross on one side.134 When several states failed to furnish 

aluminum medals for their Volunteers, the Red Cross pledged to supply 

them.135 The society distributed badges before regiments embarked for 

the Philippines.136 Nearly two decades later, the US Army would issue 

ID disks to all combat soldiers during World War I. Troops would subsequently refer to their ID disks as “dog tags.”137

Volunteers and Regulars in the San Francisco camps benefited from 

Red Cross efforts in another quality-of-life area: sustenance. Aided by 

local restaurants and hostelries in early June, the society assisted South 

Dakotans who went into camp without food.138 The same month, the Red 

Cross learned of 5,200 pounds of striped bass a local fish commissioner 

had confiscated. Shortly before the consignment was to be destroyed, the 

Red Cross purchased and dispatched the lot of 26 boxes to Camp Merritt. 

Captain W.B. Widner, 51st Iowa Infantry, wrote to the Red Cross Society, 

“I have the honor of acknowledging the receipt of a liberal supply of fish 

and four boxes of oranges, to be distributed among the Iowa Volunteers. 

Allow me to say that I consider both gifts very appropriate and assure 

you that it was delivered as per your request. I thank you for the entire 

regiment for this and many other favors received.”139 Later that month, 

the organization sent a wagonload of fresh vegetables to the North Dakota 
161

regiment, the first such addition to their diet since arriving in camp.140

The Red Cross also maintained hospitality rooms at the Ferry Building. Soldiers during their free time away from camp could visit and enjoy 

homemade foods that local citizens prepared. On 4 July, the San Francisco 

and Oakland societies joined forces to host soldiers at the depot during 

the holiday. The Red Cross “provided writing material and turned the entertainment into an ‘at home.’”141 The Daily Report quoted one Volunteer 

from Kansas describing the generous spreads in the hospitality rooms 

available to soldiers, “Just like a Baptist picnic at home . . . something 

good to eat and ladies to wait on you.”142 The harbor area remained a popular attraction for the troops who gathered in San Francisco and the Red 

Cross hospitality rooms a special place where all could relax away from 

the camps.

Finally, the Red Cross became involved in one other area of soldier 

welfare. The organization advised the military on quality-of-life issues. 

When camp sick lists grew during summer 1898, the society’s hospital 

committee offered this perspective: “If more attention were given to the 

supplying of blankets and proper clothing to the incoming regiments and 

particularly to the unequipped recruits, we should have less pneumonia, 

sore throats and bowel troubles to chronicle and probably fewer deaths. 

. . . this neglect which may seem trifling now to those who are responsible for it, may assume alarming proportions when realized by the nation in the form of largely increased pension roll.”143 The organization 

also argued that soldiers needed an improved diet. The same committee 

report cited above maintained that “One of the greatest needs of all the 

men, whether sick or well, is an occasional supply of fresh vegetables.”144

The preceding month, a Red Cross ladies’ visit to the military hospitals 

prompted an appeal for milk for the patients.145

An editorial in the Daily Report implicitly acknowledged the Red 

Cross Society’s influence in this area. For weeks, the newspaper had advocated closing unsanitary Camp Merritt and displacing units to the Presidio. 

An editor wrote, “Meanwhile, we hope the Board of Health will exert 

itself to the utmost to abate the nuisance caused by the camp, and so avert 

the threatened epidemic. The Red Cross, Catholic Truth and other kindred 

societies could not do better service to the soldiers than by using their 

great influence along the same lines.”146

Fitting Out for the Voyage

A unit’s departure preparations did not mark the end of Red Cross assistance. The society worked to outfit expeditions with articles that would 
162

maintain troop comfort during their long voyage to the Philippine archipelago. In several instances, the organization worked through or at the behest of quartermasters to furnish specific items that the Army requested.

The first official business of the newly organized California State Red 

Cross Association addressed the initial expedition to Manila. Executive 

committee members decided to supply the troops with “onions as being 

a good article of diet.” Accordingly, the president of the organization directed the purchasing committee “to buy a large quantity of them and have 

them immediately transferred in equal quantities” to each of the expedition’s three transports.147

The Red Cross intended to care for members of the first expedition 

in other ways. Before soldiers boarded the transports, the society ensured 

that each soldier received a comfort bag, an abdominal belt, and a flannel 

cap.148 The society also assisted the 2d Oregon, one of the Volunteer regiments deploying units with the first expedition. Having recently arrived 

in San Francisco without a regimental fund, the 2d Oregon petitioned the 

Red Cross for money to purchase supplies, mostly medicines, for use after 

departing San Francisco. The society decided to advance the regimental 

surgeon 25 cents per man, assuming that Oregon’s Red Cross would later 

reimburse their brethren in California.149

Red Cross assistance grew considerably more sophisticated when the 

second expedition departed on 15 June. The society provided each of the 

transports with an extensive array of items to be used during the voyage. 

The items included:

 2 cases Phillips’ cocoa 4 dozen bottles lime juice

 1 case condensed milk 6 large bottles of malted milk

 1 case of alcohol 2 boxes unsweetened chocolate

20 pounds permanganate potash 500 pounds dried fruit

 1 gallon Jamaica ginger 1 sack (501 pounds) farina

 1 keg insect powder 2 cases whisky

 1 case clam juice 3 bottles brandy

 2 pails anchovies 1 case claret

10 pounds chipped beef 12 dozen towels

90 pounds steamed oatmeal 12 dozen handkerchiefs150

The link between the Army and Red Cross was illustrated in the issue 

over the quantity of dried fruit to be loaded aboard each ship. Specifically, 

the Daily Report revealed that the depot quartermaster, Major Oscar Long, 

informed the Red Cross that he wanted “1000 pounds of dried fruits for 

each of the five ships in the next fleet of transports.”151

For the third and fourth expeditions, Red Cross volunteers intended 
163

to bolster troop welfare during the voyage by calling for additional items 

they had not solicited earlier. The society continued its practice of outfitting deploying troops with bandages and caps.152 By late June, however, 

the organization’s volunteers asked for games, cards, puzzles, and other 

items that soldiers could use to pass the time during a voyage that lasted 

nearly four weeks.153

Attention that Red Cross officials gave to this aspect of troop welfare 

did not go unrecognized. One 1st California officer wrote from Hawaii during a stop on his voyage to the Philippines, “The books, magazines and 

papers donated by the Red Cross Society have proved a great source of pleasure to all hands and have lessened the monotony of the run here to a great 

extent. The next expedition should be furnished with a good supply of salt 

water soap in order that the men may be able to use salt water to wash with, 

as it is not practicable to furnish enough fresh water for this purpose.” Mrs. 

Harrington, president of the state Red Cross, responded to the letter by directing that the next expedition include those items the officer suggested.154

Soldiers were quite appreciative of the Red Cross’s efforts to attend 

to troop welfare. Most regiments acknowledged the organization’s work 

by writing letters of praise that were published in San Francisco newspapers. When the 13th Minnesota Infantry prepared for departure, the unit’s 

commanding officer, COL McReeve, wrote to the president of the local 

society: “I beg leave to acknowledge receipt, through our quartermaster, 

on board the steamer City of Para, thirty-three boxes containing necessities and delicacies for the use of our enlisted men on the voyage to Manila. 

This very handsome donation, so entirely unexpected by us, adds but another to the many obligations under which we rest to your noble society 

for your intelligent and unremitting attentions to the wants and comforts 

of our regiment ever since we have been in your midst.”155

Initiatives to Care for Troops Abroad

Even before the first expedition departed San Francisco, the Red Cross 

tackled the challenge of providing for the soldiers who would serve in 

the Philippines. An editor for the Daily Report who lauded the society’s 

work in the city wrote, “The serious business of the Red Cross is to come. 

. . . The Philippine Islands are going to keep our Red Cross busy a long 

time, and the society is laying its plans for systematic and thorough work 

there and here.”156 The society still abided its mandate to dispense food 

and clothing to soldiers in need throughout the camps; however, providing 

medical care for those who would fight in the Philippines became one of 

the organization’s foremost priorities.
164

The organization promoted Red Cross nurse care overseas for Regulars 

and Volunteers. Less than a week after Dewey’s victory in Manila Bay, the 

California Red Cross Society made plans to dispatch nurses and medical 

supplies to the Philippines.157 When men of the first expedition departed 

on 26 May 1898, they were joined by two Red Cross nurses who volunteered for service abroad. A. Parker Lewis and C.M. Waage, both males, 

secured permission to accompany the troops and established a Red Cross 

operation near Manila.158

While the organization pondered the need for additional nurses overseas, the Army called with a request. On 18 May, Major Robert H. White, 

Chief Surgeon, US Expeditionary Forces, asked the society to equip and 

provide 25 trained nurses for duty in the Philippines. “Only strong ablebodied men are wanted and they must be experienced in the care of the 

sick and wounded.” Nurses, however, would be obligated to enlist in the 

Army for duty in hospitals. Essentially, these nurses would forfeit their Red 

Cross identity should they become affiliated with Merritt’s command.159

The phrase “only strong able-bodied men are wanted” did not deter 

the Red Cross from championing an overseas role for female nurses. Mrs. 

Harrington, president of the California State Red Cross Association, was 

also president of the Hospital for Children and Training School for Nurses. 

The school was for women. Mrs. Wendell Easton, chairman of the society’s Committee of Nurses and a member of the Board of Directors at 

Children’s Hospital, observed, “Despite the fact that it has been publicly 

and semi-officially stated that women nurses will not be used at Manila, 

we have had constant and earnest appeals from women asking that their 

services in the camp and field be accepted. Considering that the decree 

has gone forth debarring women from this work, the number of women 

volunteers for this service is surprisingly large. The majority of them are 

trained graduate nurses and give the best of reference as to their ability and 

moral character.”160

At mid-June, the organization issued a public proposal that challenged 

the male nurse policy. The society advocated the purchase of a hospital 

ship to be staffed by female nurses. Mrs. Easton offered the following 

outline: “This plan is to buy a ship with large decks suitable to that tropical 

climate, and to send a large body of nurses over on this vessel. At Manila, 

this vessel could be used as a hospital and the sick soldiers moved to it. 

The nurses could be divided into squads, each squad under an efficient 

head, and a general authority over all.”161

Confronted by the need for medical care abroad and the welcomed 
165

offer of assistance from the Red Cross, MG Merritt, according to the Call, 

gave his permission for women to serve as nurses overseas.162 Energized 

by this news, the Red Cross executive committee proposed to contact 

the Secretary of War to “ascertain under what conditions a hospital ship, 

paid for by the citizens of this city, would be received.”163 Noting that 

the “Atlantic coast cities have sent four hospital ships to Cuba,” a Daily 

Report correspondent wrote that Mrs. Harrington “wants someone to suggest a plan of how to get one.”164

Merritt advised that a Red Cross hospital ship could be forthcoming 

from a converted Spanish vessel Dewey captured at Manila Bay.165 The 

society petitioned the government to furnish one of the prizes the Asiatic 

Squadron seized.166 To outfit the ship, the organization’s executive committee tentatively “decided to ask every bank and every newspaper west of 

the Rocky Mountains to receive subscriptions for the hospital ship enterprise.” A subsequent meeting would “decide on a definite program.”167 The 

society intended to solicit donations from Western states.168 By 9 July, the 

Red Cross received its first donations for a hospital ship. Two ladies, one 

from Ontario and the other from San Francisco, each contributed $1.169

The fund never had a chance to grow. Senator Stewart of Nevada notified the state Red Cross that the federal government committed to pay for 

the hospital ship project.170 The Scandia, one of the first vessels purchased 

to form a permanent transport fleet for troops deploying to the Philippines, 

became America’s floating hospital for service between San Francisco and 

the archipelago. The vessel, though it did not sail until after the peace protocol, transported male nurses only among its passengers.171

The Red Cross continued to place a priority on ensuring that Regulars 

and Volunteers deployed with bandages. Oakland’s society sent 1700 

bandages on the City of Peking.

172 The society worked through the depot 

quartermaster, Major Long, to issue two bandages to all who sailed. On 

13 June, ladies of the Red Cross sent 4,800 bandages to Long for those 

assigned to the second expedition, and 4,294 bandages for soldiers due to 

sail with the third expedition.173

The Red Cross also prepared soldiers for duty in the Philippines by acquainting them with the environment they would encounter. Each soldier 

received a “useful little folder giving hints in the care of the health in the 

tropics.”174 Some troopers probably boarded their transports with at least a 

slight understanding of Spanish. The Red Cross had donated 100 Spanish 

primers that a citizen volunteer used to teach language fundamentals to 

soldiers encamped at San Francisco.175
166

Deployments of expeditions in June afforded the Red Cross an opportunity to dispatch funds to support those in the Philippines. The second 

expedition took $1,000 from the society to hire nurses in Manila for the 

troops stationed in the archipelago.176 The third expedition carried $1,500 

from the local society to spend on California units’ welfare.177

Patriotic Home Helpers

Organization

One unique relief organization emerged in San Francisco that was unaffiliated with any international society, national association, or religious 

denomination. According to the Daily Report, the Patriotic Home Helpers 

formed to assist “the families of the soldiers and sailors who enlisted in 

the present war.”178 Like the Red Cross, however, women managed and 

energized the organization, giving it the ability to help those in need.

Just after the first expedition departed for the Philippines, the Daily 

Report and San Francisco Chronicle apprised the public of an intent to 

form a league for the benefit of “needy women, children or other dependents of volunteers.” The Chronicle extended an invitation to “all patriotic 

people” to attend an organizational meeting at the Occidental Hotel on 

Friday, 27 May 1898.179

When finally formed on 3 June, the organization adopted the name 

Patriotic Home Helpers. A number of leading citizens took positions on 

the Helpers’ various boards. Former Associate Justice of the Supreme 

Court Van R. Paterson presided over the meeting that produced the following appointments: US Circuit Judge W.W. Morrow, president; Mayor 

James D. Phelan, first vice president; and Major William B. Hooper, second vice president. Hooper had been one of the forces behind establishing the league. Mrs. Hester A. Harland accepted the Helpers’ secretary 

position and subsequently emerged as the main volunteer responsible for 

routine organization business. She maintained office hours at Room 55 of 

the Occidental Hotel every morning from 1000 until noon.180

As early as 1 June, Hooper reported the receipt of numerous requests 

for assistance in meeting rent and food shortages. He anticipated petitions 

would continue until payday when some Volunteer dependents would likely be able to cover expenses. Hooper acknowledged others would not.181

Paterson, noting that pay for the soldier amounted to only about $15 per 

month, cautioned that “it will be some time before he can remit this little 

sum and generally he will need it all for himself.” Paterson also expressed 

concern over the potential magnitude of meeting the organization’s goal, 

“We (California) have about 7000 men who have responded to the call for 
167

troops. Naturally there will be many dependents left in distress.”182

Believing the cause essential but anticipating limited resources, the 

Patriotic Home Helpers turned early in June to the city’s Associated 

Charities for an important function. The charities had a network of agents 

who could “investigate the cases of distressed families of soldiers, learn 

their needs and report to the Patriotic Home Helpers.”183 Essentially, the 

Helpers solicited assistance in determining the validity of requests for aid 

and identifying the most pressing claims.

The Call offered two examples of cases that warranted Helpers’ aid. 

The first was a woman with six children. One son supported the family, 

and he enlisted, leaving his mother and siblings without any means of support. The second example featured a woman living in poverty and in need 

of medical assistance. Her husband had joined the Navy.184

With limited assistance available and the potential for charity cases 

to escalate, the Helpers had to establish a set of criteria for applicants to 

qualify for aid. A discriminator became the soldier or sailor’s residence. 

The Patriotic Home Helpers was not a national organization and therefore focused on those with local roots. On 3 June, Hooper encouraged 

the Helpers to assist “dependent relatives of the California volunteers.”185

Apparently, members of the organization believed that condition was too 

broad. In less than two weeks, the organization further restricted eligibility. On 15 June, the Chronicle reported that the Helpers’ object would be 

to aid dependents of soldiers and sailors “as were residents of this city 

at the time of their enlistment and who or may be engaged in the present 

war.”186

Another rule the society adopted considered the number of dependent 

children in a family. If a mother cared for “from three to seven children 

in need of wearing apparel,” the Helpers tried to assist. The Examiner

reported on 1 July that “a worthy woman with six children” received clothing for her sons and daughters from a donation secured by the Helpers on 

the same day.187

The Helpers’ relief committee ultimately had to make some difficult 

decisions based upon information the Associated Charities gathered. On 

29 June, the Chronicle reported that Helpers rejected several cases “as 

undeserving of assistance.”188 This outcome may have been more a matter of available resources than one of residency. The Daily Report had 

observed earlier “that the demand is too great for the present resources of 

the society.”189

Nevertheless, Helpers assisted dependents of several California 
168

Volunteers. On 13 July, the organization found better shelter and paid a 

month’s lodging for one soldier’s family. Helpers assumed the rent for 

another family that would have lost its housing and dispatched groceries, 

coal, medicine, and clothing to others.190 The organization was quite careful in the way it dispensed aid. Helpers did not give money directly to indigent families. Instead, a relief committee person compensated property 

owners for dependents’ rent. League members provided groceries if the 

soldier’s family needed food.191

Helpers also attempted to find jobs for the troops’ needy family members, particularly wives and mothers. Local papers that published stories on 

league activities occasionally reported that applicants for aid were “more 

than anxious to get employment.”192 The organization took the somewhat 

extraordinary step of forming a committee to approach the depot quartermaster, Major Long, on behalf of “the widows, wives, mothers and daughters of soldiers.” The committee was charged to seek for these women “a 

share in the work of making soldiers’ uniforms, etc., contracts for which are 

being let every few days.” The Examiner reported that Mrs. Oscar F. Long, 

an officer in the Red Cross and wife of the depot quartermaster, promised 

to intercede on behalf 

of “any applicant for 

Government work 

who should present a 

card from any member of the society.”193

Fundraising and 

Material Donations

Not being associated with a larger 

regional, national, or 

international affiliate 

like the Red Cross, 

the Patriotic Home 

Helpers never had the 

ability to solicit financial support from 

a parent organization. Funding for assistance the Helpers Figure 82. Mrs. Oscar Fitzallen Long.

Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope
169

rendered depended exclusively on local sources. Not unlike other organizations, however, individual contributions from Bay Area citizens constituted the mainstay of the group’s revenues. The society urged “all patriotic 

persons” to become members by paying subscriptions of 50 cents a month. 

Those who were unable to give money were asked to donate clothing and 

provisions “or to assist in procuring employment for members of dependent families.”194

Many of those willing to contribute financially gave more than the 

amount required to obtain membership. Major Hooper, one figure who 

was instrumental in establishing the society, presented “$25 and said he 

would contribute the same sum every month as long as the war continued.” Several other committee members within the Helpers organization 

made similar pledges. Monthly donations frequently ranged from $1 to 

$25. Single contributions fell into a similar bracket with some notable 

exceptions. Claus Spreckels presented $1,000. M.J. Wall, Lewis Gerstie, 

and F.H. Woods each gave $100. Shreve and Company, cutlery importers, contributed $150. Crown Distilleries offered $50. Levi Strauss and 

Company gave $25.195

Other benefactors emerged to assist the Helpers. When transports from 

the second expedition departed for the Philippines, the San Francisco and 

North Pacific Railway Company sold tickets to citizens who wanted to bid 

farewell from the bay. The railway offered to take 1,000 passengers aboard 

the company’s steamer Ukiah at 50 cents a person. Mr. Arthur W. Foster, 

president of the railway company, donated all excursion receipts to the 

Patriotic Home Helpers.196

One other group rendered assistance. Court Marin, Foresters of America No. 73, gave an entertainment and ball on Thursday, 30 June, for 

the benefit of the Home Helpers. Apparently, tickets for the event raised 

enough money to contribute $102.50 to the Helpers by 16 July.197

The San Francisco community assumed an invaluable role in caring 

for Army troops who gathered at the Golden Gate. Often acting through 

or supporting the Red Cross, numerous hospitals, church groups, school 

children, and business people collaborated with others in the community 

to produce medical assistance, personal items, welcoming festivities, and 

financial support for the military. Some area residents joined to create the 

Patriotic Home Helpers, an organization that tended to local Volunteers’ 

needy families. As these societies worked to improve the health and care 

of their target recipients, other organizations emerged to look after the 

troops’ moral welfare.
170

Notes

1. Thomas G. Paterson, J. Garry Clifford, and Kenneth J. Hagan, American 

Foreign Relations: A History Since 1895, 4th edition, volume II (Lexington, MA: 

D.C. Heath and Co., 1995) 11; Clara Barton, The Red Cross in Peace and War

(Washington, DC: American Historical Press, 1899), 361-62.

2. Barton.

3. Ibid., 374.

4. Ibid., 375.

5. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898. Report of the Secretary of War. Miscellaneous 

Reports. Report of the Surgeon-General (Washington, DC: US Government 

Printing Office [GPO], 1898), 724.

6. R.A. Alger to the Governor of California, 26 April 1898, in San Francisco 

Call, 3 May 1898, 7.

7. California State Red Cross, A Record of the Red Cross Work on the 

Pacific Slope, Including California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho 

With Their Auxiliaries; also Reports From Nebraska, Tennessee, and Far-Away 

Japan (Oakland, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Co., 1902), 73-76.

8. “California Ready to Aid the Sick and the Wounded,” San Francisco 

Call, 3 May 1898, 14.

9. California State Red Cross, 79; “California Ready to Aid the Sick and 

the Wounded,” San Francisco Call, 3 May 1898, 14.

10. “Hasten to Equip the Soldiers,” San Francisco Call, 5 May 1898, 11.

11. W. McK. to the Secretary of War, 4 May 1898, in Correspondence Relating 

to the War With Spain and Conditions Growing Out of the Same, Including the 

Insurrection in the Philippine Islands and the China Relief Expedition, Between 

the Adjutant-General of the Army and Military Commander in the United States, 

Cuba, Porto Rico, China, and the Philippine Islands, From April 15, 1898, 

to July 30, 1902, volume II (Washington, DC: GPO, 1902), hereafter cited as 

Correspondence II, 635; “The Red Cross of California,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 24 May 1898, 3; “Merchants Prove Their Patriotism,” San Francisco 

Call, 25 May 1898, 3.

12. California State Red Cross, 80.

13. Ibid., 11; “The Red Cross of California,” San Francisco Daily Report, 24 

May 1898, 3.

14. California State Red Cross, 11; “The Red Cross of California,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 24 May 1898, 3.

15. California State Red Cross, 13; Barton, 434; “The Red Cross,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 3 June 1898, 2.

16. San Francisco: Its Builders Past and Present, volume I, 31; California 

State Red Cross, 13.

17. California State Red Cross, 15.

18. William Doxey, Doxey’s Guide to San Francisco and the Pleasure Resorts 

of California, (San Francisco: The Doxey Press, 1897), 83-84; H.S. Crocker 
171

Company, Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory for Year Commencing May 

1899 (San Francisco: H.S. Crocker Co., 1896), 57, 818.

19. H.S. Crocker Company, 1618; California State Red Cross, 81.

20. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 13 June 1898, 6; 

“Success for the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 9; San Francisco: 

Its Builders Past and Present, 5-10.

21. “Success for the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 9.

22. “Work of the Red Cross Society,” San Francisco Call, 5 June 1898, 21.

23. California State Red Cross, 21-24; “The Red Cross,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 13 June 1898, 6; “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 

3 June 1898, 2; “Red Cross Badges are in Demand,” San Francisco Call, 5 June 

1898, 32.

24. “Ready Now for Work,” San Francisco Call, 3 May 1898, 14; California 

State Red Cross, 78.

25. Letter to the people of California from James H. Budd, Governor; James 

D. Phelan, Mayor; Mrs. W.B. Harrington, President Red Cross Society; Mrs. John 

F. Merrill, Chairman Ladies’ Executive Committee; “Success for the Red Cross,” 

San Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 9.

26. “Funds for Red Cross Needed,” San Francisco Call, 9 May 1898, 7.

27. “Red Cross Badges are in Demand,” San Francisco Call, 5 June 1898, 

32.

28. “Red Cross Subscriptions,” San Francisco Daily Report, 17 May 1898, 3.

29. Report of Executive Committee for Two Months Ending June 30, 1898, 

in Overland Monthly, September 1898, 191.

30. “Departing Soldiers to be Well Feasted,” San Francisco Call, 13 July 

1898, 14.

31. “Red Cross Notes,” San Francisco Call, 13 August 1898, 12.

32. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 16 June 1898, 1.

33. “Success for the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 9.

34. “Generous Checks to the Fund of the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 

27 May 1898, 7.

35. “Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 2 July 1898, 2; “Red Cross,” 

San Francisco Daily Report, 15 July 1898, 2.

36. “Red Cross Work,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 1898, 3.

37. “Red Cross Work,” San Francisco Daily Report, 20 May 1898, 3.

38. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 3 June 1898, 2; “The 

Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 11 June 1898, 6; “The Red Cross,” 

San Francisco Daily Report, 16 June 1898, 1; “Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 22 June 1898, 2.

39. “Thousands for the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 3 June 1898, 14.

40. “Racing for Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 25 May 1898, 3; “Thousands 

for the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 3 June 1898, 14.

41. “Baseball in Aid of the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 9 June 1898, 4; 

“California Boys to be Cared For,” San Francisco Call, 15 June 1898, 7.

42. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 28 May 1898, 3; 
172

“Thousands for the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 3 June 1898, 14.

43. “Baseball in Aid of the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 9 June 1898, 4; 

“Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 20 June 1898, 2.

44. “Minnesota Volunteers at Drill,” San Francisco Call, 18 June 1898, 14.

45. “A Good Sum Realized,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 June 1898, 2.

46. “Reception to Iowa’s Troops,” San Francisco Daily Report, 29 June 

1898, 3; “Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 2 July 1898, 2; “Will Banquet 

Iowa’s Troops,” San Francisco Call, 26 June 1898, 8.

47. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 5 July 1898, 2.

48. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 10 June 1898, 3.

49. “Red Cross Notes,” San Francisco Call, 13 August 1898, 12.

50. “Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 12 July 1898, 3; “Chinatown 

Aids the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 7 June 1898, 10; “Red Cross,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 17 June 1898, 6; “Red Cross Work,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 2 June 1898, 3.

51. “Success for the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 9.

52. California State Red Cross, 13-15; “Success for the Red Cross,” San 

Francisco Call, 7 May 1898, 9.

53. H.S. Crocker Company, 842; “Soldiers Greet the Red Cross,” San 

Francisco Call, 14 May 1898, 5.

54. Barton, 439; “California Boys to be Cared For,” San Francisco Call, 15 

June 1898, 7.

55. H.S. Crocker Company, 1238; “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 13 June 1898, 6.

56. “Red Cross Work,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 1898, 3.

57. “Merchants Prove Their Patriotism,” San Francisco Call, 25 May 1898, 

3; H.S. Crocker Company, 748.

58. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 3 June 1898, 2.

59. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 4 June 1898, 2.

60. H.S. Crocker Company, 1439; “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 6 June 1898, 3.

61. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 6 June 1898, 3.

62. “Nurses to Go With the Soldiers,” San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898, 8.

63. “Red Cross Work,” San Francisco Daily Report, 20 May 1898, 3.

64. “Will Direct the Local Efforts of the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 31 

May 1898, 7.

65. “California Boys to be Cared For,” San Francisco Call, 15 June 1898, 7.

66. “Toiling Under the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 1 June 1898, 12.

67. “Red Cross Badges are in Demand,” San Francisco Call, 5 June 1898, 32.

68. “Toiling Under the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 1 June 1898, 12.

69. H.S. Crocker Company, 1235; “Adjoining States Help the Red Cross,” 

San Francisco Call, 25 June 1898, 7.

70. “Departing Soldiers to be Well Feasted,” San Francisco Call, 13 June 

1898, 14.

71. “Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 22 June 1898, 2; “Iowa’s 
173

Troops to be Their Guests,” San Francisco Call, 23 June 1898, 9.

72. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 11 July 1898, 3.

73. “Will Banquet Iowa’s Troops,” San Francisco Call, 26 June 1898, 8.

74. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 11 July 1898, 3; H.S. 

Crocker Company, 939.

75. Report of Executive Committee for Two Months Ending June 30, 1898, 

in Overland Monthly, September 1898, 179; H.S. Crocker Company, 1740.

76. California State Red Cross, 80.

77. “Soldiers Will be Welcomed,” San Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 7; 

“Red Cross Work,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 1898, 3.

78. “Oregon Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898, 5.

79. San Francisco Call, 19, 22, 25, 27 May 1898 and 14, 17, 23 June 1898; 

San Francisco Daily Report, 2, 6, 10, 16 June 1898.

80. “Toiling Under the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 1 June 1898, 12.

81. Ibid.

82. California State Red Cross, 97.

83. “Noble Men From the Middle West,” San Francisco Call, 22 May 1898, 7.

84. Letter, William S. Christner, 10th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment, to parents, 26 May 1898 (Carlisle Barracks, PA: US Army Military History Institute).

85. A.G. Baker, 1st Colorado Infantry, The Colorado Volunteers (Carlisle 

Barracks, PA: US Army Military History Institute).

86. “Marching on to Camp Richmond,” San Francisco Call, 21 May 1898, 

5; “Local Musicians Will Give a Grand Concert in Aid of the Red Cross,” San 

Francisco Call, 29 May 1898, 9; California State Red Cross, 75; H.S. Crocker 

Company, 1636.

87. “Local Musicians Will Give a Grand Concert in Aid of the Red Cross,” 

San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898, 9.

88. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 11 June 1898, 6.

89. “Toiling Under the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 1 June 1898, 12.

90. “Local Musicians Will Give a Grand Concert in Aid of the Red Cross,” 

San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898, 9.

91. “Generous Checks to the Fund of the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 

27 May 1898, 7.

92. “Red Cross Work,” San Francisco Daily Report, 23 May 1898, 6.

93. “On the Transport Ready for Sea,” San Francisco Call, 24 May 1898, 

1-2.

94. “Around the Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 25 May 1898, 3.

95. “The Others Are Ready,” San Francisco Daily Report, 25 May 1898, 3.

96. “Red Cross Appeal,” San Francisco Call, 14 June 1898, 5.

97. Alice Rix, “Ships in the Stream and Ready,” San Francisco Call, 15 June 

1898, 1.

98. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 15 June 1898, 2.

99. “Will Banquet Iowa’s Troops,” San Francisco Call, 26 June 1898, 8.

100. “On Board the Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 June 1898, 2.

101. “Filed Quietly Aboard,” San Francisco Call, 27 June 1898, 10.
174

102. “Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 12 July 1898, 3; “Departing 

Soldiers to be Well Feasted,” San Francisco Call, 13 July 1898, 14.

103. “Regulars Sail for the Orient,” San Francisco Call, 16 July 1898, 5.

104. “Guests of the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 25 July 1898, 5.

105. “No Pies Wanted,” San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898, 8.

106. “Soldiers Greet the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 14 May 1898, 5.

107. “Camping in the Rain,” San Francisco Call, 15 May 1898, 7.

108. “Nurses to Go with the Soldiers,” San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898, 8.

109. Workers of the Writers’ Program of the Work Projects Administration in 

Northern California, The Army at the Golden Gate: A Guide to Army Posts in the 

San Francisco Bay Area, nd, np, 76; US War Department, Annual Reports of the 

War Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the Secretary 

of War, Miscellaneous Reports, Report of the Surgeon-General (Washington, DC: 

GPO, 1900), 716.

110. H.S. Crocker Company, 61.

111. “The French Hospital Opens a Free Ward,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

22 May 1898, 4.

112. H.S. Crocker Company, 673.

113. “The Day in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 25 May 1898, 3.

114. “Items of Interest From the Camp of Instruction,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 4 June 1898, 9.

115. W.O. Owen, Major and Brigade Surgeon, to the Superintendent, French 

Hospital, 4 August 1898, in US Senate, Report of the Commission Appointed by 

the President to Investigate the Conduct of the War Department in the War With 

Spain, volume 8, Correspondence (Washington, DC: GPO, 1900), hereafter cited 

as Report VIII, 167.

116. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 13 June 1898, 6.

117. J.V.D. Middleton, Deputy Surgeon-General, to the Surgeon-General, 

U.S. Army, 30 July 1898, in Report VIII, 164; “Red Cross Work,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 21 May 1898, 2; “Soldiers in the Hospitals,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 21 June 1898, 5.

118. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 13 June 1898, 5.

119. “That Awful Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 July 1898, 3.

120. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 28 May 1898, 3.

121. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 13 June 1898, 5.

122. “Will Direct the Local Efforts of the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 

31 May 1898, 7.

123. “Red Cross Work,” San Francisco Daily Report, 23 May 1898, 6.

124. “Doings in the Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 May 1898, 3.

125. “Oakland Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 9 June 1898, 3.

126. “Red Cross Donations,” San Francisco Daily Report, 31 May 1898, 3.

127. “Inspection of Troops,” San Francisco Call, 10 June 1898, 5.

128. “The Fontana Building,” San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898, 5.

129. “The Red Cross of California,” San Francisco Daily Report, 24 May 

1898, 3.
175

130. “Camp of Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 25 May 1898, 2.

131. “Departing Soldiers to be Well Feasted,” San Francisco Call, 13 July 

1898, 14.

132. “War Incidents,” San Francisco Call, 12 August 1898, 10.

133. California State Red Cross, 81-82.

134. “At Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 9 June 1898, 3.

135. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 7 June 1898, 7.

136. “At Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 9 June 1898, 3; 

“Troops at the Presidio,” San Francisco Call, 28 July 1898, 8.

137. Richard W. Wooley, “A Short History of Identification Badges,” 

Quartermaster Professional Bulletin, December 1988, 16.

138. “Adding to the Army,” San Francisco Call, 3 June 1898, 7; “Skirmished 

for Rations,” San Francisco Call, 3 June 1898, 7.

139. Captain W.B. Widner to the Red Cross Society, 16 June 1898, San 

Francisco Call, 18 June 1898, 12.

140. “Adjoining States Help the Red Cross,” San Francisco Call, 25 June 

1898, 7.

141. “The Ladies’ Holiday,” San Francisco Daily Report, 5 July 1898, 2.

142. “Soldiers Coming,” San Francisco Daily Report, 8 June 1898, 3.

143. “Some Sound Advice,” San Francisco Daily Report, 1 July 1898, 2.

144. Ibid.

145. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 20 June 1898, 2.

146. “More Dangerous Every Day,” editorial, San Francisco Daily Report, 

21 June 1898, 4.

147. “Merchants Prove Their Patriotism,” San Francisco Call, 25 May 1898, 

3; “The Red Cross of California,” San Francisco Daily Report, 24 May 1898, 3.

148. “Urgently Request Help,” San Francisco Call, 23 May 1898, 5.

149. “Merchants Prove Their Patriotism,” San Francisco Call, 25 May 1898, 

3; “The Red Cross of California,” San Francisco Daily Report, 24 May 1898, 3.

150. “California Boys to be Cared For,” San Francisco Call, 15 June 1898, 7.

151. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 11 June 1898, 6.

152. “Preparing for the Next Expedition,” San Francisco Call, 18 June 1898, 

12.

153. “Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 June 1898, 2.

154. “Will Furnish a Hospital Ship,” San Francisco Call, 29 June 1898, 7.

155. Colonel C. McReeve, 13th Minnesota Regiment, to Mrs. John F. Merrill, 

President Red Cross Society, San Francisco Call, 26 June 1898, 8.

156. “Remember the Red Cross,” editorial, San Francisco Daily Report, 6 

July 1898, 14.

157. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 4 May 1898, 3.

158. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 16 June 1898, 2; 

Barton, 435.

159. “Nurses to Go With the Soldiers,” San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898, 8.

160. “Plan of the Red Cross to Fit Out a Hospital Ship to Send to the Fleet at 

Manila,” San Francisco Call, 12 June 1898, 21.
176

161. Ibid.

162. “Hospital at Manila,” San Francisco Call, 26 June 1898, 7.

163. “Will Furnish a Hospital Ship,” San Francisco Call, 29 June 1898, 7.

164. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 25 June 1898, 2.

165. “Merritt Wants a Hospital Ship,” San Francisco Call, 1 July 1898, 10.

166. “The Hospital Ship,” San Francisco Daily Report, 12 July 1898, 3.

167. Ibid.

168. “Hospital Ship,” San Francisco Call, 19 July 1898, 5.

169. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 11 July 1898, 3.

170. “Hospital Ship,” San Francisco Call, 19 July 1898, 5.

171. Karl Irving Faust, Campaigning in the Philippines (San Francisco: 

Hicks-Judd Co. Publishers, 1899), 66.

172. “Oakland Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 9 June 1898, 3.

173. “Thousands More are Coming,” San Francisco Daily Report, 8 June 

1898, 3; “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 13 June 1898, 6.

174. “Filed Quietly Aboard,” San Francisco Call, 27 June 1898, 10; “On 

Board the Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 June 1898, 2.

175. “Soldiers Who Conquer the Spanish Verb,” San Francisco Call, 8 July 

1898, 6.

176. “The Red Cross,” San Francisco Daily Report, 15 June 1898, 2.

177. “Will Banquet Iowa’s Troops,” San Francisco Call, 26 June 1898, 8; 

“The Third Manila Expedition,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 June 1898, 2.

178. “Aiding Soldiers’ Families,” San Francisco Daily Report, 15 June 

1898, 1.

179. “To Aid the Women,” San Francisco Daily Report, 23 May 1898, 6; 

“Brief Military Items,” San Francisco Chronicle, 26 May 1898, 2.

180. “Those Left Behind not Forgotten,” The Examiner, 4 June 1898, 3; 

“Patriotic Home Helpers,” San Francisco Call, 14 June 1898, 5; “Local War 

Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 28 June 1898, 2.

181. “To Help Soldiers’ Families,” San Francisco Chronicle, 1 June 1898, 3.

182. “Patriotic Home Helpers,” San Francisco Call, 14 June 1898, 5.

183. “Patriotic Home Helpers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 11 June 1898, 11.

184. “Iowa’s Troops to be Their Guests,” San Francisco Call, 23 June 1898, 

9; “Patriotic Home Helpers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 23 June 1898, 7.

185. “Those Left Behind Not Forgotten,” The Examiner, 4 June 1898, 3.

186. “Patriotic Home Helpers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 15 June 1898, 7.

187. “Are Helping the Families,” The Examiner, 2 July 1898, 5.

188. “Soldiers Families are Aided,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 June 1898, 5.

189. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 28 June 1898, 2.

190. “Patriotic Home Helpers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 14 July 1898, 5; 

“War Incidents,” San Francisco Call, 13 July 1898, 7.

191. “Patriotic Home Helpers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 July 1898, 30.

192. “Are Helping the Families,” The Examiner, 2 July 1898, 5; “Patriotic 

Home Helpers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 July 1898, 30.

193. “A Woman to Help Women,” The Examiner, 14 July 1898, 4; “Work of 
177

the Home Helpers,” San Francisco Daily Report, 14 July 1898, 3.

194. “Aiding Soldiers’ Families,” San Francisco Daily Report, 15 June 

1898, 1.

195. San Francisco Daily Report, 18, 29 June 1898 and 2, 8, 9 July 1898; San 

Francisco Call, 18, 25 June 1898 and 2, 13 July 1898; San Francisco Chronicle, 

9, 19, 24, 29 June 1898 and 3, 9 July 1898; The Examiner, 4, 18, 24 June 1898 and 

2, 6, 14 July 1898; H.S. Crocker Company, 1940.

196. H.S. Crocker Company, 661; “To Accompany the Troops,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 14 June 1898, 2; “A Chance for Farewell, San Francisco 

Call, 15 June 1898, 5; “Keeping the Needy Families of Soldiers,” The Examiner, 

19 June 1898, 21.

197. “For the Helpers’ Society,” The Examiner, 6 June 1898, 5; “Aid for 

Patriotic Home Helpers,” The Examiner, 16 July 1898, 5.

179

Chapter VI

The Religious Organizations

San Franciscans worked through relief societies to care for soldiers at 

the Golden Gate. Some supported the Patriotic Home Helpers in an effort 

to help California Volunteers’ indigent family members. Far more citizens 

and local organizations assisted Red Cross workers who mobilized the 

aid of city hospitals and provided troops with desperately needed medical 

care.

While the Red Cross led Bay Area attempts to look after the troops’ 

physical well-being, other community alliances initiated programs aimed 

at the spiritual welfare of Merritt’s command. The San Francisco Young 

Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) urged evangelical Protestant denominations to sponsor activities that fortified the soul in the face of numerous “temptations” that surrounded the encampments.

Two other major groups emerged to render spiritual aid to the military. After initiating their own ecclesiastical projects on behalf of those in 

uniform, members of the Young People’s Society of Christian Endeavor 

joined forces with the YMCA to accomplish similar ends. The Catholic 

Truth Society volunteered its services as well. The society conducted mass 

for troops of the Roman Catholic faith and performed a variety of services 

for soldiers regardless of their denomination.

Young Men’s Christian Association

Background

First conceived in England during the 1840s as a service organization, 

the YMCA offered ways for youthful tradesmen to cope with an immoral 

urban environment.1 Looking to establish an alternative to “the saloon” 

or “an attractive rival of the ‘social glass,’” the YMCA rented rooms in 

London for lectures, foreign language instruction, and religious meetings. 

The association stocked these accommodations with newspapers, books, 

and magazines, and all were available to associates during their leisure 

time. Affiliation with the London group turned on one’s religious standing. 

To join, a young man had to be either “a member of a Christian church” or 

have given “evidence of his being a converted character.”2

During the 1850s, the organization took root in the United States and 

embraced other vocations. The association looked “to seek men where 

they are in their ordinary contacts of life.”3 Associations evolved that attracted qualified young men among students, railroaders, and soldiers.
180

Youth who joined the Union cause during the American Civil War 

found spiritual and material support through the YMCA’s Army and Navy 

Christian Commission. Originally established as an evangelistic initiative 

dedicated to the religious well-being of military personnel, the commission also worked to augment the troops’ medical care and subsistence.4

Although the organization detached from the Army after the war ended in 

1865, the YMCA reestablished contact with the military in the late 1880s. 

State associations pursued “tent work” at militia campsites, maintaining 

club room equipment within canvas shelters the troops from the National 

Guard used.5

The affiliation with the military had been established. When the United 

States went to war with Spain in 1898, members of the YMCA offered 

their assistance to the McKinley administration. The organization wanted 

to assist in looking after the personal welfare of citizens who joined a military that paid “only secondary attention to the desires, which may be very 

real needs, of the men as individuals.”6

Local Organization

On Thursday, 12 May 1898, Secretary Henry J. McCoy of the San 

Francisco YMCA visited the Presidio. He viewed firsthand the various 

campsites of the 1st and 7th California Volunteers and parts of the 14th 

US Infantry Regulars. The encampment already boasted 2,672 Volunteers 

and 220 Regulars with the prospect of adding troops from Oregon within 

a day. Alerted to association members in uniform among the regiments, 

McCoy decided to form an Army YMCA chapter “after getting the permission of the chaplains in charge.”7

By 18 May, after more units had arrived or had received orders to 

converge at the Golden Gate, the commander of the Presidio, LTC Louis 

T. Morris, approved McCoy’s initiative to establish a YMCA branch on 

the reservation. The local association acquired a 40-foot by 50-foot tent 

to accommodate religious exercises and placed it between the 1st and 7th 

California Volunteers.8 Subsequent to this boost the local association gave, 

Chaplain Alfred S. Clark, 7th California, took charge of the camp’s YMCA 

branch and oversaw chapter activities that members assigned to the various regiments performed.9

Although a Presidio branch took hold within the military, McCoy and 

his San Francisco YMCA were not about to sever their connection with 

Merritt’s command. The secretary subsequently learned of “hundreds of 

young men belonging to the association from all parts of the country who 

are to be temporarily located at San Francisco.”10 The 1st New York, for 
181

example, included about 300 Christian Association members in its ranks.11

As these men arrived with their military organizations, the encampment 

spread beyond the Presidio into the Richmond District and other more 

isolated areas around the Bay Area. To meet uniformed YMCA members’ 

spiritual needs and to promote young Volunteers’ moral welfare in general, 

McCoy’s association erected tents in additional locations. By 5 June, three 

new canvas shelters adorned the Richmond District’s Camp Merritt.12

More significantly, the San Francisco association served as a conduit 

through which the YMCA, local churches, and Christian societies pooled 

their support efforts. In early June, San Francisco newspapers carried stories 

on the resurrection of the YMCA’s Army and Navy Christian Commission 

from the Civil War era. The North American Association’s International 

Committee in New York secured permission to establish a commission 

that could work with the military services at home and abroad.13 Spurred 

by several local clergymen, the San Francisco association hosted meetings 

to establish an Army and Navy Christian Commission of California.

Figure 83.

San Francisco Call, 9 July 1898
182

On 8 June 1898, several prominent members of the Bay Area’s religious community, including San Francisco’s YMCA Secretary McCoy 

and representatives of six evangelical churches, met to explore a collaborative effort to “supplement the work of the Army chaplains in camp and 

on the battlefield.”14 One pastor in the assembly, Freeman D. Bovard, First 

ME Church, said an organized commission would attempt “to unite all the 

denominations under one large tent or tabernacle” and include within its 

fold young people’s church societies engaged in similar work.15 The group 

appointed a committee to draft a provisional constitution and report its 

recommendations in a subsequent gathering.16

The 16 June meeting organized the US Army and Navy Christian 

Commission of California “to spread the gospel among the soldiers, sailors and marines either going or who have already gone to the Philippines.” 

Representatives from Christian societies and the Christian, Congregational, 

Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian churches adopted a constitution and 

bylaws. They elected the following commission officers: president, Dr. 

H.C. Minton, Presbyterian Church; secretary, Reverend A.T. Needham, 

Oakland Methodist Church; and treasurer, Henry J. McCoy, Secretary, San 

Francisco YMCA, representing participating Christian societies.17

At the YMCA building on 20 June, the commission completed its organization by electing a vice president, modifying its constitution, and 

selecting an executive committee. Since the commission was scheduled to 

meet only monthly, the executive committee was empowered to handle the 

Commission’s routine business.18

In the Camps

One goal of the YMCA, and later its Christian Commission, was to 

establish a presence within the various Golden Gate campsites. The San 

Francisco Chronicle reported in June that the Christian Commission intended to assign at least one representative to each regiment encamped in 

the Bay Area.19 Providing every designee with a “canvas sanctuary” that 

could be erected in the campsites created a focal point about which troops 

could congregate and a shelter from which the association could pursue 

its objectives.

To the four tents already in place by 5 June the YMCA erected additional shelters at the following locations: at Camp Merritt with the 1st 

Montana, 1st New York Engineers, 1st Tennessee, and 20th Kansas; at 

Camp Barrett in Oakland with the 8th California; and at Fort Point with 

the artillery batteries. By 27 July, the association had pitched 17 tents.20

The organization placed an office near Camp Merritt’s southern boundary 
183

on Fifth Avenue near the French Hospital.21 As Richmond campsites diminished in late summer, the YMCA relocated on the Presidio reservation 

to minister to units waiting to deploy abroad.22

After 12 July, the YMCA established an affiliated claim to several 

tents that other organizations had already constructed. One of the objectives in creating a Christian Commission was to unify the work of various 

Christian organizations and denominations. As early as 8 June the San 

Francisco Daily Report cited the need for a central organization that could 

coordinate the assistance that various evangelical societies and churches 

rendered.23 At a meeting of the Christian Commission on 11 July, representatives of unnamed Christian societies agreed to fly the YMCA’s 

banner over their tents.24 Pastor Bovard, a commission member who had 

urged such a unification, assured these organizations that the commission 

would play a management role “but in such a manner as to leave them free 

to operate their own plans.” Each Christian society that deferred to YMCA 

management could transfer its existing operating debts to the commission. 

The commission would also absorb future expenses.25

In addition to these incentives, groups embraced unification because 

evangelical Christian groups pursued similar ends, including temperance. 

At an 11 July Commission meeting, Reverend E.R. Dille of the Methodist 

Church reminded the audience of a growing evil reminiscent of the one 

that inspired the London association to action some 50 years earlier. Dille 

condemned “the saloons that ‘form a fringe of hell around Camp Merritt’ 

and of the efforts made . . . to counteract their pernicious influences.”26

Dille and his associates sponsored commission tent activities as a 

wholesome alternative to saloons. Soldiers could write letters on free stationery bearing the imprints of the Christian Commission and American 

flag. Envelopes and stamps were provided at no cost to the young men. 

One report in early June estimated that soldiers wrote 1,500 letters each 

day from commission tents. By 18 July, a revised assessment doubled the 

figure to 3,000. Another report calculated that troops were writing from 

10,000 to 20,000 letters per week in the commission’s larger facilities.27

Commission tents hosted other diversions shaped by YMCA objectives. Open every day from 0800 to 2200, these shelters offered a place 

for social gatherings where men could meet fellow soldiers from other 

regiments. Troops could play sundry games under the canvas or outdoors. 

Reading areas contained small libraries with magazines, pictorials, and 

secular or religious newspapers from San Francisco and several Eastern 

cities.28
184

Away from camp the San Francisco YMCA sponsored activities at 

its permanent buildings for the Volunteers and Regulars assembled at the 

Golden Gate. Basketball teams from the encampments scrimmaged with 

association members. The 13th Minnesota and 1st New York played the 

YMCA “Rushers” of the San Francisco association. McCoy’s association 

gymnasium at Mason and Ellis Streets hosted the events.29 On 22 June, 

the San Francisco YMCA held an open house and reception at its main 

building for all soldiers in the city. The 7th California band played musical selections, and several local instrumentalists and singers performed, 

including Miss Cordie Wetjen who offered whistling solos.30

The YMCA also offered its facilities to other organizations that entertained troops or gave benefits for them. Secretary McCoy donated the 

association’s downtown auditorium to the Red Cross for its benefit concert 

on 3 June. On 16 July, the Pacific Coast Women’s Press Association entertained the 1st Montana at the Christian Commission’s tent, erected in the 

regimental campsite. The program featured vocal solos and readings. The 

local Press Club also sponsored entertainment for the men at another “Y” 

location on 6 August.31

Other commission pursuits reflected a stronger, more obvious, correlation to young men’s spiritual vitality. The organization believed in 

ministry through music. Each tent contained song books and an organ. 

According to Richard C. Morse, general secretary, YMCA International 

Committee, soldiers spent much of their leisure time at the tents singing 

favorite songs. “In the evenings,” wrote Morse, “gospel hymns were preferred to all others. Generally the evening closed with an informal song 

service and prayer.”32 At one commission meeting, the executive council 

voted to purchase sacred music for the 8th California’s regimental band at 

Camp Barrett.33

The commission distributed free religious literature, testaments, and 

Bibles to Volunteers and Regulars.34 Dr. Minton, president, Christian 

Commission of California, established a commission goal “to place a 

copy of the Scriptures in the hand of every soldier.”35 The International 

Committee’s Christian Commission tried to help Minton achieve his objective. On 2 August, the local commission received 5,000 Bibles and testaments for the troops from D.L. Moody, chairman, International Committee 

Evangelistic Department.36

The Christian Commission also sponsored worship services as another way to minister to soldiers’ spiritual needs. The commission regularly 

scheduled religious assemblies at the several campsites and in the asso-
185

ciation building’s auditorium. On Sundays, tents hosted gospel meetings 

and Bible classes.37 Regimental chaplains used some of these facilities 

for Sunday services.38 Shortly after the YMCA and Protestant churches 

formed the commission, Secretary McCoy invited Moody to visit the 

Golden Gate and conduct services. Although Moody never visited, evangelist M.P. Crittenden arrived to lead a series of tent meetings in July for 

the benefit of soldiers in both San Francisco and Oakland.39

Although its activities focused on the soldiers’ spiritual well-being, the 

commission did not ignore the troops’ routine, material needs. The commission provided stoves to the 1st Tennessee’s hospital tents.40 Association 

workers operating commission tents provided refreshments to soldiers 

who visited. Larger structures frequently contained small, ad hoc kitchens 

where civilian volunteers made soup for guests or “delicacies” for the convalescent. Troops could find an abundance of bread and an ever-present 

pitcher or tank of ice water to consume.41

Young ladies and women with a familial, or at least emotional, attachment to the association formed a Mothers’ Christian Commission Club to 

assist in the ministry of work. The ladies sewed and mended clothing for 

the troops and in many instances served as ad hoc tailors. More than 50 ladies would meet on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons at Camp Merritt to 

tend to the troops’ clothing.42 They also did their best to visit other campsites in the Bay Area to help those outside of the Richmond District.43

Initiatives to Care for Troops Abroad

Concurrent with its spiritual calling in San Francisco, the association 

worked to establish a military ministry with troops deploying overseas. In 

June, Secretary McCoy argued that “most of the gunpowder that would 

be used in Manila had been fired.” Suggesting that “there were more dangerous things there than Spanish bullets,” the secretary stated, “it was to 

help the soldiers withstand temptation that the Young Men’s Christian 

Association wanted to practically supplement the work of the chaplains 

of the Army.”44

In May, the Daily Report speculated that “a whole outfit” representing 

the YMCA would go with an expedition to Manila.45 On 1 June, speculation became reality with the War Department’s permission. In a letter 

to Secretary McCoy, George de Rue Meiklejohn, Assistant Secretary of 

War, authorized the association to send two representatives with equipment on one of the expeditions. MG Miles endorsed the action as did the 

commander of the expeditionary force, MG Wesley Merritt, and the depot 

quartermaster, Major Long.46
186

On Saturday, 11 June, Secretary McCoy announced that Frank A. Jackson and Charles A. Glunz would represent the Christian Commission in 

the Philippines. The Christian Commission of California picked Jackson, 

an assistant secretary of the San Francisco YMCA. A representative of the 

International Committee chose Glunz, who served as the assistant secretary of the Oakland association. In discussing the reasons for their selection, McCoy emphasized that “both were a few years past their majority, 

unmarried, and had been about two years in the positions they were about 

to leave.”47

After being feted at a reception given in their honor at the local YMCA 

on 22 June, Jackson and Glunz sailed on the City of Para with the third 

expedition that departed on 27 June 1898. They wore a military-style uniform that bore the initials “C.C.” and a triangular patch on the left sleeve. 

Their goal on behalf of the commission was to work with the chaplains 

and to continue much of the same kind of services the association performed in the Bay Area camps. Specifically, they were to “minister to the 

spiritual and physical needs of the men” in all ways possible. To achieve 

these ends, the two men brought with them a church organ, songbooks, a 

library, 100,000 sheets of paper with envelopes, and a large tent to erect 

with the Army wherever it was located.48

Figure 84.

San Francisco Chronicle, 13 June 1898
187

About the time Jackson and Glunz departed, the commission apparently considered expanding the goals of the two in the Philippines. The 

Examiner reported that the commission intended to send a large number of 

Bibles printed in Spanish with a subsequent expedition, noting that the two 

men represented the entire evangelical church body of California. Perhaps 

that representation obligated Jackson and Glunz to perform missionary work among the indigenous population in the environs of Manila.49

Secretary McCoy later announced that they were expected to arrive at 

Manila the week of 17-23 July 1898 “where they would carry on the commission work.”50

One other geographic area commanded the commission’s attention: 

Hawaii. Selected for garrison duty in Honolulu, part of the 1st New York 

sailed for its new assignment in early August. The commission ensured that 

“a library of interesting books” was placed aboard the Lakme and Nelson

and that other general reading material was spread among the men.51

Fundraising

The national Army and Navy Christian Commission expended a considerable sum of money pursuing its objectives. Morse estimated that by 

late 1898, the commission had spent $139,596 in support of the American 

military at home and abroad. Of that amount, state committees provided 

$58,650. The cumulative cost, however, could have been steeper except 

for the War Department’s willingness to provide free transportation for 

men and equipment. In other words, Jackson and Glunz, along with their 

tent and Bibles, sailed at government expense. But the government did not 

pay the tab of $1,000 a week for stamps that soldiers used to mail the letters they wrote in the commission tents. Nor did the War Department back 

the commission’s offer to absorb past debts and future expenses of those 

organizations joining the YMCA enterprise. The commission incurred 

these expenditures.52

Financial support for the national association’s work at federal campsites or overseas came principally from private sources. Morse claimed 

that “the entire expense was met by the contributions of generous and 

patriotic friends of the soldier and sailor.” Oliver O. Howard, a delegate 

of the national commission, also reported that money was raised through 

“voluntary contribution.”53 For the most part, these observations on fundraising for the national association were just as applicable to revenue gathering for the Christian Commission of California.

The California Commission solicited donations in ways similar to 

those of the Red Cross and Patriotic Home Helpers. Local newspapers 
188

periodically reported on the association’s efforts to raise funds. In July, for 

example, the Chronicle published an association resolution that appealed 

“to the public and especially our churches to immediately co-operate in 

the work of the commission. This work, so urgent, is in progress and the 

results most encouraging and it requires funds for its conduct at once. We 

need gifts of money.”54

Between early May and the August peace protocol, donations came 

from individual citizens located in various parts of California. Most were 

small sums. For example, Morris Wenck of Stockton gave $1. H. Sheldon 

of San Diego offered $5. A few notable exceptions to this norm included 

David Jacks of Monterey who advanced $100 to the cause. Mrs. Phoebe 

A. Hearst, so active in supporting the Red Cross with donations, bestowed 

$100 on the commission.55 The most notable monetary gift came from an 

out-of-state source. Secretary McCoy revealed that “a gentleman in the 

East” gave $1,000 to send a commission representative to Manila.56 Funds 

to send the other delegate came from local subscriptions.

Like the offerings of individual citizens, contributions flowed in from 

statewide evangelical churches and assorted organizations. Between 1 

May and 12 August 1898, several local newspapers identified donations 

that came from 14 different cities in California, including those in the 

Bay Area, San Diego, and Los Angeles. Among these sites, church congregations in San Francisco and Oakland submitted the greatest contributions. Denominations represented across the state included Presbyterians, 

Methodist Episcopalians, Congregationalists, Baptists, and English Lutherans. Church donations frequently ranged from $10 to $30. The Presbyterian 

and Methodist Episcopalian congregations bestowed monetary gifts most 

frequently. Three societies offered one-time donations. The Chautauqua 

Assembly of Pacific Grove gave $10, the Presbyterian Christian Endeavor 

Society donated $4, and the Sacramento YMCA gave $6.57

Although Morse and Howard emphasized the importance of voluntary 

contributions in keeping the national Christian Commission solvent, the 

commission’s California department found another lucrative fundraising 

activity. Like the Red Cross, the local commission hosted benefit drills. 

With the Army’s collaboration, the Christian Commission sponsored two 

military performances at the Mechanics’ Pavilion in San Francisco before 

the protocol.

The 1st Tennessee performed at the initial drill on 14 July. “Hundreds 

of ladies” prepared refreshments for the evening. A ticket committee offered “cards of admission” to the drill at 25 cents per adult and 10 cents for 

each child. An additional 25 cents secured a reserve seat. The performance 
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featured a battalion drill guard mount; company drill, extended order; battalion parade; and regimental marching salute. A chorus directed by J.J. 

Morris sang patriotic songs. Featured soloists Charles H. Van Orden presented the “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” and Miss Grace Davis sang 

“The Star-Spangled Banner.” The Tennessee Regimental Band provided 

musical selections, including “Dixie Land,” and the audience joined in 

singing several songs. The performance netted $992.50 with additional 

returns still being accounted for into early August.58

The second benefit drill for the Christian Commission of California 

featured the 20th Kansas commanded by COL Frederick Funston. Held on 

4 August, the presentation shared several similarities with the 1st Tennessee 

benefit that was performed in July: music, song, and march dominated the 

program. The commission also offered tickets at the gate and reserve seats 

in advance for the same price that was charged at the previous drill.

The 20th Kansas drill nevertheless had its distinctions. One addition 

to the program featured a living pyramid of flags created by the YMCA’s 

athletic class. The commission also hoped to reach a wider audience. To 

support the event, Southern Pacific Railroad officials ran special excursions from several California cities, including Sacramento, Stockton, and 

San Jose. An initial tally three days after the drill showed the performance 

collected more than $650. Newspapers reporting the event observed that 

proceeds from the benefit would be used for commission activities, including the Glunz and Jackson mission to the Philippines.59

The commission and the military continued their association beyond 

the peace protocol. YMCA volunteers continued to support troops stationed at the Presidio after other San Francisco encampments closed. On 

1 October, Private Karl Kraemer, 51st Iowa, wrote his sister, “Today the 

Iowa, Kansas, and Tennessee regiments gave a drill in a ball park a couple 

of blocks outside of the camp.” Kraemer acknowledged the event raised 

money “for the Manila work of the Army and Navy Christian Commission.” 

The second battalion of each regiment performed, and the private revealed 

that “the Iowans had a sham battle. There was a very large crowd down 

there. All three of the Bands played together.”60

Christian Endeavor Society

Background

Nearly three decades after the YMCA was introduced in the United 

States, Francis E. Clark established the Young People’s Society of Christian 

Endeavor in Portland, Maine. Clark, a minister, started the organization as 

a means to give roles to youths in his Williston Congregational Church. 
190

According to Clark, Endeavorers worked “to lead the young people to 

Christ and into His Church, to establish them firmly in the faith, and to 

set them at work in the Lord’s vineyard.” The Endeavor idea spread to 

other “evangelical denominations” that, in turn, sponsored their own societies. These local groups affiliated with Clark’s parent organization, the 

United Christian Endeavor, which by 1885 had become an international 

Protestant youth society.61

One organizational characteristic distinguished the Christian Endeavors’ activities from the YMCA before 1898. The Endeavorers did not have 

a historical connection to the military services as best embodied in the 

Army and Navy Christian Commission. When seeking sanction for its 

military ministry in 1898, the YMCA could remind the War Department of 

its commission work with Union armies during the Civil War and among 

state militia in the last quarter of the 19th century. The Endeavorers enjoyed no comparable connection.

Local Organization

Christian Endeavorers at the Golden Gate worked “to make the soldiers comfortable and happy and keep them from the temptations of 

the city.”62 The California State Christian Endeavor Union was the first 

Endeavorer organization to support military units around the bay in 1898. 

In particular, the union’s missions office located at 760A Harrison Street in 

San Francisco coordinated much of the Endeavorers’ activities.

Miss Mindora L. Berry, state superintendent of missions, energized 

the initiative to establish a Christian Endeavor presence among soldiers 

encamped at the Golden Gate. For assistance, she called on a number of 

the 700 Christian Endeavor societies in California. Her office orchestrated 

the efforts of local organizations, including the Golden Gate Union, composed of 50 societies, the Alameda county societies, and those of Oakland 

and San Rafael.63

Endeavorer assistance to the military became more pronounced after 

Berry assembled “women in sympathy with the Christian Endeavor work 

at Camp Merritt” and formed the Mothers’ Christian Endeavor Club, or 

Mothers’ Club, on 31 May. In early June, the club literally positioned itself to pursue the Endeavorers’ goals by establishing a headquarters contiguous to the Richmond encampment. They and other Endeavorers settled 

in a vacant building variously described as a barn, or warehouse, at Fifth 

Avenue and D street.64 That location may have been selected after market 

forces intruded on Endeavorer plans. The Chronicle reported, “An effort 

was made by the Christian Endeavorers to establish a free entertainment 
191

and lunch room on one of the vacant lots near the tents to counteract the influence of the great number of cheap groggeries that have sprung up, but a 

liquor dealer got a lease of the property which the Endeavorers wanted.”65

Christian Endeavorers ministered to soldiers in ways that closely parallelled the YMCA’s activities. YMCA officials, however, maintained that 

the association’s commission was the one organization through which 

evangelical churches and young people’s societies should coordinate 

their efforts. Berry unwittingly challenged YMCA supremacy when she 

urged the United Christian Endeavor to dispatch a representative to the 

Philippines. She made the request of her parent Endeavor organization 

after YMCA officials had secured the privilege of sending delegates overseas.

Berry’s request found its way into the San Francisco Call, prompting 

the “Y” to pursue its coordinating authority more vigorously.66 Less than 

two weeks after the Endeavorer initiative became public, YMCA supporters moved to gain hegemony over all Protestant young people’s societies. 

At an assembly to establish the “Y’s” Christian Commission of California, 

Reverend Dr. E.R. Dille and Rolla V. Watt declared that “Endeavorers 

would hereafter have to work through the Christian Commission and 

subject themselves to its authority.”67 H.J. McCoy, general secretary, 

San Francisco YMCA, and newly appointed treasurer, Army and Navy 

Christian Commission of California, adopted a similar yet more appeasing 

position. He outlined his views in a letter to the editor of The Examiner, 

“The idea is to unite all the forces of these churches, as in other States, in 

one union effort. . . . known as the Christian Commission. . . . There is no 

desire whatever to interfere with any line of work now being done; all will 

receive due credit, but will be under a national organization.”68

The Endeavorers subsequently embraced McCoy’s vision of a unified 

evangelical ministry coordinated by the Christian Commission. The Call

published an article noting that the Christian Endeavorers’ national officers 

had advised societies in the eastern states to work through the YMCA’s 

Christian Commission “so that there may not be any misunderstanding 

or conflict of forces.”69 The Chronicle subsequently reported that the 

Christian Endeavorers and other young people’s societies from Oakland 

and Alameda “unanimously decided to co-operate with the Christian commission.”70

Other indicators reflected the Endeavorers’ acquiescence to the Christian Commission. In late June, the Young People’s Society of Christian 

Endeavor, Epworth League, and other societies of Fresno county joined in 
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arranging a benefit for the commission.71 On 7 July, the Christian Endeavorers’ Golden Gate Union met at the San Francisco YMCA and “decided in 

the future to direct all their efforts in the Army work through the Christian 

Commission.”72 When the 1st New York began to arrive in the city, a number of the unit’s Christian Endeavorers asked the Christian Commission to 

provide a tent for their use.73 The commission, therefore, had established 

itself as the coordinating authority among evangelical Christian groups 

operating within the camps.

Although the Christian Endeavorers and Mothers’ Club acquiesced 

to the YMCA, they did not disappear. To the contrary, Endeavorer ministries flourished throughout the Bay Area to support the military. The local 

newspapers continued to cite the organization’s contributions. Public recognition of their work reflected a fulfillment of McCoy’s pledge that “all 

will receive due credit, but will be under a national organization.”74

In the Camps

Christian Endeavorers worked to offer troops a comfortable environment, one that presented an attractive alternative to San Francisco’s “darker” leisure activities. The Mothers’ Christian Endeavor Club that formed 

on 31 May pursued three specific objectives in the camps: to furnish free 

writing materials and writing and reading tents to each regiment, to provide refreshments and entertainment each night at the headquarters on 5th 

Avenue and B Street, and to receive and distribute comfort bags to the 

soldiers.75

Members of the Mothers’ Club aggressively pursued these goals. The 

Endeavorer organization, like the YMCA, moved rapidly to establish structures where soldiers could spend some of their free time reading, writing, 

and socializing. The “Y” and Christian Endeavors jointly sponsored a reading and writing room on the second floor of the Fontana warehouse, home 

of several units from the 1st Washington.76 The first tent the Endeavorers 

erected went into the 20th Kansas encampment by 27 May.77 Soldiers of 

the regiment pitched in and surprised the Endeavorers by constructing 

wooden floors for the structure.78 By 6 June, seven regimental campsites 

included tents that the society provided. Later in June, Endeavorers erected shelters among the North and South Dakota regiments as well as the 

14th and 18th Regulars.79 Women took charge of tent activities during the 

day. Men supervised the facilities at night until 2200.80

Just as the YMCA canvas shelters offered diversions from military 

life, Endeavorer tents hosted activities designed to look after the troops’ 

welfare. The society typically stocked money orders “and many little 
193

things which the young people think are needful.” Mothers’ Club ladies 

would mend Regulars’ and Volunteers’ clothing.81

Members of Merritt’s command often visited the tents to correspond 

with family and friends. Inside these shelters, troops could shield themselves from the elements and sit at tables to write their letters. Endeavorers 

furnished ink, pens, paper, and envelopes.82 At one tent on 11 June, 25 

soldiers sat and composed letters while several hundred men stood in line, 

waiting their turn for a seat.83 Both the Call and The Examiner published 

articles estimating that an average of 200 letters a day were written in each 

of the Endeavorer tents.84

Although the society engaged in activities that fostered the soldiers’ material welfare, Endeavorers routinely tended to the Regulars’ 

and Volunteers’ religious well-being. Every evening through the week, 

Endeavorers conducted 30-minute religious services in regimental tents.85

A reporter for the Chronicle observed in late June that the Christian organization received letters from soldiers’ families and friends all over the 

country, “thanking the Endeavorers for the manner in which they are attending, not only to the material wants of the soldiers, but also to their 

spiritual needs.”86

The Mothers’ Club launched an initiative to meet its second objective 

on 6 June. That night, the Congregational Church provided entertainment 

for approximately 200 soldiers at the Endeavorers’ Camp Merritt headquarters on 5th Avenue and B Street. Troops listened to recitations, vocal 

and instrumental music, and an address by Reverend F.B. Cherington. At 

the end of the program, guests enjoyed hot coffee, sandwiches and cakes 

the hosts provided.87

Thereafter, Endeavorers scheduled entertainment Monday through 

Saturday at their headquarters. Open from 0900 until after taps at 2200, the 

“commodious barn” gave troops a chance to relax in an environment that 

offered periodicals, games, secular and religious books, stationery, tables, 

chairs, and a piano. Each evening, one of the Christian Endeavor unions or 

a church organization in the San Francisco-Oakland area sponsored a program of music and “recitations and speeches, all of a patriotic character.” 

Toward evening’s end, as many as 400 soldiers could be served refreshments consisting of “coffee, sandwiches, and other acceptable things.”88

By mid-June, these social events attracted so many troops that some soldiers were turned away.89 The Endeavorers subsequently expanded their 

capability to entertain at headquarters, occasionally hosting 700 to 800 

troops a night.90 
194

Later in June, the Endeavorers revised their evening programs at camp 

headquarters. Hosts took time from “socials” to conduct short “praise” 

services. The Call reported that “at a service held the other evening about 

forty rose to confess Christ.”91 The First Baptist Church led the evening 

program for soldiers on 24 June. The Examiner reported that the church 

pastor, Dr. E.A. Woods, requested of “those desiring to become Christians 

to rise, and twenty responded—truly, a very successful meeting.”92

Headquarters activities also catered to soldiers in additional ways. 

Troops with colds and other maladies visited for medicines that the 

Endeavorers’ medical department stocked.93 Miss D. Brooks oversaw 

hospital work. Her committee delivered milk, soups, and flowers to sick 

troops in the camps. Next to the assembly hall, civilian volunteers at the 

headquarters maintained a large room that catered to readers and letterwriters. As they did in their other camp facilities, Endeavorers maintained 

a supply of paper, envelopes, and stamps for the soldiers. A mail carrier 

dropped in to collect letters. Two newspapers, the Call and The Examiner, 

furnished dailies each morning. The San Francisco News Company donated periodicals. Troops also availed themselves of the sewing and mending 

services that “many earnest workers” offered.94

Fitting Out for the Voyage

Sewing related very closely to the third objective the Mothers’ Club 

pursued. The women stitched and distributed comfort bags before the troops 

departed on expeditions to the Philippines. Precedent existed for this activity. Several years before the war, “floating committees” of the California 

State Christian Endeavor Union began to provide sailors with kits of personal items, sometimes called “ditty bags” or “housewives.” At least two weeks 

before the Mothers’ Club formed, Endeavorers committed their state organization to provide personal kits to troops encamped at the Golden Gate.95

The state organization prescribed the contents of kits in a circular dispatched to all of California’s 700 societies. Each ditty bag was to 

contain a small New Testament, marked; paper, envelopes, and a pencil; 

needles and pins; coarse black and white thread; court plaster; a bandage; 

and Vaseline. Endeavorers of the California Union asked that “a personal 

letter of Christian cheer” accompany each kit. The circular directed that 

societies forward complete kits to Mindora Berry at the missionary extension headquarters in San Francisco. Acknowledging that smaller societies 

would probably not be able to furnish all articles, the state union assured 

all that “donations of articles or money for the purchase of the same will 

be thankfully received.”96
195

By the end of May, the Mothers’ Christian Endeavor Club, which 

Berry helped to organize, had identified comfort bags as a priority activity.97 Mrs. C.S. Wright, chairman, Mothers’ Club of California, and an 

active member of the Red Cross, scheduled a meeting with churchwomen 

of San Francisco to give them the pattern for “housewives” and enlisted 

their support in preparing the kits for soldiers and sailors.98 Endeavorers 

also petitioned young people’s societies throughout the state for their assistance in creating the kits.99

Solicitations paid dividends. By Sunday, 19 June, an average of 

200 comfort bags arrived each day at Endeavorer headquarters in Camp 

Merritt. By that date, the organization had amassed nearly 3,300 bags for 

the troops. Men of the 1st Colorado Regiment received theirs on 11 June. 

Endeavorers supplied the second expedition’s remaining forces before 

they sailed for Manila on 16 June. These units included the 1st Nebraska, 

10th Pennsylvania, Utah batteries, and battalions from the 18th and 23d 

US Infantry Regiments. As the third expedition prepared to depart on 27 

June, Endeavorers passed out more than 4,000 bags. Mrs. Emily Fowden, 

a Mothers’ Club volunteer who supervised the “efficient corps of workers who sew, supply stamps and find out those who are in need of more 

clothing or who are sick,” managed the distribution.100 Members of the 

second expedition also benefited from one other Endeavorer project. The 

California Christian Endeavor Union supplied ships with games, writing 

material, and hymn books that troops would use during their long voyage 

to the Philippines.101

Initiatives to Care for Troops Abroad

The issue over which, if any, evangelical Christian organization would 

coordinate the ministry efforts of Protestants at home and abroad was settled in June. The matter reached resolution when Endeavorers moved to 

extend the overseas work they had begun in San Francisco camps. After 

the state union appointed a representative to the Philippines, the YMCA’s 

Christian Commission asserted and established its primacy in coordinating Protestant work with the military.

Miss Berry, state superintendent of missions for the California Christian Endeavor Union, triggered the confrontation. She urged the national 

Endeavor organization to appoint and dispatch a society representative to 

supervise a ministry among soldiers and sailors around Manila. On 5 June, 

Berry sent the following telegram to John Willis Baer, general secretary, 

United Society of Christian Endeavor, Boston: “Urge McKinley endorse 

work and subsistence Endeavorer Philippines. Worker ready. California 
196

financially responsible. Answer.”102 The worker about whom she wrote 

was Arthur P. Alexander of Oakland.103

Berry also wrote a letter to MG Merritt seeking permission for Alexander to accompany the force deploying to the Philippines. On 7 June, 

Merritt endorsed Berry’s request and directed that he be assigned “transportation to one of the ships now preparing.”104 The following day the 

Mothers’ Christian Endeavor Club of California pledged $40 to outfit 

Alexander.105 By the middle of the month, the Union had purchased a 20- 

by 40-foot tent for Endeavorer work in Manila.106

Alexander never sailed. Shortly after Merritt approved Berry’s request, the Christian Endeavorers’ national officers directed member societies to work through the YMCA’s Christian Commission.107 The California 

Christian Endeavor Union conformed with the directive and supported 

troops at home and abroad through the commission. When Charles Glunz 

and Frank Jackson of the YMCA’s Christian Commission sailed for Manila 

with the third expedition, they took with them an American flag presented 

by the Young People’s Society of Christian Endeavor, First Presbyterian 

Church, Oakland.108

Alexander did not disappear. In what must have been intended a sign 

of good faith offered to the Endeavorers, the commission found a role 

for Alexander in San Francisco. The Examiner reported on 1 July, “A.P. 

Alexander of the Christian Endeavor Society has been employed by the 

Commission (YMCA) to have general charge of the tents at Camp Merritt 

and will enter upon his duties to-day.”109

Fundraising

Endeavorer solicitations produced only a few contributions. A group 

called the King’s Daughters donated $32. The Wellesley Hill Christian 

Endeavor Society gave $10. Mrs. C.A. Heffner and George M. Sponsler 

offered $1 and 50 cents respectively.110 The Call reported on contributions that 1st Nebraska Volunteers made during one payday, “Wherever 

the men’s pay amounted to odd cents the difference in change was given 

by the soldiers to the Christian Endeavor Society.”111

The Endeavorers asked for money, but they did not solicit donations 

as vigorously as the Red Cross. The California Christian Endeavor Union 

requested financial assistance not only from societies in the state but also 

from those in other states that dispatched troops to the Philippines via San 

Francisco.112 Results of these calls for assistance were not as widely publicized as the Red Cross or YMCA’s Christian Commission’s comparable 

efforts.
197

Goods and Services

The Christian Endeavor Society supported troops in San Francisco 

with goods and services donated by its members and those mobilized on 

behalf of its cause. Individual citizens often rallied to calls for assistance. 

Scott and McCord, commission and dealers in hay and grain, donated letter 

paper, envelopes, seals, and most significantly, a large barn on 5th Avenue 

and B Street. The structure became the Mothers’ Club headquarters facility where Endeavorers hosted numerous activities for soldiers at Camp 

Merritt.113 To assist in transforming the barn into an activities facility, Mrs. 

A.W. Scott provided 53 chairs. Other citizens offered lamps, reading material, stationery, and flowers. William Patterson gave one writing desk, 

writing material, one ham, six cans of fruit, and five cakes of soap. Major 

Johnson furnished two tents.114 G.H.T. Jackson assisted in stocking the 

Endeavorers’ medical department when he donated three cases of Napa 

soda.115

Various church groups and Endeavorer societies assumed responsibility for the California Christian Endeavor Union’s tent work. Christian 

Endeavor sections, including those from the Alameda County Union, First 

Presbyterian Church, Central Methodist Episcopal, and Cavalry Society, 

each took charge of an Endeavor tent within regimental campsites.116

Either a San Francisco or an Oakland church often sponsored socials held 

nightly at the Endeavorers’ Camp Merritt headquarters.117

Other enterprises and organizations rendered valuable assistance. The 

Mills’ College Red Cross sent 32 comfort bags. Lowell High School donated 14 lamps. Denman School gave 12 bandanna nightcaps and 54 button bags. Union Lumber Company supplied one load of lumber. RentonHolmes Lumber Company contributed one tent, scantlings, and boards.118

J.R. Gates and Company, wholesale and retail druggists, furnished a large 

supply of medicine for the sick.119

The Catholic Truth Society

Background

Like the YMCA, Catholic Truth Societies (CTSs) traced their origins 

to England. First conceived in 1872 but formally established in 1884, the 

original society evolved under the direction of Bishop Herbert Vaughn 

and James Britten, a layman in the Catholic church. The organization held 

two principal aims: to distribute inexpensive devotional and educational 

works among Catholics and to spread information on Catholicism among 

Protestants. Membership subscriptions provided most of the financial support for the society’s projects.
198

The society spawned other organizations that pursued its goals in hospitals, workhouses, and various guilds. In 1891, members formed a special committee to work for Catholic seamen’s spiritual welfare. The CTS 

established clubs and homes for the benefit of these men. By the late 19th 

century, the organization had spread to other countries as well, including 

the United States.120

Local Organization

In San Francisco, two Catholic priests exercised leadership responsibilities within the local Truth Society. The first, Reverend Father Philip 

O’Ryan of St. Mary’s Cathedral, served as the organization’s president.121

He also exercised responsibilities as director, League of the Cross.122 The 

other, Reverend Father Peter C. Yorke, emerged as a leading figure within 

the society’s Executive Council.123

On 1 June, Yorke addressed the CTS and emphasized several themes 

that defined the organization. First, in reflecting on the regiments arriving 

in San Francisco, the priest proclaimed that Catholics were doing their 

fair share of military duty. He asserted that the ratio of Catholics to nonCatholics in these units exceeded the results of a similar comparison among 

the general populace. He claimed that Catholic manpower constituted 75 

to 100 percent of several military organizations reaching the Bay Area.

Second, Yorke cautioned that while the CTS should take pride in these 

statistics, members should be concerned by the lack of “spiritual attention” 

Catholics in uniform received. Non-Catholics dominated both the leadership positions and chaplains’ billets within each regiment. Characterizing 

the Army’s leaders as “too broad minded to tolerate religious injustice,” 

Yorke urged members to create public opinion to get Catholic chaplains 

appointed.

Third, he decried an example of religious persecution. He recounted 

that during the last week of May, ladies of the society were discouraged 

from distributing sepulchers, medals, and other religious symbols among 

members of the 13th Minnesota Infantry. The chaplain of the regiment, a 

Methodist clergyman, allegedly declared that soldiers of the Minnesota 

regiment would attend his service or none at all. Yorke argued that soldiers 

should be permitted to attend services conducted by clergymen of their 

own faith. To those ends, the reverend father announced that within a week 

the CTS would constitute a physical presence in the encampments.124

The incident involving the Protestant chaplain from Minnesota and 

CTS members, as relayed to Father Yorke second-hand, appears to have 

been an isolated incident in the camps. Newspapers did not follow up on 
199

what Yorke labeled religious persecution, nor did they report similar infractions.125

In the Camps

By 4 June, the CTS established a headquarters at Camp Merritt in a 

huge tent east of the Idaho Regiment at Fulton Street and Second Avenue. 

The shelter, dubbed “Father Yorke’s Church,” seated about 2,000 people. 

First and foremost, Catholics established the structure to provide the 

“spiritual attention” to members of the faith, particularly in those terms 

envisioned by Yorke. City priests agreed to provide day and night coverage for confessions. Reverend fathers conducted masses on weekdays and 

Sunday.126

In sermons to the troops, priests emphasized proper moral conduct. On 

5 June, during the first Sunday service performed in the CTS tent, Father 

Yorke advised soldiers to be prepared both to go to war and to meet their 

God “not cursing and swearing and blaspheming.”127 A week later, Yorke 

declared in his message that “it is calumny on your arms, and scandalous 

that anyone should think you cannot be good soldiers, and at the same time 

decent men.”128 On 19 June, Father O’Ryan urged the troops to take the 

League of the Cross pledge to “abstain from liquor and the frequenting of 

saloons.” He warned those in attendance that “men who go to Manila with 

systems weakened by alcohol will surely fall victims to the climate.”129 In 

Figure 85.

San Francisco Chronicle, 30 May 1898
200

early July, the Chronicle reported that more than 150 soldiers had taken 

the pledge. Much work, however, remained to be done to secure promises 

of abstinence from Bay Area troops. The population of Camp Merritt had 

reached 10,900 by 1 July.130

In addition to its headquarters facility, the CTS worked out of smaller 

tents located in several regimental areas: 20th Kansas, 1st Montana, 1st 

South Dakota, and 1st Idaho.131 When Camp Miller was established at the 

Presidio in late July, the CTS opened an operation on the reservation.132

It also erected a tent at the 8th California encampment in Oakland.133 The 

Catholic Ladies’ Aid Society, working in support of the CTS, sustained 

troops with the 1st North Dakota, South Dakota Battalion, 51st Iowa, and 

later the 7th California.134 Although religious services targeted Catholics, 

the organization pursued general activities to support all soldiers in the 

encampments. 

Women affiliated with the CTS or Catholic Ladies’ Aid Society led 

support efforts. These civilian volunteers formed committees that organized around major tasks. Troops in need of services the military did not 

provide could find some relief. Members of the hospital committee, for 

example, were among the busiest female volunteers. Regimental surgeons 

Figure 86.

San Francisco Chronicle, 25 June 1898
201

and hospital corpsmen lacked the resources to care and provide for all of 

those warranting medical attention. To assist, the ladies threw themselves 

into a host of projects designed to alleviate the troops’ suffering.

Like some women affiliated with Red Cross organizations, Catholic 

ladies visited the sick and convalescent among the regiments. Members 

of the hospital committee tended to those with minor ailments who were 

according to the Chronicle, “compelled to lie in their hot tents through the 

day without the care of a doctor and deprived of food other than coarse 

Army fare.”135 They brought soldiers food baskets composed of appropriate “delicacies.”136 Baskets often contained calf’s-foot jelly, wine jelly, 

beef tea, oranges, and fresh eggs.137

The troops certainly appreciated their work. In a letter to the Catholic 

Ladies’ Aid Society on behalf of those ill in Company D, Private Nathan 

McCorkle, 51st Iowa Regiment, thanked the women for the assistance 

they rendered. McCorkle expressed appreciation for the milk and “delicacies” that the ladies delivered to his comrades.138

One state commander in chief also recognized the work the Catholic 

ladies performed. On 18 July, Montana Governor Robert R. Smith wrote 

the society, thanking members for “the kind and generous ministration of 

your society to our sick and needy soldiers.” He closed his note with an 

expression of hope that their “good work will meet with deserved recognition both in this world and in the life to come.”139 Governor Smith justifiably acknowledged the society’s efforts on behalf of his state’s Volunteers. 

Each morning a CTS worker checked with company first sergeants of the 

Montana regiment to learn of the men reported as being sick. The ladies 

used company stoves to prepare foods for those who were too ill to leave 

their tents.140

The ladies also worked among other military organizations. On 8 

June, local hospitals dismissed 25 men from the 1st Idaho Regiment to 

recuperate from a bout with the measles. The troops reached the Idaho 

encampment late in the afternoon. Knowing the men would have to sleep 

on the ground with only one blanket, the regimental surgeon requested 

that the society provide one additional blanket to each for their recovery. 

Representatives found one dry goods store still open for business. They 

paid $5 for each blanket and donated them to the men.141

In a noteworthy exception to the otherwise superb relations between 

the society and the military, the Daily Report revealed on 8 June that 

“ladies of the Catholic Truth Society have complained that the people 

in charge of the field hospital do not give proper care to the patients.”142
202

Certainly there were grounds for criticism. Physicians at the Independent 

Division’s hospital did not have the necessary supplies to care for their 

wards. On 15 June, doctors asked the society for “linseed and cottonseed 

oil and other drugs for the ninety-five patients under their charge.” The 

ladies dispatched the necessary medications.143

When demand for medical care exceeded the capabilities of both military and society, the Catholic ladies took steps to secure assistance. Just 

like the Red Cross, the CTS referred seriously ill troops to local hospitals. 

Unlike the Red Cross, the CTS did not operate medical facilities. The ladies secured beds in the civilian hospitals for soldiers who needed more 

advanced medical care than regimental surgeons could provide. Some of 

the sick were sent to the French Hospital. When patients began to exceed 

the 35-bed capacity of the “free ward,” the society spent the “nominal 

sum” of $10 a week for additional patient care. The ladies sent others, 

some of whom were afflicted with pneumonia and tonsillitis, to St. Mary’s, 

which offered 12 beds, and the Waldeck Hospital that provided free space 

for four patients.144

Women of the mailing department comprised another busy group 

among the CTS volunteers. Volunteers and Regulars could go to the organization’s “Big Tent” at Fulton Street and Second Avenue or many of the 

smaller regimental facilities and find an environment conducive to writing. The ladies set up tables and provided paper, envelopes, and stamps at 

no charge to the troops.145 One Volunteer wrote in a letter, “These people 

of the Catholic Truth Society are nice and obliging. While I am writing this 

there are at least 300 other soldiers doing the same. The society furnishes 

everything free.”146

Due to the quantity of letters written throughout the week at the society’s headquarters on Camp Merritt, two ladies worked continuously to 

post the soldiers’ mail.147 The society provided postage for a daily average 

of 1,800 to 2,000 letters by late June. At 2 cents apiece, stamps cost the 

society $250 to $280 each week.148 Sometimes the CTS simply ran out of 

stamps and called for donations. On 11 July, nearly 1,000 letters could not 

be mailed because the society lacked sufficient postage.149

One other committee, the sewing department, performed a service that 

soldiers sincerely appreciated. Sometimes the society engaged from 30 to 

35 ladies and five sewing machines to help soldiers who dropped in at the 

Big Tent.150 In general, the women stayed busy “making, mending, and fitting clothes and fastening on stripes and chevrons.”151 The Call observed 

that quartermasters issued clothes but did “not bother to change for a bet-
203

ter fit.” The ladies of the CTS emerged to provide a rudimentary tailoring 

service.152 For many of the troops, the headquarters tent offered troops 

one-stop services of sorts where they could read, write, and have their 

clothes mended.153

The society also addressed other needs from their headquarters, which 

the Chronicle described as “such wants attended to as arise from the lack 

of woman’s care in a military camp.”154 The commissary department operated out of a kitchen arranged in the headquarters. Members of this committee worked to have food prepared for soldiers who visited the Big Tent 

over the course of the day. The literary department provided reading material, such as copies of the Soldier’s Manual, to uniformed visitors.155 By 

early June, the CTS had conceived a plan to print pocket-sized prayer 

books for the troops.156 On 20 June, the organization published 5,000 copies.157 Distributing to the troops an assortment of religious publications, 

particularly references that related to Catholicism, was a fundamental CTS 

goal.

Fitting Out for the Voyage 

The CTS offered assistance to the first three expeditions destined for 

the Philippines. When the first expedition prepared for departure in May, 

the CTS placed a “good library” aboard each transport. One of the local 

newspapers observed of the contribution: “Novels, histories, biographies 

and travels were among the books, and none of them were trashy.”158 The 

society accorded special services to the second expedition’s men just before their transports sailed in mid-June. Ladies focused on some last-minute mending.159 Father Yorke announced during mass at the Society’s tent 

on Sunday, 12 June, that another mass would be celebrated the next morning at 0700 for those who were departing.160 Members of the CTS provided 

numerous items for the troops who departed on the third expedition in late 

June. The organization dispensed 600 abdominal bandages, 800 comfort 

bags, 560 caps, 22 suits of underclothes, and three cots.161

Initiatives to Care for Troops Abroad

Beginning in July, the CTS sponsored an activity in camp designed to 

benefit the troops once they reached the Philippines. The CTS sponsored 

Spanish classes. Two women, Mrs. Howard and Miss Heney, offered free 

Spanish lessons every day at 1600. They presented their first instruction in 

July. Soldiers could get their lessons by visiting the society’s Big Tent on 

Camp Merritt.162 The Chronicle reported in late July that the classes were 

“very popular, and a large number of enlisted men attend them throughout 

the afternoons.”163 (See figure 87.)
204

Fundraising, Goods, and Services

The CTS operated facilities at Camp Merritt and the Presidio that incurred numerous expenses. To meet obligations, the society depended on 

daily contributions from those who were willing to respond to the organization’s solicitations. The organization had no general fund to finance its 

efforts.164 The margin between solvency and debt was frequently narrow. 

As of 3 July, for example, total receipts were $647. Of that amount, $371 

was used to pay for stamps and $115 covered incidentals. The CTS had a 

balance of $161 to undertake any remaining projects.165

During the first half of June, most contributions came from individuals. Monetary donations received at Room 37, Flood Building, ranged 

from a few cents to several dollars. Citizens offered bread, beef, ham, 

raw fresh eggs, hard-boiled eggs, and beef tea to feed the troops or tend to 

the sick. Others gave blankets, comfort bags, books, magazines, stamps, 

writing material, eiderdown caps, flannel, and muslin in response to the 

society’s requests.166

In the latter part of June and through the rest of the summer, various 

communities, organizations, and individuals joined in substantially assisting the society. Citizens from Vallejo sent 90 dozen eggs.167 Several 

people in Virginia City, Nevada, sent a total of $39.168 Three lumber comFigure 87. San Francisco Call, 8 July 1898
205

panies pooled their assets and furnished a stove, coal oil, and 800 feet of 

lumber.169 An anonymous “friend” made three separate $100 contributions.170 Various Catholic Ladies’ Aid Societies responded with contributions.171 The Consumers’ Ice Company gave a daily donation of ice. 

Numerous drugstores offered various medications and drugs, including 

cough medicines.172 The Del Monte Milling Company dispatched “a 

liberal donation” of flour and meal.173 Mr. J.D. Spreckels, president of 

the Western Sugar Refining Company, sent a 100-pound bag of sugar.174

Mayor Phelan gave $25, and nine city supervisors contributed sums from 

$5 to $25.175 The San Francisco Post Office Branch of the Red Cross 

Society also gave $100.176

Like other welfare organizations that operated from generated revenues, the CTS sponsored benefits to increase its funds. The first fundraising event occurred on Tuesday, 12 July, at Mission Parlor Hall on 17th 

and Valencia Streets. Hosted by the Thomas Aquinas Reading Circle, 

the benefit performance included piano and vocal solos. Company G, 

League of the Cross Cadets, performed a drill. Volunteers also participated in the “Military Promenade.” Members of the 51st Iowa Regiment 

Band and 1st Tennessee Regiment Vocal Quartet performed at the 12 

July event.177

On Friday, 29 July, Miss Ella McClosky and Miss Eva McClosky 

hosted a “musicale and literary entertainment” and dance in Turn Verein 

Hall on 18th Street near Valencia. Performers included “many of the wellknown celebrities of the amateur stage.” Tickets cost 25 cents per person, 

10 cents for children under age 12. The performance netted more than $27. 

The League of the Cross scheduled a third event for Friday, 5 August, at 

Metropolitan Hall.178

Citizens of the Golden Gate region actively supported Merritt’s command in a host of ways. Many contributed goods, money, or time on behalf 

of soldiers who prepared for missions abroad. Others labored as members 

of major local organizations, some of which were supported by larger national associations, that looked after troops in a variety of ways.

The YMCA, Christian Endeavors, and CTS focused on the Regulars’ 

and Volunteers’ spiritual welfare. While each group followed agendas that 

perpetuated the evangelical Protestant or Catholic faiths, all fought for the 

souls of troops assembled in the region. The three organizations gave precedence to spiritual pursuits in the camps. They assisted military chaplains, 

hosted worship services, and provided religious literature. Additionally, all 

ensured that part of their ministry was devoted to the material and physical 

well-being of the men who used their services.
206

Long before Army troops could rely on the United Service Organizations (USO) for morale support, soldiers in late 19th-century San Francisco 

discovered the welfare projects that local religious groups hosted. Often 

working out of tents or shelters established in the midst of encampments, 

YMCA, Endeavorers, and CTS volunteer workers labored to provide assorted activities for troops in their leisure time.
207

Notes

1. Richard C. Morse, History of the North American Young Men’s Christian 

Associations (New York: Association Press, 1913), 3-5.

2. Ibid., 7-10.

3. William Howard Taft, et al., eds. Service With Fighting Men: An Account 

of the Work of the American Young Men’s Christian Associations in the World War

(New York: Association Press, 1922), 187.

4. Richard C. Lancaster, Serving the U.S. Armed Forces, 1861-1986: The 

Story of the YMCA’s Ministry to Military Personnel for 125 Years (Schaumburg, 

IL: Armed Services YMCA of the USA, 1987), 6-11.

5. Taft, 50-52; Morse, 219-20.

6. Taft, 26.

7. “Great Military Camp at the Presidio Grows With Every Day,” San 

Francisco Chronicle, 13 May 1898, 4.

8. “The Presidio Camp Completed,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 

1898, 3.

9. Ibid.; “War Incidents,” San Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 5; “Christian 

Soldiers,” The Examiner, 18 May 1898, 2.

10. “War Incidents,” San Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 5.

11. “Christian Commission,” San Francisco Call, 22 July 1898, 5.

12. “Appreciated by Soldiers,” The Examiner, 5 June 1898, 15; “Military 

News in Brief,” San Francisco Chronicle, 5 June 1898, 24.

13. “Appreciated by Soldiers,” The Examiner, 5 June 1898, 15; “Christian 

Commission,” The Examiner, 12 June 1898, 15; “Christian Commission,” San 

Francisco Call, 12 June 1898, 8; “Work Among the Soldiers,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 8 June 1898, 3.

14. “The Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 June 1898, 3.

15. “Religious Welfare of the Soldiers,” The Examiner, 9 June 1898, 3.

16. “The Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 June 1898, 3.

17. “For Christian Work Among the Soldiers,” The Examiner, 17 June 1898, 

12.

18. “Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 21 June 1898, 12.

19. “The Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 June 1898, 3.

20. “Kansas Regiment to Drill,” San Francisco Chronicle, 21 July 1898, 7.

21. “Laboring for Army and Navy,” The Examiner, 17 June 1898, 7.

22. “Christian Commission Work Extending,” The Examiner, 1 July 1898, 

5; “Laboring for Army and Navy,” The Examiner, 12 July 1898, 7; “Christian 

Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 July 1898, 30; “Christian Commission,” 

San Francisco Chronicle, 21 July 1898, 7; “Christian Commission,” San Francisco 

Call, 22 July 1898, 5; “Christian Commission,” San Francisco Call, 23 July 1898, 5.

23. “Work Among the Soldiers,” San Francisco Daily Report, 8 June 1898, 3.

24. “All Are Now Under One Flag,” San Francisco Chronicle, 12 July 1898, 7.

25. “Religious Welfare of the Soldiers,” The Examiner, 9 June 1898, 3; “The 

Christian Commission,” San Francisco Daily Report, 12 July 1898, 2.
208

26. “Laboring for Army and Navy,” The Examiner, 12 July 1898, 7.

27. “Appreciated by Soldiers,” The Examiner, 5 June 1898, 15; “Busy 

Workers of the Christian Commission,” The Examiner, 18 July 1898, 5; Richard 

C. Morse, “The International Committee of Young Men’s Christian Associations,” 

in US Senate, Report of the Commission Appointed by the President to Investigate 

the Conduct of the War Department in the War With Spain, volume VIII, 

Correspondence (Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office [GPO], 

1900), hereafter cited as Report VIII, 467.

28. Morse, Report VIII, 467; “Appreciated by Soldiers,” The Examiner, 5 June 

1898, 15; “Military News in Brief,” San Francisco Chronicle, 5 June 1898, 24.

29. “Christian Workers at Camp Merritt,” The Examiner, 19 June 1898, 21; 

“The Soldiers Defeated,” San Francisco Call, 22 June 1898, 5; “Volunteers vs. 

Y.M.C.A.,” San Francisco Call, 18 July 1898, 5; “Will Sail on Monday,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 22 June 1898, 2.

30. “A Reception to the Soldiers,” San Francisco Call, 21 June 1898, 5; 

“Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 June 1898, 2.

31. “No Rest Under the Red Cross,” San Francisco Chronicle, 31 May 1898, 

3;”Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 18 July 1898, 5; “Busy 

Workers of the Christian Commission,” The Examiner, 11 July 1898, 5; “Army 

Christian Commission,” San Francisco Call, 6 August 1898, 7.

32. Morse, Report VIII, 467.

33. “Kansas Regiment to Drill,” San Francisco Chronicle, 26 July 1898, 7.

34. “Appreciated by Soldiers,” The Examiner, 5 June 1898, 15; “Laboring 

for Army and Navy,” The Examiner, 12 July 1898, 7; Morse, Report VIII, 467.

35. “Will Present Bibles to the Soldiers,” The Examiner, 28 June 1898, 5.

36. “Army Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 August 

1898, 9.

37. Morse, Report VIII, 467.

38. “Christian Commission Work,” San Francisco Call, 25 July 1898, 5.

39. Morse, Report VIII, 467; “Laboring for Army and Navy,” The Examiner, 

12 July 1898, 7; “The Christian Commission,” The Examiner, 23 July 1898, 

5; “Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 July 1898, 30; “The 

Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 13 July 1898, 12; “The 

Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 20 July 1898, 7; “Christian 

Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 25 July 1898, 10; “Christian Commission 

Work,” San Francisco Call, 23 July 1898, 5; “Army Christian Commission,” San 

Francisco Call, 24 July 1898, 9; “Christian Commission Work,” San Francisco 

Call, 25 July 1898, 5.

40. “Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 2 August 1898, 7.

41. Morse, Report VIII, 467; Testimony of Maj. Gen. Oliver Otis Howard, 

23 December 1898, in US Senate, Report of the Commission Appointed by the 

President to Investigate the Conduct of the War Department in the War With 

Spain, volume VII, Testimony (Washington, DC: GPO, 1900) hereafter cited as 

Report VII, 3305; “Army Christian Commission,” San Francisco Call, 6 August 

1898, 7.
209

42. “Laboring for Army and Navy,” The Examiner, 12 July 1898, 7;”Busy 

Workers of the Christian Commission,” The Examiner, 18 July 1898, 5; “Christian 

Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 18 July 1898, 5; “The Christian 

Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 28 July 1898, 8.

43. “Christian Commission Work,” San Francisco Call, 25 July 1898, 5.

44. “Will Go to Manila for the Christian Commission,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 13 June 1898, 3.

45. “The Presidio Camp Completed,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 

1898, 3.

46. “Y.M.C.A. Army Work,” San Francisco Call, 6 June 1898, 10; 

“Appreciated by Soldiers,” The Examiner, 5 June 1898, 15; “Military Briefs,” San 

Francisco Chronicle, 2 June 1898, 3; “Military News in Brief,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 5 June 1898, 24.

47. “Will Go to Manila for the Christian Commission,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 13 June 1898, 3.

48. “Christian Workers for Manila,” San Francisco Call, 21 June 1898, 5; 

“Christian Workers at Camp Merritt,” The Examiner, 19 June 1898, 21; “The 

Christian Commission,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 June 1898, 2; “Will Work 

for Christ in Manila,” The Examiner, 28 June 1898, 14; “Christian Commission 

Going to the Front,” The Examiner, 5 June 1898, 36.

49. “Will Work for Christ in Manila,” The Examiner, 28 June 1898, 14.

50. “The Christian Commission,” San Francisco Call, 18 July 1898, 5.

51. “Army Christian Commission,” San Francisco Call, 6 August 1898, 7.

52. “The Christian Commission,” San Francisco Daily Report, 12 July 1898, 

2; Morse, Report VIII, 468.

53. Morse, Report VIII, 468; Testimony of Maj. Gen. Oliver Otis Howard, 

23 December 1898, in Report VII, 3305.

54. “All are Now Under One Flag,” San Francisco Chronicle, 12 July 1898, 7.

55. “The Christian Commission,” The Examiner, 23 July 1898, 5; “Christian 

Commission,” San Francisco Call, 23 July 1898, 5; “Kansas Regiment to Drill,” 

San Francisco Chronicle, 26 July 1898, 7; “Army Christian Commission,” 

San Francisco Call, 24 July 1898, 9; “Christian Commission,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 18 July 1898, 5.

56. “Will Go to Manila for the Christian Commission,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 13 June 1898, 3; “Y.M.C.A. Army Work,” San Francisco Call, 6 June 

1898, 10; “Appreciated by Soldiers,” The Examiner, 5 June 1898, 15.

57. San Francisco Chronicle, 18 July 1898, 5; 21 July 1898, 7; 26 July 1898, 

7; 28 July 1898, 8; 2 August 1898, ; San Francisco Call, 12 July 1898, 5; 22 July 

1898, 5; 23 July 1898, 5; 24 July 1898, 9; 27 July 1898, 8; 29 July 1898, 5; 7 

August 1898, 7; The Examiner, 18 July 1898, 5; 23 July 1898, 5.

58. “Tennessee Boys at the Pavilion,” The Examiner, 7 July 1898, 7; 

“Tennessee Regiment Drill in the Pavilion,” The Examiner, 14 July 1898, 4; 

“All Are Now Under One Flag,” San Francisco Chronicle, 12 July 1898, 7; 

“Tennessee Drill To-night,” San Francisco Chronicle, 14 July 1898, 5; “The 

Tennessee Regiment,” San Francisco Call, 12 July 1898, 5; “The Christian 
210

Commission,” San Francisco Daily Report, 12 July 1898, 2.

59. “The Kansas Boys to Drill,” San Francisco Call, 27 July 1898, 8; 

“The Kansas Boys to Entertain,” San Francisco Call, 29 July 1898, 5; “Military 

Entertainment,” San Francisco Call, 30 July 1898, 5; “Moving Their Tents,” San 

Francisco Call, 12 July 1898, 5; “Kansas Regiment to Drill,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 26 July 1898, 7; “Kansas Regiment Drill,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

27 July 1898, 8; “The Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 28 July 

1898, 8; “The Kansas Drill Next Week,” San Francisco Chronicle, 30 July 1898, 

5; “Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 2 August 1898, 7; “Army 

Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 August 1898, 9.

60. Letter from Karl Kraemer, Co H, 51st Iowa Infantry, Presidio, San 

Francisco, to “Sister and all,” 1 October 1898 (Carlisle Barracks, PA: US Army 

Military History Institute).

61. F.E. Clark, Young People’s Society of Christian Endeavor . . . What It is 

and How It Works (Boston: United Society of Christian Endeavor, 1894), 5, 8.

62. “Good Work of the Endeavorers,” The Examiner, 11 June 1898, 2.

63. “Christian Endeavorers Lend Their Aid,” San Francisco Chronicle, 16 

May 1898, 5; “Notes of the Camps,” San Francisco Chronicle, 30 May 1898, 3.

64. “Military News in Brief,” San Francisco Chronicle, 1 June 1898, 3; 

“Work of the Mother’s Club,” The Examiner, 8 June 1898, 6.

65. “Items of Interest From the Camp of Instruction,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 4 June 1898, 9.

66. “Soldier Endeavorers,” San Francisco Call, 6 June 1898, 10.

67. “For Christian Work Among the Soldiers,” The Examiner, 17 June 1898, 

12.

68. H.J. McCoy, Letter to the Editor, The Examiner, 20 June 1898, 3.

69. “Christian Commission,” San Francisco Call, 12 June 1898, 8.

70. “Christian Commission,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 July 1898, 30.

71. “Christian Commission Going to the Front,” The Examiner, 26 June 

1898, 36.

72. “Under Christian Commission Flag,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 July 

1898, 9.

73. “Christian Commission,” San Francisco Call, 22 July 1898, 5.

74. McCoy, The Examiner, 20 June 1898, 3.

75. “Work of the Mother’s Club,” The Examiner, 8 June 1898, 6.

76. “Washington Soldiers,” San Francisco Call, 1 June 1898, 4.

77. “At Bay District Camp,” San Francisco Chronicle, 27 May 1898, 9.

78. “In the Christian Endeavorers’ Hive,” The Examiner, 26 June 1898, 36.

79. “Soldier Endeavorers,” San Francisco Call, 6 June 1898, 10; “Christian 

Workers at Camp Merritt,” The Examiner, 19 June 1898, 21.

80. “Good Work of the Endeavorers,” The Examiner, 11 June 1898, 2; 

“Endeavorers are Accomplishing Much,” The Examiner, 11 July 1898, 5.

81. “In the Christian Endeavorers’ Hive,” The Examiner, 26 June 1898, 36.

82. “At Bay District Camp,” San Francisco Chronicle, 27 May 1898, 9.

83. “The Endeavorers Doing Good Work, The Examiner, 12 June 1898, 15.
211

84. “Christian Endeavor,” San Francisco Call, 19 June 1898, 7; “Christian 

Workers at Camp Merritt,” The Examiner, 19 June 1898, 21.

85. “Soldier Endeavorers,” San Francisco Call, 6 June 1898, 10.

86. “Churches Aid the Soldiers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 June 1898, 5.

87. “To Amuse the Boys,” San Francisco Call, 7 June 1898, 7.

88. “Christian Endeavor Work,” San Francisco Chronicle, 11 June 1898, 11; 

“To Amuse the Boys,” San Francisco Call, 7 June 1898, 7; “Good Work of the 

Endeavorers,” The Examiner, 11 June 1898, 2.

89. “War Incidents,” San Francisco Call, 17 June 1898, 5.

90. “Endeavor Socials for the Soldiers,” The Examiner, 5 July 1898, 9; “A 

Tennessee Night,” San Francisco Call, 2 July 1898, 7.

91. “Christian Endeavorers in Camp,” San Francisco Call, 23 June 1898, 5.

92. H.S. Crocker Company, Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory 

For Year Commencing May 1899 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 1925; “In the 

Christian Endeavorers’ Hive,” The Examiner, 26 June 1898, 36.

93. “Women’s Work in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 11 July 1898, 

3; “In the Christian Endeavorers’ Hive,” The Examiner, 26 June 1898, 36; 

“Endeavorers’ Aid for the Soldiers,” The Examiner, 10 July 1898, 23.

94. “In the Christian Endeavorers’ Hive,” The Examiner, 26 June 1898, 36; 

“Endeavorers’ Aid for the Soldiers,” The Examiner, 10 July 1898, 23; “Christian 

Endeavor,” San Francisco Call, 16 June 1898, 8; “Christian Endeavorers,” San 

Francisco Call, 26 June 1898, 7; “Endeavorers are Accomplishing Much,” The 

Examiner, 11 July 1898, 5; “Women’s Work in Camp,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 11 July 1898, 3.

95. “Christian Endeavors Lend Their Aid,” San Francisco Chronicle, 16 

May 1898, 5; “Christian ‘Housewives,’” San Francisco Daily Report, 16 May 

1898, 2.

96. “Christian Endeavors Lend Their Aid,” San Francisco Chronicle, 16 

May 1898, 5; “Christian ‘Housewives,’” San Francisco Daily Report, 16 May 

1898, 2.

97. “Work of the Mother’s Club,” The Examiner, 8 June 1898, 6; “To Amuse 

the Boys,” San Francisco Call, 7 June 1898, 7.

98. “Christian Endeavor Work,” San Francisco Chronicle, 31 May 1898, 3.

99. “The Endeavorers Doing Good Work,” The Examiner, 12 June 1898, 

15.

100. Ibid.; “Christian Workers at Camp Merritt,” The Examiner, 19 June 

1898, 21; “In the Christian Endeavorers’ Hive,” The Examiner, 26 June 1898, 

36; “Endeavorers are Accomplishing Much,” The Examiner, 11 July 1898, 5; 

“Christian Endeavorers in Camp,” San Francisco Call, 23 June 1898, 5; “Christian 

Endeavorers,” San Francisco Call, 26 June 1898, 7; “Local War Notes,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 27 June 1898, 2.

101. “Christian Endeavorers are Kept Busy,” The Examiner, 23 June 1898, 

4; “Aiding the Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 23 June 1898, 5; “At Camp 

Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 23 June 1898, 1.

102. “Soldier Endeavorers,” San Francisco Call, 6 June 1898, 10.
212

103. “Military News in Brief,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 June 1898, 3.

104. “Going to the Front,” San Francisco Call, 8 June 1898, 8.

105. “Military News in Brief,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 June 1898, 3.

106. “Christian Endeavor Work,” San Francisco Chronicle, 15 June 1898, 7; 

“Christian Endeavor,” San Francisco Call, 16 June 1898, 8; “Local War Notes,” 

San Francisco Daily Report, 15 June 1898, 2.

107. “Christian Commission,” San Francisco Call, 12 June 1898, 8.

108. “Christian Commission Going to the Front,” The Examiner, 26 June 

1898, 36.

109. “Christian Commission Work Extending,” The Examiner, 1 July 1898, 8.

110. “Christian Endeavorers,” San Francisco Call, 26 June 1898, 7; “Good 

Work of the Endeavorers,” The Examiner, 11 June 1898, 2; “Christian Workers to 

Camp Merritt,” The Examiner, 19 June 1898, 21.

111. “Camp Merritt Troops,” San Francisco Call, 12 June 1898, 8.

112. “News of Camp and Army,” San Francisco Chronicle, 13 June 1898, 3.

113. H.S. Crocker Company, 1552; “Work of the Mother’s Club,” The 

Examiner, 8 June 1898, 6.

114. “Good Work of the Endeavorers,” The Examiner, 11 June 1898, 2.

115. “Endeavor Socials for the Soldiers,” The Examiner, 5 July 1898, 9.

116. “News of the Camps,” San Francisco Chronicle, 28 May 1898, 11; 

“Christian Endeavor Work,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 July 1898, 30.

117. “Notes of the Camps,” San Francisco Chronicle, 6 June 1898, 5.

118. “Good Work of the Endeavorers,” The Examiner, 11 June 1898, 2.

119. H.S. Crocker Company, 696; “Women’s Work in Camp,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 11 July 1898, 3.

120. Encyclopedia of Catholicism (San Francisco: Harper Collins, 1995) 

287; Robert C. Broderick, The Catholic Concise Encyclopedia (St. Paul, MN: 

Catechetical Guild Educational Society, 1957) 80; The Catholic Encyclopedia, 

volume XV (New York: Robert Appleton Co., 1912), 77; New Catholic 

Encyclopedia, volume III (Washington, DC: Catholic University of America, 

1967), 331.

121. H.S. Crocker Company, 53; “Soldiers Grateful for Deeds of Mercy,” 

The Examiner, 12 September 1898, 4.

122. “A Society’s Good Work,” San Francisco Daily Report, 17 June 1898, 1.

123. “Catholic Truth Society,” San Francisco Call, 17 July 1898, 8; “Catholic 

Truth Society,” San Francisco Chronicle, 19 July 1898, 4.

124. “Father Yorke Protests,” San Francisco Daily Report, 2 June 1898, 3; 

“Religion in the Regiments,” San Francisco Chronicle, 2 June 1898, 9.

125. “Religion in the Regiments,” San Francisco Chronicle, 2 June 1898, 9.

126. “Items of Interest From the Camp of Instruction,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 4 June 1898, 9; “Religion in the Regiments,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

2 June 1898, 9; “War Incidents,” San Francisco Call, 3 June 1898, 7. “The Sunday 

Round at Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Chronicle, 13 June 1898, 5.

127. “Notes of the Camps,” San Francisco Chronicle, 6 June 1898, 5.

128. “Father Yorke to Soldiers,” The Examiner, 13 June 1898, 3.
213

129. “Tennesseans Hold a Levee,” San Francisco Chronicle, 20 June 1898, 5.

130. “Catholic Truth Society,” San Francisco Chronicle, 1 July 1898, 12.

131. “For the Good They Can Do,” The Examiner, 8 July 1898, 7.

132. “Truth Society at the Presidio,” The Examiner, 20 July 1898, 5.

133. “Truth Society’s Willing Workers,” The Examiner, 16 July 1898, 5.

134. “Friends of the Soldiers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 19 June 1898, 19; 

“Catholic Ladies’ Aid,” San Francisco Chronicle, 14 July 1898, 5.

135. “Thanks From Volunteers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 July 1898, 30.

136. “Provisions Wanted,” San Francisco Daily Report, 8 June 1898, 3; 

“Women’s Work in Camps,” San Francisco Daily Report, 6 July 1898, 3; “Catholic 

Aid for Soldiers in the Field,” The Examiner, 11 June 1898, 3; “Christian Work 

for Volunteer Army,” San Francisco Chronicle, 8 June 1898, 5; “Truth Society’s 

Work,” San Francisco Chronicle, 15 June 1898, 7; “Friends of the Soldiers,” San 

Francisco Chronicle, 19 June 1898, 19; “Helping the Soldiers,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 23 June 1898, 7; “Catholic Truth Workers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

27 June 1898, 7.

137. “Minister to the Soldiers,” The Examiner, 12 June 1898, 25.

138. “Thanks From Volunteers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 July 1898, 30.

139. Letter From the Governor of Montana to the Catholic Truth Society, 

San Francisco, The Examiner, 24 July 1898, 23.

140. “Catholic Truth Society,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 July 1898, 30.

141. “Truth Society’s Work,” San Francisco Chronicle, 15 June 1898, 7; 

“Catholic Ladies’ Work,” San Francisco Chronicle, 17 June 1898, 9; “Were 

Helped by the Truth Society,” The Examiner, 27 June 1898, 3; “Helping the 

Troops,” San Francisco Daily Report, 15 June 1898, 1.

142. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 June 1898, 2.

143. “Aid for Sick Soldiers,” The Examiner, 16 June 1898, 4.

144. “Local War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 June 1898, 2; “For 

the Sick Soldiers,” San Francisco Daily Report, 24 June 1898, 1, 6; “Local War 

Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 June 1898, 2; “Catholic Truth Work,” San 

Francisco Chronicle, 21 June 1898, 12; “Catholic Truth Workers,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 27 June 1898, 7; “Caring for the Sick,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 

June 1898, 5; “Catholic Ladies’ Aid,” San Francisco Chronicle, 31 July 1898, 24; 

“Work of the Catholic Truth Society,” The Examiner, 15 June 1898, 12; “Aid for 

the Sick Soldiers,” The Examiner, 16 June 1898, 4; “Helping the Soldier Boys,” 

The Examiner, 17 June 1898, 5; “They Labor in the Cause of Soldiers,” The 

Examiner, 18 June 1898, 14; “Catholic Truth Society’s Needs,” The Examiner, 3 

July 1898, 22.

145. “Christian Work for the Volunteer Army,” San Francisco Chronicle, 8 

June 1898, 5.

146. “Appreciate Truth Society Labors,” The Examiner, 12 July 1898, 7.

147. “Aid for the Sick Soldiers,” The Examiner, 16 June 1898, 4.

148. “Two Thousand Letters Daily,” The Examiner, 28 June 1898, 5.

149. “Appreciate Truth Society Labors,” The Examiner, 12 July 1898, 7.

150. “Generous Aid for the Volunteers,” The Examiner, 14 July 1898, 
214

4; “Generous Catholic Ladies,” San Francisco Daily Report, 14 July 1898, 3; 

“Catholic Truth Work,” San Francisco Chronicle, 21 June 1898, 12.

151. “Catholic Truth Work,” San Francisco Chronicle, 21 June 1898, 12.

152. “Among the Volunteers,” San Francisco Call, 26 June 1898, 7.

153. “Many Help the Truth Society,” San Francisco Chronicle, 24 June 

1898, 3; “A Daily Scene at Camp,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 June 1898, 5.

154. “Catholic Ladies’ Work,” San Francisco Chronicle, 17 June 1898, 9.

155. “For the Good They Can Do,” The Examiner, 8 July 1898, 7.

156. “Religion in the Regiments,” San Francisco Chronicle, 2 June 1898, 9.

157. “Tennesseans Hold a Levee,” San Francisco Chronicle, 20 June 1898, 5.

158. “Religion in the Regiments,” San Francisco Chronicle, 2 June 1898, 9.

159. “Helping the Troops,” San Francisco Daily Report, 15 July 1898, 1.

160. “Father Yorke to Soldiers,” The Examiner, 13 June 1898, 3.

161. “Were Helped by the Truth Society,” The Examiner, 27 June 1898, 3.

162. “Good Work of the Truth Society,” The Examiner, 11 July 1898, 5; 

“Truth Society’s Willing Workers,” The Examiner, 16 July 1898, 5; “Catholic 

Truth Society,” San Francisco Chronicle, 14 July 1898, 5.

163. “Catholic Truth Society,” San Francisco Chronicle, 27 July 1898, 8.

164. “Catholic Truth Society,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 July 1898, 9.

165. “Catholic Truth Society,” San Francisco Call, 17 July 1898, 8.

166. San Francisco Daily Report, June 1898, 9, 10, 13, 15, 17-18, 20; July 

1898, 6, 11, 14; San Francisco Call, 19 June 1898; San Francisco Chronicle, June 

1898, 8, 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 29; July 1898, 4, 14, 17, 21, 25, 28, 30-31; August 

1898, 1, 2, 8, 12; The Examiner, June 1898, 10-11, 13, 15-20, 24, 27; July 1898: 

2, 3, 8, 12, 17, 25, 30.

167. “Generous Vallejoites,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 June 1898, 2.

168. “Aiding the Good Work at the Camp,” The Examiner, 7 July 1898, 7.

169. “Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 22 June 1898, 1.

170. “Steamer Peru Saw the Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 24 

June 1898, 6; “Help for the Sick,” San Francisco Chronicle, 24 June 1898, 9; 

“Truth Society at the Presidio,” The Examiner, 20 July 1898, 5; “Catholic Truth 

Society,” San Francisco Chronicle, 20 July 1898, 7.

171. “Delicacies for Soldiers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 18 July 1898, 5.

172. “Catholic Truth Society Donations,” The Examiner, 4 July 1898, 12; 

“Catholic Truth Society Donations,” The Examiner, 6 July 1898, 4; “Generous 

Aid for the Volunteers,” The Examiner, 14 July 1898, 4.

173. “Catholic Truth Society,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 July 1898, 9.

174. H.S. Crocker Company, 1618; “Masses in the Tent of the Truth Society,” 

The Examiner, 18 July 1898, 5.

175. “Stamps are Needed for Soldiers’ Letters,” The Examiner, 3 August 

1898, 9.

176. “Catholic Truth Society’s Work,” The Examiner, 23 August 1898, 10.

177. “Catholic Truth Society,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 July 1898, 9; 

“Flag Given the Truth Society,” San Francisco Chronicle, 10 July 1898, 22; “For 

the Benefit of Sick Soldiers,” San Francisco Chronicle, 13 July 1898, 12.
215

178. “Will Help the Truth Society,” The Examiner, 23 July 1898, 5; “Catholic 

Truth Society,” San Francisco Call, 23 July 1898, 5; “Will Aid the Soldiers’ 

Hospital,” San Francisco Call, 27 July 1898, 8; “Catholic Truth Society,” San 

Francisco Chronicle, 3 August 1898, 9.

217

Chapter VII

Deployment Considerations

After his stunning victory at Manila Bay on 1 May 1898, Commodore 

George Dewey cabled Washington and requested a “fast steamer with ammunition.”1

 From Cavite three days later, Dewey sent Navy Secretary John 

Long an intriguing assessment, “I control bay completely and can take city 

at any time, but I have not sufficient men to hold.”2

 Dewey’s announcement reinforced the McKinley administration’s inclination to follow up 

the naval victory with a US Army occupation force, the size of which 

would have to be determined.

Even as Regulars and Volunteers assembled in San Francisco preparatory to duty in the Philippines, the military did not have the means to 

deploy sizable Army units across the Pacific. One officer observed at the 

time that “the Army had never done anything of this kind; we had never 

transported troops by sea; it was something new to the Army of the United 

States.”3

 Securing the requisite steamers became one of the war’s major 

undertakings. Outfitting each transport to accommodate troops and equipment overseas was a closely associated task.

The transportation challenge brought with it another vexing problem: 

Which units would deploy and when? Sufficient vessels could not be contracted or purchased to dispatch MG Merritt’s command in one movement. What criteria would be used to designate regiments a part of a specific expedition? Merritt and MG Otis faced these questions and the often 

unsolicited advice of other military and political authorities as to which 

organizations to move abroad and in what order.

Departing expeditions impacted the campsites around San Francisco. 

Originally established in four locations, bivouac areas increasingly faced 

the scrutiny of newspaper reporters, medical officers, businessmen, and 

local citizens. These groups exerted pressure to reposition troops onto the 

Presidio. As units deployed and reduced the number of troops remaining 

near the Golden Gate, senior officers began moving units to the military 

reservation. All of the troops would eventually relocate but not before a 

peace protocol ended hostilities between the United States and Spain.

Securing the Transports

By the time McKinley announced the 12 August protocol, 19 chartered 

vessels had transported 15,719 officers and men to Manila.4

 Additionally, 

three coast steamers dispatched 982 troops (charging the Army a per capita rate) to Honolulu for garrison duty.5

 Transactions often involved the 
218

Assistant Secretary of War, quartermaster officers, and senior leaders in 

the Department of the Pacific.

The first vessel secured for Pacific troop duty actually came into federal service without input from Army personnel. On 7 May 1898, Secretary 

Long informed Dewey that the City of Peking would sail with ammunition 

and stores to replenish the Asiatic station’s naval force.6

 Responding to 

Dewey’s request to resupply his squadron after the battle of Manila Bay, 

the Department of the Navy had chartered the Peking from the Pacific 

Mail Steamship Company for $1,000 a day. The 24-year-old ship measured 435 feet long and 48 feet wide. Engaged in Pacific trade since 1875, 

the vessel had completed 100 round trips between the United States and 

China by February 1898. Although signed in early May, the contract became effective at midmonth because the Peking was still at sea on a return 

voyage from Hong Kong.7

Just after the ship docked at a San Francisco wharf on 9 May, Secretary 

Long offered the War Department space aboard the Peking to transport 

troops. In addition to supplies for Dewey, the ship could accommodate 

“1,200 men and 75 officers, including naval contingent.”8 While that numFigure 88. San Francisco Chronicle, 5 May 1898
219

ber was impressive, it was well short of the 5,000 men the commodore 

desired and a fraction of the “12,000 men, or one army corps” figure the 

Adjutant General was considering for Philippine service on 13 May.9

The Peking would be the first and only vessel the Navy would charter 

that conveyed Army troops to the Philippines. On 10 May, War Department 

personnel began to procure oceanic transports for the thousands of 

men selected for duty in the Philippines.10 From Washington, Assistant 

Secretary of War George de Rue Meiklejohn routinely worked charter issues.11 William McKinley had appointed Meiklejohn, a Republican from 

Nebraska who had served two terms in the US House of Representatives, 

to the position on 14 April 1897.12

Figure 89. Assistant Secretary of War Meiklejohn’s room.

Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain
220

Meiklejohn worked closely with officers from the Quartermaster 

Department who handled a myriad of details associated with securing vessels. At first, BG Marshall I. Ludington, Quartermaster General, designated COL Charles Bird to arrange for all water transportation.13 Bird and 

Meiklejohn collaborated to establish bids for vessels, to negotiate with 

steamship companies, and to execute charters.14 By 30 June, this team 

contracted through six companies to use 14 steamers that could transport 

13,688 men and their equipment to destinations in the Pacific.15

From the vantage of commanders in San Francisco, War Department 

efforts that Meiklejohn and Bird led were not producing sufficient transports when needed. A day before the first expedition sailed, MG Otis 

wrote that other units were fit enough to deploy, but “the great obstacle 

to moving is vessel transportation.”16 On 2 June, Merritt cabled the AG, 

BG Corbin, that he had “more men ready to embark” than the then-contracted vessels could accommodate. The general ended his message, “It 

is important of course that additional transports be chartered at once.”17

Four days later in another dispatch to Corbin, Merritt reiterated how vessel 

shortages prevented more forces from deploying. “I consider it important 

that the authorities in Washington should know how matters are dragging 

with the Philippine expedition,” began Merritt. First, the next deployment 

would be delayed “owing to changes necessary to be made in the chartered 

transports.” Second, pronouncing “plenty of men as fit to go,” the general 

highlighted the need to acquire more transports, asking “can they not be 

hurried? I am not complaining, but report the facts, as they do not seem to 

be understood in Washington.”18

A day later, Merritt’s frustration with available shipping spilled over 

into newspapers. On 7 June, the Call published an article giving the general’s personal assessment of his command, including training, equipment, and deployments. Merritt observed, “The only complaint now is 

the delay in the furnishing of transports. I have represented to the War 

Department that the transports are coming in very slowly.” Then, perhaps 

recalling an earlier need to offer “semi-retraction” statements when his 

alleged remarks about poorly disciplined Volunteers appeared in May’s 

New York newspapers, Merritt added, “I do not wish to be understood 

as making any complaint or any criticism of the War Department. I am 

merely making a statement of facts in reply to your inquiries. I think the 

War Department is doing everything in its power to facilitate the rapid 

movement of troops to the Philippines. The shortage of transports is no 

fault of the War Department.”19

Of course, that statement was more for public consumption, given the 
221

tone of his personal communiqués to Corbin. In actuality, Washington officials had been working diligently to meet the Department of the Pacific’s 

needs. Between May and June, the Quartermaster Department engaged 

nearly all suitable vessels on the West Coast.20 Nevertheless, shipping contracted over those two months could accommodate only about 70 percent 

of the troops allocated for duty in the Pacific.21

Responding to Merritt’s appeals and the need for more shipping on 

the Atlantic Coast as well, the War Department changed tactics. Although 

three more Manila-bound vessels would be chartered before the 12 August 

peace protocol, the War Department in late June began to procure transport ships through outright purchase. The Secretary of War subsequently 

established a “division of transportation” in the Quartermaster Department 

to spearhead the effort.22 Under the direction of COL Frank Hecker, a 

Detroit manufacturer commissioned in the Volunteers, the division used 

federal funds to buy 17 vessels, two of which were assigned to steam the 

Pacific.23

As much as the military needed ships to deploy forces, the Army refused to take all vessels offered. In recounting his experience working the 

purchase of ships, Hecker observed, “Ninety per cent of the ships tendered 

the Government were found wholly unsuited because of their age and unseaworthiness, because they would require immediate and extensive repairs to machinery, or because it was not practicable, in the short time 

at the disposal of the Department, to ventilate them, even partially.” To 

this list of shortcomings he also could have included exorbitant costs. For 

example, Hecker recalled how the Canadian Pacific Railway Company 

offered two steamers at a price he considered too inflated, given their “history.” Negotiations for both ships continued throughout the war but were 

never completed.24

Although War Department officials played a key role in acquiring 

or rejecting ships offered for Pacific service, their decisions were often 

shaped by information they received from military authorities on the West 

Coast. Merritt, for example, seemingly acquired considerable authority 

to secure steamers after he complained that a lack of shipping hindered 

timely deployments. Corbin informed Merritt that “any action on your part 

looking to speedy supply of transportation will be approved.” After apprising Merritt of the need to keep his office informed of efforts made, Corbin 

assured him that “the President as well as the Secretary of War give you 

the widest latitude in this matter.”25

About a month after receiving this cable, Merritt requested that the 
222

government purchase the Newport, a chartered steamer on which he was 

taking passage to the Philippines. He recounted the ship’s attractive features, calling the “vessel admirably adapted in every way for one of the 

permanent fleet of transports.”26 COL Hecker, who ultimately considered 

Merritt’s request, found the asking price “so much in excess of her intrinsic 

value that it would not be advantageous for the Government to purchase 

her.”27 The Secretary of War concurred with Hecker’s assessment, leaving 

Corbin with the task of informing Merritt that the ship would retain its 

charter status only.28

Others in San Francisco exerted a decidedly greater influence in the 

transport appropriation process. Before Merritt’s late May arrival in the 

city, MG Otis offered the War Department extensive observations on ships 

considered for charter. On 18 May, a day after reaching San Francisco, 

Otis submitted a report to BG Corbin assessing the readiness of ships already contracted. He also named several vessels suitable for troops that 

could be available in the future and identified a few ships that possibly 

would be “available only by seizure.” He deemed one particular vessel, the 

Conemaugh, “not suited for troops but adapted for animals and freight.”29

That ship was never chartered for any units of the Philippine expeditionary force.

On 19 May, Otis received instructions from Secretary Alger to assume 

command of expeditionary troops and directions to confer with the president of Pacific Mail Steamship Company “to ascertain from him whether 

it is not possible to get charter of other ships.” In the meantime, Otis was to 

report the largest number of soldiers who could be accommodated by ships 

that already were chartered. If contracted vessels could not give passage 

to all troops, then Alger believed that other ships might have to be pressed 

into service.30

MG Otis met with representatives of Pacific Mail and discussed chartering two vessels. The War Department subsequently contracted both 

ships.31 After Merritt departed at the end of June, Otis personally directed the charter of two additional watercraft: the St. Paul, another troopship, and the Tacoma, a vessel used to move stock and forage to the archipelago.32 The War Department supported his initiative and executed 

contracts for both vessels. At the same time, the department opted not to 

complete a contract for the Titania after Otis communicated his reservations about the vessel to the Assistant Secretary of War.33 The Chronicle

reported that the vessel was “unsuited for troops, and would have to undergo many repairs and changes before she could be made habitable.”34

Meiklejohn trusted Otis’s judgment, so much so that on 10 July he gave 
223Figure 90.

, 4 August 1898 The Examiner
224

Otis the authority to “make all arrangements necessary for the charter of 

steamers for transportation of troops to Hawaii.”35

A major reason for Otis’s ability to render such an informed judgment on acquiring or rejecting ships rested with his willingness to conduct 

personal inspections of vessels or to accept reports from others on the 

conditions of potential transports. The general “inspected nearly all of the 

vessels used” to dispatch troops abroad.36 Those not contracted may well 

have been eliminated because of observed shortcomings noted through 

personal assessments.

The Centennial, for example, failed to pass inspections in San Francisco and never joined the chartered transport fleet to the Philippines. The 

War Department looked to contract the ship from Peter Larsen of Seattle 

a little more than a month into the war. When the vessel docked at San 

Francisco’s Folsom Street wharf on 4 June, the depot quartermaster and a 

medical board of survey conducted an examination for its fitness to carry 

troops. They reported considerable concern over the space allocated for 

soldiers, suggesting the ship needed “to be overhauled and entirely renovated before she will be ready for sea.”37

Alerted to potential problems with the Centennial, Secretary Meiklejohn ordered an extensive inspection. MG Merritt reported that Lieutenant 

Lopez and Naval Constructor Snow found the ship unseaworthy.38 In addition to limited troop space, the boilers’ poor condition precluded the ship 

from joining the transport fleet.39 Although the owners threatened to sue 

and the US Senate heard arguments as to possible collusion among shipowners in San Francisco, the Centennial’s charter was not executed.40

Had legal action been taken, those representing the Centennial could 

not have based their argument on the premise that it was the only ship not 

taken after an inspection. Military authorities examined numerous vessels 

that never received a contract. Local newspapers reported that the Belgic, 

Cleveland, Whitgift, Titania, Conemaugh, and Roanoke underwent formal 

scrutiny, but the War Department declined to charter them.41

Major Oscar Long, the depot quartermaster, was another military officer in San Francisco who exerted considerable influence over the transport appropriation process. With the War Department having assigned the 

Quartermaster General responsibility for securing steamers, Long served 

a critical role at the expeditionary force’s port of embarkation. Although 

ships were chartered in Washington, Long led the effort “to inspect them 

and to certify to their fitness.”42

Through May into early June, Long and other inspectors often board-
225

ed vessels to evaluate specific areas related to transporting troops. The US 

Inspectors of Steam Vessels toured the first expedition’s City of Peking, 

City of Sydney, and Australia “and found that the extra berths were properly made and that there were enough life-preservers on board.”43 A Sanitary 

Commission examination of the Peking contributed to MG Otis’s decision to decrease the number of troops aboard given space restrictions.44 A 

medical examining board that consisted of Army surgeons scrutinized the 

second expedition’s China, Colon, and Zealandia before receiving orders 

to check the Morgan City and Senator “as to their capacity, sanitary condition and needed changes.”45

A day after Long and his medical survey team assessed the Centennial, 

two additional examinations were scheduled. Captain John H. Bermingham, 

supervising inspector of hulls and boilers, was scheduled to “go over the 

steamer and see that she conforms to all the requirements of law and a 

board of naval officers will see to it that she is fit to act as a United States 

troopship.”46

Shortly after reporting the Centennial’s shortcomings to Washington, 

MG Merritt reassessed the inspection process and appointed his own 

board “for the purpose of hastening the preparations” of the Philippine 

expeditions. Knowing Major Long, who never belonged to his command, 

to be overwhelmed “with the depot quartermaster’s affairs,” Merritt 

named two Army quartermasters and a Navy lieutenant to check vessels 

for transport suitability. The general, however, instructed his board to 

work closely with Long in their endeavor.47 This board became a part of 

an inspection process that, by 19 June, the Call reported as constituted by 

Figure 91.

San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898
226

“four examinations in all, and every one of the strictest character.” Those 

included assessments that “officials of the Treasury Department, Navy 

Department, Medical Board and Quartermaster’s Department” rendered.48

Merritt also instructed the quartermaster officers of his inspection 

team to perform one other Herculean task associated with deployment. 

The general ordered them “personally [to] superintend the fitting and 

preparation of the ships for the reception of troops.” Merritt asserted that 

Major Long, as the depot quartermaster, would “provide the material and 

labor necessary for the outfitting of the ships” in addition to other required 

assistance.49

Transforming vessels into troop transports often required the performance of numerous tasks, depending on the findings of the several inspection teams. COL Charles Bird estimated that 10 days were required in San 

Francisco to prepare the steamers as oceanic troop carriers.50 That figure 

likely did not include the amount of time taken to offload cargo on many vessels that docked in the city about the time their charters would take effect.

On 1 October 1898, Long wrote the Quartermaster General, “Our 

transports were provided with every modern convenience which intelligent foresight or thought could secure for the welfare and comfort of the 

troops.”51 Recalling the work done to chartered vessels during his duty 

tour in San Francisco, MG Otis wrote, “Cooking and cold-storage facilities were improved and enlarged; comfortable bunks and means of ventilation were provided; the vessels were thoroughly policed.”52

While both officers’ observations give a sense of what was generally 

accomplished to prepare transports, Major Long and his quartermaster 

peers supervised or observed considerably more work to prepare vessels 

for departure. First, ships were “thoroughly cleaned from stem to stern . . 

. then fumigated and otherwise disinfected.”53 Ships had to be coaled for 

the approximately 7,000-mile journey lasting 25 days.54 Carpenters, joiners, and mechanics worked to paint; put up bunks; and build extra galleys, 

lavatories, and closets where needed.55 Several ships stocked additional 

life preservers after the inspectors of steam vessels called for them.56

Stevedores and troops hauled aboard stores and unit equipment.57

Supplies loaded on the four vessels of the second expedition included “boxes of roast beef, barrels of sugar, bags of salt and other provisions.”58 The Daily Report observed vessels in the third expedition taking on “canned goods of every kind, lumber, telegraph wire, barbed wire, 

lumberor houses, probably officer’s quarters; cement, picks, shovels and 

wheelbarrows.”59
227

Sometimes the loading process did not go smoothly or was not thought 

through carefully. The Daily Report complained that for the first expedition’s City of Peking, “the loading has proceeded very, very slowly, being done and undone, and done over again.”60 CPT W.E. Birkhimer, 3d 

US Infantry, who sailed on the third expedition’s Ohio, wrote, “Nothing 

is plainer than this fact: in loading a vessel it is important to have everything conducted in a systematic, pre-arranged, and orderly manner, so 

that everything will have an ascertained place and be placed just there.” 

Apparently, that advice had not been heeded when the Ohio was loaded. 

Birkhimer lamented, “There was not, perhaps, in the military community 

on board the ship, one person who did not, at various times during the voyage, have reason to regret the want of well established order in loading the 

supplies intended for this convenience or necessities.”61

Figure 92.

San Francisco Chronicle, 18 May 1898
228

Some ships received special attention. For example, laborers lashed 

four 4-pound Hotchkiss guns to the deck of the Peking should some protection be needed against armed Spanish ships.62 When the Utah Battery 

deployed with the second expedition, three of its guns remained intact, one 

each mounted aboard the Colon, Zealandia, and China.

63

Selecting the Units

The US Army dispatched seven expeditions to the Philippines before 

12 August. These deployments occurred as steamers became available. 

The first three expeditions, the only ones to participate in combat operations against the Spanish at Manila, traveled in clusters of three to five 

ships. Recognizing that the need for haste coupled with limited troopship 

availability precluded dispatching the entire command in one deployment, 

department officers had to make decisions on the organization of each 

force that sailed from San Francisco.

Figure 93.

The Examiner, 13 June 1898
229

Figure 94.

, 19 June 1898 San Francisco Call
230

Some department leaders’ decisions produced common features among 

numerous expeditions. General officers commanded the first four deployments and five of seven overall. Infantrymen sailed in numbers much greater than those of other service branches. State Volunteer organizations dominated the units composing each force, although Regulars formed the core.

Just as proximity to San Francisco became a key consideration for 

assigning a unit to MG Merritt’s command, so, too, did this factor influence the makeup of the first expedition. On 14 May, in the absence 

of general officers at the Golden Gate, the War Department issued deployment orders to the 1st California and four companies of the 14th 

Infantry.64 Although other California infantry and artillery Volunteers 

had reached San Francisco, only one steamer, the City of Peking, was 

available to carry abroad these troops and a small naval contingent. 

When military authorities on the West Coast reported that the Australia

and City of Sydney, both chartered on 10 May, could be ready to sail with 

the Peking after 20 May, this development called for more troops to join 

the first expedition.65

MG Otis, who arrived in the city on 17 May, designated those troops. 

Two days later, after having “inspected the three vessels already chartered 

and casually the troops which have arrived,” Otis designated “the regiment of Oregon volunteers now here and in fair shape” to sail with the 1st 

California and five companies of the 14th Regulars.66 This decision would 

be the first of many that would leave troops bitter in the 7th California. 

From their perspective, the regiment would always be overlooked or ignored in favor of other state organizations that had more influence with 

military or political authorities.

Figure 95.

The Examiner, 15 June 1898
231

In addition to these infantry units, Otis ordered deployed personnel 

representing two other service functions, the medical and artillery. He 

found sufficient space aboard the Sydney to billet hospital corpsmen. The 

general also manifested “an officer and 50 men detached from the battalion of heavy artillery California Volunteers, which includes all members 

who have any knowledge of the service of artillery.”67 Apparently Otis 

was not inspired by the “combined arms” concept that wedded two service functions on the battlefield. More appropriately, Private Charles R. 

Detrick, 1st California Infantry, suggested, “It was thought that with the 

taking of various strongholds of the Spaniards in the islands, the American 

forces would come into possession of much valuable ordnance, and the 

artillerymen would be needed to care for it, and even to man the captured 

cannon for use against the enemy.”68

Regular infantry continued to form the core of the expeditionary forces 

in all subsequent deployments. Arriving in San Francisco on 29 May, the 

undermanned 18th and 23d Infantry Regiments each trained and prepared 

four companies for the second expedition that sailed on 15 June. Units from 

these two regiments that did not deploy remained in the city. They awaited 

recruits, some of whom were attached to four more companies from each 

Figure 96.

The Examiner, 26 May 1898
232

regiment that departed with the third expedition at the end of June. As the 

18th and 23d Infantry continued to recruit and train new members of the 

regiment, five companies of the 14th Infantry either organized or arrived 

in the city to join the fourth expedition.69

When units from specific noninfantry service branches, whether Volunteer or Regular, arrived at the Golden Gate, Merritt and Otis frequently 

manifested them with the next force to leave San Francisco. This practice 

held true especially for artillerymen and engineers. Merritt had either requested or welcomed both kinds of troops in additional numbers.70 The 

Astor Battery reached the city on 20 June and sailed with the third expedition on 27 June. An engineer company moved into camp on 29 May, then 

deployed in increments with the next two expeditions. Cavalrymen did not 

sail until the fourth expedition and failed to reach the archipelago before 

the peace protocol.71

With these priorities established, Merritt, Otis, and subsequently Merriam had to determine the deployment sequence of the state Volunteer 

infantry. After the first expedition, geography stopped favoring the selection of West Coast units to ship overseas. Volunteer organizations 

from Nebraska, Kansas, Wyoming, Colorado, Minnesota, Idaho, Utah, 

Pennsylvania, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Iowa reached 

San Francisco before 15 June and were available to be assigned to the 

second expedition. Given the paucity of transports to move troops, however, not all could go at once. Essentially, these organizations started on 

an equal footing in terms of being close to the port of embarkation. Other 

considerations, therefore, weighed more heavily in determining the composition of expeditions that deployed in June and July.

Militarily, the major discriminator dealt with unit readiness to deploy. 

From Merritt and Otis’s viewpoint, the key component of readiness centered around state troops having the requisite individual and organizational 

equipment, including weapons and ammunition, to make the trip and stand 

garrison duty abroad. Neither of the expedition’s most senior commanders 

conducted thorough troop inspections to determine readiness. Instead they 

depended on their inspectors general (IGs), COL Robert P. Hughes and 

CPT John S. Mallory, to assess the units encamped at San Francisco.

Mallory served on Otis’s staff.72 Shortly after reaching the city on 17 

May, he began to examine the equipment at Camp Merritt and the Presidio. 

As the IG, Mallory scrutinized the 2d Oregon’s haversacks and rifles and the 

20th Kansas’s tents and ovens.73 Other commands stood ordnance inspection 

to determine their weapons’ serviceability and whether state property could 
233

be federalized.74 On 29 June, the Call reported that Mallory’s inspection of 

National Guard weapons the 1st Tennessee brought revealed that most were 

“in a bad condition, and very few of them were accepted by him.”75

After Hughes arrived in San Francisco to become Merritt’s IG, the 

Department of the Pacific initiated a systematic inspection of all Volunteer 

infantry. These checks required organizations to move to the Presidio where 

they would be inspected in “heavy marching order” by both Hughes and 

Mallory. Private Karl Kraemer wrote that this formation called for troops 

to shoulder “blankets, haversacks, canteens and guns.”76 The Chronicle

reported that the haversack was “a fifty-pound pack with everything 

needed for a campaign in the field.”77 For several weeks beginning 3 June, 

the team checked all Volunteer infantry in camp.78 Their work provided an 

instant source of information for Merritt and Otis on the state of command 

readiness.

The two generals desperately needed this sort of unvarnished assessment of state Volunteer units. Several organizations presented incredibly 

positive, sometimes misleading, images of their logistics status to attain 

an overseas assignment. Writing after the 12 August protocol, Major Long 

observed that “in several instances those from States whose quotas were 

presumably perfectly equipped, and which had heralded their arrival by 

telegraphing in advance that they required nothing in this regard, were 

found, when their requisitions were filled, to be deficient in the most essential requirements of equipment. (This was the case with the Colorado, 

Iowa and Pennsylvania troops).”79

Figure 97.

San Francisco Chronicle, 13 June 1898
234

Dominated at first by logistics considerations, “readiness” evaluations 

did not initially include an assessment of a unit’s drill proficiency. Three 

expeditions departed before the command established a procedure to appraise organizational training. On 27 June, two days before Merritt sailed 

for the Philippines, COL Hughes inspected and drilled the 7th California 

at the Presidio. The Daily Report noted that “each command has been assigned a day this week upon which it will have to go through the same maneuvers.”80 Hughes evaluated the 20th Kansas on 29 June and the 1st South 

Dakota on 30 June.81 Drill proficiency then became a factor that could 

have influenced the selection of the 1st Montana and 1st South Dakota, 

the last two Volunteer regiments to sail for Manila before the United States 

and Spain signed the peace protocol.

While readiness to deploy may not have exclusively determined the 

precise order in which units sailed from San Francisco, this criterion was 

sufficient to award the lowest deployment priority to the 1st Tennessee. On 

20 June, Merritt observed, “The Tennessee regiment, which just arrived, is 

completely destitute of equipment in any direction, and of instruction and 

drill to a great extent.” He judged those Volunteers as “unlikely to be fit for 

some time to become a part in this expedition.”82

Long wrote that along with the 1st Tennessee, the 20th Kansas and 

1st Montana had arrived in San Francisco “almost entirely unequipped.”83

Merritt, too, found the 20th Kansas lacking, but for a different reason—

regimental leadership. “The Kansas regiment has been here some time,” 

Merritt noted, “and has made itself prominent by its want of capacity, so 

far as officers are concerned.” He did, however, welcome the recent arrival 

of the regiment’s commander, COL Frederick Funston, suggesting “the 

colonel may improve these conditions, but as it now stands the regiment 

is unfit to embark.”84 Funston worked to train and discipline his unit, but 

the effort did not expedite the Kansas Volunteers’ deployment. Both the 

20th Kansas and the 1st Tennessee were among the last units to sail for the 

Philippines in October and November 1898.85

Leadership, or more accurately leader preferences, may have accounted for the reason why specific units with readiness shortcomings deployed 

before others. Beginning with the second expedition, Merritt and Otis collaborated to choose the order in which Volunteer infantry would sail for 

Manila. They selected the 1st Colorado and 10th Pennsylvania, two regiments that Long judged “deficient in the most essential requirements of 

equipment” when they arrived in San Francisco on 21 and 25 May, respectively.86 Quartermasters worked to erase these deficits, given the sailing 

priorities both general officers fixed.
235

Otis, who had most recently commanded the Department of the Colorado before his assignment to the Philippine expedition, showed a preference for Volunteers from the Rocky Mountain state shortly after his arrival. The Daily Report offered as an explanation for this policy, “General 

Otis was a resident of Denver for a long time, and is personally acquainted 

with a number of the officers of the Colorado regiment. He has seen the 

regiment at work and knows what he may expect of it.” The newspaper 

suggested that the Coloradans would likely leave on the first available 

expedition.87

The newspaper surmised correctly. When an outbreak of measles 

threatened to eliminate the 2d Oregon from the first expedition, Otis recommended that the 1st Colorado take its place. In a telegraph to Corbin, 

Otis stated, “First Colorado, of full regimental strength, well equipped, 

well officered, and having superior medical officers, will arrive in morning, and I suggest that it be placed on vessel as soon as practicable.”88

Apparently, the measles did not spread within the Oregon regiment, and 

Otis discovered equipment shortfalls in the 1st Colorado. The 2d Oregon 

retained its position with the first expedition.

This outcome nevertheless failed to diminish Otis’s advocacy of the 

Colorado Volunteers. On 24 May, he informed Corbin that “the Colorado, 

Minnesota, and Nebraska regiments are in fair condition; need to be outfitted with certain necessary stores not yet received, but arrive in two or three 

days. These regiments are being inspected to ascertain what ordnance is 

necessary. They can be placed in condition to sail early next week.”89

The second expedition subsequently departed with the 1st Colorado and 

1st Nebraska, but the 13th Minnesota gave way to the 10th Pennsylvania. 

One reason for the change may have been that limited space was available 

on the outgoing transports. If that were so, the smaller Pennsylvania regiment with 640 Volunteers may have been more feasibly manifested than 

the 13th Minnesota with 1,030 men.90

Yet another explanation acknowledges Merritt’s preference for state 

troops from the East Coast. The 10th Pennsylvania came from one of the 

two largest National Guard programs in the country. The other belonged to 

New York, a state that subsequently provided a Volunteer regiment to garrison Hawaii. As commander, Department of the East, Merritt was familiar 

with both programs and had confidence in the abilities of units drawn from 

either state. The Daily Report claimed that “General Merritt has always 

been known to lean toward the Pennsylvania regiment, and was instrumental in having it brought hither.”91
236

Aside from Merritt’s preferences, the presence of the 10th Pennsylvania 

in San Francisco reflected the existence of political pressure in forming 

expeditions. Just as Congressman J.B. Showalter influenced the assignment of his state’s regiment to Merritt’s command, so, too, did other politicians urge specific units’ inclusion in expeditions to the Philippines.92 The 

Chronicle charged that officers from the 1st Nebraska solicited the aid of 

a senator and Assistant Secretary of War Meiklejohn, a former lieutenant 

governor and congressman from the state, to ensure that the organization 

sailed with the second expedition.93

This particular case was likely nothing more than allegation and coincidence, but plenty of evidence exists to indicate that prominent citizens 

and noted politicians sponsored organizations for subsequent expeditions. 

This pressure became quite overt in July, about the time Otis decided to 

man the fourth expedition with recruits that belonged to organizations 

that had already sailed. The fear was that the war would end before state 

Volunteers assembled in San Francisco could get overseas.

On 8 July, MG Otis urged that a California unit be sent into the Pacific 

to take station in Hawaii.94 BG Corbin responded, “There is no objection 

to the Eighth California other than it is thought that as California has one 

regiment on the way to the Philippines the other States feel that details for 

service should be given to all the States alike. Two regiments from any one 

State are for these reasons objectionable. You have no idea the anxiety for 

service, and how any sign of favoritism is resented.”95 Decisions on assignments to locations in the Pacific were treated as discreetly as possible.

Essentially, the authorities in San Francisco began to receive strong 

suggestions from sources outside the Golden Gate on what units should 

go abroad. On 9 July, Secretary of War Alger advocated that the 1st South 

Dakota deploy.96 Otis responded in the affirmative and the 1st South Dakota 

sailed with the sixth and seventh expeditions at the end of July.97 From 10 

July through 12 August, Merritt’s command and the War Department entertained unsolicited requests on behalf of the 7th California, 8th California, 

1st New York, 1st Montana, 51st Iowa, 20th Kansas, 1st Washington, and 

1st Nevada.98 By the end of November, all sailed for destinations in the 

Pacific except the two regiments from California. Neither organization deployed. As Corbin had reminded Otis, the 1st California had already sailed 

and represented the state overseas. (See appendix A.)

Restructuring the Camps and Commands

Troop organizations selected for expeditions often marched to the docks 

amidst the same pomp and ceremony that had characterized their arrival 
237

at the Golden Gate. The earliest departures were particularly noteworthy 

for the attention the San Francisco community gave them. Ordered on the 

first expedition, Private Charles Detrick, 1st California, wrote of his unit’s 

march from the Presidio to the Pacific mail dock, “every foot of the way 

was crowded with the families, friends, and well-wishers of the boys.”99

June send-offs were comparably enthusiastic. The 1st Nebraska experienced a similar farewell according to its regimental scribe. Assigned to 

the Senator of the second expedition, the regiment marched from Camp 

Merritt on 14 June. The 1st Nebraska chronicler wrote, “In the settled 

portion of the city, and all the way down to the dock, the streets were literally packed with patriotic crowds; bands played inspiring music, steam 

whistles and calliopes were blown, and guns were fired, in honor of the 

passing troops.” He added that near the ship “the Red Cross Society served 

an excellent supper, for which the men were highly grateful.”100

A North Dakotan, First Sergeant Phil H. Shortt, described his organization’s movement to the docks on 27 June. Shortt wrote of “the streets 

Figure 98.

San Francisco Call, 24 May 1898
238

on the way to the steamer being filled with people who bade the regiment 

hearty farewells and wished it success and good luck. The scene at the 

wharf was beyond description. The docks were crowded with soldiers, and 

the ladies of the Red Cross were everywhere conspicuous.”101

Departures frequently necessitated restructuring campsites and reorganizing commands. After forces from the first expedition vacated their 

bivouac sites, Otis began to separate his Independent Division organizations from those belonging to Merriam’s Department of California. At 

Camp Merritt, Otis maintained regiments, battalions, or detachments that 

were tentatively tagged for duty overseas. On the Presidio and at Fontana 

warehouse, Merriam retained the troops most likely to garrison Golden 

Gate posts or West Coast fortifications. In keeping with this concept, 7th 

California and 14th Infantry troops relocated to Richmond’s Bay District 

Racetrack area in late May.102 The 6th California and 1st Washington remained at the Presidio and Fontana sites, respectively, since both organizations would see garrison duty in the Golden Gate region through the end 

of hostilities with Spain.

Figure 99. Volunteers on transport Rio de Janeiro

leaving San Francisco for Manila.

Golden Gate National Recreation Area, National Park Service
239

Upon reaching San Francisco after the first expedition sailed, Merritt 

ordered the Independent Division organized into major subordinate commands. Led by MG Otis, the division separated into four brigades composed of all organizations identified for service in the Pacific. Senior regimental commanders who had reached the city by 30 May took charge of 

each brigade.103

In the days surrounding the departure of two expeditions in June, the 

division reorganized to accommodate changes in brigade leadership and 

composition. Three days before the second expedition sailed on 15 June, 

Otis revamped his division’s structure. He named newly appointed brigadier generals to command each of his four brigades. He dropped units 

that sailed from the existing organization, retained all Regulars in the 1st 

Brigade, and placed the two least ready regiments, the 20th Kansas and 1st 

Tennessee, into the 2d Brigade.104 About the time the third expedition and 

MG Merritt sailed in late June, Otis reorganized again. With the departures 

of one of his brigade commanders, BG Arthur MacArthur, and additional 

Volunteer and Regular forces, Otis consolidated the division into three 

brigades.105

Figure 100.

San Francisco Chronicle, 30 June 1898
240

The most dramatic reorganizations within commands at the Golden 

Gate occurred when flotillas left the bay in July. As Otis prepared to leave 

with the fourth expedition on the 15th, he relinquished “command of all 

troops in this vicinity known as the ‘Expeditionary Forces’” to the current 

1st Brigade commander, BG Marcus P. Miller.106 In a separate order, Otis 

directed that for the near term, units still in the city were to “be re-brigaded 

and constitute at least two brigades under division formation.”107 Miller 

saw to those details 

when, on 20 July, 

he closed out the 

3rd Brigade and 

assigned Volunteer 

regiments to the remaining two.108

Otis’s departure 

signaled one other 

major change in the 

command structure. After 15 July, 

the Department of 

the Pacific stopped 

exercising direct control over 

the Independent 

Division in San 

Francisco. In the 

absence of both Merritt and Otis, the department’s highest-ranking officers, the War Department transferred authority over the division to MG 

Henry C. Merriam. On 10 July, Secretary of War Alger ordered that the 

“remaining troops heretofore destined for the Philippines will, until return 

transportation or other orders issued, report to the commanding general 

Department of California for his orders.”109 Merriam therefore resumed 

control over the command he had originally influenced for only a few days 

in May.

Merriam assumed his additional responsibilities as departures for the 

Philippines and the occupation of Bay Area defenses invited the restructuring of existing encampments. Nearly two weeks before Merriam took control of the Independent Division, four major campsites in the city had been 

reduced to three. The last troops to occupy Fontana’s warehouse departed 

on 2 July when the 1st Battalion, 1st Washington, ferried to Angel Island 

Figure 101.

San Francisco Chronicle, 16 July 1898
241

to man defense works.110 Actually, the troop exodus from Fontana had begun only days after the California Heavy Artillery and 1st Washington 

occupied the structure during the second week of May. On 16 May, “a 

sharp report like that of a rifle shot” stirred troops trying to sleep on the 

second story’s hardwood floor. Believing the structure about to collapse, 

all 600 artillerymen emptied Fontana and anxiously spent a night under 

the stars.111

Private Charles R. Detrick, 1st California, described the building as “a 

ramshackle affair” where the wind and fog rushed through its broken windows. Detrick hypothesized that troops who had trained inside the warehouse had loosened joints holding the second story’s hardwood floor together.112 The Examiner rendered similar observations, but also suggested 

that boisterous play may have taken its toll. The newspaper reported, “The 

march step of hundreds of men has had a tendency to shake the floors pretty 

Figure 102.

The Examiner, 19 May 1898
242

lively. A few days ago 300 men indulged in a tug of war contest on the second floor. They shook things up so lively that the officers compelled them 

to cease the sport.”113 A civil engineer with the Department of California 

investigated and deemed the structure safe. He surmised that the cracking 

noises were caused by wood “‘checking’ from the heat engendered by a 

number of stoves” the Red Cross provided to keep the troops warm.114

The engineer’s report failed to mollify artillerymen who were only too 

ready to bid farewell to Fontana. They relocated into permanent barracks 

at the Presidio on 18 May.115 Unlike their California comrades, Volunteers 

from the 1st Washington never found the warehouse disagreeable. They 

remained billeted in the structure with Merriam’s blessing until ordered 

out in early July. Adjutant William L. Luhn, 1st Washington, wrote, “The 

1st and 2d Battalions in Fontana Barracks were very comfortably quartered compared to the many troops who were put in camp on the sand hills 

of San Francisco, known as Camp Merritt.”116

That particular encampment, which included two sites in the Richmond 

District, referred to as the Bay District Racetrack and Jordan Tract, had become a target for criticism from several sources in the San Francisco area. 

Coincidentally, this scrutiny intensified as expeditions departed, reducing 

the number of troops bivouacked in the area. Ironically, the officer most 

active in establishing the Richmond encampment, MG Merriam, regained 

control over Camp Merritt and its troops in mid-July when objections to 

the area reached their zenith.

For more than a month leading up to that point, local newspapers ran 

articles and editorials that faulted Richmond sites and urged improvements 

to the Presidio. On 8 June, the Daily Report announced that Richmond 

citizens were about to petition MG Otis for help. The article observed that 

“the presence of 14,000 soldiers in Richmond has given local business a 

boom and in various ways benefited the region.” The reporter nevertheless 

proclaimed that “some of the soldiers who patronize the saloons are getting 

a little too lively for the peace and comfort of quiet and orderly citizens. . . . 

There is another nuisance in the camp—the cesspool nuisance—which the 

people of Richmond are anxious to see abated.”117

On 9 June, the Chronicle ran an editorial exposing the “sanitary, moral and military” shortcomings of Camp Merritt. First, filthy sinks dug in 

lieu of sewers posed a sanitation hazard by threatening the troops’ “health 

and that of the city.” Second, unlike the Presidio, this encampment stood 

on private property divided by city streets. Sentinels had no power to 

close thoroughfares into the camp. The inability to close streets poisoned 
243

the camps’ moral environment by giving access to those the newspaper 

described as “disreputable people of both sexes.” Just across the same 

streets, soldiers could find ample intoxicants available in numerous saloons or groggeries. Third, the camps were not conducive to military training. With 11,159 Volunteers and Regulars spread out over both Richmond 

sites, units had no place to drill unless they marched to Golden Gate Park 

or the Presidio.118

That same theme ran through editorials and articles of other newspapers. The Call questioned why the Army continued to maintain Camp 

Merritt and not work to accommodate more troops on the large military 

reservation by the bay.119 A Daily Report editorialist urged the military to 

develop the Presidio for use as a campsite and warned that Camp Merritt 

invited “trouble” between soldiers and civilians.120

The newspapers found allies among others in San Francisco who 

joined in questioning the military’s encampment decisions. On 20 June, 

a Daily Report editorial revealed that the city’s Board of Health had 

warned that Camp Merritt, “owing to its lack of sewerage, threatened 

to cause an epidemic.”121 Acting on this report, the San Francisco Board 

of Supervisors, led by Mayor James Phelan, prepared a resolution for 

Secretary of War Alger. Reprinted in the Chronicle, the resolution stated 

that military authorities had established a camp “on private and unsewered blocks directly to the windward of the most populous portion of the 

city.” Through their resolution, the board argued that “the placing of from 

10,000 to 12,000 soldiers on these city blocks unnecessarily exposes the 

soldiers to demoralizing influences and also menaces their sanitary welfare and that of the city.” City supervisors maintained that the military had 

actually few options other than to establish sites in the Richmond District 

because of the Presidio’s inability to host a large body of troops. The supervisors urged Secretary Alger to support the kind of improvements to 

the Presidio that would lead to a greater accommodation of forces on the 

military reservation.122

Another development likely inspired the Board of Supervisors to act. 

After President McKinley issued a second call for Volunteers, California 

brought another regiment into federal service. Instead of joining their comrades at San Francisco encampments, members of the 8th California established their bivouac site in Oakland. In an article published on 22 June, 

the Chronicle quoted regimental commander COL Park Henshaw for an 

explanation of the site selection. Henshaw stated, “The reason for selecting some place other than San Francisco for the rendezvous is the desire 

to have a quiet and comparatively isolated spot where the men will be free 
244

from outside influence. They will be given all that is necessary for their 

welfare, and, being removed from temptations, will be better able to devote their time and attention to drills and military discipline.”123 Then, after the third expedition departed, the Call reported on 3 July that “Oakland 

residents are making a strong effort to have the First New York located 

here.”124 This particular regiment had recently been added to Merritt’s 

command and was making its way west.

Still in command of the force at Camp Merritt, MG Otis took steps 

to address several of the problems that San Francisco papers and political 

authorities identified. On 23 June, he ordered all sinks in the Richmond encampment disinfected and that “Brigade Commanders will see to it that the 

sinks of each organization of their respective brigades are inspected daily 

by the regimental surgeon or medical officer attached.”125 By 1 July, he accepted the appointment of Major W.S.H. Matthews, 51st Iowa, as inspecting surgeon of Camp Merritt.126 Soon after, Matthews’ observations on the 

sanitary conditions of the camp found their way into the Daily Report. A 

new voice could be added to those heretofore nonmilitary sources arguing 

for changes at the camps.

On 5 July, the Daily Report commented on Matthews’ efforts to assist 

the 1st Tennessee with its sinks. The paper’s correspondent summarized, 

“No notice has been taken of this by the officers, and nothing toward remedying this evil undertaken. The odor from the sinks is bad enough when 

they are covered, and as they are at present it is intolerable.”127 A day later, 

the same newspaper revealed that Matthews ordered more sinks prepared, 

and then quoted him, “If we were to stay here for only a week or ten days 

more that might be good enough, but when we shall have to stay here or 

somewhere in this neighborhood for a month at least, as the prospects at 

present are, the only safe thing to do is to remove the camp.”128

On 7 July, four days after Oakland announced its effort to acquire the 

1st New York, Matthews rendered an official report to the division’s chief 

surgeon, stating, “I have made an inspection of Camp Merritt and find that 

the sanitary conditions and the health of the men in this camp is not what 

it should be.”129 Still the camp did not move, nor were preparations made 

to improve the Presidio as a bivouac site.

The 1st New York’s arrival on 13 and 14 July changed the situation. 

COL Thomas Barber, the regiment’s commanding officer, objected to the 

Camp Merritt grounds where the 1st New York was assigned. Formerly 

occupied by the 23d Infantry since 29 May and only recently vacated, the 

block area was “one stretch of dry sand, mixed with debris and decayed 
245

matter.” Barber ordered a sanitary inspection by his regimental surgeon 

who subsequently reported “that a permanent encampment at the place 

allotted to the First New York would be a menace to the health of the 

men.”130

Barber took his concerns directly to MG Otis in the Phelan Building. 

He requested that the 1st New York relocate onto the Presidio reservation. 

In one of his final decisions as commander of the expeditionary forces 

assembled in San Francisco, Otis concurred. His decision was made easier in part because of the New York regiment’s official status. Barber’s 

infantry was bound for Honolulu. Hawaii fell within the Department of 

California’s jurisdiction; any unit assigned duties there belonged to MG 

Merriam. Units assigned to the Department of California were quartered 

on the Presidio or at coast defense sites. Moving the 1st New York onto 

the Presidio could therefore be justified as assigning the organization to its 

parent headquarters.131 Merriam approved Barber’s appeal as well, and the 

New Yorkers established their bivouac at the Presidio on 15 July, the same 

day Otis sailed for the Philippines.132

Relocation fueled more protests over the Richmond camps’ continued existence. On 16 July, Hugh Craig, president, San Francisco Chamber 

of Commerce, renewed his crusade to condemn Camp Merritt. He and 

other San Francisco businessmen had to be concerned about Oakland’s 

challenge to secure military camps. The longer Richmond encampments 

existed, the greater the chance that military or political authorities could 

decide to relocate across the bay. This action would be a blow to San 

Francisco’s commerce.

In early June, Craig had asked Secretary of War Alger for assistance 

in this endeavor, only to be referred to the local commander. This time he 

wired President McKinley. His message dated 16 July read: “Camp Merritt, 

in San Francisco, has been condemned by our Board of Supervisors because of its unsanitary condition, protested against by the neighbors, and 

is a blot upon the Administration. The ladies of the Red Cross are heartbroken at the increasing mortality, entirely unnecessary. The New York 

regiment, just arrived, would not accept quarters there and is now camped 

at the Presidio.” He asked the president “to compel the removal of this 

disgraceful condition of affairs,” while promising that the chamber would 

“sewer and supply with fresh water the Presidio grounds.”133

Craig realized at least part of the solution that he desired. On 18 July, 

the AG, BG Corbin telegraphed MG Merriam: “Secretary War further directs that Camp Merritt be abandoned and these troops be placed in camp 
246

on the Presidio Reservation.”134 Alger’s directive, however, did not mark 

the end but rather “the beginning of the end” for Camp Merritt. Merriam 

received no timetable for closing the Richmond sites. The Presidio could 

not be transformed hastily to accommodate all the troops in San Francisco 

awaiting deployment. Repositioning the forces too quickly would overburden the military installation’s services. Merriam decided to gradually 

withdraw from the city, starting with displacing the division hospital to 

a barracks at the Presidio on 21 July. After three more expeditions departed with troops by 29 July, Merriam began to transfer regiments out 

of Richmond. Camp Merritt ceased to exist on 26 August when the last 

troops marched onto the Presidio.135

One of the military’s remarkable accomplishments was acquiring 

ocean transports for Merritt’s command. Quartermasters on both coasts 

and generals at the Golden Gate secured suitable vessels for Regulars and 

Volunteers. Each vessel was inspected for safety threats and health risks. 

Not all available ships were chartered or purchased. Some accepted into 

service had to be refurbished before admitting passengers and commencing the voyage.

The transportation challenge created an associated problem. The Department of the Pacific had to determine the order in which units deployed 

overseas. Merritt and Otis ultimately designated Regular infantry companies as the core of each expedition. Around this nucleus the generals 

added sections of Army medical personnel, artillerymen, and engineers as 

they became available. State Volunteer infantry constituted most of each 

deploying force. The order in which Volunteer units sailed depended on 

diverse criteria—proximity to the coast, logistics preparedness, drill proficiency, political influence, and general officers’ preferences.

As the Department of the Pacific’s strength dwindled about the Golden 

Gate, commanders reassessed the need for campsites. Originally established in four locations, bivouac areas increasingly became the subject of 

criticism levied by businessmen, newspaper reporters, local citizens, and 

some military officials. These groups advocated consolidating the troops 

on the Presidio reservation. Successive deployments reduced the number 

of military organizations remaining in the San Francisco area, which created the opportunity to close encampments. Toward the end of July, commanders began to move troops to the Presidio. All of the troops would 

eventually move out of city camps and relocate, either overseas or on the 

Presidio, but not before a peace protocol ended hostilities between the 

United States and Spain.
247

Notes

1. US Navy Department, Dewey to Secretary of the Navy, Hongkong, 7 

May 1898, (Manila, 1 May), Annual Reports of the Navy Department for the 

Year 1898, Appendix to the Report of the Chief of the Bureau of Navigation

(Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office [GPO], 1898), 68.

2. US Navy Department, Dewey to Secretary of the Navy, Hongkong, 7 

May 1898, (Cavite 4 May), Annual Reports of the Navy Department for the Year 

1898, 68.

3. Testimony of Colonel Charles Bird, Quartermaster, U.S. Volunteers, 

2 December 1898, in US Senate, Report of the Commission Appointed by the 

President to Investigate the Conduct of the War Department in the War With 

Spain, volume VI, Testimony (Washington, DC: GPO, 1900), hereafter cited as 

Report VI, 2612.

4. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the Secretary of War, Miscellaneous 

Reports, Report of the Quartermaster-General of the Army (Washington, DC: 

GPO, 1898), 442-43.

5. Letter, Major Oscar Long to Quartermaster General, 25 August 1898, 

in Record Group 92, Office of the Quartermaster General, Document File 1800-

1914, Document No. 115533 (Washington, DC: National Archives), 4; Telegram, 

Merriam, Major-General, to Adjutant-General, Washington, D.C., 9 August 1898 

(Received 8:31 p.m.) in Correspondence Relating to the War With Spain and 

Conditions Growing Out of the Same, Including the Insurrection in the Philippine 

Islands and the China Relief Expedition, Between the Adjutant-General of the Army 

and Military Commander in the United States, Cuba, Porto Rico, China, and the 

Philippine Islands, From April 15, 1898, to July 30, 1902, volume II (Washington, 

DC: GPO, 1902), hereafter cited as Correspondence II, 748; Telegram, Merriam, 

Major-General, to Adjutant-General, Washington, D.C., 9 August 1898 (Received 

9:28 p.m.) in Correspondence II, 748.

6. US Navy Department, Long to Dewey, Washington, 7 May 1898, in 

Annual Reports of the Navy Department for the Year 1898, 69.

7. US Navy Department, Report of the Secretary of the Navy in Annual 

Reports of the Navy Department for the Year 1898, Report of the Secretary of the 

Navy, Miscellaneous Reports, 21. “The City of Peking,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 5 May 1898, 1; “Why These Long Delays,” San Francisco Daily Report, 

21 May 1898, 7; “The Peking Arrives,” The Examiner, 10 May 1898, 3.

8. John D. Long, Secretary, to the Honorable, the Secretary of War, 

Washington, 12 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 637.

9. US Navy Department, Dewey to Secretary of the Navy, Hongkong, 

15 May 1898 (Cavite, 13 May), in Annual Reports of the Navy Department 

for the Year 1898, 97-98; H.C. Corbin, Adjutant-General, to General Merriam, 

Washington, 13 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 639.

10. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the Secretary of War, Miscellaneous 
248

Reports, Quartermaster Department’s Synopsis (Washington, DC: GPO, 1898), 

172.

11. Testimony of Colonel Charles Bird, in Report VI, 2612-13; Testimony of 

Brigadier-General Marshall I. Ludington, Quartermaster-General, 16 December 

1898, in US Senate, Report of the Commission Appointed by the President to 

Investigate the Conduct of the War Department in the War With Spain, volume VII, Testimony (Washington, DC: GPO, 1900), hereafter cited as Report 

VII, 3155; Telegram, Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 21 May 1898, 

11:20 p.m., in Correspondence II, 667-68; Telegram, Hugh C. Wallace to G.D. 

Meiklejohn, 25 May 1898 (Received 4:26 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 672; 

Telegram, Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 8 July 1898 (Received 7:10 

p.m.), in Correspondence II, 721-22; Telegram, H.C. Corbin to Major-General 

Otis, 10 July 1898, in Correspondence II, 725; “To Increase the Army at Bay 

District,” San Francisco Call, 1 June 1898, 5; “Transports Hard to Find on the 

Coast,” San Francisco Chronicle, 24 May 1898, 4; “More Ships Are Secured,” 

San Francisco Chronicle, 8 June 1898, 5; “Major Long May Take any Pacific 

Vessel,” San Francisco Chronicle, 22 June 1898, 3; “Centennial Rejected,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 8 June 1898, 3; “Chartering Transports,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 9 June 1898, 3.

12. Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774-1996

(Alexandria, VA: CQ Staff Directories, 1997), 1509; Who Was Who in America, 

volume 1, 1897-1942 (Chicago: Marquis Who’s Who, 1943), 828.

13. Testimony of Colonel Charles Bird, Quartermaster, U.S. Volunteers, 2 

December 1898, in Report VI, 2607.

14. Ibid., 2613.

15. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the Fiscal 

Year Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the Secretary of War, Miscellaneous Reports, 

Quartermaster Department’s Synopsis, 172; Ibid., Report of the QuartermasterGeneral of the Army, 388.

16. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 24 May 1898 (Received 5:24 p.m.), 

in Correspondence II, 671.

17. W. Merritt to Adjutant-General, 2 June 1898 (Received 4:56 p.m.), in 

Correspondence II, 685-86.

18. Merritt to Adjutant-General, 6 June 1898 (Received 6:30 p.m.), in 

Correspondence II, 691-92.

19. “General Merritt on the Shortage of Transports,” San Francisco Call, 7 

June 1898, 7.

20. Erna Risch, Quartermaster Support of the Army: A History of the Corps, 

1775-1939 (Washington, DC: Office of the Quartermaster General, 1962), 546; 

Testimony of Colonel Frank Hecker, Quartermaster, U.S. Volunteers, 7 December 

1898, in Report VI, 2786.

21. By 29 May, the McKinley administration determined that 20,000 troops 

would comprise the Philippine expeditionary force. See H.C. Corbin to MajorGeneral Merritt, 29 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 680.

22. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 
249

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the Secretary of War, Miscellaneous 

Reports, Report of the Quartermaster-General of the Army, 437.

23. Testimony of Colonel Frank Hecker, Quartermaster, U.S. Volunteers, 7 

December 1898, in Report VI, 2767-68; US War Department, Annual Reports 

of the War Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the 

Secretary of War, Miscellaneous Reports, Quartermaster Department’s Synopsis, 

173.

24. Testimony of Colonel Frank Hecker, Quartermaster, U.S. Volunteers, 7 

December 1898, in Report VI, 2786-88.

25. H.C. Corbin to Major-General Merritt, 7 June 1898, in Correspondence 

II, 692.

26. W. Merritt to The Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 6 July 1898 (Received 

21 July 1898), in Correspondence II, 737.

27. Frank J. Hecker to Brig. Gen. H.C. Corbin, 27 July 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 741.

28. H.C. Corbin to the Commanding General, Eighth Army Corps and 

Department of the Pacific, 29 July 1898, in Correspondence II, 742.

29. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 18 May 1898 (Received 19 May 

1898, 6:45 a.m.), in Correspondence II, 659-60.

30. H.C. Corbin to Gen. E.S. Otis, U.S. Army, 19 May 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 661.

31. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 21 May 1898, 11:20 p.m., in 

Correspondence II, 667-68; H.C. Corbin to Major-General Merritt, 31 May 1898, 

in Correspondence II, 683.

32. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 8 July 1898 (Received 7:10 p.m.), 

in Correspondence II, 721-22; Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 8 July 1898 

(Received 10:41 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 722.

33. H.C. Corbin to Gen E.S. Otis, 7 July 1898, in Correspondence II, 

720; Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 8 July 1898 (Received 7:10 p.m.), 

in Correspondence II, 721-22; Long to Quartermaster-General, 9 July 1898, in 

Correspondence II, 722.

34. “Hawaiian Annexation Changes All Plans,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

10 July 1898, 23.

35. H.C. Corbin to Major-General Otis, 10 July 1898, in Correspondence II, 

725.

36. Letter, E.S. Otis to Col. Charles Denby, 19 November 1898, in US Senate, 

Report of the Commission Appointed by the President to Investigate the Conduct 

of the War Department in the War with Spain, volume VIII, Correspondence

(Washington, DC: GPO, 1900), hereafter cited as Report VIII, 179.

37. “Held Back by Slight Repairs,” The Examiner, 5 June 1898, 15; 

“Something About the Transport Centennial,” San Francisco Chronicle, 5 June 

1898, 23.

38. “Centennial’s Charter Promptly Canceled,” San Francisco Chronicle, 8 

June 1898, 5; “Centennial Rejected,” San Francisco Daily Report, 8 June 1898, 3.

39. “Transports are Waiting,” San Francisco Daily Report, 7 June 1898, 3.
250

40. “Coast Ship-Owners Sharply Criticised,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

10 June 1898, 7; “Centennial’s Owners May Sue Uncle Sam,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 11 June 1898, 11.

41. “The Transport Fleet,” The Examiner, 11 May 1898, 3; “More Steamers 

to be Seized,” The Examiner, 3 July 1898, 22; “More Ships for Manila,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 11 May 1898, 3; “Looking for Ships,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 1 June 1898, 2; “Chartering Transports,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 9 June 1898, 3; “Ships to be Seized,” San Francisco Chronicle, 3 July 

1898, 24.

42. “Cause of Delay,” San Francisco Daily Report, 4 June 1898, 2.

43. “Brief Military Items,” San Francisco Chronicle, 26 May 1898, 2.

44. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 19 May 1898 (Received 20 May 

1898, 2:05 a.m.), in Correspondence II, 663; “Zealandia Chartered for Manila—

Duty for Naval Reserves,” San Francisco Call, 21 May 1898, 5.

45. “Transports for Manila,” San Francisco Call, 9 June 1898, 5.

46. “Overhauling Troopships Improperly Fitted Up for Service,” San 

Francisco Call, 4 June 1898, 7; “The Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 

17 June 1898, 1.

47. “Five Transports Will Soon be Ready,” San Francisco Chronicle, 10 June 

1898, 9; “Merritt Has Orders to Hurry to Dewey’s Aid,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

11 June 1898, 9; “Inspection of Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 10 June 

1898, 3.

48. “Why the Brigade was Reorganized,” San Francisco Call, 19 June 1898, 7.

49. “Inspection of Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 10 June 1898, 

3; “Five Transports Will Soon be Ready,” San Francisco Chronicle, 10 June 1898, 

9; “Merritt Has Orders to Hurry to Dewey’s Aid,” San Francisco Chronicle, 11 

June 1898, 9.

50. Testimony of Colonel Charles Bird, Quartermaster, U.S. Volunteers, 2 

December 1898, in Report VI, 2622-23.

51. Letter, Oscar F. Long to Quartermaster General, 1 October 1898, in 

Record Group 92, Office of the Quartermaster General, Document File 1800-

1914, Document No. 120579, 3.

52. Letter, E.S. Otis to Col. Charles Denby, 19 November 1898, in Report 

VIII, 179.

53. “Why the Brigade Was Reorganized,” San Francisco Call, 19 June 

1898, 7.

54. “The Delayed Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 13 May 1898, 

2; “Transports Not Ready,” San Francisco Daily Report, 16 May 1898, 2; “No 

Hurry Anywhere,” San Francisco Daily Report, 17 May 1898, 3; “Dawdling at 

the Docks,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 1898, 3; “The Transports,” 

San Francisco Daily Report, 3 June 1898, 2; “Slow Work on Transports,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 20 June 1898, 2; “The Transports,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 22 June 1898, 1; “Putting Stores on the Transports,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 9 July 1898, 2; “Fitting-Up the City of Peking for Duty with the Manila 

Expedition,” San Francisco Chronicle, 18 May 1898, 3; “More Ships to Carry 
251

Men,” San Francisco Call, 9 June 1898, 5; “Going With a Rush,” San Francisco 

Call, 21 June 1898, 5.

55. “Getting Ready for Manila,” San Francisco Call, 12 May 1898, 5; “The 

Manila Expedition,” San Francisco Call, 17 May 1898, 7; “More Ships to Carry 

Men,” San Francisco Call, 9 June 1898, 5; “Ships in the Stream and Ready,” 

San Francisco Call, 15 June 1898, 1; “Going With a Rush,” San Francisco 

Call, 21 June 1898, 5; “Fitting-Up the City of Peking for Duty With the Manila 

Expedition,” San Francisco Chronicle, 18 May 1898, 3; “Ocean Greyhound City 

of Peking, Now Fitting as a Troopship,” The Examiner, 18 May 1898, 2; “The 

Delayed Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 13 May 1898, 2; “Transports 

Not Ready,” San Francisco Daily Report, 16 May 1898, 2; “No Hurry Anywhere,” 

San Francisco Daily Report, 17 May 1898, 3; “Dawdling at the Docks,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 1898, 3; “The Transports,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 3 June 1898, 2; “The Delayed Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 6 

June 1898, 3; “The Four Transports Nearly Ready,” San Francisco Daily Report, 

16 June 1898, 1; “Slow Work on Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 20 

June 1898, 2; “Putting Stores on the Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 9 

July 1898, 2. 

56. “Brief Military Items,” San Francisco Chronicle, 26 May 1898, 2.

57. “Making Ready Ships for the Troops,” San Francisco Chronicle, 16 May 

1898, 5; “Fitting-Up the City of Peking for Duty With the Manila Expedition,” 

San Francisco Chronicle, 18 May 1898, 3; “Hope to Sail by Tomorrow,” San 

Francisco Chronicle, 21 May 1898, 9; “No Hurry Anywhere,” San Francisco 

Daily Report, 17 May 1898, 3; “More Ships to Carry Men,” San Francisco Call, 

9 June 1898, 5; “At Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 June 1898, 2; 

“Slow Work on Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 20 June 1898, 2; “More 

Transports for Manila,” San Francisco Daily Report, 8 July 1898, 3; “Putting 

Stores on the Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 9 July 1898, 2.

58. “Four Transports Loaded and Waiting for the Regiments Bound to 

Manila,” San Francisco Chronicle, 14 June 1898, 12.

59. “The Transports,” San Francisco Daily Report, 22 June 1898, 1.

60. “Why These Long Delays,” San Francisco Daily Report, 21 May 1898, 7.

61. Captain W.E. Birkhimer, “Transportation of Troops by Sea,” Journal of 

the Military Service Institution of the United States, volume XXIII, 1898, 439-

40.

62. “Arming of the City of Peking,” San Francisco Call, 16 May 1898, 8; 

“Ocean Greyhound City of Peking, Now Fitting as a Troopship,” The Examiner, 

18 May 1898, 2; “Dawdling at the Docks,” San Francisco Daily Report, 18 May 

1898, 3.

63. “Preparing to Sail,” San Francisco Call, 13 June 1898, 5.

64. Corbin to Col. James A. Smith, 14 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 640; 

Corbin to Commanding Officer, Battalion Fourteenth U.S. Infantry, 14 May 1898, 

in Correspondence II, 640.

65. Field to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 14 May 1898 (Received 11:48 

p.m.), in Correspondence II, 643; Long to Quartermaster-General, 17 May 1898 
252

(Received 8:23 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 653-54; Long to QuartermasterGeneral, 17 May 1898 (Received 8:50 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 654; Otis to 

Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 18 May 1898 (Received 19 May 1898, 6:45 a.m.), 

659-60.

66. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 18 May 1898 (Received 19 May 

1898, 6:45 a.m.), in Correspondence II, 659-60; Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. 

Army, 19 May 1898 (Received 20 May 1898, 2:05 a.m.), in Correspondence II, 

663.

67. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 21 May 1898, 11:20 p.m., in 

Correspondence II, 667-68.

68. Private Charles R. Detrick, History of the Operations of the First 

Regiment California U.S. Volunteer Infantry in the Campaign in the Philippine 

Islands, n.p., n.d., 96-97.

69. Letter, D.D. Van Valzah to the Adjutant General, 1st. Brigade, Ind. 

Division, Camp Merritt, 8 June 1898, in Record Group 395, Preliminary Inventory 

of the Records of U.S. Army Overseas Operations and Commands, 1898-1942, 

Entry 887: 8th Army Corps, Independent Division, July-December 1898, Letters 

Received June-September 1898, Box No. 1, General, Special Orders and Circulars, 

1898 (Washington, DC: National Archives); Letter, Samuel Ovenshine, Colonel, 

23d Infantry, Commanding, to Adjutant General 1st Brigade, 8 June 1898, in 

Record Group 395; “Summary of the Principal Events Connected With Military 

Operations in the Philippine Islands,” in US War Department, Annual Reports of 

the War Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1899, Report of the Major 

General Commanding the Army, v-vi.

70. Merritt, Major-General, to His Excellency William McKinley, 13 

May 1898, in Correspondence II, 643; W. Merritt to His Excellency William 

McKinley, 15 May 1898 (Received 16 May 1898), in Correspondence II, 645; 

W. Merritt to Adjutant-General, 21 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 666; W. 

Merritt to Adjutant-General, 21 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 666-67; Merritt 

to Adjutant-General, 30 May 1898, in Correspondence II, 681; H.C. Corbin to 

Major-General Merritt, 31 May 1898—12 midnight, in Correspondence II, 683; 

H.C. Corbin to Major General Merritt, 4 June 1898, in Record Group 94, filed 

with Document Number 82934, Box 612, 82867 to 83122.

71. “Summary of the Principal Events Connected With Military Operations 

in the Philippine Islands,” in US War Department, Annual Reports of the War 

Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1899, Report of the Major General 

Commanding the Army, v-vi.

72. General Orders No. 2, Headquarters, U.S. Expeditionary Forces, San 

Francisco, Cal., 20 May 1898; General Orders No. 1, Headquarters, Independent 

Division Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, Camp Merritt. San Francisco, 

Cal., 1 June 1898; General Orders No. 12, Headquarters, Independent Division, 

Eighth Army Corps, San Francisco, Cal., 29 June 1898.

73. “More Troops Embark To-Day,” The Examiner, 24 May 1898, 2; 

“Nebraska Troops Mysteriously Ill, The Examiner, 28 May 1898, 3.

74. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 24 May 1898 (Received 5:24 p.m.), 
253

in Correspondence II, 671; “The Day in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 25 

May 1898, 3; “Camp Richmond,” San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898, 7.

75. “Camp Merritt Troops,” San Francisco Call, 29 June 1898, 5.

76. Letter, Karl Kraemer, Co H, 51st Iowa Infantry, to Dear Sister, 11 August 

1898 (Carlisle Barracks, PA: US Army Military History Institute).

77. “Warm Weather Events Out at Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Chronicle, 

5 June 1898, 23.

78. “The Day in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 2 June 1898, 3; “In the 

Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 3 June 1898, 2; “The Day at the Camp,” San 

Francisco Daily Report, 8 June 1898, 3; “At Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily 

Report, 18 June 1898, 2; “Richmond’s Tented Field,” San Francisco Call, 3 June 

1898, 7; “Next Tuesday or Later,” San Francisco Call, 4 June 1898, 7.

79. Letter, Oscar F. Long to Quartermaster General, 1 October 1898, in 

Record Group 92, Office of the Quartermaster General, Document File 1800-

1914, Document No. 120579, 2.

80. “At Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 27 June 1898, 1.

81. “Wyoming Battery Joins the Troops,” San Francisco Chronicle, 29 June 

1898, 3; “More Rigid Rules for Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Chronicle, 30 June 

1898, 3.

82. Merritt to The Adjutant-General, 20 June 1898, in Correspondence II, 

707.

83. Letter, Oscar F. Long to Quartermaster General, 1 October 1898, in 

Record Group 92, Office of the Quartermaster General, Document File 1800-

1914, Document No. 120579, 2.

84. Merritt to The Adjutant-General, 20 June 1898, in Correspondence II, 

707.

85. “Summary of the Principal Events Connected With Military Operations 

in the Philippine Islands,” in US War Department, Annual Reports of the War 

Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1899, Report of the Major General 

Commanding the Army, viii.

86. Letter, Oscar F. Long to Quartermaster General, 1 October 1898, in 

Record Group 92, Office of the Quartermaster General, Document File 1800-

1914, Document No. 120579, 2.

87. “The Day in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 2 June 1898, 3.

88. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 20 May 1898 (Received 4:40 p.m.), 

in Correspondence II, 663-64.

89. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 24 May 1898 (Received 5:24 p.m.), 

in Correspondence II, 671.

90. “Seven Thousand Men,” San Francisco Call, 26 May 1898, 2.

91. “The Day in Camp,” San Francisco Daily Report, 2 June 1898, 3.

92. J.B. Showalter to General Alger, 17 May 1898 (Received 18 May 1898), 

in Correspondence II, 658.

93. “Ships and Men for the Second Manila Expedition,” San Francisco 

Chronicle, 4 June 1898, 9; Who Was Who in America, volume 1, 1897-1942, 828; 

“Nebraska Must Wait for Third Fleet,” San Francisco Chronicle, 5 June 1898, 23.
254

94. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 8 July 1898 (Received 7:10 p.m.), 

in Correspondence II, 722.

95. H.C. Corbin to Major-General Otis, 10 July 1898, in Correspondence II, 

724-25.

96. H.C. Corbin to Major-General Otis, 9 July 1898, in Correspondence II, 

723.

97. Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 9 July 1898 (Received 7:56 p.m.), 

in Correspondence II, 724; “Summary of the Principal Events Connected With 

Military Operations in the Philippine Islands,” in US War Department, Annual 

Reports of the War Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1899, Report 

of the Major General Commanding the Army, vi.

98. H.C. Corbin to Major-General Otis, 10 July 1898, in Correspondence 

II, 725; H.C. Corbin to Major-General Otis, 10 July 1898—midnight, in 

Correspondence II, 726; Otis to Adjutant-General, U.S. Army, 10 July 1898 

(Received 11 July 1898, 3 a.m.), in Correspondence II, 726; H.C. Corbin to MajorGeneral Otis, 11 July 1898, 4:35 p.m., in Correspondence II, 727; Lee Mantle to 

Hon. R.A. Alger, 16 July 1898 (Received 4:30 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 734; 

Harrison Gray Otis to Adjutant-General of the Army, 17 July 1898 (Received 

18 July 1898, 1:50 a.m.), in Correspondence II, 734; Boies Penrose to Hon. 

George D. Meiklejohn, 18 July 1898 (Received 1:35 p.m.), in Correspondence 

II, 735; George C. Perkins to R.A. Alger, 18 July 1898 (Received 9:27 p.m.), 

in Correspondence II, 735; George C. Perkins to Adjutant-General Corbin, 18 

July 1898 (Received 9:30 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 735; U.S. Grant, Jr., to 

Hon. R.A. Alger, 18 July 1898 (Received 11:28 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 736; 

John Gear to Honorable Secretary of War, 21 July 1898 (Received 8:47 p.m.), in 

Correspondence II, 739; Charles Curtis to Honorable Secretary of War, 22 July 

1898 (Received 12:16 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 739; H.C. Corbin to General 

Merriam, 26 July 1898, 11:15 p.m., in Correspondence II, 741; H.C. Corbin to 

General Merriam, 27 July 1898, 3:30 p.m., in Correspondence II, 741; W.S. Leake 

to Hon. R.A. Alger, 1 August 1898 (Received 5:56 p.m.), in Correspondence II, 

743; R.A. Alger to Hon. J.R. Rogers, Governor of Washington, 16 August 1898, 

in Correspondence II, 753.

99. Detrick, 2.

100. History of the Operations of the First Nebraska Infantry, U.S.V. in the 

Campaign in the Philippine Islands, n.p., n.d., 6-7.

101. First Sergeant Phil H. Shortt, Official History of the Operations of the 

First North Dakota Infantry, U.S.V. of the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, 

n.p., n.d., 1-2.

102. “Seventh California,” San Francisco Call, 26 May 1898, 2; “Regulars 

Wanted,” San Francisco Call, 26 May 1898, 2.

103. General Orders No. 2, Headquarters, U.S. Expeditionary Forces, and 

Department of Pacific, San Francisco, Cal., 30 May 1898.

104. General Orders No. 5, Headquarters, Independent Division, Philippine 

Islands Expeditionary Forces, Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 12 June 1898.

105. General Orders No. 11, Headquarters, Independent Division, Philippine 
255

Islands Expeditionary Forces, Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 27 June 1898.

106. General Orders No. 17, Headquarters, Independent Division, Eighth 

Army Corps, San Francisco, Cal., 15 July 1898.

107. General Orders No. 16, Headquarters, Independent Division, Eighth 

Army Corps, San Francisco, Cal., 11 July 1898.

108. Special Orders No. 10, Headquarters, Independent Division, Eighth 

Army Corps, Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 20 July 1898, in San Francisco 

Call, 21 July 1898, 5.

109. H.C. Corbin to Major-General Otis, 10 July 1898, 9:10 p.m., in 

Correspondence II, 725; H.C. Corbin to Commanding General, Department of 

California, 10 July 1898, 9:15 p.m., in Correspondence II, 725-26.

110. “Washington Infantry,” San Francisco Call, 17 June 1898, 5; Adjutant 

William L. Luhn, Official History of the Operations of the First Washington 

Infantry, U.S.V. in the Campaign in the Philippine Islands, n.p., n.d., 4; “Local 

War Notes,” San Francisco Daily Report, 2 July 1898, 2.

111. “Slept on the Sand,” San Francisco Chronicle, 18 May 1898, 3.

112. Detrick, 96.

113. “Fontana Barracks Deserted by Artillerymen,” The Examiner, 19 May 

1898, 2.

114. “The Fontana Building,” San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898, 5; 

“Artillerymen Quit the Big Warehouse,” San Francisco Chronicle, 19 May 1898, 4.

115. Detrick, 96; “The Fontana Building,” San Francisco Call, 19 May 

1898, 5; “Artillerymen Quit the Big Warehouse,” San Francisco Chronicle, 19 

May 1898, 4.

116. Luhn, 4.

117. “Richmond Asks Relief,” San Francisco Daily Report, 8 June 1898, 3.

118. “A Misplaced Camp,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9 June 1898, 6; 

“Fourteen Thousand,” San Francisco Call, 3 June 1898, 7.

119. “An Army Mystery,” San Francisco Call, 12 June 1898, 8.

120. “A Distinct Question,” San Francisco Daily Report, 11 June 1898, 4; 

Editorial,” San Francisco Daily Report, 14 June 1898, 4.

121. “A Plague Spot,” San Francisco Daily Report, 20 June 1898, 4.

122. “Alger’s Aid is Requested,” San Francisco Chronicle, 21 June 1898, 9.

123. “New Regiment to Camp at Oakland,” San Francisco Chronicle, 22 

June 1898, 12.

124. “Camp Barrett Might Increase,” San Francisco Call, 3 July 1898, 7.

125. Circular, Headquarters, Independent Division, Philippine Islands 

Expeditionary Forces, Camp Merritt, San Francisco, Cal., 23 June 1898, in 

Record Group 395, Preliminary Inventory of the Records of U.S. Army Overseas 

Operations and Commands, 1898-1942, Entry 887: 8th Army Corps, Independent 

Division, July-December 1898, Letters Received June-September 1898, Box 

No. 1, General, Special Orders and Circulars, 1898 (Washington, DC: National 

Archives).

126. “At Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 1 July 1898, 2.

127. “At Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 5 July 1898, 2.
256

128. “The Camp Must Move,” San Francisco Daily Report, 6 July 1898, 3.

129. W.S.H. Matthews to the Chief Surgeon, Independent Division, Eighth 

Army Corps, 7 July 1898, in Report VIII, 164.

130. “Barber for Governor-General of Hawaii,” San Francisco Call, 15 July 

1898, 8.

131. H.C. Corbin to Major-General Otis, 10 July 1898, midnight, in Correspondence II, 726; Otis to Adjutant-General, 13 July 1898 (Received 9:49 p.m.), in 

Correspondence II, 729; H.C. Corbin to Major-General Otis, 14 July 1898, 12:45 

a.m., in Correspondence II, 729; H.C. Corbin to Major-General Merriam, 14 July 

1898, 3:45 p.m., in Correspondence II, 733; “Barber for Governor-General of 

Hawaii,” San Francisco Call, 15 July 1898, 8.

132. Annual Report of the Adjutant-General of the State of New York for the 

Year 1898 (New York: Wynkoop Hallenbeck Crawford Co., State Printers, 1899), 

131; “Moved to the Presidio,” San Francisco Call, 16 July 1898, 5; “At Camp 

Merritt,” San Francisco Daily Report, 15 July 1898, 2; “New York Regiment to 

Leave Unhealthful Camp Merritt,” San Francisco Chronicle, 15 July 1898, 5.

133. Hugh Craig to the President, Washington, 16 July 1898, in San Francisco 

Daily Report, 16 July 1898, 21; San Francisco Chronicle, 17 July 1898, 23; San 

Francisco Call, 17 July 1898, 8.

134. H.C. Corbin to Major-General Merriam, 18 July 1898, in Correspondence II, 734-35.

135. A special report on the subject of military camps in and about San 

Francisco from 6 May to 1 September 1898 by Lieut. Col. J.V.D. Middleton, 

deputy surgeon-general, US Army, 10 September 1898, in US War Department, 

Annual Reports of the War Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898, 

Report of the Major General Commanding the Army, 177.
257

Chapter VIII

Epilogue and Conclusions

The United States and Spain ended their hostilities with a protocol in 

August 1898. Fittingly, both the opening and closing battles of the war 

were fought in the environs of Manila Bay. Buoyed by Dewey’s victory on 

1 May, Filipino rebels, who had renewed their drive for freedom in 1896, 

encircled the Spanish garrison around Manila. Though not strong enough 

to mount a decisive attack, the Philippine army was sufficiently powerful 

to keep Spanish forces contained in the city. An uneasy stalemate settled 

over much of Luzon as both the Asiatic squadron and Philippine insurgents awaited the arrival of US Army expeditions from San Francisco.

Forces from the Department of the Pacific began to arrive at Cavite 

in summer 1898. BG Thomas Anderson’s first expedition reached Manila 

on 30 June. BG Francis V. Greene’s second expedition joined Anderson’s 

men on 17 July. Transports of the Army’s third expedition, led by BG 

Arthur MacArthur, began to anchor in Manila Bay on 25 July. MG Wesley 

Merritt arrived in the Philippines with the third expedition. By then designated the US Army VIII Corps, Merritt’s command consisted of nearly 

11,000 Regulars and Volunteers. (See appendix B.)

Merritt would note that by the time of his arrival, Philippine insurgents 

“held military possession of many points in the islands other than those in 

the vicinity of Manila.”1

 While General Emilio Aguinaldo, commander, 

Philippine army, and his forces had begun operations around the archipelago’s Spanish capital several weeks after Dewey’s victory, Filipino resistance challenged the Spanish military elsewhere in Luzon. Insurgents 

also attacked Spanish outposts in other parts of the Philippines, including 

Mindoro, the Visayas, and Mindanao.2

Merritt and Dewey conferred about Manila. In the short term, both 

viewed the city’s capture to be important to American negotiators who 

would terminate the war with Spain. The two officers were aware that the 

president wanted flexibility to determine America’s relationship with the 

Philippines after the conflict ended. That condition meant that an attack on 

Manila should be conducted unilaterally to minimize any concessions to 

the Filipinos for their participation in a final offensive. Additionally, the 

US military feared that Filipinos would exact a bloody revenge upon the 

Spanish for the revolution if they joined the assault on the capital.

Seeking to secure American objectives without going into battle, 

Dewey attempted to enduce Manila’s Spanish garrison to surrender. He 

worked through intermediaries, particularly the Belgian consul in Manila, 
258

Edward Andre. Using Andre to deliver messages, Dewey negotiated with 

the recently appointed Spanish governor general, Don Fermin Jaudenes y 

Alvarez. Jaudenes refused to capitulate; however, he did specify that his 

Manila batteries would not fire on Dewey’s vessels if American ships did 

not bombard the city. Both the Spanish and American commanders were 

concerned about indirect fire raining down on a city that numerous noncombatants still occupied. Jaudenes also specified how he would indicate 

surrender if he decided to yield after an American attack on his defenses.3

Nevertheless, he refused to concede without putting up a fight.

Figure 103.

Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain
259

In joint messages 

to Jaudenes a week before the attack, Merritt 

and Dewey could 

not inspire Jaudenes 

to change his mind 

and give in.4

 The two 

American commanders, however, persuaded Aguinaldo to 

allow the Americans 

to seize Manila. VIII 

Corps troops gradually replaced many of 

the Filipino soldiers in 

the trenches that surrounded the city. On 13 

August, the Americans 

attacked, unaware of 

the protocol signed earlier. Supported by the 

guns of Dewey’s squadron, Merritt’s command overwhelmed the Spanish 

garrison. At day’s end, the United States controlled Manila. Spanish troops 

stationed at various posts throughout the archipelago subsequently surrendered and were repatriated.

American forces, however, did not redeploy to the United States. 

While the president wrestled with his options concerning the fate of the 

Philippines, MG Merritt established a military government in a proclamation to Filipinos on 14 August 1898.5

 MG Elwell S. Otis, who replaced 

Merritt as commander, Department of the Pacific, and military governor 

in the islands on 30 August 1898, soon confronted indigenous opposition 

to American hegemony. President McKinley would subsequently decide 

to annex the islands. Not long after this decision, Aguinaldo, supported 

by many of his countrymen on Luzon, established the Republic of the 

Philippines. The United States refused to recognize the new government. 

Incidents, some violent, escalated between Filipinos and Americans. On 

4 February 1899, the two former uneasy coalition partners went to war 

against each other.

Between February and November 1899, both belligerents fought in a 

conventional, Western style. They fielded large units, performed extensive 

Figure 104.

Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain
260

maneuvers, and waged major battles. Whenever the two armies clashed, 

however, Otis’ VIII Corps always prevailed. By November, Aguinaldo decided that his forces could not achieve independence by conducting orthodox military operations against the US military.

Aguinaldo reorganized his army into small, decentralized guerrilla 

units. He made them responsible for attacking and eroding the Americans’ 

will to remain in the Philippines. For a while, these tactics prolonged the 

war. Aguinaldo, however, could not break the United States’ resolve to 

retain the Philippines. The war continued into 1902 when most of the organized Filipino resistance dissolved. President Theodore Roosevelt declared the war over in July 1902.

America’s involvement in Philippine affairs that began after Dewey’s 

victory continued into the 1990s. Over nine decades, the United States 

established a political, economic, social, and military presence in the archipelago that extended well beyond the islands into the Pacific and parts 

of Asia. For almost a century, the US military took station at Luzon. From 

there it campaigned against a host of belligerents, indigenous and foreign, 

that threatened American hegemony and later Philippine independence.

For the US Army, challenges associated with establishing and sustaining a lengthy presence in the archipelago developed quickly. By virtue 

of this endeavor and the great bureaucratic machine that had to be created to command, control, clothe, equip, and train an overseas force, the 

War Department embarked upon a transformation. Starting in May 1898, 

the Army converted from a frontier constabulary that picketed the Great 

Plains of North America to a combat expeditionary force that engaged in 

operations 7,000 miles west of San Francisco. A fundamental component 

of this transformation matured at the Golden Gate. From various locations 

in San Francisco, the US Army developed a process to receive, stage, and 

deploy troops to the Philippines that began with Dewey’s victory and 

lasted through the Cold War.

From a study of the process that evolved in 1898, several impressions emerge. The speed of the Army’s response warrants recognition. 

The president issued a call for 125,000 Volunteers in late April 1898. 

On 4 May, he directed that troops converge at the Golden Gate to prepare for duty in Manila. On 25 May, the American Army deployed the 

first of seven expeditions to the Philippines. Composed of 158 officers 

and 2,386 men, the initial flotilla included Regular infantry troops moved 

from Alaska and state Volunteers organized in California and Oregon. In 

less than 21 days the Army had initiated a process to assemble, screen, 
261

organize, outfit, and dispatch a body of men to exploit Dewey’s success 

at Manila Bay.

The National Guard made significant contributions in the effort to identify Volunteers and gather forces around San Francisco. Adjutant General 

BG Henry C. Corbin’s calculations on the average number of militiamen 

in a Volunteer company were interesting but stopped well short of capturing the influence the National Guard exerted in mobilizing manpower. Except for Kansas, states that dispatched forces to Merritt used the 

National Guard organization as a foundation upon which to create units 

for deployment abroad. While the Army’s AG may have dwelled on raw 

numbers, the National Guard institution worked effectively to process 

veterans, guardsmen, ex-guardsmen, and citizens for muster into federal 

service. One of the reasons San Francisco was so attractive as a port of 

embarkation was that the California National Guard maintained an infantry regiment in the city. The Army therefore had the authority to muster 

the 1st California at the port of embarkation and assign the regiment to 

the first expedition.

The effective use of railroads during the mobilization deserves acknowledgment. No “on-the-shelf” contingency plan or military transport 

system existed to facilitate the assembly of forces from various states or 

territories at the Golden Gate. Nevertheless, the Army’s Quartermaster 

General, working with departmental quartermasters, quickly secured 

the requisite rail transportation to move Regulars and Volunteers to San 

Francisco. COL Charles Bird, in charge of the Army’s transportation division, maintained that only one Volunteer regiment was unable to board 

trains when ready. This situation developed because the Army was unwilling to pay the rate the particular railroad company demanded. Otherwise, 

to Bird’s knowledge, rail transportation awaited all units after their muster 

into federal service.6

These same quartermaster officials were largely responsible for creating an oceanic transport fleet to move units overseas. When the president 

decided to send land forces to Manila, the Army had neither plans nor means 

to get them there. The Navy secured the first vessel, the City of Peking, but 

thereafter Major Oscar Long and COL Frank Hecker worked to charter or 

purchase passenger and freight vessels. Eventually, the Army developed 

the US Transport Service, an organization that controlled a small flotilla of 

ships used to convey forces to and from various Pacific outposts. 

The senior commanders of the Department of the Pacific gave the 

VIII Corps its organization and substance. Unlike the president and War 
262

Department officials who viewed the Philippine expedition as an occupation force, MG Merritt comprehended the need to bolster his command’s 

ability to fight an armed opponent as well as to garrison an overseas outpost. He argued for additional Regular infantry, artillery, and engineers. 

While he and MG Nelson A. Miles disagreed over the purpose of the expedition, Merritt recognized that the president chose not to identify clear political objectives for his command. Merritt, not unlike naval officers who 

made policy assumptions to create prewar contingency plans, believed 

that his force could be directed to seize the islands. Should the president 

and Congress decide to annex the Philippines (as they subsequently did), 

the VIII Corps would be in a stronger position to achieve that objective 

with the forces that Merritt wanted added to his department.

MG Otis commanded the VIII Corps’ Independent Division. While 

Merritt fought his battles with Washington, Otis worked through his subordinates to organize, train, quarter, and equip the division’s Regular and 

Volunteer forces at San Francisco. He knew where to focus his efforts so as 

to complement his commander. Before Merritt arrived at the Golden Gate, 

Otis dispatched clear, concise summary reports to the War Department 

that identified the command’s actions and needs. He worked with local 

quartermasters to secure ordnance and transportation for his men. Once 

he relocated to Camp Merritt from the Phelan Building, he systematically prepared the troops for duty overseas. In this regard, he tapped into 

Presidio resources and depot or arsenal assets managed by local quartermaster, ordnance, subsistence, and medical officers. Merritt’s command, 

however, could not depend exclusively on military assistance in tending to 

expeditionary forces. In that regard, the Department of the Pacific did not 

need to look far for much-needed support.

The San Francisco community assumed an invaluable role in caring 

for Army troops who gathered at the Golden Gate. Many citizens were 

swept up in a spirit of volunteerism. They acted individually or collectively to support those who assembled for duty overseas. Years before the 

United Service Organizations evolved to sustain the military during World 

War II, associations and leagues in San Francisco offered their assistance 

without larger national societies prodding them into action.

Area hospitals, church groups, school children, and business people 

collaborated to produce medical assistance, personal items, welcoming 

festivities, and financial support for the military. These citizens and institutions frequently acted through or in support of the Red Cross Society or 

Patriotic Home Helpers to generate relief efforts on behalf of the troops or, 

in some cases, their families. Well before the American Red Cross asked 
263

Californians to assist, Bay Area residents initiated support activities. Led 

by women who served on the Board of Directors at Children’s Hospital, 

the community sponsored both a local Red Cross Society and state association before the end of May.

While some residents joined or supported relief societies that nurtured 

the sick or destitute, others labored on behalf of community religious organizations having ties to national associations. As was the case with the Red 

Cross, these groups did not need prompting from parent affiliates to look 

after troops in a variety of ways. The YMCA, Christian Endeavorers, and 

Catholic Truth Society (CTS) focused on the spiritual welfare of all men 

in uniform. While each group pursued goals that were appropriate to the 

faiths they represented, all labored to fortify souls against temptations that 

could be encountered locally or abroad. The three organizations prioritized 

their spiritual ministries in the camps. Nevertheless, all ensured that part 

of that ministry was devoted to the material and physical well-being of all 

men who used their services.

Almost a century after Merritt’s command prepared troops for duty 

overseas, the US Army Chief of Staff observed, “The Army’s new operations doctrine emphasizes readiness for rapid deployment. It calls for being able to project three divisions as far as 7,500 nautical miles from U.S. 

shores within thirty days.”7

 Over time, the need to project combat power 

into a complex environment is likely to require even greater speed. If this 

should be the case, then certainly the roots of this endeavor can be traced 

to the US Army’s efforts to mobilize and deploy expeditionary forces from 

San Francisco to the Philippines in 1898.
264

Notes

1. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the Major-General Commanding 

the Army, Report of General Wesley Merritt (Washington, DC: US Government 

Printing Office [GPO], 1898), 40.

2. David F. Trask, The War With Spain in 1898 (New York: Macmillan 

Publishing Co., 1981), 406.

3. Thomas M. Anderson, “Our Rule in the Philippines,” The North American 

Review, volume 170, February 1900, 277-78; George Dewey, Autobiography of 

George Dewey, Admiral of the Navy, (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1913) 

272-78; Trask, 414-22; Statement of Admiral George Dewey, USN, in US Senate, 

Affairs in the Philippine Islands, Hearings Before the Committee on the Philippines 

of the United States Senate, volume 3 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1902), 2943-47; 

US Navy Department, Annual Reports of the Navy Department for the Year 1898, 

Appendix to the Report of the Chief of the Bureau of Navigation, (Washington, 

DC: GPO, 1898), 125-26; Brother V. Edmund McDevitt, The First California’s 

Chaplain (Fresno, CA: Academy Library Guild, 1956), 92-99.

4. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the Secretary of War, Miscellaneous 

Reports, 54-55.

5. US War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department for the 

Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1898, Report of the Major General Commanding the 

Army, 49-50.

6. Testimony of Col. Charles Bird, 2 December 1898, in Report of the 

Commission Appointed by the President to Investigate the Conduct of the War 

Department in the War With Spain, volume 6, Testimony (Washington, DC: GPO, 

1900), 2616.

7. The Leavenworth Times, 15 September 1993, B8.
265

About the Author

Dr. Stephen D. Coats is a professor of joint military operations and 

history at the US Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC), 

Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. A graduate of the US Military Academy with 

a Bachelor of Science degree, he earned a master’s degree in history from 

the University of Wisconsin—Madison and a Ph.D. in history from the 

University of Kansas. He was commissioned in the US Army and served 

in several infantry assignments. He is the author of articles and reviews on 

joint operations and military history. Dr. Coats has been a member of the 

Department of Joint and Multinational Operations faculty at CGSC since 

January 1994.

267

Glossary

AG adjutant general

BG brigadier general

btries batteries

CE Christian Endeavorers

CGSC US Army Command and General Staff College

COL colonel

cos companies

CPT captain

CTS Catholic Truth Society

detach detachment

DJMO Department of Joint and Multinational Operations

1LT	 first lieutenant

GGNRA Golden Gate National Recreation Area

GPO	 US Government Printing Office

ID	 identification

IG inspector general

LTC lieutenant colonel

MG major general

NPS National Park Service

PHH Patriotic Home Helpers

USO United Service Organizations

YMCA Young Men’s Christian Association

269

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279

Appendix A

Units Assembling in/Deploying From San Francisco,

1 May-12 August 1898

Unit

1st California Infantry

3d US Artillery (4 btries)

7th California Infantry

6th California Infantry

California Heavy Artillery

14th US Infantry

2d Oregon Infantry

1st Washington Infantry

1st Nebraska Infantry

20th Kansas Infantry

1st Wyoming Infantry

13th Minnesota Infantry

1st Colorado Infantry

1st Idaho Infantry

Utah Light Artillery

10th Pennsylvania Infantry

Utah Cavalry

1st Montana Infantry

18th US Infantry

23d US Infantry

US Engineer Company

1st North Dakota Infantry

1st South Dakota Infantry

4th US Cavalry

Signal Corps Detachment

51st Iowa Infantry

Nevada Cavalry

1st Tennessee Infantry

Astor Battery

6th US Arty (2 btries)

Wyoming Battery

1st New York Infantry

Arrived

San Francisco

 Present

 Present

 7 May

8/9 May

 9 May

 9 May

 13 May

 14 May

 19 May

 20 May

 21 May

 21 May

 21 May

 22 May

 22 May

 25 May

 26 May

 28 May

 29 May

 29 May

 29 May

 31 May

 1 June

 5 June

 8 June

 10 June

 15 June

 17 June

 20 June

 27 June

 28 June

 13 July

Date Deployed

25 May

27/29 June

25 May (detach)

25 May (5 cos)

15 July (5 cos)

25 May

15 June

27/29 June

27/29 June

15 June

27/29 June

15 June (2 btries)

15 June

19 July

15 June (4 cos)

27/29 June (4 cos)

15 June (4 cos)

27/29 June (4 cos)

15 June (detach)

27/29 June (1 co)

27/29 June

23 July (8 cos)

29 July (4 cos)

15 July (6 troops)

27/29 June

27/29 June

15 July (2 btries)

6 August (5 cos)

10 August (2 cos)

Philippine

Expedition

first

third

first

first

fourth

first

second

third

third

second

third

second

second

fifth

second

third

second

third

second

third

third

sixth

seventh

fourth

third

third

fourth

Hawaii

Hawaii

btries batteries

cos companies

detach detachment

281

Appendix B

Department of the Pacific and

VIII Army Corps Leadership, June 1898

MG Wesley Merritt, Commander,

Department of the Pacific and VIII Army Corps

MG Elwell S. Otis, Commander,

Independent Division, VIII Army Corps

BG Thomas M. Anderson, Commander, 

First Expedition

BG Francis V. Greene, 

Commander, Second 

Expedition

BG Arthur MacArthur, 

Commander, Third

Expedition

283

References for Figures

Figure 1 Harper’s History of the War in the Philippines, 45.

Figure 2 San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898, 1.

Figure 3 Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 242.

Figure 4 The Examiner, 5 June 1898, 10.

Figure 5 Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 154.

Figure 6 Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 125.

Figure 7 Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 169.

Figure 8 History of Military Mobilization in the United States Army, 1775-

	 1945, 151

Figure 9 Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 265.

Figure 10 Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 152.

Figure 11 San Francisco Call, 14 July 1898, 8.

Figure 12 San Francisco Chronicle, 5 May 1898, 9.

Figure 13 The Examiner, 21 May 1898, 1.

Figure 14 The Examiner, 21 May 1898, 3.

Figure 15 The Examiner, 21 May 1898, 3.

Figure 16 Presidio Army Museum Photo Collection, Golden Gate National

 Recreation Area (GGNRA), National Park Service (NPS), GOGA-

 1766.0020, PAM Photo Box II.

Figure 17 TASC Photo Collection, GGNRA, NPS, GOGA-2266, TASC Box 25.

Figure 18 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 16.

Figure 19 San Francisco Call, 21 May 1898, 5

Figure 20 San Francisco Chronicle, 11 June 1898, 9

Figure 21 San Francisco Chronicle, 21 May 1898, 9

Figure 22 San Francisco Chronicle, 20 May 1898, 12.

Figure 23 Crocker’s Guide Map of the City of San Francisco, 1896.

Figure 24 NPS, GOGA, Presidio Army Records Center.

Figure 25 San Francisco Call, 18 May 1898, 5.

Figure 26 San Francisco Chronicle, 9 May 1898, 5.

Figure 27 TASC Photo Collection, GGNRA, NPS, GOGA-2266, TASC Box 26.

Figure 28 Crocker’s Guide Map of the City of San Francisco, 1896.

Figure 29 The Examiner, 31 May 1898, 3.

Figure 30 San Francisco Call, 30 May 1898, 5.

Figure 31 Presidio Army Museum Photo Collection, GGNRA, NPS, GOGA-

 1766.0001, Pam Neg Box 8.

Figure 32 The Examiner, 17 May 1898, 1.

Figure 33 The Examiner, 18 May 1898, 2.

Figure 34 The Examiner, 27 May 1898, 14.

Figure 35 San Francisco Call, 5 May 1898, 2.

Figure 36 San Francisco Chronicle, 29 May 1898, 13.

Figure 37 San Francisco Chronicle, 29 May 1898, 13.

Figure 38 San Francisco Call, 13 June 1898, 5.

Figure 39 San Francisco Chronicle, 16 August 1898, 14.
284

Figure 40 The Examiner, 28 May 1898, 3.

Figure 41 The Examiner, 31 May 1898, 3.

Figure 42 San Francisco Call, 3 June 1898, 1.

Figure 43 The Examiner, 3 June 1898, 3.

Figure 44 San Francisco Chronicle, 6 June 1898, 5.

Figure 45 San Francisco Chronicle, 17 May 1898, 3.

Figure 46 The Examiner, 11 May 1898, 3.

Figure 47 San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898, 7.

Figure 48 The Examiner, 4 June 1898, 3.

Figure 49 San Francisco Chronicle, 7 July 1898, 9.

Figure 50 San Francisco Chronicle, 28 May 1898, 9.

Figure 51 Presidio Army Museum Photo Collection, GGNRA, NPS, GOGA1766.0020, Pam Photo Box II, File E, Pam Neg Box 8.

Figure 52 San Francisco Chronicle, 3 June 1898, 12.

Figure 53 San Francisco Chronicle, 10 June 1898, 7.

Figure 54 The Examiner, 11 May 1898, 3.

Figure 55 San Francisco Chronicle, 20 June 1898, 5.

Figure 56 San Francisco Chronicle, 5 July 1898, 10.

Figure 57 The Examiner, 8 June 1898, 4.

Figure 58 San Francisco Chronicle, 14 June 1898, 3.

Figure 59 San Francisco Chronicle, 10 July 1898, 23.

Figure 60 San Francisco Call, 7 June 1898, 7.

Figure 61 San Francisco Chronicle, 9 June 1898, 3.

Figure 62 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 92.

Figure 63 TASC Photo Collection, GGNRA, NPS, GOGA-2266, TASC Box 26.

Figure 64 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 54.

Figure 65 Presidio Army Museum Photo Collection, GGNRA, NPS, GOGA1766.0001, Pam Neg Box 8.

Figure 66 The Examiner, 1 July 1898, 12.

Figure 67 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 8.

Figure 68 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 72.

Figure 69 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 83.

Figure 70 San Francisco Call, 25 May 1898, 3.

Figure 71 San Francisco Call, 18 June 1898, 14.

Figure 72 San Francisco Call, 19 May 1898, 8.

Figure 73 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 98.

Figure 74 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 100.

Figure 75 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 122.

Figure 76 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 100.

Figure 77 San Francisco Call, 22 May 1898, 7.

Figure 78 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 180.

Figure 79 San Francisco Call, 13 June 1898, 5.

Figure 80 San Francisco Chronicle, 14 July 1898, 12.

Figure 81 The Examiner, 4 June 1898, 3.

Figure 82 Record of the Red Cross Work on the Pacific Slope, 190.
285

Figure 83 San Francisco Call, 9 July 1898, 14.

Figure 84 San Francisco Chronicle, 13 June 1898, 5.

Figure 85 San Francisco Chronicle, 30 May 1898, 3.

Figure 86 San Francisco Chronicle, 25 June 1898, 9.

Figure 87 San Francisco Call, 8 July 1898, 6.

Figure 88 San Francisco Chronicle, 5 May 1898, 9.

Figure 89 Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 146.

Figure 90 The Examiner, 4 August 1898, 4.

Figure 91 San Francisco Call, 29 May 1898, 8.

Figure 92 San Francisco Chronicle, 18 May 1898, 3.

Figure 93 The Examiner, 13 June 1898, 3.

Figure 94 San Francisco Call, 19 June 1898, 22.

Figure 95 The Examiner, 15 June 1898, 2.

Figure 96 The Examiner, 26 May 1898, 1.

Figure 97 San Francisco Chronicle, 13 June 1898, 5.

Figure 98 San Francisco Call, 24 May 1898, 2.

Figure 99 TASC Photo Collection, GGNRA, NPS, GOGA-2266, TASC Box 26.

Figure 100 San Francisco Chronicle, 30 June 1898, 3.

Figure 101 San Francisco Chronicle, 16 July 1898, 9.

Figure 102 The Examiner, 19 May 1898, 2.

Figure 103 Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 409

Figure 104 Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 233.

Appendix B

BG Thomas M. Anderson Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 265.

BG Francis V. Greene Harper’s History of the War in the Philippines, 57.

BG Arthur MacArthur Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 411.

MG Wesley Merritt, USA Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 169.

MG Elwell S. Otis Harper’s Pictorial History of the War With Spain, 457.

287

Index

Aguinaldo, Emilio, 257, 259, 260

Alameda County Union, contributor to Christian Endeavorers (CE), 197

Alameda, CA, 143, 190, 191

Alaska, 15, 16, 19, 67, 68, 260

Alcatraz Island, 55

Alexander, Arthur P., representative, CE, 196

Alger, Russell A., Secretary of War, 11, 16, 17, 23, 24, 26, 27, 30, 54, 68, 69, 70,

71, 74, 86, 88, 90, 140, 222, 236, 240, 243, 245, 246

Allison, W.B., US senator, Iowa, 26

Alvira, river steamer, 156

American Union Fish Company, 149

Anderson, Thomas M., BG, 15, 16, 68, 86, 87, 88, 257

Andre, Edward, Belgium Consul in Manila, 258

Angel Island, 56, 57, 240

Army and Navy Christian Commission, 180, 181, 182, 187, 189, 190, 191

Asiatic Squadron, 15, 165, 257

Associated Charities, San Francisco, 167

Astor Battery, 20, 44, 48, 49, 54, 232

Astor, John Jacob, 20, 21, 46, 48

Australia, oceanic transport, 155, 225, 230

awkward squads, 97

B Street, 192, 193, 197

Babbitt, L.S., COL, commanding officer, Benicia Arsenal, 118

Baer, John Willis, General Secretary, United Society of CE, 195

Baker, A.G., Private, 1st Colorado, 47, 152

Baldwin Theater, 146 

Baldwin, William H., COL, Purchasing Commissary, 119

bandages, 148, 159, 163, 165, 203

bands, 48, 51, 116, 237

Baptist, 161, 182, 188, 194

Barber, Thomas H., COL, 25, 244, 245

Barrett, William H., Private, 2d Oregon, 104

Barton, Clara, founder and president, American Red Cross, 139, 140

baseball, 117, 146

basketball, 117, 184

battle of Manila Bay, 16, 218

Bay District Racetrack, 43, 63, 64, 65, 66, 69, 71, 92, 109, 157, 238, 242

Belgic, oceanic transport, 224

Belmont School, 149

Benicia Arsenal, 29, 118

Berkeley, CA, 143

Bermingham, John H., Captain, Supervising Inspector of Hulls and Boilers, 225
288

Berry, John R., COL, commanding officer, 7th California, 60, 115

Berry, Miss Mindora L., State Superintendent of Missions, CE, 190, 194, 195, 196

Bert, Eugene F., president, Pacific Coast Baseball League, 117

Bibles, 184, 185, 187

Big Tent, CTS, 202, 203

Bird, Charles, COL, oceanic transportation, 220, 226, 261

Birkhimer, W.E., CPT, 3d US Infantry, 227

blouses, 121

Board of Health, San Francisco, 161, 243

Board of Medical Officers, 122, 123

Boots, mascot, 10th Pennsylvania, 55

Bovard, Freeman D., pastor, 1st Methodist-Episcopal Church, 182, 183

Brainard, David L., LTC, Chief of Commissary, 73, 74

brigade hospital, 122, 156

Britten, James, Catholic Truth Society, 197

bronchitis, 122, 158

Brooke, John R., MG, 19

Brooks, D., Miss, CE, 194

Budd, James H., governor, CA, 140

Burlingame, CA, 92

Bush Street, 117

California and Pacific Coast Jockey Clubs, 146

California Avenue, 66

California Heavy Artillery, 110, 160, 241

California Hotel, 141

California Red Cross Society, 141, 142, 144, 145, 149, 156, 164

California State Christian Endeavor Union, 190, 194

California State Red Cross Association, 142, 144, 162, 164

California Street Cable Railroad, 152

calisthenics, 106, 107

Camp Barrett, Oakland, CA, 182, 184

Camp McKinley, IA, 26

Camp Merriam, CA, 124

Camp Merritt, CA, 65, 66, 67, 71, 73, 74, 85, 88, 89, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 101,

104, 106, 107, 109, 111, 112, 113, 114, 116, 119, 122, 123, 124, 149, 152, 

157, 160, 161, 181, 182, 183, 185, 190, 193, 195, 196, 197, 199, 200, 202, 

203, 204, 232, 237, 238, 242, 243, 244, 245, 246, 262

Camp Miller, CA, 67, 200

Camp Richmond, CA, 117

Camp, James, Private, 1st Idaho, 45, 102, 104

Canadian Pacific Railway Company, 221

Caribbean, 2, 3, 5, 6, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 25, 30, 86, 119

Carrington, Frank de L. CPT, USA, attached to CA Army National Guard, 31, 57, 62

Carsey, Zeke, mascot, 1st Tennessee, 55
289

Catholic Ladies’ Aid Society, 200, 201, 205

Catholic Truth Society (CTS), 90, 161, 179, 197, 198, 199, 200, 201, 202, 203,

204, 205, 206, 263

Cavalry Society, contributor to CE, 197

Centennial, oceanic transport, 224, 225

Central Methodist Episcopal, contributor to CE, 197

cerebrospinal meningitis, 122

Chaffee, Adna R., COL, USA, 86

chaplains, 180, 182, 185, 186, 198, 205

Chautauqua Assembly, 188

Cherington, F.B., Reverend, CE, 193

Chickamauga Park, GA, 19, 20, 23, 30

chief commissary, 73, 119

Children’s Hospital, 164, 263

China, 218

China, oceanic transport, 225, 228

Christian Commission, 180, 181, 182, 183, 184, 185, 186, 187, 189, 190, 191, 

192, 195, 196

Christian Endeavor Society, 188, 189, 196, 197

Christian Endeavorer’s (CE) Golden Gate Union, 190, 192

Christner, William S., Private, 10th Pennsylvania, 28, 47, 151

City of Para, oceanic transport, 163, 186

City of Peking, oceanic transport, 154, 165, 218, 225, 227, 230, 261

City of Sydney, oceanic transport, 155, 225, 230

Clapp, Hugh E., Corporal, 1st Nebraska, 107, 118

Clark, Alfred S., Chaplain, 7th California, 180

Clark, Francis E., CE, 189, 190

Claus Sprekels Building, San Francisco, 51

Clement Grammar School, 146

Cleveland, oceanic transport, 224

Cleveland, Grover, President, 1, 2

Colby College, ME, 67

Colon, oceanic transport, 225, 228

comfort bags, 148, 149, 162, 192, 194, 195, 197, 203, 204

commissary, 31, 119

commissary separtment, CTS, 203

Conemaugh, oceanic transport, 222, 224

congregation, 188

Congregationalists, 188

Consumers’ Ice Company, contributor, CTS, 205

contracts, 120, 121, 168, 222

Corbin, Henry C. BG, Adjutant General, USA, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 23,

24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 62, 68, 72, 73, 85, 118, 220, 221, 222, 235, 236, 245, 261

Corps, VIII, 11, 21, 123, 257, 259, 260, 261, 262

cots, 203
290

Council Bluffs, IA, 32

Court Marin, Foresters of America No. 73, Patriotic Home Helpers (PHH), 169

courts-martial, 110, 111

Craig, Hugh, president, SF Chamber of Commerce, 245

Crittenden, M.P., evangelist, 185, 

Crocker Estate Company, 65

Cuba, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 23, 30, 86, 139, 165 

Davis, George W., COL, USA, 86

Davis, Grace, Miss, soloist, 189

de Young, M.H., editor/proprieter, SF Chronicle, 90

Del Monte Milling Company, contributor, CTS, 205

delicacies, 158, 163, 185, 201

Denman School, contributor to CE, 197

Department of California, 12, 20, 50, 68, 74, 87, 89, 121, 238, 240, 242, 245

Department of Colorado, 69

Department of the Columbia, 20, 67, 68, 69, 74

Department of Dakota, 21

Department of the East, 22, 24, 25, 72, 74, 235

Department of the Gulf, 14, 19

Department of the Pacific, 6, 7, 73, 74, 87, 89, 95, 121, 123, 124, 218, 221, 233,

240, 246, 257, 259, 261, 262

Detrick, Charles R., Private, 1st California, 62, 231, 237, 241

Devol, C.A., CPT, acting quartermaster, Otis staff, 88

Dewey, George, 1, 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 13, 22, 54, 70, 164, 165, 217, 218, 257, 258, 

259, 260, 261 

diarrhea, 122, 123

Dille, E.R., Dr., Reverend, Methodist Church, 183, 191

disease, 121, 122, 139

ditty bag, CE, 194

division hospital, 66, 121, 122, 157, 246

doctors, 202

Doxey’s Guide, 116

drill, 7, 25, 28, 29, 31, 57, 60, 61, 92, 96, 97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 104, 105,

106, 107, 108, 109, 111, 112, 116, 118, 146, 147, 159, 188, 189, 205, 234, 

243, 244, 246

DuBoce, Victor D., LTC, 1st California, 57, 108

dummy rifle practice, 104

Dunbar, L.L., Mrs., secretary, CA Red Cross, 144, 157

VIII Corps, 11, 21, 123, 257, 259, 260, 261, 262

Easton, Wendell, Mrs., Chair, Committee of Nurses, Red Cross Society, 164

Ellis Street, 184

English Lutherans, 188

Epworth League, 191
291

evangelists, 184, 185

exercise, 7, 96, 97, 100, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 147

expedition, first, 16, 71, 93, 95, 99, 109, 118, 154, 162, 163, 164, 166, 203, 220,

225, 227, 230, 232, 235, 237, 238, 239, 257, 261

expedition, second, 91, 104, 105, 116, 155, 162, 165, 166, 169, 195, 203, 225,

226, 228, 231, 232, 234, 235, 236, 237, 239, 257

expedition, third, 105, 155, 165, 166, 169, 186, 195, 196, 203, 226, 227, 232, 239,

244, 257

expedition, fourth, 155, 162, 232, 236, 240

expedition, seventh, 236

extended order, 97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 108, 189

Fair, James G., “Bonanza King”, 144

Ferry Building, 43, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 51, 52, 149, 150, 151, 152, 153, 156

Fifth Avenue, 183, 190

First Baptist Church, San Francisco, 194

First Presbyterian Church, San Francisco, 154, 196, 197

Flood Building, 204

Fontana warehouse (Fontana Barracks), 43, 57, 58, 62, 63, 65, 67, 74, 91, 160,

190, 238, 242

Fontana, Mark J., part owner, Fontana warehouse, 63

food baskets, 201

football, 117, 118

Fort Leavenworth, 70, 87, 103 

Fort Mason, 55, 56, 57, 58, 62

Fort Point, 55, 182

Fort Winfield Scott, 55, 56

4th Avenue, 93

French Hospital, San Francisco, 157, 158, 183, 202

Froam, George, mascot, 23d US Infantry, 54

Fuller Desk Company, 148

Fulton Street, 63, 93, 199, 202

fundraising, 108, 144, 147, 168, 187, 188, 196, 204, 205

Funston, Frederick, COL, 20th Kansas, 113, 115, 189, 234

G.M. Joselyn and Company, 149

garbage, 123

Garretson, George A., COL, 86

Geary Street, 51

General Depot, 31, 119

General Orders Number 1, 109

General Orders Number 8, 57

German Hospital, San Francisco, 158

Gerstie, Lewis, contributor to PHH, 169

Girls Mission High School, 146
292

Glunz, Charles A., representative, YMCA Christian Commission, 186, 187, 189, 

196

Golden Gate, 7, 15, 22, 28, 29, 43, 46, 49, 50, 51, 54, 55, 56, 66, 68, 69, 70, 72, 

74, 86, 88, 90, 93, 108, 112, 116, 117, 118, 120, 122, 124, 139, 140, 169, 179, 

180, 182, 184, 185, 190, 192, 194, 205, 217, 230, 232, 236, 237, 238, 240, 

243, 246, 260, 261, 262

Golden Gate Park, 93, 102, 116, 243

Golden Gate Primary School, 146

gonorrhea, 122

Grace Church, 149, 155

Grant Avenue, 115

Greenbaum, Weil, and Michaels, importers, 148

Greene, Francis V., BG, v, vi, 86, 88, 96, 257

groggeries, 114, 191, 243

guard mount, 98, 102, 108, 109, 112, 147, 189

Haist, Alexander, Lieutenant, 1st Montana, 102

Harbor View Gardens, 117

Harland, Hester A., Mrs., secretary, PHH, 166

Harrington, Mrs., Williard B., president, CA State Red Cross Association, 141,

142, 144, 157, 163, 164, 165

Hastings, Daniel H., governor, PA, 28

Hawaii, 96, 163, 187, 224, 235, 236, 245

Hawkins, Alexander L., COL, 10th Pennsylvania, 28, 111

Hearst Building, 143, 144

Hearst, Phoebe A., 143, 148, 188

Hearst, William Randolph, 143

heavy guard duty, 99

heavy marching order, 107, 233

Hecker, Frank, COL, Volunteers, 221, 222, 261

Heffner, Mrs., C.A., contributor to CE, 196

Heney, Miss, Spanish class teacher, 203

Henshaw, Park, COL, 8th California, 243

Hicks-Judd Company, publishers, 148

Hong Kong, 218

Honolulu, Hawaii, 187, 217, 245

Hooper, William B., Major, PHH, 166, 167, 169

Hopkins, William E., Dr., Surgeon General, California National Guard, 144

hospital, 56, 66, 88, 121, 122, 124, 140, 149, 156, 157, 158, 159, 161, 164, 165,

169, 179, 185, 194, 198, 200, 201, 202, 231, 246, 262

Hospital for Children and Training School for Nurses, 157, 164

Hotchkiss guns, 19, 228

Howard, Mrs., Spanish class teacher, 203

Howard, Oliver O., national delegate, YMCA, 187, 188

Hubbard, Louis, quartermaster Sergeant, 1st South Dakota, 107
293

hucksters, 123

Hughes, Robert P., COL, Inspector General (IG), Department of the Pacific, 74,

232, 233, 234

Hull Bill, 5, 21

Humbolt School, 146

identification (ID) badges, 155, 160

Independent Division, 71, 73, 74, 85, 88, 89, 93, 94, 96, 98, 100, 104, 109, 124, 

202, 238, 239, 240, 262

Infantry Drill Regulations, 105 

inspections, 70, 98, 224, 232

intoxicants, 243

J.R. Gates and Company, contributor to CE, 197

Jacks, David, contributor to YMCA, 188

Jackson, Frank A., representative, YMCA Christian Commission, 186, 187, 189, 196

Jackson, G.H.T., contributor to CE, 197

Japanese Bank, 147

Japanese Society, 147

Jaudenes, Don Fermin y Alvarez, Spanish Governor General, Philippines, 258, 259

John Monahan and Company, 148

Johnson, Major, contributor to CE, 197

Jordan, James Clark, SF real estate, 66

Jordan Tract, 43, 64, 66, 92, 242

Kessler, Harry C., COL, 1st Montana, 113

King, Charles, BG, 87

King’s Daughters, contributors to CE, 196

Knights Templar, 47

Kraemer, Karl, Private, 51st Iowa, 87, 104, 105, 107, 111, 112, 189, 233

Laist, Alexander, Lieutenant, 1st Montana, 111

Lake Merritt, 107

Lakme, oceanic transport to Hawaii, 187

Larkin Street, 117

League of the Cross, 198, 199, 205

Lee, Fitzhugh, MG, 23

Leedy, John W., governor, KS, 26, 27

letters, 89, 104, 163, 183, 187, 193, 194, 202

Levi Strauss and Company, contributor to PHH, 169

Lewis, A. Parker, Red Cross Nurse (male), 164, 169

Lewis, H.R., secretary, Portland, OR, Chamber of Commerce, 30

libraries, 116, 183

Lime Point Military Reservation, CA, 55, 149

Lippincott, Henry, LTC, Chief Surgeon, Department of the Pacific and VIII Army

Corps, 89
294

literary department, CTS, 203

Little, Edward C., LTC, 20th Kansas, 112

Lockett, James, CPT, 4th Cavalry, 50

Lombard Street, 51, 57, 60, 61

Long, John, Secretary of Navy, 217, 218

Long, Mrs., Oscar Fitzallen, 168

Long, Oscar F., Major, depot quartermaster, 74, 119, 120, 121, 162, 165, 168, 185, 

224, 225, 226, 233, 234, 261

loose women, 113

Lopez, Lieutenant, 224

Lord, William P., governor, Oregon, 26

Los Angeles Times, 87

Los Angeles, CA, 142, 143, 188

Lowell High School, contributor to CE, 197

Ludington, Marshall I., BG, Quartermaster General, 220

Luhn, William L., adjutant, 1st Washington, 242

Lurline Salt Water Baths, San Francisco, 117

MacArthur, Arthur, BG, 87, 88, 239, 257

mailing department, 202

Maine, US ship, 3

Mallory, John S., CPT, acting IG, Otis staff, 88, 93, 232, 233

Manila, v, vi, 4, 6, 11, 12, 13, 18, 20, 23, 94, 95, 101, 120, 144, 149, 153, 162,

163, 164, 165, 166, 185, 187, 188, 189, 195, 196, 199, 217, 221, 228, 234, 

238, 257, 258, 259, 260, 261

manuals, 103, 105

Maple Street, 66

March, Peyton C., CPT, Astor Battery, 21, 48, 49

Marin County, 55, 143, 169

Marin, CA, 56

Marine Hospital, US Treasury Department, 56, 121, 156

Market Street, 51, 88, 93, 143, 148

Markey, Joseph I., Private, 51st Iowa, 49

marksmanship, 104, 105, 107

Mason Street, 184

Matthews, W.S.H, Major, 51st Iowa, 244

McAllister-Street Line, cable car service, 93

McBride, George W., chairman, Committee on Coast Defenses, 30

McClosky, Miss Ella, host, musical for CTS, 205

McClosky, Miss Eva, host, musical for CTS, 205

McCorkle, Nathan, Private, 51st Iowa, 201

McCoy, Henry J., secretary, San Francisco YMCA, 180, 181, 182, 184, 185, 186, 

187, 188, 191, 192

McCreery, A.B., contributor to Red Cross, 146

McKinley, William, US President, vi, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 
295

24, 27, 30, 56, 73, 87, 120, 139, 180,195, 217, 219, 243, 245, 259

McReeve, C., COL, 13th Minnesota, 163

measles, 122, 156, 159, 201, 235

Mechanics’ Pavilion, San Francisco, 50, 92, 108, 112, 146, 147, 188

Medbery, Frank W., CPT, 1st South Dakota, 102, 103

media, 24

medical department, 85, 121, 194, 197

Meiklejohn, George de Rue, Assistant Secretary of War, 185, 219, 220, 222, 236

Memorial Day, 107

meningitis, 122, 158

Menlo Park, CA, 92

Merchants’ Association, 151

Merriam, Henry C., MG, 12, 19, 20, 50, 51, 52, 56, 57, 63, 67, 68, 69, 72, 74, 89, 

122, 124, 157, 238, 240, 242, 245, 246

Merrill, Mrs. John F., 142, 144, 148, 153, 155, 157

Merritt, Wesley, 6, 12, 13, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 28, 71, 72, 73, 

74, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 95, 96, 109, 114, 117, 118, 121, 122, 

124, 147, 156, 157, 159, 164, 165, 179, 180, 185, 193, 195, 196, 205, 217, 

220, 221, 222, 224, 225, 226, 230, 232, 233, 234, 235, 236, 239, 240, 244, 

246, 257, 259, 261, 262, 263

Methodist Episcopalians, 188

Michian Street, 66

Miles, Nelson A., MG, 11, 12, 13, 16, 17, 20, 22, 55, 68, 185, 262

Mill Valley, CA, 146

Miller, Marcus P., BG, 87, 99, 100, 117, 240

Mills’ College Red Cross, contributor to CE, 197

Minton, H.C., Dr., Presbyterian Church; president, Army and Navy Christian Commission of CA, 182, 184

Mission Parlor Hall, 205

Mission Woolen Mills, 57

Mobile, Alabama, 17, 30

Mogan, Joseph A., Fish and Game Warden, 149

Monarch, tugboat, 155

Monroe School, 146

Monterey, US ship, 45

Monterey, CA, 92, 188

Montgomery Street, 89

Moody, D.L., chair, YMCA International Committee, Evangelistic Department,

184, 185

Moore, Francis, Major, quartermaster, Otis staff, 88, 93

Morgan City, oceanic transport, 225

Morgan, W.P., Mrs., CA Red Cross Society Finance Chair, 145

Morris, J.J., chorus director, 189

Morris, Louis T., LTC, Presidio, 50, 56, 57, 60, 63, 180, 181

Morrow, W.W., US Circuit Judge, PHH, 166
296

Morse, Richard C., general secretary, YMCA International Committee, 184, 187, 188

Mothers’ Christian Commission, YMCA, 185

Mothers’ Christian Endeavor Club, 190, 192, 195, 196

Mothers’ Club, 190, 192, 193, 194, 195, 197

Mount Gretna, PA, 28

mumps, 122

museum, 116, 117

National Guard, 5, 6, 21, 22, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31, 50, 62, 89, 140, 144, 180, 233, 235

National Guard Association, 21

National Red Cross, 139, 140

Native Daughters of the Red Cross, 148

Navy Department, 5, 226

Neall, John M., 1LT, 4th Cavalry, 57, 60, 69

Needham, A.T., Reverend, Oakland Methodist Church, 182

Needlework Guild, 148

Nelson, oceanic transport, 187

Nevada Cavalry, 117

New Montgomery Street, 89, 143

New Orleans, LA, 15, 16, 30, 54, 68

New York Association of San Francisco, 50

Newport, oceanic transport, 96, 222

North Pacific Coast Railroad, 152

nurses, 141, 156, 164, 165, 166

Oakland, 43, 44, 45, 47, 107, 143, 150, 155, 161, 165, 182, 185, 186, 188, 190,

191, 193, 196, 197, 200, 243, 244, 245

Oakland mole, 43

Oakland Race Track, 146

Oakland Red Cross, 159

Occidental Hotel, 166

O’Farrell Street, 88, 92

Olympia, US ship, 1

Ordnance Department, US Army, 118

Oregon Red Cross, 148

Orpheum Theater, San Francisco, 92

O’Ryan, Philip, Father, St. Mary’s Cathedral, 198, 199

Otis, Elwell S., MG, 66, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 91, 93, 94, 95,

96, 98, 99, 100, 101, 104, 107, 109, 110, 111, 112, 115, 123, 124, 147, 217, 

220, 222, 224, 225, 226, 230, 231, 232, 233, 234, 235, 236, 238, 239, 240, 

242, 244, 245, 246, 259, 260, 262

Otis, Harrison Gray, BG, 87, 113

Ovenshine, Samuel, COL, 23d Infantry, 100

Owen, W.O., Major, chief surgeon, 88, 122, 157

Pacific Coast Baseball League, 117
297

Pacific Coast Women’s Press Association, 184

Pacific Mail Steamship Company, 218, 222

Pacific Pine Lumber Company, 149

Pacific-Union Club, San Francisco, 91, 92

Palace Hotel, San Francisco, 92

parades, 98, 107

Parkhill, Clayton H., Major, brigade surgeon, 157

Paterson, Van R., former Supreme Court Justice, PHH, 166

Patriotic Home Helpers, 139, 166, 167, 168, 169, 179, 187, 262

Patterson, William, contributor to CE, 197

Pepper, S.F., Private, 20th Kansas, 116

Phelan Building, San Francisco, 88, 89, 92, 93, 94, 95, 143, 245, 262

Phelan, James D., Mayor, San Francisco, 47, 48, 91, 92, 146, 150, 166, 205, 243

Philippine Islands Expeditionary Forces, 71

Philippines, iii, v, 6, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 19, 20, 22, 24, 29, 30, 68, 70, 71, 72, 

73, 85, 86, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 97, 99, 104, 111, 116, 119, 142, 154, 160, 163, 

164, 165, 166, 169, 182, 186, 187, 189, 191, 194, 195, 196, 203, 217, 219, 

220, 222, 224, 228, 234, 236, 240, 245, 257, 259, 260, 262, 263

physical exercise drill, 106

physicians, 202

Piedmont, passenger ferry, 44

Pittsburgh, PA, 28

pneumonia, 122, 123, 158, 159, 161, 202

Point Lobos Avenue, 63, 66, 157

Point Lobos Avenue Improvement Club, 114

Police Commission, 114

Pope, James W., LTC, depot quartermaster, 74

Portland, ME, 189

Portland, OR, 26, 30, 120

Post Hospital, Presidio, 121

Post Street, 144, 149

postcards, 155

Postal Telegraph Company, 148

Presbyterian Christian Endeavor Society, 188

Presbyterians, 188

Presidio Athletic Grounds, 117

Presidio of San Francisco, 15, 56, 59, 121

press, 95, 96, 184

Proctor, Redfield, US senator, VT, 3

Puerto Rico, 30, 86

quarantine, 122

Quartermaster Department, 119, 220, 221

railroad, 15, 30, 31, 43, 44, 55, 150, 261

Rathbone, Major, 92
298

rations, 118, 119

Recreation Park, San Francisco, 117, 146

recruits, 28, 97, 99, 100, 103, 105, 106, 109, 119, 153, 160, 161, 231, 236

Red Cross, 43, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 90, 92, 107, 108, 117, 124, 139, 140, 141, 

142, 143, 144, 146, 147, 148, 149, 150, 151, 152, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 

158, 159, 160, 161, 162, 163, 164, 165, 166, 168, 169, 179, 184, 187, 188, 

195, 196, 197, 201, 202, 238, 242, 245, 262, 263

Red Cross Society, 43, 46, 47, 48, 108, 141, 142, 143, 144, 145, 146, 147, 149,

150, 156, 158, 160, 161, 163, 164, 205, 237, 262, 263

Red Cross Society of California, 47, 141, 144, 145, 149, 156, 164

Red Oak, IA, 32

Redington and Company, importers, 148

Regulars, 5, 7, 12, 13, 21, 31, 50, 53, 55, 56, 57, 60, 65, 67, 73, 85, 93, 98, 106, 

109, 112, 155, 160, 164, 165, 180, 184, 192, 193, 202, 205, 217, 230, 239, 

243, 246, 257, 261

Reliance, tugboat, 155

Renton-Holmes Lumber Company, contributor to CE, 197

reporters, 49, 89, 90, 91, 95, 217, 246

Requa, Mrs. Mark, 49

Retail Liquor Dealers, 147

retreat, 98, 109

reveille, 98, 109

Richmond District, 57, 101, 181, 185, 242, 243

Risdon Iron Works, 148

Rix, Alice, reporter, The Examiner, 90

Roanoke, oceanic transport, 224

Robe, Charles, Major, 14th Infantry, 99

Roosevelt, Theodore, US President, 260

Ruhlen, George, CPT, acting quartermaster, Otis staff, 88

St. Luke’s Episcopal, 155, 158

Sacramento YMCA, 188

Sacramento, CA, 143, 189

saloons, 115, 183, 199, 242, 243

Salvation Army, 47, 150 

San Diego, CA, 188

San Francisco, iii, v, vi, vii, 6, 7, 15, 16, 17, 19, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 28, 29, 30, 31, 

32, 33, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 49, 50, 51, 52, 56, 57, 62, 63, 66, 67, 68, 70, 71, 72, 

73, 74, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 92, 93, 94, 96, 97, 104, 105, 107, 108, 109, 116, 

117, 118, 119, 120, 121, 123, 124, 139, 140, 142, 143, 144, 145, 146, 147, 

149, 150, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158, 160, 161, 162, 163, 165, 166, 169, 

180, 181, 183, 184, 185, 188, 189, 190, 192, 193, 194, 195, 196, 197, 198, 

205, 206, 217, 218, 220, 222, 224, 226, 228, 230, 231, 232, 233, 234, 236, 

237, 239, 240, 242, 243, 244, 245, 246, 257, 260, 261, 262

San Francisco Bar Association, 148
299

San Francisco Baseball Club, 117, 146

San Francisco Bay, 44, 56, 140

San Francisco Call, 24, 44, 47, 48, 49, 52, 53, 57, 63, 69, 74, 95, 102, 106, 112,

113, 117, 122, 144, 150, 153, 155, 156, 158, 159, 165, 167, 191, 193, 194, 

196, 202, 220, 225, 233, 243, 244

San Francisco Chronicle, 45, 53, 54, 60, 61, 90, 95, 106, 109, 113, 115, 116, 117, 

119, 120, 166, 167, 182, 188, 190, 191, 193, 200, 201, 203, 222, 233, 236, 

242, 243

San Francisco Daily Report, 47, 49, 50, 51, 52, 95, 96, 106, 108, 109, 113, 115, 

116, 144, 148, 161, 162, 163, 165, 166, 167, 183, 185, 201, 227, 234, 235, 

242, 243, 244

San Francisco Fire Department, 145

San Francisco News Company, 194

San Francisco Press Club, 146

San Francisco Produce Exchange, 145

San Francisco YMCA, 179, 180, 182, 184, 186, 191, 192

San Joaquin, CA, 143

San Jose, CA, 189

San Rafael, CA, 190

Sanborn, F.G., Mrs., chair, Subscription Committee, CA Red Cross Society, 144

Sanitary Commission, 140, 225

Sanitary Corps, 159

sanitation, 139, 242

Santa Clara, CA, 143

Scandia, hospital ship, San Francisco to Philippines, 165

Scheel, Fritz, Mr., symphony conductor, 146

School of Application for Cavalry and Infantry, 70

school of the soldier, 101

Schussler, Hermann, chief engineer, Spring Valley Water Works, 60

Scott and McCord, contributor to CE, 197

Scott, Henry T., president and treasurer, Union Iron Works, 92

Scott, Mrs. A.W., contributor to CE, 197

Secretary of the Navy, 4

Secretary of War, 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 26, 27, 28, 30, 69, 70, 71, 73,

91, 140, 165, 185, 218, 219, 221, 222, 236, 240, 243, 245

Sehon, John L., CPT, aide-de-camp, MG Otis, 88

Senator, oceanic transport, 225, 237

setting up exercises, 96, 105, 106, 108

17th Street, 205

sewing department, CTS, 202

SF Post Office branch, Red Cross Society, contributor to CTS, 147, 205

Shafter, William, BG, 68, 86

sham battle, 102, 107, 189

Shaw, L.M., governor, Iowa, 26

Sherith Israel Congregation, San Francisco, 155
300

Sherman, John, Secretary of State, 139

Sherman, William T., MG, 70

shirts, 121

shoes, 55, 121, 160

Shortt, Phil H., First Sergeant, 1st North Dakota, 29, 237

Showalter, J.B., Congressman, PA, 23, 236

Shreve & Co, cutlery importers, contributors to PHH, 169

6th Avenue, 63

skirmishers, 104

Sladen, Fred W., 1LT, aide-de-camp, MG Otis, 88

Sloane and Company, 148

Smith, James F., COL, 1st California, 57, 60, 98, 109, 112

Smith, Robert R., governor, Montana, 201

Smith, William C., COL, 1st Tennessee, 24

Snow, naval constructor, 224

Snure, John, Private, 51st Iowa, 26, 29, 32

Southern Pacific Railroad, 43, 150, 189

Spain, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 11, 14, 15, 21, 25, 30, 67, 68, 74, 114, 139, 140, 180, 217,

234, 238, 246, 257

Spanish classes, 203

Sponsler, George M., contributor to CE, 196

Spreckels, Claus, 146, 148, 169

Spreckels, J.D., president, Western Sugar Refining Company, 144, 205

Springfield rifle, 118, 119

St. Luke’s Hospital, San Francisco, 158

St. Mary’s Cathedral, 198, 202

St. Paul, oceanic transport, 222

stamps, 183, 187, 194, 195, 202, 204

State Board of Trade, 149

Sternberg, George M., BG, Surgeon General, USA, 122

Stetson, James B., Ferry Godfather, 152, 153

Stock and Bond Exchange, 145

stockings, 121

Stockton, CA, 188, 189

Stoneman, Madison U., Private, 1st Wyoming, 32, 104, 113, 116

Strawberry Hill, 116

Subsistence Department, 31, 119

Sumner, Samuel S., COL, USA, 86

surgeons, 121, 122, 140, 156, 159, 200, 201, 202, 225, 244, 245

suspenders, 121

Sutro baths, 116, 117

Sutro Primary School, 146

swimming, 117

syphilis, 122
301

Tacoma, oceanic transport (freight), 222

Tampa, FL, 30

Taylor, Robert L., governor, TN, 28

telegraph, 30, 50, 68, 89, 94, 226, 235

telephone, 30, 89, 148

Temple Emmanu-El Synagogue, 150, 155

tents, 60, 94, 116, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123, 149, 158, 181, 182, 183, 184, 185, 187, 

191, 192, 193, 196, 197, 200, 201, 202, 232

testaments, 32, 184

The Examiner, 24, 47, 49, 53, 92, 94, 96, 102, 107, 120, 143, 167, 168, 187, 191, 

193, 194, 196, 241

Thomas Aquinas Reading Circle, 205

Titania, oceanic transport, 222, 224

tonsillitis, 156, 202

Townsend, A.S., Mrs., SF philanthropist, 146, 148, 149

transports, 30, 71, 89, 96, 111, 155, 156, 162, 165, 169, 203, 217, 219, 220, 222, 

224, 226, 232, 235, 246, 257

Treasury Secretary, 121

Trinity Church, 149

trousers, 121

typhoid fever, 122, 158

underclothes, 121, 203

undershirts, 121

uniforms, 21, 31, 51, 61, 62, 97, 118, 120, 121, 168

Union Ice Company, 149

Union Lumber Company, contributor to CE, 197

United Christian Endeavor, 190, 191

US Marine Hospital, 56, 121, 156

Valencia Street, 205

Vallejo, CA, 142, 204

Van Ness Avenue, 51, 57

Van Orden, Charles H., soloist, 189

Van Valzah, D.D., COL, 18th Infantry, 99

Vancouver Barracks, 15, 63, 68

Vaughn, Herbert, Bishop, Catholic Truth Society, 197

Virginia City, NV, 204

virus, 121

Visalia, CA, 142

Volunteers, US, 5, 7, 11, 12, 13, 15, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 32, 33, 44,

47, 48, 50, 52, 53, 55, 56, 57, 60, 62, 65, 67, 70, 72, 73, 74, 85, 86, 87, 93, 97, 

107, 109, 117, 121, 139, 140, 142, 144, 146, 149, 155, 159, 160, 164, 165, 

168, 169, 179, 180, 181, 184, 193, 196, 201, 202, 205, 217, 220, 221, 230, 

231, 234, 235, 236, 238, 242, 243, 246, 257, 260, 261
302

Voorsanger, Jacob, Reverend, 150

Waage, C.M., Red Cross nurse (male), 164

Waldeck Hospital, 202

Walker, L.E., Adjutant General, KS, 26, 27, 

Wall, M.J., contributor to PHH, 169

War Department, 3, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 

25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 31, 43, 62, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 74, 85, 86, 87, 91, 120, 144, 

185, 187, 190, 218, 219, 220, 221, 222, 224, 230, 236, 240, 260, 261, 262

Watt, Rolla V., Christian Endeavorers, 191

Wellesley Hill CE Society, contributor to CE, 196

Wenck, Morris, contributor to YMCA, 188

West Point, 72, 86

Western Union, 148

Wetjen, Cordie, Miss, whistling soloist, 184

Weyler, Valeriano y Nicolau, General, Spain, 2, 139

Wheeler, Joseph, MG, 23

White, Frank, Major, 1st North Dakota, 111

White, Robert H., Major, chief surgeon, US Expeditionary Force, 164

Whitgift, oceanic transport, 224

Widner, W.B., CPT, 51st Iowa, 160

Woods, E.A., Dr., pastor, First Baptist Church, SF, 194

Woods, F.H., contributor to PHH, 169

Wright, C.S., Mrs., chairman, Mothers’ Club of California, 154, 195

YMCA “Rushers” basketball, San Francisco YMCA, 184

Yorke, Peter C., Reverend Father, CTS, 198, 199, 203

Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), 108, 179, 180, 181, 182, 183, 184, 

185, 186, 187, 188, 189, 190, 191, 192, 195, 196, 197, 205, 206, 263

Young People’s Society of Christian Endeavor, 179, 189, 191

Yups, Sam, Chinatown, 148

Zealandia, oceanic transport, 225, 228