Letter from the War Department to Cpl. Lawrence Leslie McVey
date: label: Date
content: September 17, 1928
name: label: Created by
content: United States Department of War, American, 1789 - 1947
label: Written by
content: Maj. Gen. Lutz Wahl, American, 1869 - 1928
label: Received by
content: Cpl. Lawrence Leslie McVey, Sr., American, 1897 - 1968
label: Subject of
content: 369th Infantry Regiment, American, 1913 - 1945
notes: label: Caption
content: The 369th United States Infantry, nicknamed the “Harlem Hellfighters,” was the first African American regiment of troops to reach the battlefields of World War I. The 369th Regiment was formed from the 15th New York National Guard Regiment and was recognized as part of the U.S. Army on July 15th, 1917. The regiment arrived in Brest, France on January 1st, 1918, being the first African American U.S. soldiers to arrive in France and initially assigned to dam building and stevedores in charge of loading and unloading cargo. The 369th Regiment, due to racial tension within the US Army was assigned to the French Army for the duration of US involvement in WWI. The 369th were the first Allied troops of the war to reach the banks of the Rhine. Upon completion of the 369th’s service in the war, the regiment had spent 191 days in combat, the longest of any American regiment. The entire 369th Regiment, in appreciation for their actions in the Maison-en-Champagne campaign, was given the Croix de Guerre, a medal awarded by the French Government for acts of bravery in conflicts against the enemy. In addition to this honor, 171 individual members of the 369th Regiment were awarded the Croix de Guerre and the Legion of Honor. The 369th Regiment finished their service in Europe and returned to the US in February 1919.
label: Description
content: A letter from Adjutant General, Major General Lutz Wahl to Corporal Lawrence McVey forwarding the French dispatch awarding the French Croix de Guerre to McVey and asking for a receipt to be returned. The letter is signed by Wahl at the bottom. The letter has been folded multiple times horizontally, three distinct creases can be seen.
label: Transcription Center Status
content: Transcribed by digital volunteers
place: label: Place made
content: Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Correspondence
label: Topic
content: Military
label: Topic
content: World War I
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Documents and Manuscripts
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Gina R. McVey, Granddaughter
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2011.108.23
objectType: label: Type
content: correspondence
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No Known Copyright Restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: ink on paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 10 1/2 x 8 in. (26.7 x 20.3 cm)