Author: Matthew M. Peek, Military Collection Archivist
As part of the state of North Carolina's official commemoration of the Armistice that brought an end to the fighting in World War I, we want to share what is our officially-compiled list of those North Carolinians who died, whether in combat or by other means, on November 11, 1918. These were not the last casualties of the war, as many North Carolinians remained in the U.S. Army of Occupation in Europe through the summer of 1919. However, this list is a reminder that although the world celebrated the end of the war that day and in the days following November 11, a number of families in North Carolina were mourning that their loved ones never got a chance to see the ceasation of hostilities and experience peace.
These 29 individuals are surely not all of the North Carolinians that were killed in military service on November 11; they are just the ones which we can prove for sure that their death date is indeed on that day. It is well documented that many Allied servicemen who died on November 11, 1918, were in fact listed on headstones in battlefield graves and on death records as having died on November 10, 1918. As reported in a November 8, 2018, Associated Press article by Raf Casert, many of the white-cross headstones in WWI military cemeteries in Europe list death dates for those who died on November 11 in order to somewhat ease the mourning of the servicemen's families--not to see how close to the end of the war they came--as well as to cover over the decision-making processes of military commanders bent on one last fight. Such was the case with U.S. General John J. Pershing, who had to eventually explain to the U.S. Congress the reasons behind the high number of last-day losses on November 11.
However, this is the best list which has been able to be compiled to this point. In honor of those brave North Carolinians who gave their life in the waning moments of the war, we extend our heartful gratitude and condolensces to the families on this centennial anniversary of their deaths.
Last Name | First name | Rank | Home Town | Home County | Military Organization at Death |
Bailey | William C | 1st Lt | Woodsdale | Person | Co. H, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Bates | Everett R | Corp | Needmore | Swain | Co. I, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Best | Andrew | Pvt | Goldsboro | Wayne | Co. E, 365th Infantry, 92nd Division |
Crisp | Lester M | Pvt | Macclesfield | Edgecombe | Co. B, 47th Infantry Regiment |
Dunham | Thomas P | Pvt | White Oak | Bladen | Co. A, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Edwards | James T | Pvt | Fountain | Pitt | Co. B, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Ewing | Arthus L | Pvt | West Durham | Durham | Co C, 323rd Infantry, 81st Division |
Hawley | William A | Pvt | Cooper | Cumberland | Co. I, 325th Infantry, 81st Division |
Hill | James | Pvt 1cl | Goldsboro | Wayne | Co. H, 365th Infantry, 92nd Division |
Hill | Walter B | Pvt | Albemarle | Stanley | Co. H, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Hooks | Grady B | PVt | Matthews | Mecklenburg | Co. H, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Jenkins | Paul Burton | Sgt. | Franklinton | Franklin | Headquarters Co., 315th Infantry, 79th Division |
Johnson | Badger M | Pvt | Mount Holly | Gaston | Co. C, 323rd Infantry, 81st Division |
Lovin | Fred B | Pvt | Osbourne | Richmond | Co. L, 323rd Infantry, 81st Division |
Lyons | Reid | Pvt | Winston-Salem | Forsyth | Co. E, 356th Infantry, 92nd Division |
MacRae | Colin Makepeace | Seaman 2nd Class | Wilmington | New Hanover | USS South Dakota, U.S. Navy |
Mason | Walter | Pvt | Chapel Hill | Orange | Co. E, 366th Infantry, 92nd Division |
Mitchell | Frank B | Pvt | Kittrell | Vance | Co. B, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Morris | Parks | Sgt | Nealsville | McDowell | Co. K, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Robbins | Robert E | Pvt | Sharpsburg | Edgecombe-Nash-Wilson | Co. I, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Staton | Jesse | Corp. | Cranberry | Avery | Co. M, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Summerlin | James G | Pvt | Mount Olive | Wayne | Co. K, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Walker | Richard H | Corp | Littleton | Warren | Co. H, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Walls | James T | Pvt | Altamahaw | Alamance | Co. I, 120th Infantry, 30th Division |
Wiggins | Grover C | Pvt | Goldsboro | Wayne | Co. G, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Wilder | John N | Pvt 1cl | Castalia | Nash | Co. M, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Williams |
John N (possibly wrong first name and middle initial) |
Pvt 1cl | Unidentified unit | ||
Williams | Major | Pvt | Seven Springs | Wayne | Co. D, 321st Infantry, 81st Division |
Woodley | Charlie | Pvt | Oxford | Granville | Co. F, 322nd Infantry, 81st Division |
*Taken from North Carolina Service Individuals Killed during World War I List, compiled by LeRae Umfleet, North Carolina Department of Cultural and Natural Resources and President of the N.C. WWI Centennial Commemoration Committee.