Doughboys took Christmas traditions “over there” in 1917

By Doran Cart
via the American Legion web site

Once the United States entered World War I in 1917, names in the newspapers and on the moving picture rolls became part of the American lexicon: the Western Front, Prussia, Alsace-Lorraine and Flanders, among others. Battlefields like the Somme, Verdun and Ypres stirred the imagination and stoked the fears of many. Australians, New Zealanders and Serbs traveled across the country training the rookies.

Doughboys would be transported to Brest, France, reviewed by King George V of England, discover the Meuse River and die as far away as Murmansk, Russia.

The Navy patrolled the East Coast for German submarines, called U-boats, and protected the waters around Gibraltar and Corfu. Atlantic convoy duty shepherded merchant and transport ships across enemy-infested waters. The Navy sank a German submarine, U-58, off what is now Cobb, Ireland. Floating explosive mines were placed in the North Sea.

In 1917, the world map got a lot bigger for Americans. But those who served overseas took their family and cultural traditions with them, including their celebration of Christmas.

Read the whole article on the American Legion web site:

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