Floyd Boyce Phillips was one of millions of boys from the United States who were sent across the Atlantic to the Old Country to fight in the Great War. In this series of posts, we follow the 101st anniversary of Floyd’s journey and get glimpses of what was going on at home while he was over there.
Many thanks to Coralee for providing me with artifacts throughout the years and especially for the stack of WWI-era letters that were delivered to me on 31 May 2019. They have provided countless hours of family history entertainment.
– Denise
Life in Camp Stuart kept Floyd busy. He didn’t have time to write much on his second day in camp.
Sat. Morn. 7. 27. 18
13 sqd on K.P. – worked all day in kitchen. Finished up at 7 P.M. Another record for finishing early.
Went over to beach at nite. Saw Spencer Castle.
It’s just a guess, but Spencer Castle might have been someone that Floyd knew from back home in Illinois or someone he’d met during his army training. There was a Spencer Castle who served in WWI who was a student at Beloit College in Beloit, Wisconsin, when he registered for the draft on 5 Jun 1917. This Spencer was born 25 Nov 1895 in Nebraska and died 30 Mar 1988 in Cook County, Illinois. He enlisted 15 Jan 1918 and was released from service on 15 Feb 1919.
Next…
Sources:
Floyd Boyce Phillips, “Journal” (Army, 1918-1919).” privately held by Denise Krueger, Rochester, MN, 2019.
Ancestry.com. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.
Ancestry.com. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.
Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Death Index, 1908-1988 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2008.
The Phillips Family
- Publication date: September 2015
- Pages: 432
- Formats:
- This book traces our Phillips ancestry. It follows the Phillips family from 18th century ancestors in New York to more recent asparagus farmers of Illinois. Five generations of descendants of Wilhelmus Philip are covered. The families of Jacob W Phillips, his son Albert Aveldo Phillips, his son Guy Allison Phillips, and his son Floyd Boyce Phillips are followed in detail.
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