Answering the Call to Service

Answering the Call to Service. , In Prince William County, 102 African American men served in the Army during World War I. Most Black soldiers were spread across a variety of supply and engineering units that included farriers, truck drivers, and laborers that built bridges, roads and earthworks. Some also served with distinction in infantry regiments, seeing major action on the battlefields of France. Only a few Black officers served during the war and they were barred from commanding White officers., Of the Black soldiers from Prince William County who served during World War I, two were killed in action in France. Private Frank Green of the 511th Engineers died while serving in France and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Private Harry Hatcher of Company E, 372nd Infantry Regiment, 93rd Division was killed in action in the Meuse-Argonne. Hatcher's regiment was awarded the Croix de Guerre for gallantry in action. He is buried in the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery in Romagne, France. Hatcher, Green, and their comrades continued to contradict the common misconception that Black people would not make good soldiers as their ancestors had in the Revolution, Civil War, and Spanish-American War, serving instead with distinction and honor in the face of racist attitudes., [Sidebar:] , When the United States entered World War I in 1917, African American Virginians answered the call to service. At the time, America's military forces were strictly segregated, with the bulk of Black soldiers limited to serving in the Army. While these were some notable exceptions with segregated infantry units, the majority of African American soldiers were posted to the supply and engineering services. In these critically important roles, African American enlisted men provided vital services to Allied logistics efforts., [Captions:] , Private Frank Green's headstone at Arlington National Cemetery., Private Harry Hatcher was killed in action on October 8, 1918., This photograph of Company C, 372nd Infantry Regiment, 93rd Division includes Private Harrison Smith, although which soldier he is in this image is not clear. The Smith family was from Manassas., The original plaque from the World War I memorial at the historic Prince William County courthouse was divided by race. to see divisions on public markers such as this one was not uncommon at the time the memorial was erected in the post-war years. Today, a new plaque has replaced this one, listing all the men in order by last name with no mention of race.