ERNEST H. DUNLAP LETTER HOME + PASSPORT
| Ernest H. DUNLAP sends letter
back home to his father. Ernest is the son of Allen M. DUNLAP &
Irene Anna HORTON DUNLAP. His siblings mentioned in the letter were
Elizabeth "bessie" Dunlap, Ina Mae Dunlap and Clifford M. "Red"Dunlap. |
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Ernest H. Dunlap - Letter, 15
NOV 1918 Dresden Enterprise Pg.6 Col 4,5,6.
HEAPS AND PILES OF DEAD GERMANS To: Mr. A. M. Dunlap Dear Father I was delighted to get a long letter from you today and one from Mother yesterday. I can’t tell you how much good your letters do me, and the good part of it is, you write often. I am taking advantage of our little rest spell here in the woods and am trying to write to all of you. Well, the war and home people are the main topics of the day over here, and since you know more about the home people than I do, I will just tell you all I know about my part in this big game. Not many days ago we were in a big drive. We began throwing the barrage about midnight and continued until 5 in the morning., then the dough boys went over. As usual, they met with some little resistance, but on they went in true American style, and if the officers had not stopped them, I suppose they would be in Berlin now. Late in the evening we were called on to advance and give support to the dough boys - I never want to see such again. The Germans lay dead all over the ground and there were some of our boys there too, and do you know that all the Americans who were killed were going toward Berlin and did you know that the Germans were going the same way. We had some trouble with the machine guns - for instance, in one woods there were a lot of German machine guns, and all were on the ground, but in trees the Germans had a lot of cans with an electric machine which when the button was pressed by the German gunner on the ground, would make a noise like a machine gun, and in that way our boys could not tell where the fire came from, consequently a number of our boys were killed, but Fritz is on his way, and we know that it won’t be many more months before Bill must yell, “Kamerad.” The Germans will stand and fight you with machine guns all day, but they can’t stand the sight of bayonet in the hand of an American dough boy. They show the yellow every time. They are so dirty they will do anything. We had a hospital up near the front and in it were a great number of boys who had been blinded with mustard gas. Late the evening a German plane came over and spotted the hospital. He could not have been mistaken in what it was - it was too well marked for that. He went back and in a few minutes the Germans began to shell it, and I shall never forget the sight as the Red Cross boys tried to lead the blind ones out of it. You could see them fall in shell holes, in cold water, anywhere out of the wa; some were too far gone to move, so they just prayed and asked somebody to help. In another place a machine gun had been firing on some Red Cross workers, so the boys went to capture it and when they got a few feet of it, a woman got up and laid bare her breast and asked for mercy in the name of womanhood. What do you suppose she got? Well, that is what “Kulter” is, and when “Kulter” is banished from the face of the earth I will be home to see you all. I met a friend of mine yesterday who said he had been “over the top” seven times - said he liked it fine, and the only thing that hurt him was a few minutes just before he went over. I have been under fire five times and have never been hurt yet. We have been in range of the German guns all the time. All of the Gleason boys are still getting along fine. We are having some swell times here now. Duke and myself have taken up quarters in an old French “dug-out” There are four bunks and a stove in it. We use the stove to cook hot cakes and French fried potatoes. We are some cooks too. Duke is here now cooking some potatoes for our supper and making the hot cake dough for our breakfast. We always make it the night before so it will sour and it makes much better cakes. Ellis and Harvey come down at night and we have some good times talking bout all the home people and our “boyhood” days. I was so glad to hear you all were well and that things were moving along smoothly in the little town of Gleason. Well, Papa, as I am about out of paper and still have another letter to write tonight, guess I had better close. I wrote to Mother yesterday. Tell Bessie I will write to her, also Ina May and Red as soon as I can see the “Y” man and get some paper. Ernest Dunlap |
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| Ernest's passport below
indicates that he is still in the Army, working past the close of the
War, traveling in Europe during 1919. He is home by 1921 when he
marries Ruby Scates, has a family and lives on until 1971. |
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| Passport Photo of Ernest H.
DUNLAP May,1919 |
| There has been confusion on the
spelling of his first name - Earnest or Ernest. On this passport
application he clearly signed his name Ernest. |
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PASSPORT
OF ERNEST H. DUNLAP 1919
Emergency Passport application May 13, 1919 Department Passport Application May 15, 1919 Issued Paris, France Sept 16, 1919 Issued Washington D.C. Oct 11, 1919 DESCRIPTION OF APPLICANT Age: 20 years Stature: 5 feet 6 inches Forehead: Broad Eyes: Blue Nose: Medium Mouth: small Chin: Round Hair: Brown Complexion: Fair Face: Oval IDENTIFICATION I, Elbert E. Farman, solemnly swear that I am a native citizen of the United States; that I reside at Warsaw N.Y.; that I have known the above-named E. H. Dunlap personally for 3 months and know him to be a native citizen of the United States; and that the fats stated in his affidavit are true to the best of my knowledge and belief. Signed E. E. Farman, U.S. Army. American Passport Bureau Paris Sworn to before me this 13th day of May 1919 - C. Edgar Davis, Vice Consul of the United States of America at Paris, France. Identifying documents submitted as follows ARMY ORDER NO 130. Signed W. McAndrew Chief of Staff. Mr. Dunlap Gleason, Tenn. ------ DEPARTMENT PASSPORT APPLICATION I, Ernest H. Dunlap a Native and Loyal Citizen of the United States, hereby apply to the American Passport Bureau Paris for an emergency passport for myself. I solemnly swear that I was born at Gleason in the State of Tenn. on July 14th, 1898 and that my father was born in Gleason Tenn. and is now residing at Gleason, Tenn., for the purpose of residence. I never had a passport and that my legal domicile is in Gleason Tenn., my permanent residence being at Gleason Tenn., and I last left the United States on June 4th 1918 arriving at Le ?avve France, via Liverpool, England. I am now at Chantilly residing for the purpose of U.S. Army; that I have resided outside the United States at the following places for the following periods: I have lived in the United States all my life and that I desire to remain a citizen of the United States and intend to return thereto permanently to reside and perform the duties of citizenship within - (blank). I have not applied elsewhere for a United States passport or for consular registration and been refused. I desire a passport for use in visiting the countries hereinafter named for the following purpose: FRANCE SWITZERLAND - en route CZECHO-SLOVAKIA - en route POLAND - Government Business OATH OF ALLEGIANCE Further, I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the Untied States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion: So help me God. Signed by Ernest H. Dunlap Sworn to before me this 15th day of May 1919 signed by C. Edgar Davis. |
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