Lot 1387

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Description:

PHOTO GROUPING OF A BLACK MEMBER OF 538TH ENGINEER SVC. BTN.
Important grouping of photographs and documents related to black soldier Percy Jackson of the 538th Engineer Service Battalion. Jackson, from Pulaski, Tn., served under white officers in France during World War I. Included in this lot are: postcard sent to Jackson ordering him to report for an Army medical, Feb. 8, 1918; his classification of '1' issued the same day in Pulaski; two postcard photographs showing family siblings and parents; a postcard photograph of Jackson signed on verso; and a photo of the passenger ship 'France', also signed by Jackson. Of special interest are eight postcard photographs, each showing a black soldier in uniform, presumably one of Jackson's fellow engineers, each signed by the sitter on verso. Finally, there is a 4pp. 8vo. printed poem, untitled, composed by 538th member James W. Hurd, describing the unit's crossing the Atlantic. This piece is also signed by Jackson. Some photos bear some damage, especially Jackson's, generally good to very good. Black engineer forces in the AEF numbered nearly 175,000, responsible for building roads and laying track, building hospitals, constructing electric power plants, cutting down trees, digging trenches, stringing barbed wire (sometimes under enemy fire), making docks and building bridges and – if the situation called for it – picking up their rifles and fighting as infantry.

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June 15, 2023 10:00 AM EDT
Chesapeake City, MD, US

Alexander Historical Auctions LLC

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Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $499 $20
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 $999,999 $10,000
$1,000,000 $1,999,999 $50,000
$2,000,000 + $100,000