THE BLOGOur current blog series, "This week in 1918" has been going well. You may have noticed our weekly releases have been somewhat inconsistent lately. Our goal is to release a feature every Saturday at noon Central Time, however, as this is a volunteer effort, content is developed on a workload permitting basis. We appreciate your patience.
Also, please feel free to leave comments. Tell us what you liked or didn't like about our posts so we can make it a better experience next time.
Readership is fairly steady but we are always looking for ways to generate more interest. If you know anyone who might like our content, please share it with them. Our goal is to get the story of these remarkable people out to the public and any little bit helps us achieve this. Thank you to those of you who are already sharing.
RESEARCH
When we aren't posting on the Blog, we busily conducting research.
Several weeks ago I paid a visit to the National Air and Space Museum Archives to review the Burdette S. Wright Diaries. Already this research has paid large dividends helping us better understand daily life as an aerial observer in the 12th Aero Squadron. The diaries are a wealth of information and photos capturing these experiences. Despite restrictions preventing duplication of photos or large excerpts of direct quotations, notes from these diaries have enabled us to confirm biographical details, identify friendships and even identify individuals in photographs. Already, we've been able to incorporate this information into the recent posts on the Saint Mihiel Campaign and the Meuse-Argonne Campaign.
Lt. Henry Dwight Collection USAFA Special Collections
TwelfthRecon is working on an application for a research grant from "The Friends of the Air Force Academy Library." The USAFA Library possesses several papers and artifacts from Lt. Henry Dwight, including letters and diaries. Some of the collection has already been published on the USAFA Library Website. Our goal is to obtain a small grant so we can help complete the digitization of the collection and use the Dwight collection to gather additional insight into the 12th's experiences during WWI. Award winners won't be announced for several months but we'll keep you posted.
George H. Williams, Jr. Collection University of Texas, Dallas Library
We've recently become aware of a handful of audio recordings of a few original members of the 12th who participated in World War I. Content of these recordings is unknown as there are no transcripts available, however, the possibilities are intriguing. Very shortly, we should be receiving delivery of two of these recordings. The others are on reel-to-reel tapes and are too expensive at this time to duplicate. However, we expect to be making a visit to the library sometime in late October. This collection also has several documents of interest. Stay tuned!
Museum of Flight Lt. Wilbur D. Kennedy Letters. Transcription Project
This project is currently on hold for the moment as the previous two projects are higher priority. We are seeking volunteers so if anyone is interested in helping us complete this project, please contact us using the "Contact Us" button at the top of the menu.
Other Developments
The American Battlefield Monuments Commission has published a great interactive site featuring the activities of the A.E.F. It's a great way to get an overall feel of the the Air Service in the War. Of special note is the cover page featuring a photo of none other than the 12th Aero Squadron's own Lt. Arthur and Lt. Fleeson with their ground crew. Click on the photo below to check it out.
HELP WANTED
For those of you interested in helping us with the twelfthrecon project we have several opportunities available. They vary from transcription, video editing, web design and research with varying levels of commitment. If any of this appeals to you please contact us. Odds are we have something that will fit nicely with the level of commitment you're able contribute.
Thank you all for your continued interest and support.
v/r,
Daniel Pool
Editor
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