Converted to EAD3 : Encoded Archival Description (EAD), Version 3 : Release: 1.1.1 : Release Date: 2019-12-16. Validating against latest version of schema.
Contact information: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/vhp.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/2017655241
In English.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
Arranged into two series: Manuscripts and Photographs. Materials are arranged alphabetically by type of record.
Accessioned, 2002.
The collection includes transcriptions of Loudenbeck's original diary and correspondence. The original diary remains with the Loudenbeck family.
The original letters from Loudenbeck to his family were donated by his family in 2011. The transcribed diary was donated in 2002.
Collection is open for research; access restrictions apply. To request collection materials, please contact the Veterans History Project at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/vhp.contact
Collection is open for research; access restrictions apply. To request collection materials, please contact the Veterans History Project at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/vhp.contact
Edward Henry Loudenbeck Collection (AFC/2001/001/1937), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
Edward Henry Loudenbeck was born in Little Rock, Iowa, on June 21, 1895. The second child and first boy of five children born to Edward Z. Loudenbeck and Sarah R. (Kepner) Loudenbeck, the family made their life on a farm in rural Iowa. The family moved to Michigan in the winter of 1898-1899. Another boy, Arthur, would join the family in 1897 before the move. Two more sisters, Luella and Cora, were born in 1899 and 1901, respectively. The oldest child, Mina, was born in 1893 in Iowa. Loudenbeck’s mother, Sarah, died in 1908.
Loudenbeck reported to the local draft board in Alma, Michigan, for induction on
September 21, 1917. Later that same day, he arrived at Camp Custer and was assigned to
C Company, 338th Infantry. Here, Loudenbeck
participated in drills, inspections, construction, and guard duties, and received immunizations. In
November, he was promoted to Private First Class with temporary assignments as corporal.
He also practiced shooting and would go on be to a sharpshooter. In January 1918, he
contracted the mumps and was quarantined for a period of time. A religious man,
Loudenbeck was a frequent visitor of the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA). He
attended sermons, movies, and utilized their services on a frequent basis; much of the
correspondence sent from Loudenbeck to his family is on YMCA stationary. Loudenbeck
remained at Camp Custer until February 26, 1918. He was transferred to Camp Greene in
Charlotte, North Carolina where he was assigned to D Company, 4th Division, on March 4, 1918. He would
remain with the 59th Infantry until his discharge. On April 22, 1918, Loudenbeck
departed Camp Greene for Camp Mills, an embarkation location, on Long Island, New York.
He would leave on the English ship, SS
Loudenbeck arrived in Liverpool, England, on May 16, 1918, and immediately began the
journey to France. By the next day, May 17, he had crossed the English Channel and
landed in Calais, France, after spending the previous night at barracks in Dover,
England. He soon departed Calais and traveled through various French towns and communes
before settling in Desvres, France, on May 21, 1918. Here, Loudenbeck trained with
English sergeants and notes that he also had contact with Scottish and Irish personnel. On June
11, he left Desvres and headed east of Paris to Doue, a small commune. During this time,
he was trained by French instructors and his battalion was assigned a French lieutenant.
He mostly practiced shooting, drills, throwing grenades, wearing gas masks, and
participated in sham battles. He spent time traveling throughout France in Crouttes,
Jouarre, and Lizy to construct reserve trenches, hiking, and gained experience with
shellfire. July 19, 1918, marks Loudenbeck's first experience with battle by going
On November 20, Loudenbeck and his company were dispatched to Germany. The march lasted
until December 16, 1918, culminating in Ernst, where the company was to remain for 90
days. Loudenbeck’s time in Ernst was marked by drills, inspections, hikes, guard duties,
educational classes, clerical work, and sightseeing. He took a seven day furlough to
Aix-les-Bains, France, in late March 1919. After returning to Germany, he remained at
Ernst until April 10, before moving around Germany to Urbar and Wehr. The reluctance of
Germany to sign a peace treaty delayed Loudenbeck's original June departure.
On July 10, 1919, after the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, Loudenbeck began the
journey back to the United States as he traveled all along the Rhine before entering
Belgium. He arrived at Camp Pontaezen on July 13, where he departed on the USS
Loudenbeck returned to Michigan to be a farmer. He married his wife, Dora, on January 18, 1920, at the home of her parents. They spent the next five years on a farm near Middleton, Michigan. A daughter, Thelma Marie, and a son, Kenneth Eugene, were born there in 1921 and 1923, respectively. In February 1925, the Loudenbeck family moved to a farm near Maple Rapids, Michigan, purchased through a partnership with his brother, Arthur, and sister-in-law, Fern. Another son, Max Alden, and daughter, Glenna June, were born there in 1925 and 1927, respectively. The farm became Loudenbeck's permanent home until his death on August 23, 1972.
The Edward Henry Loudenbeck collection documents Loudenbeck’s service in the United States Army during World War I. Dating 1917-1919, the collection includes mixed manuscripts, correspondence, printed material, and a photograph.
The bulk of the collection consists of mixed manuscripts and correspondence extensively documenting Loudenbeck’s two years in the United States Army. The mixed manuscript series includes transcriptions of Loudenbeck’s daily diary and letters to his sisters, Cora and Mina, father, and brother. Of particular interest, the diary includes daily entries documenting Loudenbeck’s time in Camp Custer through his return from the Europe including training camp, military life, farming in France, and summaries of each day. The correspondence series includes original letters from Loudenbeck to his family and several letters sent to the veteran. Topics include military and camp life, expenses, updates about Loudenbeck, morality, gender relations between American troops and European women, and news from home. Two letters from his pastor and a letter from General Pershing complete the correspondence in the collection. Printed matter consists of postcards with illustrations of World War I front. The photograph is of Loudenbeck with three fellow soldiers at Camp Greene, North Carolina, in 1918.
Catalog Record: http://lccn.loc.gov/2017655241
MS02: 56 letters written by veteran to his family, primarily to his sisters and brother who lived in Michigan. He tells of his experience during training at Camp Custer, Michigan, and being in battle in France; two letters from his pastor praying for his well-being; letter of appreciation from Pershing to fellow soldiers (2/28/1919), letter has a list of divisions and the number of wounded and casualties on the back. Topics include military and camp life, expenses, updates about Loudenbeck, morality, gender relations between American troops and European women, and news from home. Some letters are transcribed and included in the Mixed Manuscripts series.
MS01: Transcription of Loudenbeck's original diary and correspondence. Diary entries cover training in the United States and combat in France. The diary is a transcribed copy of the original and contains a biographical note written by Loudenbeck's eldest daughter, Thelma Marie, in 1987. The diary documents his time at Camp Custer through his return from Europe. Some letters sent by Loudenbeck to his family are also transcribed. Topics include training camp, military life, farming in France, and summaries of each day. There are several photocopies at the end of the diary including images of Loudenbeck and Dora on their wedding day and the Loudenbeck farm in Michigan. Other photocopies include Loudenbeck's enlistment record and discharge certificate.
MS03: Postcards with illustrations related to World War I.
PH01: Loudenbeck, 2nd from left, with three fellow soldiers in uniform, Camp Greene, North Carolina (1918).