Processed by
Tyler Nowell
September 2007
Manuscript and Visual Collections Department
William Henry Smith Memorial Library
Indiana Historical Society
450 West Ohio Street
Indianapolis, IN 46202-3269
|
VOLUME OF |
1 manuscript folder |
|
COLLECTION |
1918–1919 |
|
PROVENANCE: |
F. Joseph Viehmann and Mary Jane Key, Indianapolis, Indiana, July, 2000 |
|
RESTRICTIONS: |
None |
|
COPYRIGHT: |
|
|
REPRODUCTION |
Permission to reproduce or publish material in this collection must be obtained from the Indiana Historical Society. |
|
ALTERNATE |
None |
|
RELATED |
|
|
ACCESSION |
2000.0938 |
|
NOTES: |
Collection includes a note from the donors with some biographical information on Frank J. Viehmann |
Frank Joseph Viehmann was born in Indianapolis on April 23, 1893. He enlisted in the United States Army in 1917 at the age of 24. He spent most of his service time as a corporal at Camp Mills in New York. In his diary he mentions being assigned to 332nd Guard and Fire Co. on August 26, 1918. After being discharged from the Army he married Cecilia Reilly on October 12, 1920. In his diary she is referred to as “C.” They had two children, F. Joseph and Mary Jane.
After becoming a civilian he entered the real estate business. He eventually formed his own business in 1927. In 1939 he was appointed to the Insurance Commission of the State of Indiana by the current Governor Clifford Townsend. He held the post throughout both of Henry Schricker’s terms as governor.
Frank Viehmann died in Indianapolis in July 1970.
Sources:
Information in the collection
“Family search.” Available at http://www.familysearch.org
“Ancestry Library Edition.” Available online at: http://www.ancestrylibrary.com
The collection contains the diary of Frank J. Viehmann written in a copy of The Soldier’s Diary and Note Book. The front portion of the book has useful information for any American soldier either overseas or on the home front. Information such as; money exchange rates, military definitions, U.S. Army slang, rifle definitions, useful knots, first aid, French phrases, English military terms, a calendar, and much more.
The second portion of the book is the diary section. The diary begins on July 29, 1918 and continues to the end of the year. Viehmann then started to write the January entries for 1919 at the beginning of the diary. The last entry was on January 24, 1919. The writing area is small so the entries are not very detailed, but they give a sense for what he did each day. At the beginning of the diary he describes receiving equipment, and lots of drilling and inspections. Throughout the diary he constantly talks about being on guard duty, washing clothes, going to mass, taking walks, and writing letters.
After the end of World War I on November 11, 1918 Viehmann talks constantly about writing discharges. During this time he moved from one camp to another and eventually ends up at Camp Sherman, in Chillicothe, Ohio. In the diary there are names and addresses of other soldiers in the memoranda section and other miscellaneous places.
|
CONTENTS |
CONTAINER |
|
World War I Diary, 1918 |
Folder 1 |
For additional information on this collection, including a list of subject headings that may lead you to related materials:
1. Go to the Indiana Historical Society's online catalog: http://opac.indianahistory.org/
2. Click on the "Basic Search" icon.
3. Select "Call Number" from the "Search In:" box.
4. Search for the collection by its basic call number (in this case, SC 2837).
5. When you find the collection, go to the "Full Record" screen for a list of headings that can be searched for related materials.