Alfred Otto Veigel was born January 5, 1900 in Belleville Illinois, the child of German immigrants. At the time of his enlistment he resided in Belleville and was employed at the American Battery and Carbon Works. Together with his friend Raymond Yaekel, he enlisted in the army on May 4, 1918. He from New York to Europe on July 14th where he served in the 62nd Engineers on a medical detachment, and in the 86th Company Transportation Corps.
After the war he returned to Belleville and married Elvira Grandeolas in 1926. They had four daughters. Alfred held a number of different occupations including foreman in a carbon works, sales manager, and branch manager at Sealtest Dairy. He died on November 30, 1973 and was interred in Walnut Hill Cemetery in Belleville.
The following letters were written to Cornelia Lauenstein in St. Louis, Missouri.
Letter 1
5/9 1918
Dear Cornelia:-
Am very sorry I did not get to write to you sooner but we have been moving and traveling ever since we left US. I think we are permanently settled now for a while (I hope so.)
We were on the boat 13 days and landed in [censored]. We then rode [censored] and from there [censored] call 62nd Reg was moving for one solid month since we left Fort Benj. Harrison, so you can imagine how everybody felt it in the end.
We rode two days and box cars after we landed in France. They weren’t boxcars they were whitewashed, cattle, cars and you are I’ve seen our clothes when we got out; they weren’t US uniforms anymore, for they look like a convicts.
[Censored] just before we came to [censored] we stay today [censored] there we hiked to [censored] a distance of about 20 or 25 miles when we got there. I had two of the largest blisters on my feet I ever had and they certainly pained me. And going through [censored] France [censored] I did not see a single frame house. They’re all built of brick and stone. Another thing that surprised me was that the people have no lawns at all and all the houses are all built up to the sidewalks. France reminds me of the ancient history I had at school everything [censored]. Cars in France [censored] our house as [censored] place to ride on top [censored] coaches of the train or about 1/3 as long as ours, and they are arranged in cabs (three to a coach), each cab has two seats, facing one another, extending from side to side. I don’t know very much more to write about, that is; what I’m all allowed to write about.
I’ll try and write once a week to you and hope you do the same for takes about 40 days for a letter to get to you. With love
Pvt Alfred Veigel
62nd Engrs Med. Detach.
APO #717
American E.F. France
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Letter 2
October 21, 1918
Tours, France
Dear Cornelia:
I received your letter on September 13 and 25th yesterday. I don’t see why I should receive the two letters at once as they were written almost 2 weeks apart, but that’s the service that all the boys get here.
I also received about a half newspaper of clippings about the pageant in Belleville from my mother. It certainly must have been good, wish I could have been there and seen it. But nevertheless, I’m seeing many beautiful sight over here.
I think the 62nd will leave Tours in the next few days. We don’t know where we’re going but it up to the front somewhere. I have been called from the French Hospital where I was working, back to the 62nd. Part of the Reg is packing up today as they are going first. I’m going with the second part of the Reg.
It certainly rains a lot. In this part of France, it’s been raining ever since last Sat and today is Mon. I’ve an awful cold on my chest and I am coughing continuously.
I’m beginning to hate or despise France instead of liking it more. The roads or streets are always muddy and the air is damp, the sun has not been seen for about a week. The name of the city explains the climate or weather here, Tours means in French “swamp” and swampy it is in some place. Will close, hoping you are well. This letter will be followed by another in a few days as I received two. I remain
Lovingly
Alfred
62nd Engrs Med. Detach.
APO #717
A.E.F.
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Letter 3
October 30, 1918
Dear Cornelia:
Will now try and answer your second letter which I received some time back.
I am still here at camp with the 62nd Engrs. working in the infirmary. Part of the regiment has left for the front and the rest of us will follow soon. I sure hate this place as it’s always damp and foggy here. I’m anxious to get to the front to see a little of real fighting.
You asked me how I stood the trip over the ocean. It didn’t make me a bit seasick but was glad to see land again, after seeing nothing but water and waves as high as the steamer itself. It usually takes two weeks but many of the boys have come across in nine days. The reason it took us so long was that we went to North for almost 2 days, to get out of the way of submarines. At one time the fourth last day our steamer received a wireless that they were submarines ahead, we then stopped still for an hour, while the submarine destroyers were trying to locate the submarines. In the states you hear the expression (of) “Sunny France” well, I’d call it cloudy France. The French people are very kind and polite, but they haven’t been educated it seems to me. I think that the girls in America surpassed the French girls by 100% for beauty.
I am getting very tired of France and I am looking forward for the day when I can step on US soil. My opinion is that it won’t be long now since Austria H. has given up. The rumor was about that Germany has done likewise, but I doubt it. Hoping you are well, as I am the same and that I may hear from you soon again.
With love Alfred Veigel
62nd Engrs Med. Detach.
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Letter 4
Nov 18th 1918
Advance Zone
Dear Cornelia,
I received your letter of October 15 and was very glad to hear from you. I am very sorry you have not heard from me for over a month, but I’m sure I’ve written you most ever week. I am not at the place where you had the letter addressed to as we left Tours for the front and I’m now in the advanced zone. I was very anxious to get up here but now I wish I were back in tours. I’ve never realized what real army was until I came here. The first two nights I slept out in the open beside a campfire and almost froze to death. We are a lot further north than Tours is. The weather here now is like the weather in Dec at home. I’m beginning to get accustomed to all sorts of bad weather and it don’t bother me much. And as we are all so happy, the war is over. I think I can stand most anything. Our officers say we won’t get back to the US until next June or July. It sure sounds bad. There is no YMCA here and no place to go to, but stay in the cold, thin barracks. There is a small town three or four miles from here, but it is a very little town and no place to go there. I’ve been to the town once and bought a few thing, but I am generally at the first aid station. Well I hope you have received my letter by now and hope you are well for I am the same. I am
With love
Alfred O Veigel
62nd R.T.C.
Med Detach
American E.F.
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Letter 5
January 3, 1919
(No where in France as we call it)
St. Florentin, Yonne
Dear Cornelia:-
Was glad to receive your letter of Dec 4 th today and will endeavor to answer it tonight although I’m not in the mude of writing.
I have a touch of tonsillitis but I don’t think it’s as bad as the captain says it is. It pains me quite a bit to swallow, but that’s because the tonsil cracked; causing it to swell up more.
How did you spent the eve before New Year’s Day? We certainly had some celebration here. There were about 40 locomotives in the yards at that time and every one had the whisle tied down so you can imagine the noise. Then we took our automatics outside and used up all the ammunition we had. We also had a brass band consisting of the buglers and drummers of the regiment. The noise was heard for many miles around, the people of Saint Florentin didn’t know what happened. They thought. The War had started again; you see the French people don’t celebrate Xmas or New Year’s as we do, but the Yankees around here sure showed them how to celebrate.
The weather lately has been very bad, it’s been raining most every day for the past week. It isn’t cold enough to snow, so it just rains all the time, making it as miserable as can be. When we first came here, we almost froze, even the ponds and small streams had a coat of ice on, but now it’s just opposite. I had a fairly nice Xmas but to tell the truth, I was a little homesick for two days and believe me I don’t want any of that kind of sickness.
I received the box mother had sent and I can’t express how thankful I was to eat some real cake and candy again. It was the first candy. I’ve tasted for two months. We always read in the paper about all the candy that is sent to A.E. F. men but the unlucky 62nd never gets any. Hoping to hear from you soon again I’ll close for this time.
With love
Alfred
Alfred Veigel
62nd R.T.C.
Med. Detach.
A.E.F.
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Letter 6
February 20th, 1919
St. Florentine Yonne
Dear Cornelia-
Yesterday I received a letter from you on Dec 19th but did not get time to answer it. Today I received another letter of Jan 27th from you. You can judge from this what kind of mail service we get.
I was on my seven day leave a few weeks ago Uriage a leave area for American soldiers. Uriage is a summer resorts in the Alps mountains in the southern part of France and is a few miles from Grenoble. We arrived Uriage on 29 Jan after traveling 24 hours. We got there just in time for supper and we sure were hungry. After supper we took in the show at the YMCA and then went to the hotel I was staying at. We certainly had fine rooms and feather beds to sleep in and our eats could not have been beat. The seven days I was there I thought I was out of the army because I heard no bugle, no one to order you around.
There was about 5 inches of snow on the ground and the mountains had almost 12 inches. The mountains just around Uriage aren’t very high but we took a trip to La Mure where are they sure pierce the clouds. I climbed a mountain one day while I was there, and I don’t want to climb another because it’s too much like work, with the mountain covered with snow & ice. I visited some old castles and forts which are said to be more than 1000 years old. The most fun of all that I had was skiing. It was the first time I ever went skiing but after I fell quite a number of times I was able to slide down the hill pretty good. Will close for this time as it’s almost dinner time. Hoping this finds you in the best of health and also that I may hear from you again.
I am as ever
With love
Alfred
62nd Engrs Med. Detach. AEF
PS the commanding officer says we will be in the states by Easter. I sure hope it’s true.
St. Florentin
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Letter 7
March 20th 1919
Dear Cornelia:-
I received your letter of Feb 20th yesterday, and was very glad to hear from you. I don’t feel exactly all right this evening, I think I am a little homesick. The last time I was a little homesick was on Xmas, but I guess most all the boy were. It’s been nine months today that I was home on a furlough from Fort Harrison. Nine months isn’t a very long time to be away from home, but it seems to me it’s nine years that I’ve seen folks last. A few of us boys went bicycle riding the other day to a few of the small towns around St. Florentin. The roads in France are fine, lots better than those at home, but there are many steep hills decline.
I went to a funeral of one of the 62nd boys last Tuesday. He was drowned in the river that flows through St. Florentin. His body was in the water two weeks before he was found. He was quite an old man and liked by everybody. This makes the third man (62nd) that has been buried in St. Florentin. We are losing men right along that die in the hospital from “Influenza” and pneumonia.
It looks now as though the unlucky 60 seconds Is a stay over – and here until autumn sometime. Our Captain said we won’t stay here in St. Florentin until autumn, but will probably be sent to Germany. Well, that’s one consolation at least that we won’t be in this part of the country all the time, as it is “par bon” here.
Well close hoping I may hear from you soon.
I am as ever
Sincerely
Alfred
62nd Engrs R.T.C.
Med. Detach.
AEF