Manley Crutcher Bowman (Army) Documents
Manley Crutcher Bowman was born in 1886 in Beech Bluff, TN. He was drafted into the Army in 1917. Bowman was deployed to Europe as an infantryman in 1918, serving in Company F of the 117th Infantry Regiment, part of the 30th Infantry Division. He saw action at the Second Battle of the Somme and the Hundred Days Offensive that broke the Hindenburg Line. After his service, Bowman returned to a life of farming in Beech Bluff while remaining involved with the military. He served as a military registrar signing draft papers during World War II. Bowman died in April 1976 at the age of 80.
Lexey Phifer (Army) Documents
Lexey Phifer was born in Anson County, N.C. on Feb 17, 1889. He was born to David Wilson Phifer (1862-1932) and to Mary Caudle Phifer (1860-1920). He moved to Knoxville sometime before 1910 and was a construction foreman before the war. He was attached to the 28th Engineers Company C and he went to Camp Meade, MD for his training. He was shipped to France on June 30th, 1918, and shortly after he was promoted to Corporal. His unit ran a quarry, producing crushed stone used for road building efforts. At the wars end, he stayed to help with the occupation and rebuilding processes. He was promoted to Sergeant in March 1919. He stayed in France till June 24th of 1919, and he was discharged on July 12th 1919. After the war, he went to Georgetown, Guyana as a construction foreman in 1919, working for the Demerara Bauxite Company, which was a mining company. He returned to Knoxville where he got married to Nancy Ella Caudle in June of 1922. He later worked for TVA as a foreman until his death on October 26, 1950.
Alvin C. York (Army/Medal of Honor) Documents
From Pall Mall, Tennessee, He was convinced to fight for the U.S. by his commanders, and on October 8th, 1918, during the Meuse-Argonne offensive he performed the deed that earned him a Medal of Honor. York’s team was tasked with destroying an enemy machine gun encampment, and took heavy casualties during the assault. York led the charge of the remaining members into the enemy line, killing multiple German soldiers and ambushing the main line. The Germans surrendered, and York and his unit captured 132 German soldiers. After the war, York moved back to Fentress county and attempted to reform education in the area, establishing the Alvin C. York educational institute in 1926. York died on September 2, 1964 at 76 years old in a veterans hospital in Nashville.