Synopses & Reviews
In this unique history of the and#147;Lost Battalionand#8221; of World War I, Alan D. Gaff tells for the first time the story of the 77th Division from the perspective of the soldiers in the ranks.
On October 2, 1918, Maj. Charles W. Whittlesey led the 77th Division in a successful attack on German defenses in the Argonne Forest of northeastern France. His unit, comprised of men of a wide mix of ethnic backgrounds from New York City and the western states, was not a battalion nor was it ever and#147;lost,and#8221; but once a newspaper editor applied the term and#147;lost battalionand#8221; to the episode, it stuck.
Gaff draws from new, unimpeachable sourcesand#151;such as sworn testimony by soldiers who survived the ordealand#151;to correct the myths and legends and to reveal what really happened in the Argonne Forest during early October 1918.
Synopsis
. In this unique history of the andldquo;Lost Battalionandrdquo; of World War I, Alan D. Gaff tells for the first time the story of the 77th Division from the perspective of the soldiers in the ranks.
About the Author
Alan D. Gaff is an independent scholar and the author of several books, including Bayonets in the Wilderness: Anthony Wayneandrsquo;s Legion in the Old Northwest, Blood in the Argonne: The andldquo;Lost Battalionandrdquo; in World War I, and On Many a Bloody Field: Four Years in the Iron Brigade.