The World War I Memoirs of Robert P. Patterson: A Captain in the Great War

Camp Upton

Camp Upton I Camp Upton was near Yaphank, Long Island, a little place about seventy miles east of New York City.1 When we reported for duty, the camp site was covered with pine woods, only a dozen or so wooden barracks having been built at that time. The camp was to be the training ground for the 77th Division, to be recruited from the New York drafted men. There was also the Depot Brigade, which was organized to serve as a reservoir of officers and soldiers who would be used to fill up gaps in the Division. I was assigned to the Depot Brigade and soon found that this assignment was a discouraging one. Although I was nominally in command of a “battalion” of four companies, the companies were “paper” affairs, consisting only of a lieutenant and two sergeants. The lieutenants were from training camp, the sergeants from the regular army. As the drafted men poured into camp, they would be put into the Depot Brigade companies but would remain there for only a few days or weeks. They would then be sent to the regiments of the Division or to other camps. There was a heavy surplus of captains and lieutenants in the Depot Brigade, with very little to do. The quality of the officers was as high as in the organized regiments, and I have often thought how regrettable it was that most of these men never saw service in France, but spent their entire time doing odd jobs around training camps. Most of them were frantic to get transferred into the Division, but only a few succeeded. I stayed in the Depot Brigade until January, 1918. For a time I worked on preparing a course of work in signaling, but the course was never given. Later I had charge of the conscientious objectors, a group of cranks who were gathered into a barracks in a corner of the camp. They were not in uniform, were not obliged to drill or to work, and were not molested in any way. Every few days we would march three or four of them up to division headquarters, where General J. Franklin Bell, the venerable division commander , would argue with them.2 I never knew him to bring any of them around, however. The objectors spent most of their time lying on their cots, reading or arguing with one another.3 12 The World War I Memoirs of Robert P. Patterson II I had almost given up hope of ever seeing active service, when one afternoon in January 1918, after four months in the Depot Brigade, I was called to headquarters and received orders to report for duty to the 306th Infantry. I ran all the way to the other end of the camp, where that regiment was located . I believe that I owe this opportunity for service to Major E. Ormonde Power, whom I had known in Plattsburg and who was then a major in the 306th. I reported to the adjutant, Captain Archibald G. Thacher, whose cordiality to me at that time I have never forgotten. He took me over to the Headquarters Company of the 306th, which I was to command. I should now explain in a general way the plan of a division in 1917–1919. A division consisted of four infantry regiments, three artillery regiments, three machine gun battalions, a regiment of engineers, and smaller bodies of special troops. The infantry was grouped into two brigades of two regiments each. In our brigade the regiments were the 305th and 306th; in the other brigade they were the 307th and 308th. An infantry regiment was made up Questionnaire filled out by Robert Patterson in February 1918 for promotion to rank of captain in the AEF. From collection of the Patterson family. Camp Upton 13 of fifteen companies—twelve rifle companies from A to M, headquarters company, machine gun company, and supply company. The rifle companies , at full strength, had two hundred and fifty men and six officers, the officers being a captain and five lieutenants. Each company had four platoons, with a lieutenant and three sergeants for each platoon. The smallest unit was of course the squad, consisting of a corporal and seven privates. In addition to the rifle strength, a company had a first sergeant, supply sergeant, mess sergeant, four cooks, two mechanics, and a company clerk. I found myself commanding the Headquarters...