Word Celebrity Blog

Alvin Cullum York


Alvin Cullum York (December 13, 1887 – September 2, 1964) was the most decorated American soldier in World War I.

He was awarded the Medal of Honor for leading an attack on a German  machine gun nest, taking 32 machine guns, killing 28 German soldiers and capturing 132 others. This action occurred during the U.S. led portion of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in France, which was part of a broader Allied offensive masterminded by Marshal Ferdinand Foch to breach the Hindenburg line and ultimately force the opposing German forces to surrender.


Alvin York's Early Life

Alvin Cullum York was born in a two-room log cabin near Pall Mall, Tennessee, on December 13, 1887, the third of eleven children born to Mary Elizabeth Brooks (August 8, 1866 - May 21, 1943) and William Uriah York (May 15, 1863 – November 17, 1911). 

William Uriah York was born in Jamestown, Tennessee, to Uriah York and Eliza Jane Livingston, both travelers from Buncombe County, North Carolina.  Mary Elizabeth York was born in Pall Mall, Tennessee, to William Brooks and Nancy Pile, and was the reat- granddaughter of Coonrod Pile, an English settler who settled Pall Mall in Tennessee. William York and Mary Brooks married on December 25, 1881, and had eleven children. The York siblings are, in order: Henry Singleton, Joseph Marion, Alvin Cullum, Samuel John, Albert, Hattie, George Alexander, James Preston, Lillian Mae, Robert Daniel, and Lucy Erma. The York family is of English, Irish, Choctaw, and Cherokee ancestry.





















The York family resided in the Indian Creek area of Fentress County, Tennessee. The family was impoverished, with William York working as a blacksmith, by which he supplemented the family income. The father and sons of the York family would gather and harvest their own food, while the mother knitted all family clothing. The York sons only attended nine months of schooling, and withdrew from education because William York wanted his sons to assist him in tending to the family farm and hunting small game in order to feed the family.

When William York died in November 1911, his son Alvin assisted his mother in raising his younger siblings.  Alvin was the oldest living sibling that was then-residing in the county, as his two older brothers had married and moved into more urban areas in the American South.

In order to supplement the family income, Alvin York first held employment as a community laborer in Harriman, Tennessee, in which he assisted in the construction of a railroad and worked as a logger as well. By all accounts, he was a very skilled worker who was devoted to the welfare of his family. However, in the few years before the war, York was a violent alcoholic and prone to fighting in saloons, and had accumulated several arrests within the area.  His mother, a member of a pacifist Protestant denomination, tried to persuade York to change his ways because she worried he would "amount to nothin'", however to no avail.

Growing up in poverty the young Alvin York honed his skills as a crack marksman, a useful talent for use in hunting food for himself and his family - and one he would put to high effect during the war.

In the winter of 1914, he and his friend engaged in a fight with other saloon patrons during a night of heavy drinking. The incident resulted in his friend Everett Delk being beaten to death inside a saloon in Clinton County, Kentucky. The event was profound enough that York finally followed his mother's advice and became a pacifist, and stopped drinking alcohol. York was baptized as a born again Christian in the Wolf River, with the baptism being conducted by Reverend H.H. Russell in early 1915.

In 1914, Alvin York joined the Church of Christ in Christian Union, a Protestant denomination, which had no specific doctrine of pacificism but opposed warfare and violence by all means. In a lecture later in life, Alvin York reported his reaction to the outbreak of World War I: "I was worried clean through. I didn't want to go and kill. I believed in my bible." On June 5, 1917, at the age of 29, Alvin York registered for the draft as all men between 21 and 31 years of age did on that day. When he registered for the draft, he answered the question "Do you claim exemption from draft (specify grounds)?" by writing "Yes. Don't Want To Fight." When his initial claim for conscientious objector status was denied, he appealed.

In World War I, conscientious objector status did not exempt one from military duty. Such individuals could still be drafted and were given assignments that did not conflict with their anti-war principles. In November 1917, while York's application was considered, he was drafted and began his army service at Camp Gordon in Georgia. There, extensive conversations with Major George Buxton challenged his pacifism and its Biblical basis until York decided he could and would serve.

From the day he registered for the draft, until he arrived back from the war on May 29, 1919, Alvin York kept a diary of his activities. In his diary, Alvin wrote that he refused to sign documents provided by his pastor seeking a discharge from the Army on religious grounds. He refused to sign similar documents provided by his mother asserting a claim of exemption as the sole support of his mother and siblings. He disclaimed ever having been a conscientious objector.


World War I

























Alvin recalled: "The Germans got us, and they got us right smart. They just stopped us dead in our tracks. Their machine guns were up there on the heights overlooking us and well hidden, and we couldn’t tell for certain where the terrible heavy fire was coming from… And I'm telling you they were shooting straight. Our boys just went down like the long grass before the mowing machine at home. Our attack just faded out… And there we were, lying down, about halfway across [the valley] and those German machine guns and big shells getting us hard."

Four non-commissioned officers and thirteen privates under the command of Sergeant Bernard Early (which included York) were ordered to infiltrate behind the German lines to take out the machine guns. The group worked their way behind the Germans and overran the headquarters of a German unit, capturing a large group of German soldiers who were preparing a counter-attack against the U.S. troops. Sgt. Early’s men were contending with the prisoners when machine gun fire suddenly peppered the area, killing six Americans: Corp. Murray Savage, and Pvts. Maryan E. Dymowski, Ralph E. Weiler, Fred Waring, William Wins and Walter E. Swanson, and wounding three others, Sgt. Early, Corp. William S. Cutting (AKA Otis B. Merrithew) and Pvt. Mario Muzzi. The fire came from German machine guns on the ridge, which turned their weapons on the U.S. soldiers. The loss of the nine put Corporal York in charge of the seven remaining U.S. soldiers, Privates Joseph Kornacki, Percy Beardsley, Feodor Sok, Thomas C. Johnson, Michael A. Saccina, Patrick Donohue and George W. Wills. As his men remained under cover, and guarding the prisoners, Alvin York worked his way into position to silence the German machine guns.























Alvin recalled: "The Germans got us, and they got us right smart. They just stopped us dead in our tracks. Their machine guns were up there on the heights overlooking us and well hidden, and we couldn’t tell for certain where the terrible heavy fire was coming from… And I'm telling you they were shooting straight. Our boys just went down like the long grass before the mowing machine at home. Our attack just faded out… And there we were, lying down, about halfway across [the valley] and those German machine guns and big shells getting us hard."

Four non-commissioned officers and thirteen privates under the command of Sergeant Bernard Early (which included York) were ordered to infiltrate behind the German lines to take out the machine guns. The group worked their way behind the Germans and overran the headquarters of a German unit, capturing a large group of German soldiers who were preparing a counter-attack against the U.S. troops. Sgt. Early’s men were contending with the prisoners when machine gun fire suddenly peppered the area, killing six Americans: Corp. Murray Savage, and Pvts. Maryan E. Dymowski, Ralph E. Weiler, Fred Waring, William Wins and Walter E. Swanson, and wounding three others, Sgt. Early, Corp. William S. Cutting (AKA Otis B. Merrithew) and Pvt. Mario Muzzi. The fire came from German machine guns on the ridge, which turned their weapons on the U.S. soldiers. The loss of the nine put Corporal York in charge of the seven remaining U.S. soldiers, Privates Joseph Kornacki, Percy Beardsley, Feodor Sok, Thomas C. Johnson, Michael A. Saccina, Patrick Donohue and George W. Wills. As his men remained under cover, and guarding the prisoners, Alvin York worked his way into position to silence the German machine guns.

















York recalled: "And those machine guns were spitting fire and cutting down the undergrowth all around me something awful. And the Germans were yelling orders. You never heard such a racket in all of your life. I didn't have time to dodge behind a tree or dive into the brush… As soon as the machine guns opened fire on me, I began to exchange shots with them. There were over thirty of them in continuous action, and all I could do was touch the Germans off just as fast as I could. I was sharp shooting… All the time I kept yelling at them to come down. I didn't want to kill any more than I had to. But it was they or I. And I was giving them the best I had."





















Medal of Honor Citation

    * Rank and organization:
       Corporal, U.S. Army, Company G, 328th Infantry, 82nd Division.
    * Place and date:
       Near Chatel-Chehery, France, October 8, 1918.
    * Entered service at:
       Pall Mall, Tennessee.
    * Born:
       December 13, 1887, Fentress County, Tennessee.
    * General Orders
       No.59. War Department, 1919.

Text of the citation:

After his platoon suffered heavy casualties and 3 other noncommissioned officers had become casualties, Cpl. York assumed command. Fearlessly leading 7 men, he charged with great daring a machine gun nest which was pouring deadly and incessant fire upon his platoon. In this heroic feat the machine gun nest was taken, together with 4 officers and 128 men and several guns.


Honors and Awards

    * Medal of Honor
    * Distinguished Service Cross
    * World War I Victory Medal
    * American Campaign Medal
    * World War II Victory Medal
    * French Légion d'honneur
    * French Croix de guerre with Palm
    * Italian Croce di Guerra
    * Montenegrin War Medal



























This is a photo of Sgt York in 1919, on his way home from the War. This photo was taken in New York City.


























Alvin visited his mother as soon as he returned home and told her that he and Gracie Williams were going to get married and that Gov. Roberts was going to conduct the service.


Alvin York's Post-war Life
















On June 7, 1919, Alvin C. York and Gracie Loretta Williams were married by Tennessee Governor Albert H. Roberts in Pall Mall.

For the next 10 years, York was well honored. Yet he turned down the many offers to endorse products, star in motion pictures and so on, though he did accept a few of the lighter deals, using the money to provide for his wife and growing family. A lovely home was given to York by the Nashville Rotary Club, with 400 acres of prime bottom land, and it served well for the many, many visitors who stopped by. Gracie always invited them to stay for a meal, and the conversations continued late into the night.

They had seven children, all named after American historical figures: five sons (Alvin Cullum, Jr., Edward Buxton, Woodrow Wilson, Andrew Jackson, and Thomas Jefferson) and two daughters (Betsy Ross and Mary Alice).

Andrew York, Alvin's son. said that his father approved of the 1941 Oscar-winning film "Sergeant York," starring Gary Cooper.

Andrew York loves to tell visitors how his father threw a fit when he caught Gary Cooper smoking a cigarette on the Hollywood set.

"They had to shut down production until Gary Cooper apologized to Daddy," he said.





















On June 7, 1919, Alvin C. York and Gracie Loretta Williams were married by Tennessee Governor Albert H. Roberts in Pall Mall.

For the next 10 years, York was well honored. Yet he turned down the many offers to endorse products, star in motion pictures and so on, though he did accept a few of the lighter deals, using the money to provide for his wife and growing family. A lovely home was given to York by the Nashville Rotary Club, with 400 acres of prime bottom land, and it served well for the many, many visitors who stopped by. Gracie always invited them to stay for a meal, and the conversations continued late into the night.

They had seven children, all named after American historical figures: five sons (Alvin Cullum, Jr., Edward Buxton, Woodrow Wilson, Andrew Jackson, and Thomas Jefferson) and two daughters (Betsy Ross and Mary Alice).

Andrew York, Alvin's son. said that his father approved of the 1941 Oscar-winning film "Sergeant York," starring Gary Cooper.

Andrew York loves to tell visitors how his father threw a fit when he caught Gary Cooper smoking a cigarette on the Hollywood set.

"They had to shut down production until Gary Cooper apologized to Daddy," he said.


























He founded the Alvin C. York Agricultural Institute, a private agricultural school in Jamestown, Tennessee.


















In 1929, York decided—after much pushing from friends — to publish his war diary, in an effort to raise more money for the failing Institute and to build a school for the local mountain children. He was a compelling speaker and many flocked to hear him. But though many seemed interested, few gave monetarily, and in 1937 York gave the Institute to the state, which had more finances available. The Alvin C. York Agricultural Institute is still in operation today.

The school, now known as Alvin C. York Institute, is the only fully state-funded public high school in the State of Tennessee. The school is a nationally recognized school of excellence and boasts the highest high school graduation percentage in the state. It is home to almost 800 students.





















Alvin York also opened a Bible school. The above picture is how the former school looks today,




















The Alvin C. York & Son's General Store and Post Office



























During World War II, Alvin York was convinced that the state of Tennessee needed a reserve force at home and was active in the creation of the Tennessee State Guard in 1941, in which he served as a Colonel and Commanding Officer of the 7th Infantry Regiment.


























Alvin York shaking hands with the Governor of Tennessee.


























He attempted to re-enlist in the Army but was denied front line service because of age. Instead he was commissioned as a major and went on bond tours and made personal appearances to support the war effort. He was also involved with military recruiting as well as inspection tours of American soldiers in training.


























Sgt. Alvin C. York and his trusted rifle.


Alvin C. York was an avid shooter. Most of the guns he owned, and the ones that are currently in the possession of the York family, reflect his lifelong love of hunting and target shooting.

Probably the gun he used more than even his percussion long rifle - which is on display in Nashville - was his Remington Model 11 semi-automatic 12-ga. shotgun. York's son Andrew remembers going duck hunting with Daddy and watching his father pick the ducks off from rear to front, in the same manner he shot Germans in the Argonne. Alvin York also owned a 10-ga. Winchester Model 1901 lever-action shotgun, but it was presumably retired when he got his Model 11.

Andrew York tells of how his father was able to shoot doves on the wing using a Winchester Model 74 .22 auto loading rifle - another of his favorite guns. He also had a Winchester Model 92 in .25-20 Win., as well as a .32 ACP CZ Model 24 semi-automatic pistol. The former was presumably used for larger game such as deer and hogs, while the latter, according to Andrew, was carried by York occasionally for self-protection. He has no idea where the CZ came from.


























Mr. Alvin and Mrs. Gracie York standing in the yard beside their home.



By the 1950’s, he had suffered several small strokes, but was still active in cattle breeding, farming, and so on.






















Sgtt. Alvin C. York & Sons - Wolf - Wolf River Farms





















He later operated the Alvin C York  & Sons Gristmill in Pall Mall, located on the Wolf River.

He was 13 years older than Gracie, but it didn’t stop them both from entertaining guests, telling & re-telling stories of their childhood and occasionally consenting to be interviewed by a curious reporter. Speeches were given occasionally, especially on Memorial Day.


























This picture was taken in the summer of 1953. At this point in time, Alvin used a cane when he was walking. In 1954, Alvin York suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and spent the rest of his life paralyzed from the waist down.


























Alvin York, bedfast in his home (1962)


Until his death in 1964, Alvin York still talked to visitors as he was able, and played with his grandchildren from his bed.


























On September 2, 1964, Alvin York went into the Veterans Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee, unconscious, and died that same day,  of a cerebral hemorrhage. He was buried at the Wolf River Cemetery in Pall Mall.




















Alvin Cullum York's funeral sermon was delivered by Richard G. Humble, General Superintendent of the Churches of Christ in Christian Union.  Pastor Humble also preached at Mrs. York's funeral in 1984.



















There was hymn-playing, including Calvin York's favorite "Onward Christian Soldiers"; a 21-gun salute; and then Taps while the coffin was being lowered.

Neither his wife Gracie, nor those who  might know the tiniest bit about Sgt. York, had any doubt that Alvin York was in Heaven. He had said, shortly before he died, that "If I don’t go back home [to Pall Mall] today, I will go to Heaven. And that be the truth."


















The York Chapel, that is across the road from the cemetery  which contains graves of Alvin York. and his wife Gracie, as  well as other York family members.

























This picture which was taken in 1977, shows Gracie York visiting the gravesite of her husband and hero, Alvin C. York.








































Alvin and Gracie York's son, Thomas Jefferson York, was killed in the line of duty on May 7, 1972 while serving as a constable in Tennessee.





































Alvin York's Former Home. Now part of the Alvin. C. York State Historic Site in Pall Mall, Tennessee, and located on US 127.


The Sgt. Alvin C. York State Historic Park, is located in Pall Mall, Tennessee. It pays tribute to Sgt. Alvin C. York, the backwoods marksman from the mountains of Tennessee who became one of the most decorated soldiers of World War I.


























He has been honored by a 10-foot statue on the grounds of the State Capitol in Nashville, and his medals and trophies may be seen at the Tennessee State Museum..

























The historic park includes the York Family Farm and the Grist Mill that Alvin York operated for many years on the banks of the Wolf River.




















Alvin C York Gristmill & Dam.



The York Farm and Grist Mill are located on Highway 127, about seven miles north of Jamestown.




















The Alvin C York Dam.

The mill and farm are open April through October from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., and in the spring and fall from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Other times by appointment only.




















The Alvin C. York General Store and Post Office.




















This is the right side of the York family home. This is the gate for the entrance of visitors,





















This is the Front of York family's home. It is facing the highway.



















This view of the York family's home shows the left side and the front.


Alvin York's bedroom was on the first floor, the first room on the right side of the house.


























In 1954, after suffering a stroke, Alviin York received a state-of-the-art electric hospital bed from Buford Ellington, governor of Tennessee. The bed is still in the bedroom, along with Alvin's wheelchair.


























Alvin York's legacy endures in his home county in a number of ways, Alvin C. York Institute, as it is now called, was his greatest personal achievement. Against all odds, he brought the fruits of modern education to a rural area. York elementary school is named in his honor as well. The state highway, 127, that runs in front of his Pall Mall, Tennessee home is named York Highway, and the bridge across the Wolf River also bears his name. The park that sits on the 400 acres he called home is a reminder of his accomplishments. The structure used by the Church of Christ in Christian Union in Pall Mall, where York worshiped, bears the name York Chapel.














The National Guard Armory in Jamestown, Tennessee is named for him as well. On the east lawn of the state capitol in Nashville, a statue celebrates him as a Tennessean and war hero. In Murfreesboro, Tennessee, the Veterans Hospital is named for York and contains a small exhibit in his honor, including a bronze portrait bust of the famed Tennessean. Every year a commemorative muzzleloader shooting contest is held in York's name near his old home place.






















The legacy left by York continues to grow. His life still proves to be an inspiration to people throughout the country, and thousands trek to his home each year in homage. York has been the subject of a segment of the Arts and Entertainment (A&E) Channel's Biography series, and immortalized by the United States Postal Sgt. York Stamp issued 2000 Service.

York has been honored in a number of ways, from the production of limited edition Sergeant York sidearm pocket knives to a special limited edition reproduction of the Colt .45 (semi automatic colt .45 model 1911, also know as a colt .45 acp) like the one he used in the Argonne. He has been the subject of serious scholarship (see the bibliographies associated with this site), religious revivals, inspirational literature, folk art, T-shirts, coffee cups, cartoons, posters, and even novels. York shows up to save the day once again in Newt Gingrich's rather bizarre novel, 1945. In Pennsylvania, a paint ball establishment bears his name, and in San Diego a sandwich is named for him. During the Reagan administration, a new weapon was introduced, the DIVAD system, or Sergeant York Tank. The tank, intended to parrot the marksmanship of the famed mountaineer, ironically could not hit M247anything it shot at and was mothballed immediately after its rollout, to the embarrassment of Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger. (A model of the tank can be seen at the York home and in the Jamestown National Guard Armory).


























Dr. Michael Birdwell said: "Alvin York represents for many people the simple values of the American frontier hero from Daniel Boone, Davy Crockett, and Abraham Lincoln to the fictional American hero archetype Natty Bumppo. But he was much more than that. York embraced the fruits of technology and looked forward to a promising future rather than backward to an idealized agrarian past. A man of incredible generosity and equipped with a marvelous sense of humor, York embodied the best America has to offer. His values were simple -- love of God, home, family, and country -- but he was by no means simplistic. He was a complex, complicated man who grew to greatness without compromising too much."




















The Sgt. Alvin C. York State Historic Park is especially popular with school groups. Andrew York said he sometimes marvels at the fact that the remnants of his childhood are on public display and that his father's legacy lives on.

When asked on numerous occasions how he wanted to be remembered, Alvin York would say, "for helping improve education in Tennessee, bringing in better roads, and just helping my fellow man."

"It's hard to find heroes like him anymore." Andrew York said. "Daddy thought more of other people than he did of himself. That was the type of person he was."


Honors

    * Alvin C. York Veterans Hospital: Located in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
    * Alvin C. York Institute: Founded as a private agricultural high school in 1926 by Alvin York and residents of Fentress County, the school became public in 1937 because of the Depression and continues to serve as Jamestown's high school.
    * 1941 film:York's story was told in the 1941 movie Sergeant York, with Gary Cooper in the title role. York refused to authorize a film version of his life story unless he received a contractual guarantee that Cooper would be the actor to portray him. Cooper won the Academy Award for Best Actor and the film was the highest-grossing picture of 1941.[30]
    * York Avenue, NYC: York Avenue on the Upper East Side of Manhattan was named for the Sergeant in 1928.[31]
    * M-247 (DIVAD weapon system): In the 1980s, the United States Army named its DIVAD weapon system "Sergeant York"; the project was cancelled because of technical problems and massive cost overruns.[32]
    * U.S. Postal Service Distinguished Soldiers stamp: On May 5, 2000, the United States Postal Service issued the "Distinguished Soldiers" stamps, in which York was honored.[33]
    * Laura Cantrell song: Laura Cantrell's song "Old Downtown" mentions York in depth.[34]
    * President Reagan funeral procession: The riderless horse in the funeral procession of President Ronald Reagan was named Sergeant York.[35]
    * 82nd Airborne theater: The 82nd Airborne Division's movie theater at Fort Bragg, North Carolina is named York Theater.[36]
    * Sergeant York Historic Trail: The Sergeant York Historic Trail is completed and was constructed under the supervision of Colonel Douglas Mastriano (US Army, on behalf of the Center of Military History) and the
Sergeant York Discovery Expedition in the Argonne,
      Inauguration of Trail and Monument on October 4th 2008,  so that all visitors to the Argonne can walk where Sgt.York walked. The trail was built/supported by 100 volunteers, which included; Boy Scouts, battlefield archeologists, geospatial cartographers, historians and military professionals from the US Army, Marines and Air Force. All French officials in the region approved the trail, monuments and the locations of markers. The approval went as high as the French Federal Senator over the state/region. The 4 October 2008 ceremony was the largest to date with over 800 in attendance. Those present at the grand opening ceremony included a large contingent from the French military, soldiers from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the U.S. Army, USAF, USMC and U.S. Navy.
    * Football trophy: The traveling American football trophy between Austin Peay, UT Martin, Tennessee State and Tennessee Tech is called the Alvin C. York trophy.[39]
    * 229th Military Intelligence Battalion hall: The 229th U.S. Army Military Intelligence Battalion, Alpha Company, Monterey, California, dedicated their soldiers' hall in honor of Sgt. York. Col. Gerald York (U.S. Army, retired, grandson of Alvin York) officiated at the dedication ceremony.[citation needed]
    * Sergeant Alvin C. York Statue: A monumental statue of York by sculptor Felix de Weldon was placed on the grounds of the Tennessee State Capitol in 1968.
    * Alvin C. York Memorial: A modest bronze helmet rests atop a stone flag on the grounds of East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, Tennessee. A poem on this monument is dedicated to York.