by Theo Emery
View of the Chemical Warfare Service plant at Edgewood Arsenal, 1918. At the height of wartime activity at Edgewood, more than eleven thousand soldiers and civilians worked on chemical weapons at the arsenal. (National Archives, photo no. 111-SC-80476)
Top photo: Panorama of Gunpowder Neck in Edgewood, Maryland, before work began on the plants. Bottom photo: Edgewood Arsenal on the same tract of land in 1918. (National Archives, photo no. 111-SC-60480-A)
No-man’s-land in France. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army Chemical Corps Museum, Fort Leonard Wood, MO)
No-man’s-land in France. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army Chemical Corps Museum, Fort Leonard Wood, MO)
The AEF chemical laboratory in Puteaux, France, just outside Paris. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army Chemical Corps Museum, Fort Leonard Wood, MO)
A soldier at the gas school at Chaumont, France, loading a drum into a German projector, modeled on the Livens projector, in October 1918. (National Archives, photo no. 111-SC-31049)
An officer in the First Gas Regiment setting off a smoke pot near the Argonne Forest on October 8, 1918. (National Archives, photo no. 111-SC-29510)
The train station at La Ferté after a shell barrage, with members of Company B helping to clean up the station. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army Chemical Corps Museum, Fort Leonard Wood, MO)
Members of Company C, First Gas Regiment, attached to the Eightieth Division, load and fire phosphorus and thermite shells in Le Neufour, Meuse, France, on October 27, 1918. (National Archives, photo no. 111-SC-31966)
Hellfire Boys of the First Gas Regiment on the march in France. A member of Company B donated the photo to the U.S. Army Chemical Corps Museum. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army Chemical Corps Museum, Fort Leonard Wood, MO)
The gas ship USS Elinor, which was outfitted to carry chemical weapons to Europe. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army Chemical Corps Museum, Fort Leonard Wood, MO)
A masked soldier—probably Charles William Maurer—standing over the burial pit called Hades at the rear of the American University Experiment Station. The caption on the back of the photo calls the spot “the most feared and respected place on the grounds.” The photo came to light in 1993 and helped pinpoint the location of the pit several years later. (Photo courtesy of estate of Addie Ruth Maurer Olson/Olson Family Collection)
About the Author
Theo Emery is a journalist who has written for the New York Times, the Associated Press, the Washington Post, the Boston Globe, The Tennessean, and other publications. A native of South Burlington, Vermont, he graduated from Stanford University in 1994 and earned an MFA in creative nonfiction from Goucher College in 2014. He was a 2015 Alicia Patterson Foundation Fellow. He lives outside Washington, D.C.
@temery
Notes on Sources
“If you can’t find it, you don’t have it.” That statement became my mantra while working on Hellfire Boys because of the mountain of documents—a digital mountain, for the most part—that I collected over the course of my research.
As a rule, I relied on primary documents whenever possible. Finding supporting documentation for the three strands of this story—the work of the Research Division, the stories of the Hellfire Boys sent to France, and the saga of Walter T. Scheele—each presented its own challenges. With respect to the Research Division, the National Archives has a vast number of records related to the Bureau of Mines and the Chemical Warfare Service, and yet some documents crucial to a full understanding of this history have proved difficult to find or don’t exist, such as definitive documentation of the quantities of lewisite created and how it was disposed of. Moreover, the bifurcated history of the CWS—spread under a multitude of departments and agencies in its first year, then reorganized as the CWS—means that records are spread among numerous record groups in the archives. Some records may never be found. One archivist I spoke to described a specific research errand as “looking for a needle in a stack of needles.” It was an apt description.
Compounding that problem, Fort Leonard Wood has a large repository of World War I–era documents related to the CWS that have never been accessioned to the National Archives; some have never even been processed. In 2015, I filed a Freedom of Information Act request for records related to lewisite and other aspects of the book. In summer of 2017, that FOIA was still being processed and the request was incomplete.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers responded quickly to FOIAs related to Spring Valley and the American University Experiment Station. Specifying locations of those records in the endnotes was difficult. The documents, which largely originated from the National Archives, arrived in large batches using an organizational system specific to the Army Corps of Engineers. In the endnotes, those records are denoted as U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Seeking out specific documents was not as difficult as it might seem: the corps compiled a finding aid of supporting documents for a history of Spring Valley from 1994, entitled A Brief History of the American University Experiment Station and U.S. Navy Bomb Disposal School, which can be found in the bibliography. That list allowed me to request specific historical records.
While I attempted to use multiple document sources for verification when possible, oftentimes that was not an option. That was particularly the case with Walter T. Scheele. The Old German Files at the National Archives in College Park are by far the most comprehensive chronicle of Scheele’s story during the war, but they also are the only such repository of information that I’m aware of, and I had to rely heavily on those records as a result. Many of the postwar books about German espionage (such as Emerson Hough’s The Web, Frank Strother’s Fighting Germany’s Spies, and especially Rintelen’s The Dark Invader) are entertaining, colorful, and rich in detail, but not to be relied upon. While the Old German Files can be viewed on microfilm at the National Archives at College Park, for the most part I used the digital document service Fold3.com to access, search, and view these documents.
The AEF records from overseas are the most comprehensive and best organized of the documents I relied on. The most complete repository of records about the First Gas Regiment is at the U.S. Army Chemical Corps Museum in Fort Leonard Wood, which has an astonishingly comprehensive library of battle reports, division histories, and other official records of the regiment. The museum also has a number of personal histories in the form of diaries, letters, photographs, and scrapbooks, as well as the always entertaining Gas Attack. It was there, seated at a folding table in the office of the museum director, Kip Lindberg, that the story of the Hellfire Regiment came to life for me.
While rich material for the book came from private sources, such as the priceless war diary of James Thayer Addison, I suspect that far more archival treasures remain buried in family archives, file boxes, and forgotten corners of attics. I only hope that if such documents exist they are discovered, preserved, and shared before they are lost forever.
Selected Bibliography
Archives
American University Library, University Archives and Special Collections
American University Early History Files.
Jabine, Thomas. Letters.
Osborn, Albert. “Chronology of Events, 1907–1940.”
WWI History Collection.
Antioch College, Olive Kettering Library, Antiochiana
Adams, Clyde S. Papers.
Catholic University of America, American Catholic History Research Center and University Archives
Assorted articles about lewisite and Martin Maloney Chemistry Laboratory.
Catholic University Bulletin, 23, no. 8 (Nov. 1917); 25, nos. 1–2 (Feb. 1919); 25, no. 9 (Dec. 1919).
Columbia University, Rare Book and Manuscript Library
Zanetti, Joaquin Enrique. Papers, 1917–52. Call no. MS 1405.
Harvard University Archives
Conant, James Bryant. Papers, 1862–1987. Call no. UAI 15.898.
Lamb, Arthur B. Papers. Call no. HUG 4508.5.
Historical Society of Washington, D.C
.
American University photos. General Photograph Collection. Whetzel Aerial Photograph Collection.
Baist Map Collection. Washington, DC.
Photo collection of Spring Valley, Rauscher’s banquet hall, Cosmos Club, and book In Memoriam, Benjamin Farnsworth Leighton.
In Flanders Fields Museum, Ieper (Ypres), Belgium
Dendooven, Dominiek, archivist and compiler. “Overview: 22 April 1915—Eyewitness Accounts of the First Gas Attack.”
Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Alan Chesney Medical Archives
Marshall, Eli K., Jr. Papers, 1899–1966.
Johns Hopkins University, Special Collections, Milton S. Eisenhower Library
Reid, E. Emmet. Reid (Ebenezer Emmett) 1889–1974 Papers. Call no. MS 104.
Lake County Historical Society
Simpson, Nate. “Nineteen-Eighteen in Willoughby, Ohio.” Assorted photos and articles related to the Mousetrap.
Library of Congress
Pershing, John J. Papers, General Correspondence, 1904–48.
MIT
Keyes, Frederick. Papers, 1917–80. Call no. MC-318.
Lewis, Warren K. Papers. Call no. MC-578.
Richter, George A. Papers, 1919–58. Call no. MC-401.
National Academy of Sciences Archives
National Academy of Sciences—National Research Council Central File, 1914–1918, Executive Board records.
Agencies and Departments, Dept. of the Interior, Bureau of Mines, 1916–1918.
Committee on Gases Used in Warfare, 1918.
Committee on Noxious Gases, 1917.
Projects, Helium Production, 1917.
National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.
Record group 24, Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel, Logbooks of US Ships and Stations, 1916–1940, US Navy Logbooks.
Muster Rolls of Ships and Shore Establishments, Jan. 1898–June 30, 1939. Vol. 2240. PI 123, entry 134.
USS Agamemnon, Jan. 1, 1918–Aug. 27, 1918. Entry 118-G.
USS Elinor, Mar. 20, 1918–Apr. 26, 1919. Entry 118-G-E.
USS President Grant, Apr. 2, 1917–Dec. 31, 1918. Entry 118-G-P.
USS Western Front, May 11, 1918–Aug. 18, 1919. Entry 118-G-W.
Record group 41, Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation, Official Number Files, 1867–1958. USS Elinor. Box 1323.
Record group 45, Navy Subject File.
Logistics File, 1916–20. Entry 522, box 53.
National Archives and Records Administration II, College Park, MD
Record group 18, Air Service.
Record group 70, Bureau of Mines.
Record group 77, Records of the Office of the Chief of Engineers.
Record group 92, Office of Quartermaster General.
Record group 120, Records of the AEF.
Record group 165, War Department General Staff.
Record group 175, Chemical Warfare Service.
Record group 200, Papers of General John J. Pershing.
Signal Corps, 111-SC.
Ohio State University Archives
Burrell, George A. Records.
McPherson, William. Papers. Record group 3/g/1.
Reed, Carlos Isaac. Records.
Princeton University Archives
Hulett, George A. Papers, 1909–1962. Call no. C0460.
Smithsonian Institution Archives
Records of the Audubon Naturalist Society of the Mid-Atlantic States, 1893–1980.
Talbot House, Poperinge, Belgium
Batteu, Jeanne. Video and transcript of oral history.
University of Iowa, Parks Library Special Collections
Davidson, Harold French. Papers. Call no. MS-605.
University of Oregon Library, Special Collections and University Archives
Fries, Amos A. Papers, 1896–1953. Collection no. Ax 234.
U.S. Army Chemical Corps Museum, Fort Leonard Wood, MO
Carlisle Attic Collection.
First Gas Regiment Collection.
Individual soldier files.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Records and historical documents for project C03DC091801 (Spring Valley—Military Munitions Response Program).
U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center at Carlisle Barracks, Carlisle, PA
World War I Veterans Survey, Chemical Warfare Service.
Washingtoniana Room, Washington, D.C., Public Library
“Artificial Collection,” Collection 60.
Yale University
Henderson, Yandell. Collected Papers. 1873–1944. Call no. Sl21 38.
Underhill, Frank Pell. Papers. Call no. MS 514.
Yale University Military and Wartime Activities Photographs. Call no. RU 750.
Microfilm
Edison, Thomas A. Papers. Part 5, 1911–19, Notebook Series, reel 231, NBK-55, reel 237, NBK-61; Edison General File Series, reel 268, DOC-90, reel 270, DOC-92; Letterbook Series, reel 277, LBK-20. University Publications of America.
Investigative Case Files of the Bureau of Investigation, 1908–1922. Record group 65. National Archives Microfilm Publication M1085. Old German Files, 1909–21. National Archives at College Park, MD.
Levering, Richmond M. Case nos. 8000-184, 8000-12490, 8000-16110, 8000-16950, 97452.
Scheele, Walter T. Case no. 8000-925.
Willoughby Republican, Willoughby-Eastlake Public Library, Willoughby, OH.
Personal Papers, Books, Unpublished Manuscripts, and Private Collections
Addison, James Thayer. War diary. Louise Cass Collection. Additional Addison records courtesy of Margot McCain.
Bielaski, A. Bruce. Documents. Courtesy of Jennifer Lawrence.
Jabine, Thomas. Photos and documents. Courtesy of Thomas Jabine Jr.
Lewis, Winford Lee. Papers. L. Philip Reiss Collection.
MacMullin, Robert Burns. Odyssey of a Chemical Engineer: The Autobiography of Robert Burns MacMullin. Smithtown, NY: Exposition Press, 1983. Courtesy of Constance Aust.
Manning, Van H. Articles, letters, transcripts. Courtesy of Petrie M. Wilson and Pamela Manning Fein.
Maurer, William Charles. Papers, letters, and photos. Addie Ruth Maurer Olson/Olson Family Collection.
Sibert, William L. Letters, photos, and records. Anne Sibert Buiter Collection.
Smith, Harold Clinton. Papers and photos. Courtesy of Dorothy Smith Coleman.
Articles and Periodical Collections
The following list does not include newspaper articles or individual articles cited in the endnotes.
Black Diamond 55, nos. 1–26 (July 3–Dec. 25, 1915). Chicago: Black Diamond Co., 1915.
Brophy, Leo P. “Origins of the Chemical Corps.” Military Affairs 20, no. 4 (1956): 217–26.
Catalyst: Official Bulletin of the Philadelphia and Delaware Sections of the American Chemical Society 4, nos. 1–8 (Jan.–Oct. 1919).
“The European War,” New York Times Current History 11 (Apr. –June 1917).
Faith, Thomas. “It Would Be Very Well If We Could Avoid It: General Pershing and Chemical Warfare.” Historian 78, no. 3 (fall 2016): 469–85.
Fitzgerald, Gerard D. “Chemical Warfare and Medical Response during World War I.” American Journal of Public Health 98, no. 4 (Apr. 2008): 611–25.
Forum 62 (July–Dec. 1919).
Fuel Oil Journal/Oil Trade Journal 7, nos. 1–12 (Jan.–Dec. 1916).
Gordon, Martin K., Barry R. Sude, and Ruth Ann Overbeck. “Chemical Testing in the Great War: The American University Experiment Station.” Washington History 6, no. 1 (1994): 28–45.
Jaffe, Harry. “Ground Zero.” Washingtonian, Dec. 2000. https://www.washing tonian.com/2000/12/01/ground-zero/.
. “The Toxic Pit Next Door.” Washingtonian, Mar. 2013. https://www .washingtonian.com/2013/02/28/the-toxic-waste-pit-next-door/.
Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry 9, nos. 1–12 (Jan. 1–Dec. 1, 1917); 10, nos. 1–12 (Jan. 1–Dec. 1, 1919); 11, nos. 1–12 (Jan.–Dec. 1919).
McLamb, Margaret E. “From Death Valley to Spring Valley: A Case Study in Contamination in Washington, DC.” Sustainable Development Law and Policy 3, no. 1 (fall/winter 2003): 3–9.
Mining and Engineering World 45 (July 1–Dec. 30, 1916).
Mining Congress Journal 2, nos. 1–12 (Jan.–Dec. 1916).
Stockbridge, Frank Parker. “War Inventions That Came Too Late.” Harper’s Monthly Magazine, Nov. 1919.
Verrell, Benefsheh D. “Spring Valley, Washington, DC: Changing Land Use and Demographics from 1900–2000.” Geographical Bulletin 49 (2008): 103–19.
Books and Monographs
Addison, James Thayer. The Story of the First Gas Regiment. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1919.
. War, Peace and the Christian Mind. Greenwich, CT: Seabury Press, 1953.
Albright, Richard. Death of the Chesapeake: A History of the Military’s Role in Polluting the Bay. Beverly, MA: Scrivener Publishing, 2013.
Arthur, Max. Forgotten Voices of the Great War: A History of World War I in the Words of the Men and Women Who Were There. Guilford, CT: Lyons Press, 2002.
Auld, Major Samuel James Manson. Gas and Flame in Modern Warfare. New York: George H. Doran, 1918.
Baker, Newton B. Why We Went to War. New York: Harper and Brothers, for the Council on Foreign Relations, 1936.
Berg, A. Scott. Wilson. New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 2013.
Blum, Howard. Dark Invasion: 1915: Germany’s Secret War and the Hunt for the First Terrorist Cell in America. New York: Harper Collins, 2014.
Brophy, Leo P., and George J. B. Fisher. The Chemical Warfare Service: Organizing for War. Washington, DC: Center of Military History, 1989.