VAUGHAN, Corp. James Gordon 1898-1918

VAUGHAN, EDWARDS

Posted By: Joe Conroy (email)
Date: 9/5/2010 at 13:37:38

Waterloo Times-Tribune
Waterloo, Iowa
10 Aug 1918
Page 1 & 2

Waterloo Boy Killed

Corp. Gordon Vaughan Died On Battlefield

Killed July 26, According to Official Announcement to His Parents.

Was West High Athlete

First of Waterloo "Veterans" to Be Killed. -- Member of Iowa Militia.

Corporal James Gordon Vaughan, of Co. B, 168th Infantry, Rainbow division, was added to Waterloo's roll of honor on July 26, according to a message to his parents, Mr. and Mrs. James R. Vaughan. He died in action on the French front, according to the official message from Washington.

Altho Corporal Vaughan would not have been twenty years of age until next month, he was one of Waterloo's "veteran" soldiers. He enlisted in Co. G, First Iowa infantry, June 20, 1916, at the time of the Mexican trouble. He saw service on the Mexican border and left Waterloo when the Iowa National Guards were called into service following the declaration of war upon Germany.

He remained a member of the Waterloo company until transferred to the Rainbow division. He left with that division for France, but shortly after his arrival overseas, Major Clinton Holden asked for the transfer of Vaughan and several other Waterloo boys. Major Holden is in the quartermaster corps. He remained in that branch of service only a short time and requested that he be transferred to his old company in order that he might see active service. He had been on the firing line for several months and participated in a number of the most important battles in which the American soldiers have taken part.

Like Lieut. Carl Chapman and Lieut. Fred Becker, two Waterloo boys killed in action, Corp. Vaughan was a popular athlete. He was a student at West High when the Mexican trouble arose and had one year to complete his course. He was a member of the football, basketball and track teams.

Gordon Vaughan was best known as "Vaughnie."

He won fame on the battlefield as he did when battling for honor of West High. He was a daring athlete and reports from his officers have indicated that he was a brilliant soldier.

First of Veterans.

Gordon Vaughan is the first member of the former Waterloo company to be killed in action in France. At the time of the Mexican trouble scores of Waterloo youths enlisted in the service and when the soldier boys left for the Mexican border many of the members of Co. G were boys under 21 years of age.

A majority of the boys who enlisted at that time are now overseas.

Seventeen members of Gordon Vaughan's class at West High are in the service, as follows:

Walter Armagost, Harold Becker, Joe Eagle, Ernest Henderson, Lloyd Smith, Harold Fentiman, Robert Nauman, Halsey Beatty, William Bennett, Harold Ferguson, Dillon Thomas, Donald Sindlinger, William Koester, Roland McGuire, Gaylen Green and Donald Hetts.

Born in Waterloo.

James Gordon Vaughan was born in Waterloo Sept. 20, 1898. He spent practically his entire life in Waterloo, having attended the West Waterloo schools until he enlisted for service.

He is survived by parents and one brother, Herbert, who is at the officers training camp at Fort Sheridan, Ill. His grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. A. J. Edwards and Mrs. Emily P. Vaughan, reside in Waterloo.

Mr. Vaughan, who is business manager of the Des Moines college, was in Des Moines at the time the message was received. Mrs. Vaughan was at the home of her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Edwards.

Waterloo Evening Courier
Waterloo, Iowa
10 Sep 1918
Page 5

Gordon Vaughan's Last Thought Was of Others' Safety

Corporal Gordon Vaughan's last thought was for his comrades and he died the instant following a warning to them to "get down quick" which probably saved the lives of many, it is learned in a letter from Sergt. George Rausch, a comrade in Co. G, who saw him die. Vaughan was happy to the last and died instantly, Sergt. Rausch says.

Waterloo Evening Courier
Waterloo, Iowa
26 Aug 1918
Page 2

Letter From Gordon Vaughan Reaches Parents

Mr. and Mrs. J. A. Vaughan, parents of Corporal Gordon Vaughan, killed in action July 26, have received a letter written by him July 14, French Independence day. On this day the Waterloo boy's company received its orders to move, presumably to the field of battle on which he met his death. The letter follows:

"Today is the day that France celebrates as we do the Fourth of July. All of the French soldiers are out dressed in their Sunday best and believe me, they are all good looking soldiers. We are to have a band concert and several games this afternoon and the chaplain may speak, too.

"Last night I received the little registered package containing the wrist watch. It sure is a peach and I am very proud of it. I can get along lots better now that I have one, especially on guard.

"Early this morning we had a call to be ready to move and every one was on their toes for a while. You see our position now is such that we can move to any one of several fronts at once, aside from the one behind which we are stationed. It is this mobility of reserves that makes it easy to stop the huns when they come. I can't say whether we will have a part in the coming German drive or not, but we expect a little run one of these days. The situation in Austria is likely to prove very embarrassing for Germany and if the Italians continue their advance Austria may have to give in. In my opinion that is the way the war will end; not that it isn't possible for us to beat Germany on this front, but because Austria is the one who needs and wants peace much more than Germany. I doubt very much if a decision will be reached before next year, but still you never can tell.

"Our camp is located near a battery of heavy artillery and it is very hard to sleep with all the noise, and believe me, those big boys make some noise. Of course, they don't shoot all of the time, but when they are all working one can hardly hear himself think. Every time one of those big shells start whining away over to Germany I think of the destruction that follows in its wake. It sort of tickles me to hear them go, for I can imagine how those rats run for cover when they hear the big boy coming. They deserve all of it and more and one of these days they sure are going to catch it.

"A new order about boxes has just been issued and this is to be final. All our requests are signed by Col. Bennet now so everything should go through O. K. I will send one tomorrow or the next day. Tonight we expect to get a lot of first class mail because it usually follows the day after registered mail. Day before yesterday a big bunch of Posts, two Everybody's and a couple of papers came in for me. I have read every one of them from cover to cover and am trading them around now to get new material.

"Greenie and I were out on a working party yesterday and we stopped at one of the many observation posts to have a look at Germany. This particular post is a high tower all camouflaged with green stuff and has stationary field glasses set in the top. We could see one large German town, a number of roads that are being shelled by our guns, the German front line and other points of interest. It was a little misty so we couldn't see any Loches.

"It's dinner time now, so I'll have to stop. Will write more tomorrow."

Waterloo Evening Courier
Waterloo, Iowa
2 Sep 1918
Page 8

Honor Memory of Gordon Vaughan

First Baptist Church Gives Sunday Service to Memorial of Waterloo Boy Killed in Action.

Memorial services for Corporal Gordon Vaughan, killed in action in France July 26, were conducted yesterday at First Baptist church. Mr. and Mrs. J. R. Vaughan, parents of the youth who made the supreme sacrifice, have been members of the church for years.

A biographical sketch of Corporal Vaughan was read by Miss Hazel Bond. It told of early life, how he attended west high and became a star football player and how he first entered military service by going to the Mexican border in 1916. Miss Bond read several letters written to his mother by Corporal Vaughan in order to show the spirit of the boys over there and how they place themselves in the care of the supreme commander before going into action.

Memorial Sermon.

The memorial sermon was preached by Rev. Clyde J. Askins. The text was: "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

"This text is very appropriate today," Rev. Mr. Askins said. "Our service is in honor of one who laid down his life, not only for his friends, but for humanity. To lay down life for friends is the supreme test of love. In this cruel and awful world war thousands have gone out to die because they loved their friends and their homes in which they had learned to love one another."

Rev. Mr. Askins paid an eloquent tribute to the parents of the dead soldier, declaring that they had made the one great contribution to the cause and that they would be rewarded in years to come.

Special music for the service included a vocal solo by Miss Helen Cowles and several patriotic numbers.

Waterloo Evening Courier
Waterloo, Iowa
20 Mar 1925
Page 18

Resting Place Of Corp. G. Vaughan Found In France

Football Injury Led to Identification of Grave of Hero from Waterloo

Identification of the grave of Corporal James Gordon Vaughan, son of Mr. and Mrs. J. R. Vaughan and grandson of the late A. J. Edwards, has finally been made after searching for more than six years, according to a letter from Major R. P. Harbold, assistant quartermaster general of the United States army.

An identification card enclosed shows the grave is No. 36, row 8, block A, in the Oise-Aisne American cemetery at Sereges-et-Nesles, Aisne, France.

Corporal Vaughan was a member of Co. G, One Hundred Sixty-eights infantry (Rainbow division). He was killed in action July 26, 1918.

Killed Instantly by Shell.

From the first all efforts to identify the body of Corporal Vaughan were unavailing. He was killed instantly by an exploding shell, his injuries being in the abdomen. Miss Lucy Sullivan, Gordon's eighth grade teacher in the schools of Waterloo west, who is now in the records department of the government at Washington, has been unceasing in her efforts to bring about identification of the body.

This was finally done by means of a deformity of the clavicle bone which was broken twice while Gordon was playing football on the West High team in 1914 and 1915.

These fractures left their marks on the skeleton in such a way that the records bureau officials were able to make positive identification. Thus, while the relatives considered the injuries as misfortunes at the time, they now feel that they had valuable uses later, for by reason of them the parents may know just where their son lies buried.

Football Captain-Elect.

The last fracture of the clavicle was in the East-West game on Thanksgiving day, 1915. Gordon was elected captain of the team for 1916, but in June of that year he was called for service on the Mexican border as a member of the national guard.

Later he was called for service in the world war and was among the first of the boys from Waterloo to die in action.

"In this beautiful cemetery repose the bodies of thousands of your son's comrades, whose graves will be appropriately marked and tenderly cared for by a grateful nation, befitting their supreme sacrifice," writes Major Harbold. "The department trusts that your knowledge of the recovery and identification of your gallant son's body will afford you some measure of comfort and lessen the sorrow incident to his death."