In Honor of World War I Veteran Henry Buncombe

World War I, also known as the “Great War” was officially concluded on the 11th hour of the 11th day of November in the year 1918. In 1919, President Wilson declared November 11 as "Armistice Day." In 1954, President Harry S. Truman renamed the celebration of "Veterans Day." Today, Veterans Day is still observed on November 11th as a national holiday to honor all veterans of the United States Armed Forces. To honor the men who died in World War I, I highlight how to use some key resources in the Research Room and through the Library's website. I'm going to walk you through some basic research I did about Henry Buncombe of Bluffton. 

The BDC holds the Official Roster of South Carolina Soldiers, Sailors and Marines, World War 1917-18 (2 volumes) [Call number SC 940.4 OFF]. Vol. 1 lists the white folks; Vol 2 lists the "Colored" folks. Volume 2 (for Black men) has this entry on p. 1233:

BUNCOMBE, HENRY. 4134177 Res Bluffton SC NA Beaufort SC Aug 12/18. Br Bluffton SC May 10/95. 156 Dep Brig to Sept 18/18; Co A 431 Res Lab Bn to disch. Pvt. Hon disch Dec 21/18

Translating the abbreviations into regular English: "Buncombe, Henry. Service registration number 4134177, resided in Bluffton SC, joined the National Army in Beaufort SC on August 12, 1918. He was born in Bluffton on May 10, 1895 (but the long list of abbreviations doesn't make this clear). He was attached to the 156th Depot Brigade to September 18, 1918. I think that he was part of Company A, 431st Reserve Labor Battalion until his honorable discharge three months later on December 21, 1918. His rank was Private.

Beaufort County Library provides access to Ancestry Library Edition (ALE) which one can access from home with a BCL library card through the end of 2020 as a COVID-19 mitigation effort. One of the subscription databases inside ALE is the World War I Draft Registration Cards database.

From the description of the WWI Draft Registration Cards I learn that:

On 6 April 1917, the United States declared war on Germany and officially entered World War I. Six weeks later, on 18 May 1917, the Selective Service Act was passed, which authorized the president to increase the military establishment of the United States. As a result, every male living within the United States between the ages of eighteen and forty-five was required to register for the draft.

The card used for the first registration (sometimes called the Twelve-Question card because of twelve questions on the front) includes this information: name, age, address, date and place of birth, citizenship status, employer’s name and address, dependent information, marital status, race, military service, and physical appearance.

I locate the digital images of his original WWI Draft Registration Card. Here's what I learn:

Henry Buncomb is 22 years old and had been born at Okatee on May 10, 1895. He is a self-employed farmer with a wife but no children. He gives his race as "African." He wants to be exempted from the draft because of his "dependent wife" who is not named. The registrar describes Henry's physical features: Medium height, medium build, black eyes, and black hair. He is not bald. Henry has at least one eye from which to see, both hands, both feet, both legs, and both arms so does not qualify for exemption from the draft due to physical disability. Henry was registered on June 5, 1917. 

If there is any male person in your family tree would was between 15 and 45 years old during the 1910s, you may want to see if they served during the Great War beginning with the same steps I took. 

The Library resumes regular hours (post-Covid) on Thursday, November 12th. Please remember that access to the Research Room is limited to those who have made an advance appointment directly with me. As of this writing (5:40 pm 10 November), the next available Research Room appointment time slot is Monday, November 16th.