World War I Papers of Thomas, James, and Victor Kegel
Description
The World War I Papers of Thomas, James, and Victor Kegel collection contains materials written and collected by three brothers who fought during World War I in the 109th Machine Gun Battalion. The collection contains letters written by the brothers to their families while in the service, and some other letters from their loved ones. There are also newspaper articles, literature on the battalion they fought in, post cards, military paperwork, and photographs.
Admin/Biographical History
Thomas Kegel (1895-1958), James Kegel (1891-1927), Victor Kegel (1898-1923) were three brothers who served together in the 109th Machine Gun Battalion during World War I. Their parents were Charles and Mary Rogers Kegel, and they had eleven children. Their family home was on 59 Locust Street in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. They were all drafted in 1917, and were trained in Camp Hancock in Augusta, Georgia. After their extensive training, they were sent to fight in the trenches in France. On separate occasions, each brother was wounded during the war, but they all survived and came home to Lancaster after the war in 1919.
James L. Kegel was born on August 10, 1891. He was a poultry dresser and dealer and was married to Arabella E. Raymond Kegel (1884-1966) on August 27, 1911. They had three children: Charles, James, and Mary Annabelle. James passed away at the age of 35 on February 9, 1927, due to pneumonia.
Thomas Kegel was born on January 18, 1895. He married Veronica R. "Fannie" Karch Kegel. Together, they had four children: Thomas, Helen, Dorn Anne, and John. He was a watchmaker, in addition to other various occupations. By a doctor's recommendation in 1939, Thomas and his family moved to Miami, Florida, due to his injuries and struggles with PTSD. He passed away on February 18, 1958.
Victor A. Kegel was born on March 29, 1898. He was a poultry dresser after coming back to Lancaster from the war in 1919. He was married to Ellen F. Kegel. He passed away on December 26, 1923, due to inflammation of the brain. He was 25 years old.
The dosuments in folders 24, 33, and 47 are fragile and require staff supervision.
Object ID
MG0798
Related Item Notes
World War I Collection, 1916-1972, MG-45
World War I Papers for Frank Schober, MG-797
Charles E. Schuler Papers, MG-780
William Barlow Papers, MG-781
William Raymond Elbert Papers, MG-784
Military Records for Charles A. Meisenberger, MG-782
Diary Collection, 1836-1978, MG-247
William J. Buch Papers, 1917-1958, MG-658
Notes
Donation was made possible with the assistance of Charles and Mary Brill.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Restrictions are noted at the item level. The documents in Folders 24, 33, and 47 are fragile and require staff supervision. Please contact research@lancasterhistory.org at least two weeks prior to visit.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org. Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-798
Other Number
MG-798
Classification
MG0798
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Processed and finding aid prepared by EM, January/February 2019.
Collects two hundred letters from readers of Mark Twain to the author himself, offering a glimpse into the lives and sensibilites of nineteenth-century children, preachers, con artists, inmates, and other fans of the author's work.
Publications of the Pennsylvania German Society ; 44
Notes
"Der alt Professer."
Includes bibliographical references (p. 317-320) and index.
Summary
"This volume contains 312 'Es Neinuhr Schtick' columns gleaned from The call, Schuylkill Haven, Pennsylvania, and The press and herald, Tremont, Pennsylvania"--P. xv.
xvi, 553 pages : illustrations, maps, photographs ; 26 cm.
Series
Army historical series
CMH pub ; 30-24-1
Notes
Includes bibliographical references (pages 508-532) and index.
Contents
Mustering in : Federal policy on emancipation and recruitment -- The South Atlantic Coast, 1861-1863 -- The South Atlantic Coast, 1863-1865 -- Southern Louisiana and the Gulf Coast, 1862-1863 -- Southern Louisiana and the Gulf Coast, 1863-1865 -- The Mississippi River and its tributaries, 1861-1863 -- Along the Mississippi River, 1863-1865 -- Arkansas, Indian Territory, and Kansas, 1863-1865 -- Middle Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia, 1863-1865 -- North Carolina and Virginia, 1861-1864 -- Virginia, May-October 1864 -- Kentucky, North Carolina, and Virginia, 1864-1865 -- South Texas, 1864-1867 -- Reconstruction, 1865-1867 -- Conclusion.
Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography ; v. 142, no. 3
Summary
Abstract: Sophisticated mid-twentieth-century food critics --those who ate where Chinese Americans ate and ordered the dishes Chinese Americans ordered-- wrote disparagingly of the chop suey that middle America adored. In the half century that followed, the story goes, white American taste slowly caught up with the critics. This paper changes the familiar story arc by beginning in the early twentieth century, an era of virulent anti-Chinese prejudice, when white Americans first took note of Chinese dishes and looked beyond their image as reviled immigrant food. Laundrymen exchanged their ironing boards for woks and opened Chinese American restaurants in cities and towns across the commonwealth, servindg real Chinese food adapted to white American tastes. Pennsylvanians loved the food, but they were reluctant to patronize establishments they perceived to be dens of vice. Chinese Americans launched a systematic, coordinated effort to overcome the racist stereotypes. Despite their best efforts, few restaurateurs were successful. Chop suey eventually took its place on Pennsylvania tables, but it did so in the form of a deracilized concoction sold in the canned food aisle of grocery stores.
"By following the story of my great-grandmother Isabella Ford's life, and adding to it with information from available sources, I have been able to get a better understanding of the circumstances of Lancaster's free blacks. Her story provides a sense of life in mid-nineteenth century Lancaster County and shows how free black families held their own, despite an environment that was often unfriendly and that restricted their opportunities by both law and custom."