NY Commemorates 100th Anniversary of World War I

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — Commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the United States’ participation in World War I kicked off April 6, the date of the country's entry into the war. A new World War I Centennial website has been launched. Three libraries — in Hyde Park, Sparkill and Tarrytown — have won national grants to host programs for WWI vets' families and the public.

Events will take place across the state through Nov. 11, 2018 — the centennial of the signing of the Armistice.

“The 100th Anniversary of the United States’ involvement in World War I reminds us of the bravery and sacrifice of 500,000 New Yorkers who courageously served their state and nation, and the 13,956 who made the ultimate sacrifice,” said Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul in a press release.

100th Anniversary Centennial Website

The website commemorates the 100th anniversary of the United States’ entry into World War I, and provides information on WWI-related events and exhibits across the state. The website also features resources to explore the role New York and New Yorkers played in the war, and a digital tour of New York historic sites connected to the war.

Visitors can search through the Roll of Honor that includes more than 13,000 New Yorkers who died in the First World War, profiles of the 25 New Yorkers who were awarded the Medal of Honor – the nation’s highest military honor – and information on regiments that served.

On the website, New Yorkers are encouraged to share stories and photos of loved ones who served in the war, or submit an event that honors those who served. Visit www.ny.gov/WWI to learn more.

World War I Commemorative Events and Exhibits

A wide variety of events and educational programs will be held at historic sites and museums across the state to remember the sacrifices made by New Yorkers during World War I. Events will be held through Nov. 11, 2018 — the centennial of the signing of the Armistice ending the War.

Twenty-three New York libraries, more than in any other state, won Library of America “World War I and America” grants to hold public programs designed to bring veterans and their families together with the general public to explore the war’s continued relevance.

Among the New York libraries to receive the grants are the Slate Valley Museum, Granville; Greater Astoria Historical Society, Queens; Franklin & Eleanor Roosevelt Institute in partnership with the FDR Presidential Library, New York; St. Joseph’s College, New York; Callahan Library, Patchogue; St. Thomas Aquinas College, Sparkill; and the Warner Library, Tarrytown.

In addition, every two months, an exhibit in the War Room of the New York State Capitol will feature different WWI letters and aspects of the war, including training at state camps, New York’s integral role in developing combat aviation, nurses, American Field Service ambulance driver volunteers, and the base hospital at Fort Ontario.

Local events and attractions listed on the state's website include:

• Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome Living museum of antique aviation with one of the largest collections of early aeroplanes in the world, as well as automobiles, motorcycles, early engines and memorabilia spanning the period from 1900-1939. Weekend air shows features Saturdays with pioneer, World War I and Lindbergh era aircraft, and Sundays with a World War I dogfight and barnstorming aircraft.
• Staatsburgh State Historic Site At this fine example of the great estates built by America's financial and industrial leaders, “World War I and the End of the Gilded Age” is a special tour led by a costumed interpreter chronicling how the Mills family’s extravagant way of life withered away in the cataclysm of the Great War.
• United State Military Academy at West Point Includes the West Point Museum, the oldest, largest public collection of military artifacts in the western hemisphere, shown in exhibits like American Wars, History of the U.S. Army and History of Warfare and Word War I items like a tank and staff car, communications equipment, and the artillery piece that fired the first U.S. shot in the war.
• World War I and America Opening Event, May 6, 2017 - 2:30 p.m., Adriance Memorial Library, Poughkeepsie, NY
• World War I and America: Veterans Panel, With Matthew Schultz, PhD, May 13, 2017 - 2:30 p.m., Adriance Memorial Library

Visit the new website for a full list of events and attractions at: www.ny.gov/WWI.

Once called “the War to End All Wars,” World War I was one of the bloodiest conflicts in human history and marked the dawn of devastating modernized weaponry such as poison gas, aerial bombing, machine guns and long-range artillery. Among the New York regiments were the 69th Infantry Regiment, known as the “Fighting 69th,” and the 369th Infantry Regiment, the first African-American regiment to serve in combat in the war.

New York Army National Guard Retired Maj. General Nathaniel James, who is now President of the Harlem Hellfighters Historical Society, told the story of that regiment: “The 369th gained their glory while fighting with the French 4th Army. The French Army had Moroccans troops and didn’t have the color problem that the U.S. Army had at that time. The 369th became the most decorated unit in World War One, earning the honor to be the first to cross over and occupy a German Town in Germany after the fighting stopped. They returned with great honors with a parade up 5th Avenue in New York City.”

IMAGE: The 27th Division on Fifth Avenue, Aug. 30, 1917. Library of Congress via NY WWI Centennial Commission