The Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum at West Texas A&M University in Canyon has decided to host an "Antique Roadshow" of sorts to evaluate your World War I memorabilia and consider donated items for inclusion in the museum’s collection, and PPHM’s archivist and curator will be on hand to review your items.

"Go through your closets, look in your attics, pull out those World War I photographs and those stories of the soldiers that are part of your lineage and share them with us," said Stephanie Price, the PPHM communications and marketing director who hopes Texas Panhandle residents will bring some real gems to the museum.

Price said the "Letters from Home" event is the result of an organic response from residents who have been reaching out to the museum after reading AGN columnist Jon Mark Beilue’s recent article on the 100th anniversary of the the Great War. Since then, personal items and photographs belonging to relatives of soldiers who fought in that war have been shared with the museum.

"These are incredible photos that may have never seen the light of day," Price said.

Some of the items already donated include a picture of Guy Carlander, an Amarillo architect, who was working on a nuclear weapons production line at Edgewood Arsenal in Maryland. Also someone donated an illustration on the history of the Red Cross in Hemphill County, which was established during WWI. In one instance, photographs were donated to the museum after a man discovered them at a storage facility he’d purchased.

How it began

World War I began in Austria on July 28, 1914, and ended on November 11, 1918, with the United States entering the battle on April 6, 1917.

Personal papers such as diaries and letters home, documents like service records and other printed materials like photographs, are what the museum is most interested in receiving.

"Things that will give us more information about the role the Panhandle played during the war," said Warren Stricker, research center director at PPHM.

"This is sort of one of the forgotten elements of American history," Stricker said, which he attributes to the more-recent World War II and the fact there are apparently no living soldiers who fought in World War I after the passing of Frank Buckles in 2011.

"We came to realize there was a lot more to the story, particularly in terms of the Panhandle, and we’re anxious to complete that story."

In filling the gap, Stricker said people from this region played smaller roles, like Red Cross volunteers and political leaders, as compared to the larger role of soldiers. Just prior to the end of the war, the WTAMU Student Army Training Corps was formed on campus in the fall of 1918 in anticipation of training more soldiers.

Impact on the Panhandle

"The war changed things in a dramatic way. The world the people of the Texas Panhandle lived in differed greatly if you compare before and after the war," he said. "Even though these are world events, the participation of [people in the panhandle]—they influenced it and were influenced by it."

Dr. Bruce Brasington, a senior member of WT European history department who teaches an advanced course on WWI, estimates there may have been about 20,000 people living across the entire Texas Panhandle during WWI.

"There was a very large percentage of participation from this area, I think higher than the national average if I remember correctly — a very strong commitment to the war," Brasington said.

Regarding the museum’s hopes of expanding their vast WWI coollection, Dr. Brasington said, "A museum is not full of things, it’s full of stories….Every single life matters….not just the famous, the well known, the movers and shakers but the anonymous men and women who worked in the fields, who fought in the trenches, worked and slaved in the factories, the people who were oppressed—every single life story is important."

The collection has come together through a partnership with Texas Panhandle residents along with WTAMU and Amarillo College.

"It’s truly been a community outreach," Brasington said. "In my 27 years in the panhandle, I’ve never seen the degree to which all of these entities are coming together to foster a common effort to help us remember the heritage."

Having tangible memorabilia that belonged to soldier or volunteer adds that human touch you can’t get from reading in a classroom, according to PPHM Registrar Maggie Malone.

"You’re not just reading something in a book…but you can see the boots worn by Captain Charles Moore…seeing these items in person is much more memorable, having them there in front of you makes it real, it humanizes them. We try to engross you in the knowledge of them as people," she said.

"More and more families [are realizing] they were connected to the war, that it wasn’t just some European war," said WT student Nathaniel Shaffer.

"We can learn more about these stories that a lot of folks did not want to tell when they came back from the war," Shaffer said. "It was so horrific and unlike anything they’d ever seen. You can read a text book about the war, but it’s another thing to learn about the people [involved]. In doing so, we honor their memories and pay respects in the highest way by bringing them back to life."

Modern interest

For WT student Jennifer Pitchford, interest in the Great War came after the release of a video game, Battlefield 1, which she said is based on WWI.

"Coming to a museum and being able to physically see what a soldier wore, the weapons they used— it brings it to life. It makes it more real than [playing the game]." she said. "You can get emotional [walking through the exhibit]. It’s powerful."

For PPHM Associate Director for Curatorial Affairs Michael Grauer, the growing collection has been a decade-long affair that gained momentum after the donation of a single pair of boots.

Brought to life

"These aren’t just statistics or names on a wall, they aren’t numbers, they’re people," Grauer said. "They were farmers, lawyers, truck drivers, cowboys and all kinds of things and they were called into service. Our collection can tell that story."

The donated boots belonged to a soldier from Tulia who was a school teacher when he enlisted. First Lt. William Henry Younger Jr., fought with Captain Harry S. Truman in 129th Field Artillery Regiment. Captain Truman would go on to be our thirty-third president and First Lieutenant Younger would go on to be the superintendent of schools in Tulia. Younger died from tonsillectomy surgery in 1936.

Grauer said they also have Younger Jr.’s trench shoes, which was he says is "a rare find because [trench shoes generally] rotted off their feet."

"The primary thing most [soldiers] brought home were the two things that kept them alive and they weren’t guns, it was their helmet and their gas mask. Heavy artillery and chemical warfare were the two critical factors in World War I, especially heavy artillery," Grauer said. "When the war starts, nobody is wearing a helmet. Nobody’s seen anything like that before so they’re wearing cloth and leather hats. There was a great rush to produce helmets and there was a shortage. We had no American helmets. We had to use British helmets until our industrial capability caught up with war demand. We had no gas masks so we used ones designed by the French."

Grauer had a great uncle who served in World War I and his father was a sailor. With a century of time removed between America’s entry into the war and now, people may not remember ancestors’ wartime stories and they’ve lost a connection with that part of their lineage.

"I think there’s a hole in people’s collective memory. They kind of know about [WWI] but they don’t; to know your family is the best way to know history. I think this [collection effort] resonates deeply, fundamentally, and on a spiritual level as well."

Immersive history exposes the conditions of life a soldier, wife, lover or child may have lived.

"We know that paper is usually the first thing thrown away," he said. "Unfortunately among those discarded papers are World War I service records, photographs and letters from and to home. We want to make sure that doesn’t happen. We want to provide a home for them. A hundred years from now the descendants of those ancestors can come here and see photographs or letters."

The "Letters from Home" event will be on June 24 from 10 a.m. until noon. The duration may be extended depending on the number of people who attend, Price said. Even if you don’t have a World War I artifact, the event is a great opportunity to hear stories of how people in the Texas Panhandle were impacted by the Great War.

Price added, "This collection effort isn’t going to stop with this event - we’re going to continuously be collecting."