St. Andrew's Methodist Episcopalian Church of Llanerch WWI Memorial
This plaque on the Llandillo-facing side of the old St. Andrew's M.E. Church lists those combatants who fought in WWI and belonged to the church. This page attempts to document each one mentioned on the plaque and their service to this country.
L.H. Fielding (1895–1918) ✝
Captain Louis Howard Fielding, a native of Clifton Heights (31 North Springfield Road?), signed his draft card on June 5th, 1917. He was married to Jennie Knauss, and they resided in Kirklyn and potentially Llanerch as well in their younger days. He died on September 6th or 7th, 1918 in France of his wounds from battle. He was the Captain of Company E of Pennsylvania's 28th division. He was buried in Arlington Cemetery in Drexel Hill. The photograph of him featured comes from The Twenty-eighth Division: Pennsylvania's Guard in the World War; Forewards by the Commanding Generals. The History of the Keystone Or Iron Division in the World War. Also the History and Traditions of the Pennsylvania National Guard and Its Predecessor the Pennsylvania Militia, Volume 2.
Evening Public Ledger, October 14th, 1918, page 2
George R. Beard (1889–1979)
Private George Riggs Beard signed his draft card on June 5th, 1917. He was enlisted on April 1st, 1918. He lived in the general Llanerch area somewhere on West Chester Pike. He was discharged on November 29th, 1918. He served as a radio operator domestically at the University of Texas & Colombia University.
Edward V. Brown (1894–1950)
Corporal Edward Vernon Brown signed his darft card the same day as the previous two. I am pretty sure he is not just from Llanerch, but also from Highland Park, PA. He served from November 1st, 1917 to June 7th, 1919. He served at the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, specifically at the Troyon Sector. He received an honorable discharge at Fort Dix, and he was married to Rebecca Fielding, who I believe is related to the late L. H. Fielding. He was part of the 318th Infantry for Pennsylvania under Company F. Returning home, he departed from St Nazaire in Loire and arrived back home on May 29th, 1919.
Harry Buchanan (1895–1967)
Private Harry William Buchanan originally lived in Llandillo at some point, but at the time of the draft, he had moved to 4 East Mercer Avenue in Lower Llanerch. He served in the 103rd Military Police, Company A. His enlistement was March 22nd, 1918, and he left May 6th to serve overseas, returning April 29th, 1919. He served in the operations of Oise-Aisne and also at the previously-mentioned Meuse-Argonne, as well as the Battle of the Lys.
Charles B. Campbell (?–?)
No identifiable records
Ryland Carter (1895–1972)
Ordnance Sergeant Eugene Ryland Carter (of 16 East Park Road began his service on July 29th, 1917. In January of 1918, he was in France for some period of time, and was discharged from the camp at Long Island on July 27th, 1919.
William R. Cooke (?–?)
No identifiable records
William L. Garland (1870–1951)
Staff Sergeant William Lloyd Garland (of 300 Lansdowne Avenue) should not be on the plaque, but he is. He served in the Spanish-American war under the 5th Volunteer Infantry of Pennsylvania. He served from April 27th, 1898 until November 7th, 1898. He didn't have a son with the same name and I have no idea what connection he could have to WWI.
Charles D.W. Jones (?–?)
This could potentially be referring to Charles Gerald Cholmeley-Jones, who, as far as I can tell never lived in Llanerch (closest is Marple), but did sell a home in Llanerch (314 Lansdowne Avenue) in 1925. He was Episcopalian as well. I'm not entirely sure, though.
James Littlefield (1880–1934)
This one is a weird case. James Henry Littlefield, Sr. definitely existed, but his address is listed as "Davis Lane" in every document he has, but there's never an address. He lived on "Davis Lane" in the 1920 census, and I can't find the address. Same for the draft card. There isn't a single house unaccounted for in the 1920 census either. His draft card came through on September 7th, 1918. I cannot find any other document that proves that he served.
Howard Lutz (1887–1970)
Ordnance Sergeant Howard Milton Lutz, originally of 20 Llandaff Road, did not live in Llanerch at the time of his conscription, but he still attnded St. Andrew's. He began his service on January 24th, 1918, and concluded his service on February 25th, 1918, being discharged at Raritan Arsenal Camp.
Carl W. Muller (1899–1922)
Seaman, 2nd Class Carl Wiemann Muller (of 315 Bewley Road) served from July 22nd, 1918 to January 4th, 1919. He had an honorable discharge on September 30th, 1921 after having been out of active duty for 2 years. He was active at the Wissahickon Barracks, and later moved to New Mexico. He "broke down" according to an article due to what was probably PTSD from the war, although it could have been something else entirely. He passed away by side of his family.
Albuquerque Journal, April 16th, 1922, page 10
Walter J. Hunter (1896–1917) ✝
Private Walter J. Hunter served in the 6th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company I, 4th Brigadiers. He died at Camp Hancock in August in September 1917 after being thrown from his horse. He was in the army from June 6th, 1914 until September 21st, when he was killed.
Delaware County Daily Times, September 25th, 1917, page 7
L.H. Fielding (1898–1975)
Sergeant, 1st Class Lester Weldon Nelson, Sr. was originally from Media, but moved to Chester and spent some time in Upper Darby, presumably when his family attemded S.A.M.E. Church. He enlisted on June 30th, 1918, and was discharged May 29th, 1919. As part of both the 38th and 42nd Balloon Companies, he participated in both the Battle of Saint Mihiel, the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, and in general in the defensive sector. He was discharged at Camp Dix.
Pericles Pavlides (1890–1968)
Corporal Pericles Kyprianos Pavlides of 200 Manoa Road, Brookline, was an ethnically cleansed Greek from Samsun, Turkey. He served from March 1st, 1918 until August 1st, 1918 under the 316th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company F. He was involved in Sector 304 of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, during which he suffered a wound from a machine gun bullet in his right shoulder, which he recovered from.
George L. Pyott (1898–1986)
Fireman, 1st Class George Levi Pyott of Darby Road (and later of Powelton Village, Philadelphia) served in the Navy from December 13th, 1917 until November 15th, 1919. He worked on the USS Alabama, USS Calamares, and USS Finland in Norfolk and New York.
John H. Smith (1900–1988)
Quartermaster, 3rd Class John Hornberger Smith of 8 Manoa Road was on active duty from September 30th, 1918 until November 11th, 1918 and served at the Wissahickon Barracks.
Frank E. Spohn (1889–1967)
Franklin E. Spohn (of 100 Tenby Road) definitely lived in Llanerch, but I just can't find any record of his service.
Lewis G. Spohn, Jr. (1897–1937)
Yeoman Lewis Grant Spohn, Jr. (of 100 Tenby Road) served in Section Base, Cape May and in the Ensign School at the University of Pennsylvania. He served from May 27th, 1918 until September 30th, 1921.
Chester D. Swartz (1895–1963)
Chief Storekeeper Chester Dellicker Swartz of 510 Darby Road served in the Navy from September 28th, 1917 until May 23rd, 1919. He was statiioned at Pier 19, North Philadelphia's Naval Supply Depot.
Harry O. Swartz (1893–1969)
Chief Storekeeper Harry Owen Swartz then-of 510 Darby Road, and later 102 Llandaff Road served at the Fourth Naval District, Pier 19 Philadelphia, holding the same rank as his brother above. He served from September 14th, 1917 until June 14th, 1919.
Pernin H.Q. Taylor (1898–1969)
Private Pernin Howard Quail Taylor of 309 Lansdowne Road served with the Students' Army Trainign Corps at the University of Pennsylvania. He was active from October 11th, 1918 until his discharge on December 13th, 1918.
Cyril W. Taylor (1896–1973)
Seaman, 2nd Class Cyril Walker Taylor of 309 Lansdowne Road served in the Navy from September 16th, 1918 until Septemebr 30th, 1921, although he was only in active duty until December 14th, 1918. He was stationed on receiving ships at Puget Sound, Washington State.
Ira I. Weaver (1894–1951)
Private Ira Irvin Weaver of 8201 West Chester Pike served in Section 503 of the AEF. He was a Private of the 1st Class, and served overseas from September 9th, 1918 until May 19th, 1919. He was honorably discharged 9 days later. For his bravery in combat, he was awarded the Croix de Guerre.
