Personal Narrative 3D Object Manuscript/Mixed Material Photo, Print, Drawing Gustav Hermann Kissel Collection
Veterans History Project Service Summary:
- War or Conflict: World War, 1914-1918
- Branch of Service: Army
- Unit of Service: 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; US Air Service
- Location of Service: France; England; Scotland
- Highest Rank: Lieutenant
- Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/37555
Gustav Kissel graduated from Harvard in 1917, just as America was entering the Great War. He was accepted into the Air Service and was sent for training that summer to England due to a shortage of planes, fields, and equipment in the U.S. His diary, begun in March 1917, details his eagerness and anticipation, tempered by the sobering loss of a Harvard classmate killed in January 1918 during a training exercise. Highly regarded by his colleagues for his flying skills, Kissel took off on his first mission on April 12. His squadron encountered a large number of enemy planes, and Kissel's plane was shot down. He is the only American buried in France's Pont du Hem Cemetery for veterans of World War I.
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About this Item
Title
- Gustav Hermann Kissel Collection
Names
- Kissel, Gustav Hermann
- Brooks, Eleonore Eaton
Home State
- New Jersey
Headings
- - Kissel, Gustav Hermann
- - World War, 1914-1918 -- Personal Narratives
- - United States. Army.
Repository
- Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Gender
- Male
Status
- veteran
Service History
-
World War, 1914-1918
- Branch of Service: Army
- Unit of Service: 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; US Air Service
- Location of Service: France; England; Scotland
- Highest Rank: Lieutenant
- Dates of Service: 1917-1918
- Military Status: veteran
- Service History Note: The veteran served in the US Air Service and flew with the British Royal Air Force / Royal Flying Corps. He was shot down over Flanders and is buried in the Pont du Hem Cemetery near Armentieres, France.
Materials
- Manuscript: Biography [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 1940)
- Manuscript: Civilian papers (certificates, forms, wills, etc) [1 item] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1917)
- Manuscript: Diaries and journals [1 item] -- Handwritten document (collected 1917-1918)
- Photograph: Original photographic print [2 items] -- Photograph (collected 1917)
- Artifact: Artifact [3 items] -- (collected 1917)
Collection Number
- AFC/2001/001/37555
Cite as
- Gustav Hermann Kissel Collection (AFC/2001/001/37555), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Online Format
- image