Pee Paw at Camp Humphreys in August 1918
I have posted a few photos of my paternal grandfather in World War I. Some of those photos are ones I have seen as far back as I can remember. My dad had several photos of him and his cohorts from back in the day. The photos weren’t labeled, so I never knew exactly when they were taken. I figured they were from some time around 1917 or 1918.
2nd Company Advance Detachment E. O. T. C., Camp Humphreys, Virginia, August 1918. My grandfather Robert Joseph Landry, Sr. is the one directly above the C. in E.O.T.C. He was 25 years old at the time.
This photo is different in many ways – it’s new to me, it’s a large panorama, it’s a large group of service members, and it has identification. The first time I saw it was last year when I got together with a few cousins to share photos. It is part of the Duffy Family Tin Can Collection. My Aunt Wana was married to a Duffy and she somehow came into possession of many old photos. She had many of them in a tin can in her attic, hence the name Tin Can Collection. I don’t think this one was in a tin can though. It is a large panoramic photo that has been rolled up for a long time.
The Keeper of the Collection is my cousin Tricia. She guards it enthusiastically. I wasn’t able to take a photo of the panoramic photo roll when we got together since it was so large. But thankfully, Tricia let her guard down for a moment and allowed me to take it with me so I could scan it. So we can thank Tricia (and anyone else named Duffy) for this wonderful photo.
The scan was a little tricky since the photo is so large. I had to scan it in three sections and merge them together. I notice a bit of ghosting, but it came out pretty good. There are actually two images on the roll. This one is a photo of the Company with their hats on. The other one (which I’m saving for a later date) is one with their hats removed. The great thing about these photos is the information written (or etched) on them.
The writing identifies the men as the Company 2 Advance Detachment at Camp Humphreys in Virginia. And to top it all off, it gives a date of August 1918. On the right side at the bottom, it looks like some information about the photo for military archives. I may have to share it on a military website I’ve seen. Maybe someone else can find a family member from this group.
I know I was excited to see a photo of my grandfather from a hundred years ago. I hope you enjoy it, too.
Front and center is my grandfather Robert Joseph Landry, Sr. of Lake Charles, Louisiana