This is not so much a book review as it is a pre-publication notice.

Authors W. Douglas Fisher and Joann H. Buckley have spent the last five years researching and writing about the lives of the African American doctors of World War 1.  The project developed out of Mr. Fisher’s letters from his grandfather, who was a Captain commanding the Supply Train of the 92nd Division, AEF.

Most of the doctors were part of the 92nd Division; whose 368th Infantry Regiment fought with the French units on the west flank of the Argonne Forest near Binarville from Sept. 24-30th.  They were withdrawn after the Second and Third Battalions collapsed on Sept. 28.  As a result the entire 92nd Division received a blow to its reputation from which it never recovered.  However, in 2011 Robert H. Ferrell wrote “Unjustly Dishonored” as a full-length account of the accomplishments of the 92nd Division.  Dr. Thomas E. Jones of that division won the Distinguished Service Cross for his bravery during the opening days of the Meuse-Argonne.

Seven of the doctors were with the 93rd Division, whose regiments also fought under the French command.  According to American Armies and Battlefields in Europe, three of the 93rd Division’s regiments trained in the Meuse-Argonne sector in the months of June through September 1918.

The authors note that the number of pre-orders will determine the size of the initial print run; so interested readers are strongly encouraged to pre-order the book online at www.mcfarlandpub.com.  The book is also listed at Amazon and at Barnes & Noble online.

Generally speaking, the webmaster limits book reviews to people and events that happened specifically during the AEF’s Meuse-Argonne Campaign.  However, the racial segregation and discrimination that was present in the 1910s precluded these troops from serving directly with the rest of the American Army.  The webmaster is grateful that the stories of these doctors are now being told.