Luther Wade Pilcher
Dublin Core
Title
Luther Wade Pilcher
Alternative Title
Luther Pilcher
Subject
World War, 1914-1918
Veterans--Florida
Description
Dressed in his United States Marine uniform, Luther Wade Pilcher (1898-1918) poses on a chair in front of a backdrop of the United States Capitol. On his left breast is a rifle expert marksmanship badge. His rank at the time of the photo, corporal, is denoted by the three faint lines on his right arm. He would later be promoted to sergeant.
Pilcher was born in Dothan, Alabama, on January 1, 1898, to Richard and Della Pilcher. The second of five children, the family moved to Noma, Florida, in 1910. Luther's last known residence was in Chipley, Florida. Pilcher enlisted in the United States Marine Corps on May 4, 1915, and served in Haiti and Cuba from 1915-1917. After the United States entered World War I, the 5th Marine Regiment was activated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Pilcher and his regiment left for France in August of 1917, arriving on the 22nd. The 5th was among the first of the American Expeditionary Forces to arrive in Europe. Pilcher and his regiment took part in the Battle of Belleau Wood in June of 1918. On June 6th, the bloodiest day of the battle, Pilcher was killed in action. He posthumously received the Distinguished Service Cross, the Navy Cross, and the French Fourragere for his service and sacrifice. He is buried in the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery at Plot B Row 10 Grave 68 in Belleau, France.
In 2017, the University of Central Florida was one of three universities selected to launch the National Cemetery Administration’s Veterans Legacy Program Project. The program continues, engaging a team of scholars to make the life stories of veterans buried in national cemeteries available to the public. The project engages UCF students in research and writing and fosters collaboration between students, faculty and local Central Florida schools to produce interactive curriculum for k-12 students. The corresponding website exhibit uses RICHES Mosaic Interface to create a digital archive of related data. The public can use the project-developed augmented-reality app at more than 100 headstones at four national cemeteries, two in Florida (Florida National Cemetery and St. Augustine National Cemetery) and two in France (American Battle Monuments Commission cemeteries at Aisne-Marne and the Meuse-Argonne), where they can access the UCF student-authored biographies of veterans.
Pilcher was born in Dothan, Alabama, on January 1, 1898, to Richard and Della Pilcher. The second of five children, the family moved to Noma, Florida, in 1910. Luther's last known residence was in Chipley, Florida. Pilcher enlisted in the United States Marine Corps on May 4, 1915, and served in Haiti and Cuba from 1915-1917. After the United States entered World War I, the 5th Marine Regiment was activated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Pilcher and his regiment left for France in August of 1917, arriving on the 22nd. The 5th was among the first of the American Expeditionary Forces to arrive in Europe. Pilcher and his regiment took part in the Battle of Belleau Wood in June of 1918. On June 6th, the bloodiest day of the battle, Pilcher was killed in action. He posthumously received the Distinguished Service Cross, the Navy Cross, and the French Fourragere for his service and sacrifice. He is buried in the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery at Plot B Row 10 Grave 68 in Belleau, France.
In 2017, the University of Central Florida was one of three universities selected to launch the National Cemetery Administration’s Veterans Legacy Program Project. The program continues, engaging a team of scholars to make the life stories of veterans buried in national cemeteries available to the public. The project engages UCF students in research and writing and fosters collaboration between students, faculty and local Central Florida schools to produce interactive curriculum for k-12 students. The corresponding website exhibit uses RICHES Mosaic Interface to create a digital archive of related data. The public can use the project-developed augmented-reality app at more than 100 headstones at four national cemeteries, two in Florida (Florida National Cemetery and St. Augustine National Cemetery) and two in France (American Battle Monuments Commission cemeteries at Aisne-Marne and the Meuse-Argonne), where they can access the UCF student-authored biographies of veterans.
Source
Digital reproduction of original sepia photograph.
Publisher
The Pilcher Family
Date Created
ca. 1917-05-18 to 1917-07-31
Contributor
Pilcher, Luther Wade
Is Part Of
Format
image/jpg
Extent
238 KB
Medium
1 sepia photograph
Type
Still Image
Coverage
Marine Corps Base Quantico, Quantico, Virginia
Accrual Method
Donation
Mediator
History Teacher
Provenance
Originally published by the Pilcher Family.
Rights Holder
Copyright to this source is held by the Pilcher Family and is provided here by RICHES for educational purposes only.
Curator
O'Neil, Rhiannon
Source Repository
Private collection of the Pilcher Family.
External Reference
Abney, Barb. "VA Selects UCF Historians to Archive Stories of Deceased Veterans Veterans." UCF Today, March 13, 2017. Accessed August 9, 2018. https://today.ucf.edu/va-selects-ucf-historians-archive-stories-deceased-veterans/.
Clark, George B. Devil Dogs: Fighting Marines of World War I. Novato, CA: Presidio Press, 1999.
Commonwealth War Graves Commission and American Battle Monuments Commission. "Luther Wade Pilcher (1898-1918)." Online database with images, Find a Grave. Accessed August 9, 2018. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/55947669/luther-wade-pilcher.
Florida Department of Military Affairs. "Luther Wade Pilcher." Online database with images, FloridaMemory. Chipley, Florida. Box 1. Accessed June 22, 2018. https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/209562.
Keene, Jennifer D. World War I: The American Soldier Experience. Lincoln [u.a.]: University of Nebraska Press, 2011.
Yardley, Jim. "When the Americans Turned the Tide." The New York Times, June 26, 2014. Accessed June 27, 2018. https://www.nytimes.org/2014/06/27/world/europe/world-war-i-second-battle-of-the-marne.html.
"Luther Wade Pilcher." Image. Ancestry.com. 2013. Accessed June 22, 2018. https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/47905480/person/13348591176/media/aace5887-407c-44e3-6319-b2c751791bfb?_phsrc=GCH17&_phstart=successSource.
"Pilcher, Luther Wade, Sgt." TogetherWeServed.com. Accessed June 22, 2018. https://marines.togetherweserved.com/usmc/servlet/tws.webapp.WebApp?cmd=ShadowBoxProfile&type=Person&ID=168102.
U.S. Census Bureau. "Wade L Pilcher." 1910 United States Federal Census. Online database with images, Ancestry.com. Noma, Holmes, Florida. NARA microfilm publication T624, FHL microfilm 1374175. Accessed August 9, 2018. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=try&db=1910USCenIndex&h=154365013.
U.S. Census Bureau. "Wade Pilcher." 1900 United States Federal Census. Online database with images, Ancestry.com. Dothan, Henry, Alabama. NARA microfilm publication T623, FHL microfilm 1240018. Accessed August 9, 2018. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=try&db=1900usfedcen&h=79778663.
Collection
Citation
“Luther Wade Pilcher,” RICHES, accessed April 16, 2024, https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/omeka/items/show/10386.