One goal is reached – heading for the next

Today I found the two last posts in my list which makes it contain 200 Swedish born soldiers who fought and fell at the western front. The two last individuals are Axel T Rydell (Axel Tolli Rydell) and William Anderson (Axel Wilhelm Andersson-Westerberg). William is number 200 in my list and also some kind of symbol of that, as he was Killed in Action November 11th 1918, the day of the armistice for World War One.

There are probably more soldiers out there who will fit my criterias that I have specified in my project, but these 200 will now be more developed, and in the end they will be menitioned in my future book about those soldiers who went from Sweden and joined their new armies and fought for them at the Western Front in The Great War. I will of course put the others in my list but they I will keep for later work.

I will also give you an example of those Swedes who went over to another contingent, fought in the Great War at the Western Front, but are buried in their new countries.

One of those is Oscar G Falk, who was born with the name Germund Oscar Falk. He is also mentioned as Oscar Thomas Falk in some cards, and his sister Elvira is mentioned as his mother. I understand this as the information at that time was quite hard to check and confirm.

Oscar was born August 12 1863 in Brännkyrka Perish, Årstadal, in Stockholm, Sweden. (The same perish I was baptized in). He went to USA at the age of 18, in 1882, he should be 19 later that year, and he settled down in Menominee, Michigan, USA.

He became 1st Lieutenant November 21st 1903 and later on became Captain in February 24th 1908. As the text in the Honor Roll states he went over to brest in France in 1918 and fought in the Aisne-Marne battle in July 1918 and became wounded and taken to Hospital. The Hospital became bombed by the Germans, the personnel managed to take him out but he died August 1 st 1918.

After his death he received decorations for his exceptional gallantry in fightings around the river Vesle in France. He received the French Croix De Guerre, The French War Cross. Dont forget that he did this in the age of 55. Amazing. The information states that he was reburied June 9th 1918 in the American Cemetery in Belleau, Aisne in France. The Casualty card states that his body is recovered and moved to USA and buried in Riverside Cemetery in Menominee, Michigan.

I will now continue to find more facts about the 200 individuals I have in my list, to make the history of all those more deep, connect their different faiths, and later on visit the places where they fell and are buried or commemorated.

Feel free to join me me on my journey forward.

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