A Soldier's Story: Sergeant Alvin Cullum York - WWI
Sergeant Alvin Cullum York was born December 13, 1887, one of eleven children. He was raised in a log cabin in Pall Mall, Tennessee, a small Wolf River County town tucked into the Cumberland mountains. A big man at 6'2" with red hair, Sergeant Alvin York was a pacifist at heart. Nevertheless, he was drafted in WWI despite being a conscientious objector. After soul-searching during basic training, Sergeant Alvin York agreed to fight in the war. Despite his hatred of his job as a marksman, Sergeant Alvin York performed admirably. He earned the Congressional Medal of Honor as a Corporal of G Company, 328th Infantry, 82nd Division A.E.F. During the Battle of Argonne Forest, Sergeant York, with only a few men, captured 132 enemy soldiers, killing 25. When he returned from the war, he fulfilled his dream of opening a school. He sold the rights to his story and used the proceeds to open the Alvin C. York Agricultural Institute. The movie Sergeant York starred Gary Cooper. The...