YMCA Army Workers (1898)

This lantern slide shows fourteen men who served in the YMCA during the Spanish American War of 1898. They were also enrolled at the International YMCA Training School, now Springfield College. Those pictured are [top row, left to right] Arthur Shoemaker (class of 1899), Frederick J. Hutchins (class of 1900), George H. Hunter (class of 1900), Solone Di Campello (class of 1900), [2nd row] John F. Simons (class of 1900), John Sherrill (class of 1899), Mahlon G. Baily (Bailey) (class of 1900), Thomas M. Brainard (class of 1900), Fred Young (class of 1900), [3rd row] Thomas J. Browne (class of 1898), Charles A. Boardman (class of 1899), Merrell W. Crawford (class of 1900), William F. Mertens (class of 1900),and [bottom row] Sherwood B. Doolittle (class of 1899). At the onset of the Spanish American War, the YMCA sent more than five hundred volunteers to various stations in Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines. YMCA supplies, such as medicine and office materials, often reached the soldiers before the army’s own supplies. The YMCA’s volunteer efforts were so highly regarded that the U.S. government established a permanent Army and Navy Committee to give national direction to the work of the YMCA. The YMCA has since been a service organization in the principal posts and ports of the United States. This organization is now known as the Armed Services YMCA and is operated by the Department of Defense. A duplicate photograph exists - http://cdm16122.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15370coll2/id/4085Minor deterioration; Text on border reads, "YMCA Army Workers 1898 Spanish American War.