Private First Class Casper Probst
Casper Lewis Probst was born on September 9th, 1895 in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania to Charles and Catherine Probst. He attended local schools until dropping out at age 14 to get a job at Queen’s Run Brickyard to earn enough money to attend Pletcher Business School. Casper would work in the morning and attend classes in the afternoon to learn the fundamentals of bookkeeping. Soon, he was employed at the Wenz and Bauman Feed Store, where he worked for two years until attending school to become a preacher. With the United States finally entering World War One in April of 1917, Casper’s dreams were unfortunately cut short when he was handed a draft notice and was inducted into the army on October 5th, 1917. He first reported to Camp Meade, then was sent to Augusta, Georgia with the 7th Infantry Division. Two weeks later, Private Probst was reassigned to Company C, 112th Infantry Regiment, 28th Infantry Division, whom he trained with from late October until April of 1918. Soon after, the 28th Division was alerted for overseas deployment and was sent to New Jersey where Pfc Probst boarded the Aquitania on May 7th.
Their first stop was Liverpool, England where he was one of the first four men down the gangplank on May 14th, and the entire regiment was quickly loaded up on trains to the English Channel, and then off to France. On May 17th, they arrived at the Lumbres training area and were promptly attached to the British 34th Division. Here, Pfc Probst and his regiment were rigorously trained in the basics of trench warfare such as bayonet training and marksmanship. On June 9th, the men turned in their British weaponry in exchange for their Springfields, said goodbye to their British friends and began the long march into France. Five days later, the 112nd Infantry took up positions just outside of Paris in Tremblay with the mission of protecting Paris from the Germans, who had launched a surprise offensive a few weeks prior that had pushed the allies past Chateau Thierry. Now it was the French’s turn to train the Americans for what lay ahead, as they would be attached to their XXXVIII Corps. After around 2 weeks of instruction, Pfc Probst and the 112th Infantry were sent to the second line of defense in the sector of the French 39th Division extending from La Trinite Ferme to Bois de Gravilles. On July 8th, it finally appeared that the regiment would see action when they marched to positions near Fays Farm and Hill 204. This would mark the beginning of the 112th Infantry’s transformation from “green” men to battle hardened veterans. Beginning on June 9th, the Germans launched fierce artillery barrages, attacks, and gas towards the three companies on the line with the French, but all were beaten back with minimal casualties. Thankfully for Pfc Probst, his company was not needed at the front and by July 20th, the Germans had retreated across the Marne River with the Americans on their tail. The regiment quickly marched to Brasles, just east of Chateau Thierry which the Germans had abandoned. Enemy dead and equipment was strewn everywhere, intermingled by doughboy dead wounded who had been caught by German artillery and the advance which they were following as the reserve force. On July 28th, the division was relieved and awaited orders to continue their pursuit of the Germans. This order was received on August 3rd, and Pfc Probst and the men began marching once again, finally settling just five kilometers from the Vestle River and south of Fismes. The French were eager to make a crossing, and plans to do so were set in motion on August 7th. After a heavy preliminary barrage, the 112nd Infantry surged over the Vestle while the 1st Battalion took up positions in the town. As a runner, Pfc Probst was given the job of running messages between the front line and the headquarters at the rear, a job which required him to “roll, jump, climb and run” in order to dodge bullets, recalled Casper. This task would prove difficult when they entered Fismette the next day and had to clear each street and house under extreme enemy machine gun fire, artillery, and gas. “I carried a small can of household oil in my pack...One time, a bullet punctured that oil can and I didn’t know it until I felt something wet. I thought I was hit and was bleeding, but it was actually oil” said Casper. “I guess I was actually hit about a dozen times, in all -- one time I had a glove shot off and another time my belt was cut by a bullet.” By the end of the day, Fismette was in the hands of the 112th Infantry, their attack being the third to take the town. After suffering numerous casualties while taking the town, Pfc Probst and the 112th Infantry turned it over to the 111th Infantry and retired to positions south of Chery for some well deserved rest. Unfortunately for the men of the 112th, pressure was being placed on Fismette by the Germans yet again, and they were ordered back on August 19th, with Pfc Probst’s Company C stationed directly in the town until switching with the 3rd Battalion on the 22nd of August. |
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This would turn out to be a saving grace for the company, because on the morning of the 27th, Companies G and H, who had just relieved two companies in the town, were completely cut off by a surprise German attack and wiped out completely. Only a handful were able to escape. The 112th Infantry quickly began planning the recapture of the town with a provisional company consisting of companies A,B,C,D,I,K,L, and M, but before the attack could be put in motion, the Germans withdrew from the town and across the Aisne River when they realised the unfavorable predicament they were in on September 5th.
The next day Pfc Probst and his regiment were on the move once again, passing through Marcilly, Passy, Treloup, across the Marne River, until reaching the hunting lodge two kilometers from the town of Boursault. The march was plagued by constant rain, and the men quickly started fires to dry themselves and their belongings before the 112th Infantry were transported to Blesme Haussignemont. Unknown to them at the time, they were one of the many units chosen to participate in the upcoming Meuse Argonne Offensive, a massive attack against the Germans meant to finally put an end to the war. To prepare, Pfc Probst and his regiment began their usual training programs until continuing their march to the Argonne, finally stopping at the line of defense north of the Bois de Chalade. This would be their final stop until the attack into the Argonne.
On the morning of September 26th, the largest barrage of artillery fire flew over the heads of the front line and smashed into the German line for three hours. At 5:30 AM, the American’s climbed out of their trenches and surged across no man's land, with Pfc Probst and the 112th Infantry fighting its way towards the Cote des Perrieres. By 4:00, every company was in position on the southern slope of the hill after crossing two kilometers of the most heavily defended part of the Argonne Forest. Luckily, casualties had been relatively light. The next morning, the attack was resumed and Pfc Probst’s 1st Battalion advanced around the eastern slope of the hill but were pushed back with heavy casualties. Shortly after dark, the entire regiment moved from the Cote des Perrieres and up the Aire Valley to south of Montblainville in a flanking maneuver. Unbeknownst to the 112th Infantry, this movement would begin the costliest and hardest fought struggle in the Argonne; the battle for Le Chene Tondu ridge.
On September 28th, the attack began and immediately was encountered by murderous German machine gun fire. As confusion mounted, Pfc Probst was ordered to transport a message to the 3rd Battalion of the whereabouts of his 1st Battalion. After dashing through the battlefield, he met up with two other doughboys until suddenly, “the narrow, muddy road [I] was walking along suddenly erupted in a deafening blast,” recalled Casper. “The combined weight of the three men walking abreast along the road” triggered a vehicle land mine. “Two soldiers [I] had been talking with seconds before were killed instantly” and Pfc Probst was knocked unconscious and fell partially paralized. “Twice during the day, the Germans laid down deadly mustard gas...the fact [I] was unconscious and apparently not breathing heavily probably prevented [me] from inhaling enough of the searing mustard gas to cause more serious damage to [my] lungs” remembered Casper. “It was not until about 4 p.m. that Casper was found and taken to a field station at Varennes.” Now, his long road to recovery began.
Five days later he was moved to another hospital, and then to Neubecourt, and finally to a base hospital at LaFauche where a nurse helped him recover from his paralysis. By the time he was healthy again, the Armistice had been called and the war was officially over. Pfc Probst returned to his unit on December 24th, 1919 and on April 19th, he boarded the Mercury for the return trip home. Six days after Casper arrived in the US, he was honorably discharged from the Army and was given the news that he only had six months to live due to his wound, and that he should “keep busy and keep moving.” Desperate to spend as much time with his family as possible “he hitched a ride on a truck to Camden, N.J., and walked from there to Philadelphia’s 30th St. railroad station” instead of participating in a military parade.
After coming home, Casper went to work at Bloomsburg Mills until returning to the brickyard at Queen’s Run for three years and in 1920, he married Bertha Swen, divorced, and then married Verna Quigg in 1932. A year prior, he became a clerk at the Lock Haven Post Office, a position he held for 24 years. Throughout his life, Casper heeded the advice given to him when he was discharged and began walking a little each day until regularly completing 10 miles a day, six days a week, even at the age of 77. Casper passed away on November 17th, 1991 at the age of 95, a testament to how he had not let those words affect his chances at a long and happy life.
The next day Pfc Probst and his regiment were on the move once again, passing through Marcilly, Passy, Treloup, across the Marne River, until reaching the hunting lodge two kilometers from the town of Boursault. The march was plagued by constant rain, and the men quickly started fires to dry themselves and their belongings before the 112th Infantry were transported to Blesme Haussignemont. Unknown to them at the time, they were one of the many units chosen to participate in the upcoming Meuse Argonne Offensive, a massive attack against the Germans meant to finally put an end to the war. To prepare, Pfc Probst and his regiment began their usual training programs until continuing their march to the Argonne, finally stopping at the line of defense north of the Bois de Chalade. This would be their final stop until the attack into the Argonne.
On the morning of September 26th, the largest barrage of artillery fire flew over the heads of the front line and smashed into the German line for three hours. At 5:30 AM, the American’s climbed out of their trenches and surged across no man's land, with Pfc Probst and the 112th Infantry fighting its way towards the Cote des Perrieres. By 4:00, every company was in position on the southern slope of the hill after crossing two kilometers of the most heavily defended part of the Argonne Forest. Luckily, casualties had been relatively light. The next morning, the attack was resumed and Pfc Probst’s 1st Battalion advanced around the eastern slope of the hill but were pushed back with heavy casualties. Shortly after dark, the entire regiment moved from the Cote des Perrieres and up the Aire Valley to south of Montblainville in a flanking maneuver. Unbeknownst to the 112th Infantry, this movement would begin the costliest and hardest fought struggle in the Argonne; the battle for Le Chene Tondu ridge.
On September 28th, the attack began and immediately was encountered by murderous German machine gun fire. As confusion mounted, Pfc Probst was ordered to transport a message to the 3rd Battalion of the whereabouts of his 1st Battalion. After dashing through the battlefield, he met up with two other doughboys until suddenly, “the narrow, muddy road [I] was walking along suddenly erupted in a deafening blast,” recalled Casper. “The combined weight of the three men walking abreast along the road” triggered a vehicle land mine. “Two soldiers [I] had been talking with seconds before were killed instantly” and Pfc Probst was knocked unconscious and fell partially paralized. “Twice during the day, the Germans laid down deadly mustard gas...the fact [I] was unconscious and apparently not breathing heavily probably prevented [me] from inhaling enough of the searing mustard gas to cause more serious damage to [my] lungs” remembered Casper. “It was not until about 4 p.m. that Casper was found and taken to a field station at Varennes.” Now, his long road to recovery began.
Five days later he was moved to another hospital, and then to Neubecourt, and finally to a base hospital at LaFauche where a nurse helped him recover from his paralysis. By the time he was healthy again, the Armistice had been called and the war was officially over. Pfc Probst returned to his unit on December 24th, 1919 and on April 19th, he boarded the Mercury for the return trip home. Six days after Casper arrived in the US, he was honorably discharged from the Army and was given the news that he only had six months to live due to his wound, and that he should “keep busy and keep moving.” Desperate to spend as much time with his family as possible “he hitched a ride on a truck to Camden, N.J., and walked from there to Philadelphia’s 30th St. railroad station” instead of participating in a military parade.
After coming home, Casper went to work at Bloomsburg Mills until returning to the brickyard at Queen’s Run for three years and in 1920, he married Bertha Swen, divorced, and then married Verna Quigg in 1932. A year prior, he became a clerk at the Lock Haven Post Office, a position he held for 24 years. Throughout his life, Casper heeded the advice given to him when he was discharged and began walking a little each day until regularly completing 10 miles a day, six days a week, even at the age of 77. Casper passed away on November 17th, 1991 at the age of 95, a testament to how he had not let those words affect his chances at a long and happy life.