My uncle Ernest Julius Erickson in La Grande, Oregon when he was a deputy on the Oregon Railroad in 1917.

Later in the Fall of 1917 Ernest Julius would be called up for service at Camp Lewis with the American Expeditionary Force (AEF).

Ernest Julius and his younger brother (2 photos below) were working by mid Summer as deputies on the Oregon Railroad out of La Grande. Both had joined the army in June and had full intention of becoming members of the American Expeditionary Force that was being formed at hundreds of army camps all over the states.

An excerpt from Ernest Julius's diary dated Tuesday, June 5th, 1917 goes simply:

"Went and signed up for Uncle Sam today, so if he wants me, I’m ready to go."

Ernest Julius would be first to enter service in late 1917 and train at Camp Lewis near Tacoma, Washington. He shipped out to England from Brooklyn Harbor on July 6th, 1918 and ported in Liverpool. By September of 1918 Ernest would find himself in the Argonne Forest in France serving with the 361st Infantry.

Ernest Julius's in-the-field diary entries from September 26th through October 8th, 1918 are below.

The three photographs below were shot by Frank Severin and Ernest Julius Erickson in the Summer of 1917 near la Grande, Oregon