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Praetorium Honoris

Saturday, November 25, 2023

John Blackshoe Sends: Serendipity History – Some Early U.S. Aeronautical Background (Part 2 of 2)


So, what was the big deal about wood for airplanes

Typical of most WW1 era aircraft, this “Sopwith 1 ½ Strutter” being restored in the UK over 20 years shows the wooden structure before being covered with fabric and paint.

Source: https://www.newsweek.com/world-war-one-biplane-rebuilt-over-twenty-years-take-skies-soon-1728035

 

BONUS FOR AVIATION RESTORATION BUFFS:

For a series of photos showing construction in 2001 of two replica JN-4s go here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/landoni/4116279928/in/photostream/

 Here’s a place in the UK making three SE-5s using new tools for old results:

https://thevintageaviator.co.nz/projects/se-5a-reproduction/vintage-aviator-se-5as

 

To meet the anticipated need for Sitka spruce lumber for aircraft production requirements, the Signal Corps set up a massive program in September 1917 after disastrous labor unrest cut production that summer.   First step was to find someone to run it.  


Brice Disque saw combat in the Philippines during the Insurrection with a volunteer infantry unit, rising from Private to First Sergeant, then Lieutenant.   He then served with distinction as a cavalry officer in the regular army, before resigning as a Captain in 1916 to become Warden of the Michigan State Prison.  He was recalled to active duty, promoted to Lieutenant Colonel, then Colonel and eventually Brigadier General, and given command of the entire Spruce Production Division program.

Colonel Brice P. Disque, head of the Spruce Production Division, 1918.

Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:8768_Colonel_Brice_P._Disque_(22014186336).jpg

The timber was mostly in the Olympic Peninsula of Washington state, a rugged, roadless, unsettled area.   They needed more lumber mills to process the wood before shipment to aircraft manufacturers in the east, and to allies overseas.  So, six massive lumber mills were built adjacent to Vancouver Barracks in Vancouver, Washington, on the Columbia River, not far from the original Hudson Bay Company Fort Vancouver trading post. During WW2, the Kaiser shipyards built on nearby land turned out hundreds of cargo ships and dozens of Escort Carriers.

Vancouver Spruce Mills 1918.
Source: https://www.nps.gov/articles/fovaclrworldwari.htm


Interior of Vancouver Spruce Mill
Source: https://www.nps.gov/articles/fovaclrworldwari.htm


Sitka spruce trees were huge, usually at least six feet diameter at the base, but some 10 to 20 feet!  Felling and trimming the trees was all by handsaws then, but steam powered cranes and locomotives helped with the heavy lifting.

 Timbers needed to be at least 22 feet long, so the logs were too large and heavy for primitive truck transport, especially since there were only a few treacherous logging trails totally unsuitable for trucks anyway.  This meant that railroad tracks would be needed.  In the space of two years about 350 miles of track were laid along with all the necessary cuts, fills, drainage culverts, bridges and trestles to bring the logs to the mills. 

 

Spruce logs headed for the mills at Vancouver.
Source: https://www.nps.gov/articles/spruceproductiondivision.htm

This is why we ended up with about 9,500 soldiers from Aero Squadrons cutting trees for civilian timber companies, working eight hour days, getting paid Army pay plus extra to match union wages, and some armed with lever action Winchester .30-30 Model 1894 deer rifles.

 

“Whoa, what’s this about working conditions and guns,” Sarge might ask.  Glad you asked!

 

 

Well, back in 1917 they did not yet have Antifa socialist anarchists disrupting the not so-Pacific Northwest, but they had their ancestors, the radical “Industrial Workers of the World” also known as “Wobblies.”   They were constantly feuding with lumber companies, spiking trees, striking mills, etc and usually demanding better working conditions and more pay from the logging companies and railroads.  

The Army knew that could not be tolerated, so they countered with several measures.  First, some 1,800 Winchester Model 1894 .30-30 rifles were issued to the first 12 Spruce Squadrons to protect troops from predators, presumably both biped or quadraped- they do have a lot of bears there!   Troops destined for European combat needed all the M1903 Springfield and the newly adopted M1917 “Enfields” being made, but the common “deer rifle” would suffice, and could be provided without diminishing service rifle production.   These are popular with collectors, and often overlooked as the only indication of their use as “Spruce guns” is the addition of hand stamped “US” and a flaming bomb on the receivers.


“Spruce gun” markings and Spruce Squadron member holding one.
Source: Left- author’s collection; Right: https://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/uploads/monthly_05_2018/post-330-0-19572800-1526996410_thumb.jpg


Colonel Brice Disque was appointed to run the program, and he basically used the existing logging and transport companies to oversee operations and provide the technical expertise and training while he provided warm bodies to do much of the work.   As an incentive for the troops, and also to undercut any Wobbly interference, he instituted an eight our work day.   Also, he got the companies to kick in the difference between the soldiers’ pay and the wage rates paid their civilian co-workers doing the same work. Having neutered the main Wobbly selling points, he also created a quasi-union “Loyal Legion of Loggers and Lumbermen” (Four L’s) pushing the patriotism and support for the war effort, and pledging not to strike.   This brilliant strategy worked extremely well, and production met expectation.

 

Source:  https://foresthistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/9-Williams_Spruce_Division.pdf

 

One “solider in the woods” was Private Albert Robert “Rufus” Davidson, 115th Aero Squadron, Spruce Production Division, Army Signal Corps, who built railroads and cut trees in the forests of the Olympic Peninsula. This is his campaign hat, with the hat cord of faded green and black of the Aero Service, and name and service number inside.

 

Source: Author’s collection.

 

Rufus as born in St. Vincent, Minnesota in 1892 to Canadian born parents, and by age 8 he was living in Anaconda, Montana where his father was a sewing machine agent.

From his WW1 and WW2 Draft Registration card we know that he was tall, medium build (5’9” and 218 pounds in 1942).

Census records show that he lived in Anaconda as a bachelor most of his life except for early childhood in Minnesota, his time in the Army, and a trip to England in 1927.   Rufus worked for the Anaconda Copper Mining Company, one of the largest mining companies in the world at the time, noted for building the world’s tallest surviving masonry structure, the 585 foot tall chimney from the copper smelter which closed around 1980.

 Montana State Military Records 1904-1918 provide details of his service in the 115th Spruce Squadron, and in the 123rd from which he was transferred, with a total time in uniform of about seven months.

Source: https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/20588:62068

 

His unit’s history is summed up as:

115th Aero Squadron  (or 115th Spruce Squadron)

The 115th Spruce was formed in July 1918 at Vancouver Barracks. This unit was not created from a ‘Provisional Squadron’, unlike earlier-formed units. In July 1918, they were sent to Joyce, Washington, Siems, Carey-H.S. Kerbaugh Co. The town of Joyce, as well as a post office specially opened at Siemscary, were the main centers of operation of a major railroad construction project to reach the huge stands of spruce near the area currently bounded by Olympic National Park. This project involved over 3,000 soldiers located at many camps within Clallam County. In October 1918, the unit was moved to Siemscary, Washington. In January 1919, the unit was moved to Vancouver Barracks and were demobilized there in that month. this unit had 3 officers and 194 enlisted men.

 

Here is a camp where he worked, on a beautiful peninsula day with only a light drizzle.  The troops lived in tent camps, but with some upgrades like hot showers, latrines, mess hall tents, etc.  This one is in Siemscarey, Washington, in Clallam County, with the name of that now gone settlement derived from the name of the lumber company logging in that part of the woods, the Siems-Carey company.

Siemscarey, Washington logging camp (white tents) of the 115th Spruce Squadron. Railroad had just reached this point and construction is still continuing in the foreground. PVT Davidson may be one of the men working on the railroad.

 

Detail from above showing track construction with grading complete, ties places and steam crane moving rails into place.
Source: https://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/digital/collection/social/id/7646/rec/1

Anyway, Rufus Davidson wore his hat proudly, as he served his country building railroads to supply logs to make airplanes during the Great War.  He returned home to Anaconda, Montana and lived there the rest of his life, except for a trip to England in 1927.  He died in 1982 until he passed in 1982

He chose to highlight his military service on his tombstone with the branch insignias of the Signal Corps (crossed flags) and Air Service (propeller and wings) flanking “World War I.”

Source: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/63527111/albert-rufus-davidson#view-photo=37238738

 


 

The 9,500 men of the Spruce Production Division of the Signal Corps (and then the Air Service) was a major contributor to our WW1 war effort, and that of our allies, as well as the shipbuilding programs which still used huge quantities of fir in ships.

Since the start of WW1, the Army Air Service had increased from around a hundred planes to an astounding 7,900 planes.  Less than 10 years has passed since they had purchased their first Wright Model A.

The magnitude of the spruce production program is shown by the relative size compared to the other major element of the Army Air Service at the end of November 1918:

Flying Squadrons- 185
Spruce Production Squadrons- 150
Supply Squadrons- 114
Replacement Squadrons- 11
Balloon Companies- 86

 

On 24 May 1918 The Aviation Section of the Signal Corps was redesignated as the Air Service, U.S. Army; then the Army Air Corps in 1926; Army Air Forces in 1941; and finally divorced from the Army to become the Air Force in 1947.

15 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. I'm remembering a study we did at NSDM that asked us to consider the future of laying up the M60 tank production lines in case we suddenly needed an overwhelming number of main battle tanks 30 years later. I replied that it would be just as foolish as laying up the original Spad production facilities in case we needed a top frontline fighter in 1938. I'll bet the Spruce Corps survived decades beyond any conceivable use just as the Mohair contracts did and the Spanish American War taxes on phone services.

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  2. THAT was interesting. Amazing that they could accomplish all that in so short a time with the tools they had at hand. Determination counts for a lot.

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  3. That was interesting indeed. Amazing what they were able to accomplish in so short a time with the tools at hand. Determination counts for a lot.

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  4. I was stationed in Port Angles for 3 years and wondered where Siemscarey, Washington, in Clallam County was, I found this:
    https://www.peninsuladailynews.com/news/west-end-neighbor-the-biggest-secret-in-the-town-of-beaver/

    Along the Columbia river in Washington just east of the I-5 drawbridge you'll find a series of signboards along the river walk telling the story of Kaiser & the WW2 ship yards there, it's a good story.
    A bit farther east is Ft Vancouver, a restored fort and National park (that's where I bought my old farts NP pass on my 62nd birthday). Touring the fort was worth the time.

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  5. Quite the post to read, well done JB!

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  6. JB, does the history say what happened after the war? Were the entire operations closed down, or just turned into regular sawmills?

    I have not been to Anaconda, but I have been to Butte. The Pit is worth seeing, at least once.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TB- Within a year or so, all the government assets of the Spruce Production Division were closed down and sold off to the highest bidder. Rows of locomotives, mill machinery, motor vehicles, tools, and even the Winchester rifles got sold. A lot went to the companies where they had been used, or speculators, much as with other post war military surplus situations after every war.

      The logging continued at a slower pace, with different market focus since there was greatly reduced demand for aviation grade spruce. Traditionally, spruce (which grew in scattered patterns, not concentrated stands) had not been a logging priority, more of something just left standing or cut to clear access to stands of fir which were used for shipbuilding or commercial timber for general building. The railroad structure slowly decayed, but roads and improved trucks took over the transportation aspects.

      The shutdown of the Spruce Production Division was sorta chaotic as many of the functions had been delegated (in enabling legislation or regulations) to a specific named person, not a job title. So, when the SPD ended, that person was gone and they had to "improvise" to finish up the odds and ends.
      JB

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  7. Excellent recounting of a bit of mostly forgotten US Military History.

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  8. JB, thank you, Brother for an excellent bit of obscure history! Fascinating stuff.
    BG

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  9. “Wobblies” - Being raised in an environment where the CIO later the AFL-CIO, Pipefitters, Ironworkers, Electricians, Carpenters, Boilermakers, Millwrights, etc. unions were prevalent in the operation and construction of oil and chemical refineries/plants. I became aware of workers strikes and "wobbles" at a very early age. Even worked as an apprentice in several unions to finance my education.
    The difference in a job "wobble" and "strike" basically came down length and reason for the work stoppage by the unions. A "wobble" was usually caused by a disagreement between unions as to which union was to perform a certain task/job since their different contracts with the contracting company didn't cover every possible task or which union was to perform that task. Since the task didn't clearly fall within either complaining union's purview, the job would be "wobbled" and workers from one union or both would walk off the job due to some illness from "drinking bad water" or some other contrived reason. The job dispute would normally be settled prior to the next work day and all of the "sick" fully recovered, showed up for work and construction went on as normal. Strikes were normally a more lengthy affair due wage and working condition disputes, and could become violent as the union/company negotiating session dragged on.
    I believe Colonel Brice Disque would have met his match with the unions I knew.
    Cletus Valvecore

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    Replies
    1. Cletus- Discue's varied career had included working at the Manila prison, where he got inmates involved with doing stuff for govt (military) needs. This gave the incarcarees somthing to keep them busy, taught them a job skill, and ended up with the govt getting really good prices. During his brief time running the Michigan prison, he set up similar programs, actually working with unions on job training and later employment opportunities. Between that and his combat record, and keen mind (first in his class at the Cavalry school) he was sharp, innovative, and tough, but good at working with people and getting them to buy into his programs. He negated a lot of the traditional adversarial aspects, and having a vital wartime mission to jointly focus on was certainly helpful.
      JB

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  10. JB,
    Excellent! While I knew most of the historic framework of yesterday's post, frankly I had no idea about the history and necessity of the actions in this post. Fascinating and awe inspiring. Excellent example of "Nothing is impossible with enough money, manpower and will to make it so".
    Hopefully we still remember that.
    juvat

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  11. Thanks again JB. This is great stuff. So interesting. The twentieth century had so much going on! I was privileged to be a small part of the progress (not in the war, though) - I actually knew what switches to thrown on for the most part in the Phantom. The Deuce was easy "all the shiny switched forward"!
    This is so good..(fuzz, D4)

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  12. Phenomenal article -- great history I'd never heard before. Thanks for passing this along!

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