Carter, Bryan Robinson-Roders Company

Description

Life preserver worn by Lt. Gorman R. Jones the night his transport ship, the RMS Moldavia, was torpedoed by a German U-boat in the English Channel in May 1918. Eleven years after the war, the life preserver was returned to him by the English couple who hosted Jones during his stay in Dover while awaiting his new orders. A Colbert County native, Jones served on the Mexican border in 1916 with the 4th Alabama Infantry. Jones was originally an officer in the 58th Infantry Regiment (as noted on the reverse side), but was reassigned to the 369th "Harlem Hellfighters" Infantry Regiment, an African American unit created in New York led by mostly white officers like Jones. In August 1918, Jones and several of his men were taken prisoners by the Germans. Jones was wounded twice throughout the war for which he was awarded the Purple Heart. He continued his military service after the war, serving in the reserves and rising to the rank of major before his death in 1938.

From Collection

Alabama Museum Collection

Record Contributed By

Alabama Department of Archives and History, 624 Washington Avenue, Montgomery, Alabama 36104