Frederick Jessen
January 30, 1891 - October 29, 1918
Internment: Fairview Cemetery, White, South Dakota
Private Frederick Jessen was born in South Dakota the 30th of January 1891. He died in France after the Battle at St. Mihiel on October 20, 1918 while serving with Company B, 355th Infantry, 89th Division.
Frederick was born to parents of German descent. His father, Henry Carlton Jessen (a butcher) and his mother, Anna Mary Francis Berndt, were married in 1878 in Wisconsin. Their first son, Henry Jr, was born in Illinois as was their first daughter, Mary. From there the family moved to Minnesota where Anna, Lilly, and Gustave all joined the family. The family then moved to South Dakota where Frederick and Lora were born. Unfortunately, Frederick's father died when he was only 4 years old and possibly before the birth of Lora.
The 1900 Census lists Anna Jessen as the Head of Household with the occupation of Farmer. Henry, Jr. is listed as a Laborer with Mary keeping house and the rest of the children at school or at home. In the 1910 Census, Frederick (19) is listed as a Roomer in the Fred Meeske home where his occupation is listed as Odd Jobs.
In an article in the Brookings Register dated March 14, 1918 (VolumeXXXVI, Number 44), titled 'First Call For The Next Draft' lists the following men that were chosen to go on March 29th (1918) together with their order number and the address given in their questionnaire:
102 Oscar N. Alrick, Bottineau, N.D.
144 Francis A. Nolan, Thermopolis, Wy.
267 Carl Kittelson, Volga
280 W.T. Nesbit, Voga
286 Fred Jessen, White
294 Gail Seas, Aurora
159 Oscar Atkins, Flandreau.
Frederick and his fellow draftees, traveled to Camp Funston, Fort Riley, Kansas. The amassed troops were moved overseas in June and July of 1918 to join the American Expeditionary Force (AEF). General Frank Winn commanded the 89th division in the Battle of St. Mihiel which suffered and estimated 7000 casualties for the American forces, including Pvt. Frederick Jessen of White, SD.
89th Division - World War I The 89th Division was officially established by the War Department on 5 August 1917, four months after the American entry into World War I, at Camp Funston, Fort Riley, Kansas. On 27 August, Major General Leonard Wood, formerly the Chief of Staff of the United States Army, assumed command. Organization of the division began during the last week of August, with a cadre of officers and men of the Regular Army, and from officers of the Officers' Reserve Corps and National Army officer graduates of the First Officers Training Camp held at Fort Riley. From September 5-10, the initial draft of 2,200 Selective Service men arrived, and from Sept 19-24, an additional 18,600 arrived. The drafted men came from Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, and South Dakota. The 353rd Infantry was organized with men from Kansas, the 354th Infantry with men from southeastern and eastern Missouri, the 355th Infantry with men from Nebraska, and the 356th Infantry with men from northwest Missouri. The 340th Machine Gun Battalion was organized with men from South Dakota, the 341st Machine Gun Battalion principally from men living in the Omaha, Nebraska, area, and the 342nd Machine Gun Battalion got men from Arizona, Colorado, and South Dakota. The 340th Field Artillery was sent men from Arizona, the 341st Field Artillery from Colorado, and the 342nd Field Artillery from southeast Missouri. The 314th Engineer Regiment received men from southeastern and eastern Missouri that were surplus after the organization of the 354th Infantry. The 314th Field Signal Battalion was organized using men of the Signal Enlisted Reserve Corps called to active duty. They were principally from the Chicago area, but the unit also "contained representatives of almost every state;" Company A, the radio company, was made up principally of reservists who worked for the Western Electric Company. Men from Nebraska comprised the 314th Ammunition Train, while the 314th Engineer, Sanitary, and Supply Trains received men from each state sent to Camp Funston.[1] Officers of the 89th Division being decorated by General John J. Pershing in Trier, Germany, April 1919. Systematic training began. Between January and June 1918, arrivals and departures at Camp Funston aggregated 20,000 each, and on April 30, the 89th Division numbered 16,000 men, having been reduced by transfers to the 3rd, 4th, 35th, and other divisions. In May, fresh drafts and transfers completed the division. The division, now commanded by Major General William M. Wright, was sent overseas in June and July 1918 to join the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) in the final stages of World War I, which ended on November 11, 1918, due to the Armistice with Germany. The 89th Division, now under Major General Frank L. Winn, participated in the Battle of St. Mihiel and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.
Battle of St. Mihiel - 7000 Casualties The battle of St. Mihiel saw the first major independent American offensive of the First World War. General John Pershing had generally resisted British and French attempts to feed American troops into the frontline as soon as they were available, instead preferring to concentrate his troops in a single army. On 30 August 1918 the First American Army was finally ready to enter the battle. The new army was immediately deployed to the south side of the St. Mihiel salient. This salient, south of Verdun, had been in German hands since 1914, but in the autumn of 1918, the Germans were in retreat. In mid-September they were about to abandon the St. Mihiel salient to withdraw to the Hindenburg Line. The German retreat began on 11 September. The next morning the Americans attacked. Pershing committed two corps (I and IV) to the attack. The attack was backed up by an artillery barrage from 2,900 guns (many French) as well as a force of French tanks and a French Colonial division. The Germans were caught by surprise. Outnumbered and slightly out of position, the German position collapsed. In 36 hours the Americans took over 13,000 prisoners and captured 466 guns. The Germans lost 5,000 killed and wounded, while the Americans suffered 7,000 casualties. What the American troops lacked in experience of the Western Front they made up for in enthusiasm and morale. The first American troops had arrived in France in the summer of 1917 and had been waiting to enter the fray ever since. In contrast the arrival of increasingly large numbers of American soldiers on the front line had a very damaging impact on German morale. With the salient eliminated, Marshal Foch ended the American offensive. The Americans were moved to the Argonne Forest, where they would make their main contribution to the vital fighting on the Western Front.
