Avery was born in 1881 in Mitchell, Iowa as the firstborn of William Orin Cummings and Harriet Delphine REYNOLDS. The family moved to the Pacific Northwest in 1890, moving to Lewiston, Idaho in 1891. In May 1896 at age 14, Avery graduated from the 8th grade and was one of four students, speaking to the attendees of their commencement exercise, held at the Masonic Hall. His speech was entitled "How Horatius Kept the Bridge", a military incident from Roman history. Avery cited deeds worthy of emulation and is a clear indication of his early fascination with military matters. In July 1897 the family moved to Coeur d' Alene, leaving Avery behind for the summer to work for Lewiston jeweler and watchmaker George H. Lake, likely staying with his uncle Everett and aunt Sylvia for those few months before rejoining his family. He attended High School in Spokane, Washington and worked at the Coeur d'Alene Drug Store on visits home. In January 1901, Avery received his appointment to the West Point Military Academy, in correspondence addressed to his father from Idaho State Senator Henry Heitfeld addressed from Washington D.C. and pending the results of his upcoming examination. Avery completed his testing at the Vancouver Barracks at the end of that month and was subsequently notified of his passing marks on March 31, where his examination results ranked the highest among his class of applicants.
Avery was ordered to report to the Military Academy by June 10 and on May 26, he left Coeur d'Alene accompanied by his mother as far as Mitchell, Iowa, where she spent a month visiting relatives, while Avery continued on to the Buffalo Pan-American Exposition to take in the fair before reaching West Point. On July 1, Avery became a Cadet at the Academy and during the month of August, participated in drills at the Buffalo Exposition only weeks before President McKinley was assassinated there on September 6. Two years later, Avery suffered a personal tragedy with the loss of his sisters Estelle, Emma, and Joyce, in May of 1903 from Scarlet Fever, at the family home in Post Falls, Idaho, leaving only him and his sister Edna. He later participated in the inauguration of President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt on Saturday 4 Mar 1905 in Washington D.C. Avery graduated in the middle of his class and that June, his parents William and Hattie traveled from Idaho to attend their son's graduation ceremony. Avery married Mildred May Green (1887-1926) on 9 Sep 1908 in Denver, Colorado and the couple had one child, Avery Duane Cummings Jr. (1910-1984). He married a second time, to Mrs. Mabel C. Grinnell/PAYNE on 16 May 1930. Mabel Cummings passed away on 15 Mar 1972 in Seattle, Washington.
The romance associated with the prospect of attending West Point attracted many young men and if accepted, the practical realities discouraged three-fifths of the pupils before their second year. One in five graduated and fewer still followed the profession throughout life. Highlights from the "Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, 1910-1920", for "The Career Military History of A. D. Cummings" by Brevet-Major-General, George Washington Cullum, published in 1920, are as follows:
-The U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., Graduating Class of 1905.
-Second Lieut. with the 29th Infantry, 13 Jun 1905.
-First Lieut. with the 10th Infantry, 11 Mar 1911.
-Captain of the 37th Infantry, 1 Jul 1916.
-Professor of Military Science and Tactics at the University of Idaho, 16 Sep 1916.
-Major of Infantry, National Army, 5 Aug 1917 and Division Inspector for the 91st. Division.
-Lieut. Colonel of Infantry, U.S.A. and acting Brigade Adjutant, 181st Brigade, 9 Sep 1918.
-Colonel of Infantry, U.S.A. 10 Oct 1918.
-Attached to the 361st Infantry, 21 Oct 1918 and Commanding Regiment, 1 Nov 1918.
-Participated in the St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne and Ypres-Lys campaigns.
-Inspector General's Department, 3 May 1919.
-Division Inspector, 2nd Division, 30 Sep 1919.
-Promoted to Colonel, U.S.A. for gallantry during the attack on Gesnes, 29 Sep 1918 and awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.
"The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress on 19 Jul 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Colonel (Infantry) Avery Duane Cummings, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with the 181st Infantry Brigade, 91st Division, American Expeditionary Forces (A.E.F.), near Gesnes, France 29 Sep 1918. During the attack on Gesnes Colonel Cummings, then a Lieutenant Colonel, in addition to performing his regular duties as brigade adjutant, 181st Brigade, went forward with the front line of attack, directing the organization and outposting of the front line after Gesnes and the army objective beyond it had been captured. All the senior officers of the assaulting regiment having been killed or wounded in the attack on Gesnes, he unhesitatingly organized the scattered elements of the regiment and pushed the attack home to final success." (W. D. G. O. 139, Sec, I, 24 Dec 1918.)
Col. Cummings was commanding officer of the 361st. from 1 Nov 1918 until its demobilization in April of 1919 and it was at his suggestion, a book is written about its history in December 1918. Edited by attorney and future Supreme Court Justice Harold Hitz Burton, who also served with the A.E.F. as a Captain and Operations Officer, the resulting book was entitled: "600 Days' Service, a history of the 361st. Infantry Regiment of the United States Army". Cummings contribution was providing content and inspiration, along with his direct involvement with organizing financing for the book's publication, by the James, Kerns & Abbott Co. of Portland Oregon in 1921. The book's title refers to the 600 days between 4 Sep 1917 and the 361st. was established until 26 Apr 1919 when troops began reporting back to Camp Lewis in Washington for demobilization and subsequently, were distributed free to surviving members of the regiment or the nearest relatives of the fallen. The Meuse-Argonne battle was a victory accomplished with the tremendous sacrifice of American life and described as "the single most deadly battle for U.S. forces over a 47-day slaughter". Instrumental in helping change the course of the war, it is regarded as perhaps the most consequential battle fought during the first world war.
In December 1918, a newly promoted Colonel Cummings wrote a letter to his parents about his experiences in France and Belgium. In Avery's words, here are selections from his letter. "The censorship has been raised and I am now permitted to tell you where I have been and what I have been doing. I left Camp Lewis on 22 Jun 1918 and arrived at Camp Merit on June 27. We stayed there for about a week and sailed from New York Harbor on July 6. Our convoy consisted of 15 ocean transports and carried about 25,000 men. We were escorted out of the harbor and off the coast by destroyers, dirigibles, cruisers, and airplanes. Our trip took 12 days, and we went around the north of Ireland, then south between England and Ireland to Liverpool, where we landed the morning of the 18th." Avery's letter home, continues with highlights of his regiments brilliant record in the Argonne and Belgium, concluding as follows: "On November 25, I went to Brussels with General McDonald, and we witnessed King Albert's entry into his capital after four years of enforced absence. It was quite an interesting parade with allied troops from America, France, Britain, and Belgium participating. We will now gradually march back to entrain for Lemons, about 90 miles southwest of Paris. We don't know what is to become of us then, some say we will go home and others that we will remain in the army of occupation. I would like to come back to the United States, but of course, I will take care of my end over here if I have to stay. This is a brief account of our doing, but I doubt there's a single division that has been as busy as we have in so short a time. January 6, it will be just six months since I left America".
One additional detail about Avery Duane Cummings from the History Link essay, file #10648, "Wild West Division: Washington in World War 1" reads as follows:
"On 25 Apr 1919, a train carrying 500 soldiers of the 361st stopped in Spokane and were greeted by cheering crowds. The regimental commander, Colonel Avery D. Cummings, and his officers were provided breakfast at a local restaurant. The colonel's parents had come from their home in Marcus, near Kettle Falls on the Columbia River to greet him. Spokane gave the regimental soldiers a luncheon that included a silent toast to their 400 comrades who died in France and Belgium. That evening, the train departed for Seattle and a parade there. At Tacoma, the soldiers were given free coffee, doughnuts, a meal, and passes to the theaters. Following these welcome activities, the Wild West veterans went to Camp Lewis to be discharged".
Avery Cummings remained in the army until his retirement as a Lieutenant Colonel on 28 Aug 1929. In June 1930, he was advanced to the grade of Colonel on the retirement list and passed away on 18 Oct 1936 at the age of 55 in a Seattle hospital from heart failure. His funeral service was conducted two days later at 1:30 pm at the Bonny-Watson Funeral Parlors, followed by full military honors and interment at 3:00 pm at the Fort Lawton Cemetery in Seattle, Washington. Avery's funeral services were officiated by E. Raymond Attenbury, Pastor of Grace Methodist Episcopal Church and Chaplain of the 146th Field Artillery, Washington National Guard.
Scott Adell
2016, 2019, 2020
Sources:
Library of Congress, Chronicling America, Historic Newspapers (1785-1925); the Lewiston Teller, the Coeur d'Alene Press, the Colville Examiner.
The 1905 Howitzer, West Point Military Academy yearbook.
Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, 1910-1920; by Brevet-Major-General-George Washington Cullum; 1920.
History Link Essay, File #10648 "Wild West Division: Washington in World War I",
"600 Days' Service; A History of the 361st Infantry Regiment of the United States Army", edited by Harold Hitz Burton, 1921.
"The Association of the Graduates of the United States Military Academy, Annual Report, 11 June 1937.
"The 91st Infantry in W.W.1-Analysis of an A.E.F. division's efforts to Achieve Battlefield Success", a master's Thesis by Bryon L. Woodcock, Major U.S. Army.
"Sixty Eighth Annual Report of the Association of Graduates of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, 11 Jun 1937".
A.D. Cummings obituary.
Family correspondence.
Mr. Michael Belis, for providing Avery's cover photograph.
Avery was ordered to report to the Military Academy by June 10 and on May 26, he left Coeur d'Alene accompanied by his mother as far as Mitchell, Iowa, where she spent a month visiting relatives, while Avery continued on to the Buffalo Pan-American Exposition to take in the fair before reaching West Point. On July 1, Avery became a Cadet at the Academy and during the month of August, participated in drills at the Buffalo Exposition only weeks before President McKinley was assassinated there on September 6. Two years later, Avery suffered a personal tragedy with the loss of his sisters Estelle, Emma, and Joyce, in May of 1903 from Scarlet Fever, at the family home in Post Falls, Idaho, leaving only him and his sister Edna. He later participated in the inauguration of President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt on Saturday 4 Mar 1905 in Washington D.C. Avery graduated in the middle of his class and that June, his parents William and Hattie traveled from Idaho to attend their son's graduation ceremony. Avery married Mildred May Green (1887-1926) on 9 Sep 1908 in Denver, Colorado and the couple had one child, Avery Duane Cummings Jr. (1910-1984). He married a second time, to Mrs. Mabel C. Grinnell/PAYNE on 16 May 1930. Mabel Cummings passed away on 15 Mar 1972 in Seattle, Washington.
The romance associated with the prospect of attending West Point attracted many young men and if accepted, the practical realities discouraged three-fifths of the pupils before their second year. One in five graduated and fewer still followed the profession throughout life. Highlights from the "Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, 1910-1920", for "The Career Military History of A. D. Cummings" by Brevet-Major-General, George Washington Cullum, published in 1920, are as follows:
-The U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., Graduating Class of 1905.
-Second Lieut. with the 29th Infantry, 13 Jun 1905.
-First Lieut. with the 10th Infantry, 11 Mar 1911.
-Captain of the 37th Infantry, 1 Jul 1916.
-Professor of Military Science and Tactics at the University of Idaho, 16 Sep 1916.
-Major of Infantry, National Army, 5 Aug 1917 and Division Inspector for the 91st. Division.
-Lieut. Colonel of Infantry, U.S.A. and acting Brigade Adjutant, 181st Brigade, 9 Sep 1918.
-Colonel of Infantry, U.S.A. 10 Oct 1918.
-Attached to the 361st Infantry, 21 Oct 1918 and Commanding Regiment, 1 Nov 1918.
-Participated in the St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne and Ypres-Lys campaigns.
-Inspector General's Department, 3 May 1919.
-Division Inspector, 2nd Division, 30 Sep 1919.
-Promoted to Colonel, U.S.A. for gallantry during the attack on Gesnes, 29 Sep 1918 and awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.
"The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress on 19 Jul 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Colonel (Infantry) Avery Duane Cummings, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with the 181st Infantry Brigade, 91st Division, American Expeditionary Forces (A.E.F.), near Gesnes, France 29 Sep 1918. During the attack on Gesnes Colonel Cummings, then a Lieutenant Colonel, in addition to performing his regular duties as brigade adjutant, 181st Brigade, went forward with the front line of attack, directing the organization and outposting of the front line after Gesnes and the army objective beyond it had been captured. All the senior officers of the assaulting regiment having been killed or wounded in the attack on Gesnes, he unhesitatingly organized the scattered elements of the regiment and pushed the attack home to final success." (W. D. G. O. 139, Sec, I, 24 Dec 1918.)
Col. Cummings was commanding officer of the 361st. from 1 Nov 1918 until its demobilization in April of 1919 and it was at his suggestion, a book is written about its history in December 1918. Edited by attorney and future Supreme Court Justice Harold Hitz Burton, who also served with the A.E.F. as a Captain and Operations Officer, the resulting book was entitled: "600 Days' Service, a history of the 361st. Infantry Regiment of the United States Army". Cummings contribution was providing content and inspiration, along with his direct involvement with organizing financing for the book's publication, by the James, Kerns & Abbott Co. of Portland Oregon in 1921. The book's title refers to the 600 days between 4 Sep 1917 and the 361st. was established until 26 Apr 1919 when troops began reporting back to Camp Lewis in Washington for demobilization and subsequently, were distributed free to surviving members of the regiment or the nearest relatives of the fallen. The Meuse-Argonne battle was a victory accomplished with the tremendous sacrifice of American life and described as "the single most deadly battle for U.S. forces over a 47-day slaughter". Instrumental in helping change the course of the war, it is regarded as perhaps the most consequential battle fought during the first world war.
In December 1918, a newly promoted Colonel Cummings wrote a letter to his parents about his experiences in France and Belgium. In Avery's words, here are selections from his letter. "The censorship has been raised and I am now permitted to tell you where I have been and what I have been doing. I left Camp Lewis on 22 Jun 1918 and arrived at Camp Merit on June 27. We stayed there for about a week and sailed from New York Harbor on July 6. Our convoy consisted of 15 ocean transports and carried about 25,000 men. We were escorted out of the harbor and off the coast by destroyers, dirigibles, cruisers, and airplanes. Our trip took 12 days, and we went around the north of Ireland, then south between England and Ireland to Liverpool, where we landed the morning of the 18th." Avery's letter home, continues with highlights of his regiments brilliant record in the Argonne and Belgium, concluding as follows: "On November 25, I went to Brussels with General McDonald, and we witnessed King Albert's entry into his capital after four years of enforced absence. It was quite an interesting parade with allied troops from America, France, Britain, and Belgium participating. We will now gradually march back to entrain for Lemons, about 90 miles southwest of Paris. We don't know what is to become of us then, some say we will go home and others that we will remain in the army of occupation. I would like to come back to the United States, but of course, I will take care of my end over here if I have to stay. This is a brief account of our doing, but I doubt there's a single division that has been as busy as we have in so short a time. January 6, it will be just six months since I left America".
One additional detail about Avery Duane Cummings from the History Link essay, file #10648, "Wild West Division: Washington in World War 1" reads as follows:
"On 25 Apr 1919, a train carrying 500 soldiers of the 361st stopped in Spokane and were greeted by cheering crowds. The regimental commander, Colonel Avery D. Cummings, and his officers were provided breakfast at a local restaurant. The colonel's parents had come from their home in Marcus, near Kettle Falls on the Columbia River to greet him. Spokane gave the regimental soldiers a luncheon that included a silent toast to their 400 comrades who died in France and Belgium. That evening, the train departed for Seattle and a parade there. At Tacoma, the soldiers were given free coffee, doughnuts, a meal, and passes to the theaters. Following these welcome activities, the Wild West veterans went to Camp Lewis to be discharged".
Avery Cummings remained in the army until his retirement as a Lieutenant Colonel on 28 Aug 1929. In June 1930, he was advanced to the grade of Colonel on the retirement list and passed away on 18 Oct 1936 at the age of 55 in a Seattle hospital from heart failure. His funeral service was conducted two days later at 1:30 pm at the Bonny-Watson Funeral Parlors, followed by full military honors and interment at 3:00 pm at the Fort Lawton Cemetery in Seattle, Washington. Avery's funeral services were officiated by E. Raymond Attenbury, Pastor of Grace Methodist Episcopal Church and Chaplain of the 146th Field Artillery, Washington National Guard.
Scott Adell
2016, 2019, 2020
Sources:
Library of Congress, Chronicling America, Historic Newspapers (1785-1925); the Lewiston Teller, the Coeur d'Alene Press, the Colville Examiner.
The 1905 Howitzer, West Point Military Academy yearbook.
Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, 1910-1920; by Brevet-Major-General-George Washington Cullum; 1920.
History Link Essay, File #10648 "Wild West Division: Washington in World War I",
"600 Days' Service; A History of the 361st Infantry Regiment of the United States Army", edited by Harold Hitz Burton, 1921.
"The Association of the Graduates of the United States Military Academy, Annual Report, 11 June 1937.
"The 91st Infantry in W.W.1-Analysis of an A.E.F. division's efforts to Achieve Battlefield Success", a master's Thesis by Bryon L. Woodcock, Major U.S. Army.
"Sixty Eighth Annual Report of the Association of Graduates of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, 11 Jun 1937".
A.D. Cummings obituary.
Family correspondence.
Mr. Michael Belis, for providing Avery's cover photograph.
Avery was born in 1881 in Mitchell, Iowa as the firstborn of William Orin Cummings and Harriet Delphine REYNOLDS. The family moved to the Pacific Northwest in 1890, moving to Lewiston, Idaho in 1891. In May 1896 at age 14, Avery graduated from the 8th grade and was one of four students, speaking to the attendees of their commencement exercise, held at the Masonic Hall. His speech was entitled "How Horatius Kept the Bridge", a military incident from Roman history. Avery cited deeds worthy of emulation and is a clear indication of his early fascination with military matters. In July 1897 the family moved to Coeur d' Alene, leaving Avery behind for the summer to work for Lewiston jeweler and watchmaker George H. Lake, likely staying with his uncle Everett and aunt Sylvia for those few months before rejoining his family. He attended High School in Spokane, Washington and worked at the Coeur d'Alene Drug Store on visits home. In January 1901, Avery received his appointment to the West Point Military Academy, in correspondence addressed to his father from Idaho State Senator Henry Heitfeld addressed from Washington D.C. and pending the results of his upcoming examination. Avery completed his testing at the Vancouver Barracks at the end of that month and was subsequently notified of his passing marks on March 31, where his examination results ranked the highest among his class of applicants.
Avery was ordered to report to the Military Academy by June 10 and on May 26, he left Coeur d'Alene accompanied by his mother as far as Mitchell, Iowa, where she spent a month visiting relatives, while Avery continued on to the Buffalo Pan-American Exposition to take in the fair before reaching West Point. On July 1, Avery became a Cadet at the Academy and during the month of August, participated in drills at the Buffalo Exposition only weeks before President McKinley was assassinated there on September 6. Two years later, Avery suffered a personal tragedy with the loss of his sisters Estelle, Emma, and Joyce, in May of 1903 from Scarlet Fever, at the family home in Post Falls, Idaho, leaving only him and his sister Edna. He later participated in the inauguration of President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt on Saturday 4 Mar 1905 in Washington D.C. Avery graduated in the middle of his class and that June, his parents William and Hattie traveled from Idaho to attend their son's graduation ceremony. Avery married Mildred May Green (1887-1926) on 9 Sep 1908 in Denver, Colorado and the couple had one child, Avery Duane Cummings Jr. (1910-1984). He married a second time, to Mrs. Mabel C. Grinnell/PAYNE on 16 May 1930. Mabel Cummings passed away on 15 Mar 1972 in Seattle, Washington.
The romance associated with the prospect of attending West Point attracted many young men and if accepted, the practical realities discouraged three-fifths of the pupils before their second year. One in five graduated and fewer still followed the profession throughout life. Highlights from the "Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, 1910-1920", for "The Career Military History of A. D. Cummings" by Brevet-Major-General, George Washington Cullum, published in 1920, are as follows:
-The U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., Graduating Class of 1905.
-Second Lieut. with the 29th Infantry, 13 Jun 1905.
-First Lieut. with the 10th Infantry, 11 Mar 1911.
-Captain of the 37th Infantry, 1 Jul 1916.
-Professor of Military Science and Tactics at the University of Idaho, 16 Sep 1916.
-Major of Infantry, National Army, 5 Aug 1917 and Division Inspector for the 91st. Division.
-Lieut. Colonel of Infantry, U.S.A. and acting Brigade Adjutant, 181st Brigade, 9 Sep 1918.
-Colonel of Infantry, U.S.A. 10 Oct 1918.
-Attached to the 361st Infantry, 21 Oct 1918 and Commanding Regiment, 1 Nov 1918.
-Participated in the St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne and Ypres-Lys campaigns.
-Inspector General's Department, 3 May 1919.
-Division Inspector, 2nd Division, 30 Sep 1919.
-Promoted to Colonel, U.S.A. for gallantry during the attack on Gesnes, 29 Sep 1918 and awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.
"The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress on 19 Jul 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Colonel (Infantry) Avery Duane Cummings, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with the 181st Infantry Brigade, 91st Division, American Expeditionary Forces (A.E.F.), near Gesnes, France 29 Sep 1918. During the attack on Gesnes Colonel Cummings, then a Lieutenant Colonel, in addition to performing his regular duties as brigade adjutant, 181st Brigade, went forward with the front line of attack, directing the organization and outposting of the front line after Gesnes and the army objective beyond it had been captured. All the senior officers of the assaulting regiment having been killed or wounded in the attack on Gesnes, he unhesitatingly organized the scattered elements of the regiment and pushed the attack home to final success." (W. D. G. O. 139, Sec, I, 24 Dec 1918.)
Col. Cummings was commanding officer of the 361st. from 1 Nov 1918 until its demobilization in April of 1919 and it was at his suggestion, a book is written about its history in December 1918. Edited by attorney and future Supreme Court Justice Harold Hitz Burton, who also served with the A.E.F. as a Captain and Operations Officer, the resulting book was entitled: "600 Days' Service, a history of the 361st. Infantry Regiment of the United States Army". Cummings contribution was providing content and inspiration, along with his direct involvement with organizing financing for the book's publication, by the James, Kerns & Abbott Co. of Portland Oregon in 1921. The book's title refers to the 600 days between 4 Sep 1917 and the 361st. was established until 26 Apr 1919 when troops began reporting back to Camp Lewis in Washington for demobilization and subsequently, were distributed free to surviving members of the regiment or the nearest relatives of the fallen. The Meuse-Argonne battle was a victory accomplished with the tremendous sacrifice of American life and described as "the single most deadly battle for U.S. forces over a 47-day slaughter". Instrumental in helping change the course of the war, it is regarded as perhaps the most consequential battle fought during the first world war.
In December 1918, a newly promoted Colonel Cummings wrote a letter to his parents about his experiences in France and Belgium. In Avery's words, here are selections from his letter. "The censorship has been raised and I am now permitted to tell you where I have been and what I have been doing. I left Camp Lewis on 22 Jun 1918 and arrived at Camp Merit on June 27. We stayed there for about a week and sailed from New York Harbor on July 6. Our convoy consisted of 15 ocean transports and carried about 25,000 men. We were escorted out of the harbor and off the coast by destroyers, dirigibles, cruisers, and airplanes. Our trip took 12 days, and we went around the north of Ireland, then south between England and Ireland to Liverpool, where we landed the morning of the 18th." Avery's letter home, continues with highlights of his regiments brilliant record in the Argonne and Belgium, concluding as follows: "On November 25, I went to Brussels with General McDonald, and we witnessed King Albert's entry into his capital after four years of enforced absence. It was quite an interesting parade with allied troops from America, France, Britain, and Belgium participating. We will now gradually march back to entrain for Lemons, about 90 miles southwest of Paris. We don't know what is to become of us then, some say we will go home and others that we will remain in the army of occupation. I would like to come back to the United States, but of course, I will take care of my end over here if I have to stay. This is a brief account of our doing, but I doubt there's a single division that has been as busy as we have in so short a time. January 6, it will be just six months since I left America".
One additional detail about Avery Duane Cummings from the History Link essay, file #10648, "Wild West Division: Washington in World War 1" reads as follows:
"On 25 Apr 1919, a train carrying 500 soldiers of the 361st stopped in Spokane and were greeted by cheering crowds. The regimental commander, Colonel Avery D. Cummings, and his officers were provided breakfast at a local restaurant. The colonel's parents had come from their home in Marcus, near Kettle Falls on the Columbia River to greet him. Spokane gave the regimental soldiers a luncheon that included a silent toast to their 400 comrades who died in France and Belgium. That evening, the train departed for Seattle and a parade there. At Tacoma, the soldiers were given free coffee, doughnuts, a meal, and passes to the theaters. Following these welcome activities, the Wild West veterans went to Camp Lewis to be discharged".
Avery Cummings remained in the army until his retirement as a Lieutenant Colonel on 28 Aug 1929. In June 1930, he was advanced to the grade of Colonel on the retirement list and passed away on 18 Oct 1936 at the age of 55 in a Seattle hospital from heart failure. His funeral service was conducted two days later at 1:30 pm at the Bonny-Watson Funeral Parlors, followed by full military honors and interment at 3:00 pm at the Fort Lawton Cemetery in Seattle, Washington. Avery's funeral services were officiated by E. Raymond Attenbury, Pastor of Grace Methodist Episcopal Church and Chaplain of the 146th Field Artillery, Washington National Guard.
Scott Adell
2016, 2019, 2020
Sources:
Library of Congress, Chronicling America, Historic Newspapers (1785-1925); the Lewiston Teller, the Coeur d'Alene Press, the Colville Examiner.
The 1905 Howitzer, West Point Military Academy yearbook.
Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, 1910-1920; by Brevet-Major-General-George Washington Cullum; 1920.
History Link Essay, File #10648 "Wild West Division: Washington in World War I",
"600 Days' Service; A History of the 361st Infantry Regiment of the United States Army", edited by Harold Hitz Burton, 1921.
"The Association of the Graduates of the United States Military Academy, Annual Report, 11 June 1937.
"The 91st Infantry in W.W.1-Analysis of an A.E.F. division's efforts to Achieve Battlefield Success", a master's Thesis by Bryon L. Woodcock, Major U.S. Army.
"Sixty Eighth Annual Report of the Association of Graduates of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, 11 Jun 1937".
A.D. Cummings obituary.
Family correspondence.
Mr. Michael Belis, for providing Avery's cover photograph.
Avery was ordered to report to the Military Academy by June 10 and on May 26, he left Coeur d'Alene accompanied by his mother as far as Mitchell, Iowa, where she spent a month visiting relatives, while Avery continued on to the Buffalo Pan-American Exposition to take in the fair before reaching West Point. On July 1, Avery became a Cadet at the Academy and during the month of August, participated in drills at the Buffalo Exposition only weeks before President McKinley was assassinated there on September 6. Two years later, Avery suffered a personal tragedy with the loss of his sisters Estelle, Emma, and Joyce, in May of 1903 from Scarlet Fever, at the family home in Post Falls, Idaho, leaving only him and his sister Edna. He later participated in the inauguration of President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt on Saturday 4 Mar 1905 in Washington D.C. Avery graduated in the middle of his class and that June, his parents William and Hattie traveled from Idaho to attend their son's graduation ceremony. Avery married Mildred May Green (1887-1926) on 9 Sep 1908 in Denver, Colorado and the couple had one child, Avery Duane Cummings Jr. (1910-1984). He married a second time, to Mrs. Mabel C. Grinnell/PAYNE on 16 May 1930. Mabel Cummings passed away on 15 Mar 1972 in Seattle, Washington.
The romance associated with the prospect of attending West Point attracted many young men and if accepted, the practical realities discouraged three-fifths of the pupils before their second year. One in five graduated and fewer still followed the profession throughout life. Highlights from the "Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, 1910-1920", for "The Career Military History of A. D. Cummings" by Brevet-Major-General, George Washington Cullum, published in 1920, are as follows:
-The U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., Graduating Class of 1905.
-Second Lieut. with the 29th Infantry, 13 Jun 1905.
-First Lieut. with the 10th Infantry, 11 Mar 1911.
-Captain of the 37th Infantry, 1 Jul 1916.
-Professor of Military Science and Tactics at the University of Idaho, 16 Sep 1916.
-Major of Infantry, National Army, 5 Aug 1917 and Division Inspector for the 91st. Division.
-Lieut. Colonel of Infantry, U.S.A. and acting Brigade Adjutant, 181st Brigade, 9 Sep 1918.
-Colonel of Infantry, U.S.A. 10 Oct 1918.
-Attached to the 361st Infantry, 21 Oct 1918 and Commanding Regiment, 1 Nov 1918.
-Participated in the St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne and Ypres-Lys campaigns.
-Inspector General's Department, 3 May 1919.
-Division Inspector, 2nd Division, 30 Sep 1919.
-Promoted to Colonel, U.S.A. for gallantry during the attack on Gesnes, 29 Sep 1918 and awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.
"The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress on 19 Jul 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Colonel (Infantry) Avery Duane Cummings, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with the 181st Infantry Brigade, 91st Division, American Expeditionary Forces (A.E.F.), near Gesnes, France 29 Sep 1918. During the attack on Gesnes Colonel Cummings, then a Lieutenant Colonel, in addition to performing his regular duties as brigade adjutant, 181st Brigade, went forward with the front line of attack, directing the organization and outposting of the front line after Gesnes and the army objective beyond it had been captured. All the senior officers of the assaulting regiment having been killed or wounded in the attack on Gesnes, he unhesitatingly organized the scattered elements of the regiment and pushed the attack home to final success." (W. D. G. O. 139, Sec, I, 24 Dec 1918.)
Col. Cummings was commanding officer of the 361st. from 1 Nov 1918 until its demobilization in April of 1919 and it was at his suggestion, a book is written about its history in December 1918. Edited by attorney and future Supreme Court Justice Harold Hitz Burton, who also served with the A.E.F. as a Captain and Operations Officer, the resulting book was entitled: "600 Days' Service, a history of the 361st. Infantry Regiment of the United States Army". Cummings contribution was providing content and inspiration, along with his direct involvement with organizing financing for the book's publication, by the James, Kerns & Abbott Co. of Portland Oregon in 1921. The book's title refers to the 600 days between 4 Sep 1917 and the 361st. was established until 26 Apr 1919 when troops began reporting back to Camp Lewis in Washington for demobilization and subsequently, were distributed free to surviving members of the regiment or the nearest relatives of the fallen. The Meuse-Argonne battle was a victory accomplished with the tremendous sacrifice of American life and described as "the single most deadly battle for U.S. forces over a 47-day slaughter". Instrumental in helping change the course of the war, it is regarded as perhaps the most consequential battle fought during the first world war.
In December 1918, a newly promoted Colonel Cummings wrote a letter to his parents about his experiences in France and Belgium. In Avery's words, here are selections from his letter. "The censorship has been raised and I am now permitted to tell you where I have been and what I have been doing. I left Camp Lewis on 22 Jun 1918 and arrived at Camp Merit on June 27. We stayed there for about a week and sailed from New York Harbor on July 6. Our convoy consisted of 15 ocean transports and carried about 25,000 men. We were escorted out of the harbor and off the coast by destroyers, dirigibles, cruisers, and airplanes. Our trip took 12 days, and we went around the north of Ireland, then south between England and Ireland to Liverpool, where we landed the morning of the 18th." Avery's letter home, continues with highlights of his regiments brilliant record in the Argonne and Belgium, concluding as follows: "On November 25, I went to Brussels with General McDonald, and we witnessed King Albert's entry into his capital after four years of enforced absence. It was quite an interesting parade with allied troops from America, France, Britain, and Belgium participating. We will now gradually march back to entrain for Lemons, about 90 miles southwest of Paris. We don't know what is to become of us then, some say we will go home and others that we will remain in the army of occupation. I would like to come back to the United States, but of course, I will take care of my end over here if I have to stay. This is a brief account of our doing, but I doubt there's a single division that has been as busy as we have in so short a time. January 6, it will be just six months since I left America".
One additional detail about Avery Duane Cummings from the History Link essay, file #10648, "Wild West Division: Washington in World War 1" reads as follows:
"On 25 Apr 1919, a train carrying 500 soldiers of the 361st stopped in Spokane and were greeted by cheering crowds. The regimental commander, Colonel Avery D. Cummings, and his officers were provided breakfast at a local restaurant. The colonel's parents had come from their home in Marcus, near Kettle Falls on the Columbia River to greet him. Spokane gave the regimental soldiers a luncheon that included a silent toast to their 400 comrades who died in France and Belgium. That evening, the train departed for Seattle and a parade there. At Tacoma, the soldiers were given free coffee, doughnuts, a meal, and passes to the theaters. Following these welcome activities, the Wild West veterans went to Camp Lewis to be discharged".
Avery Cummings remained in the army until his retirement as a Lieutenant Colonel on 28 Aug 1929. In June 1930, he was advanced to the grade of Colonel on the retirement list and passed away on 18 Oct 1936 at the age of 55 in a Seattle hospital from heart failure. His funeral service was conducted two days later at 1:30 pm at the Bonny-Watson Funeral Parlors, followed by full military honors and interment at 3:00 pm at the Fort Lawton Cemetery in Seattle, Washington. Avery's funeral services were officiated by E. Raymond Attenbury, Pastor of Grace Methodist Episcopal Church and Chaplain of the 146th Field Artillery, Washington National Guard.
Scott Adell
2016, 2019, 2020
Sources:
Library of Congress, Chronicling America, Historic Newspapers (1785-1925); the Lewiston Teller, the Coeur d'Alene Press, the Colville Examiner.
The 1905 Howitzer, West Point Military Academy yearbook.
Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, 1910-1920; by Brevet-Major-General-George Washington Cullum; 1920.
History Link Essay, File #10648 "Wild West Division: Washington in World War I",
"600 Days' Service; A History of the 361st Infantry Regiment of the United States Army", edited by Harold Hitz Burton, 1921.
"The Association of the Graduates of the United States Military Academy, Annual Report, 11 June 1937.
"The 91st Infantry in W.W.1-Analysis of an A.E.F. division's efforts to Achieve Battlefield Success", a master's Thesis by Bryon L. Woodcock, Major U.S. Army.
"Sixty Eighth Annual Report of the Association of Graduates of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, 11 Jun 1937".
A.D. Cummings obituary.
Family correspondence.
Mr. Michael Belis, for providing Avery's cover photograph.
