HIST 393 Chapter Notes - Chapter 4: World War I
22 Sep 2019
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Men were thrown by the hundreds into burial trenches and soldiers were stripped of every identifying object before being abandoned on the field. Only with the korean war did the us establish a policy of identifying and repatriating the remains of every dead soldier. Only with wwi did soldiers begin to wear official badges of identity - what became known as dog tags. Only with the civil war did the us create the system of national cemeteries and involve itself in honouring the military dead. It was the civil war, that made the designation. In some instances civilians representing charitable organizations assembled data, recognizing that military officials were too concerned with the living to make knowing numbers and names of the dead a priority. Lists frequently included statements acknowledging the inadequacy of the information. People listed as slightly wounded often turned out to be dead, while those killed in action turned out to be unharmed.
