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James Nelson Platt

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1914-1918
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 12th Machine Gun Battalion, 4th Division
  • Location of Service: Laturne, France; Paris, France; Chateau Thierry, France
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/1125

View full service history

"If I ever wanted to be about the size of an ant, it was when I crawled through that hell of shellfire and slid over onto that sunken road." (Memoir, page 162)

James Platt sailed for Europe in the spring of 1918 as a private and returned home eight months later as a sergeant. Not long after landing in France, he volunteered for typing duty and was given corporal's stripes; he soon became a map reader and then was promoted to mess sergeant. When his company's commanding officer was killed, Platt took over briefly. His familiarity with maps helped him guide his men out of trouble. In his memoir, he vividly describes the war's devastation and is honest about his fear of being shot.

[ Photo Album ]

More Resources

[ World War I Memoirs of James Nelson Platt ]
[ Map of World War I Western Front [1918] ]

About this Item

Title

  • James Nelson Platt Collection

Names

  • Platt, James Nelson
  • Platt, James N.

Home State

  • Connecticut

Headings

  • -  Platt, James Nelson
  • -  World War, 1914-1918 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Form

  • Memoirs

Extent

  • 1 item

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1914-1918

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 12th Machine Gun Battalion, 4th Division
    • Location of Service: Laturne, France; Paris, France; Chateau Thierry, France
    • Highest Rank: Sergeant
    • Dates of Service: 1918-1920
    • Military Status: veteran
    • Service History Note: The veteran notes that he served in battles up to and on the Vesle River.

Materials

  • Manuscript: Memoirs [1 item] -- (collected 1950)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/1125

Cite as

  • James Nelson Platt Collection (AFC/2001/001/1125), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Platt, James Nelson, and James N Platt. James Nelson Platt Collection. 1918. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.01125/.

APA citation style:

Platt, J. N. & Platt, J. N. (1918) James Nelson Platt Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.01125/.

MLA citation style:

Platt, James Nelson, and James N Platt. James Nelson Platt Collection. 1918. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.01125/>.