James B. Butler, my great-grandfather, enlisted in the United States Army on 10 November 1901 in Ellijay, Georgia for a period of three years. At the time of his enlistment, he was a 21-year-old farmer, described as being 6 feet tall, with blue eyes, light brown hair, and a ruddy complexion. 1
Two months later, he arrived in Manila on the U.S.A.T Hancock. 2 He was stationed in Calbayog, Samar Province, Philippines, as part of Co. K, 9th Infantry 3, during the Philippine-American War. On 10 May 1902, he transferred to Co. I, 1st Infantry, in Tacloban on the island of Leyte. He left the Philippines on 4 April 1904.
Jim was honorably discharged with the rank of Corporal on 9 November 1904 at Fort Porter, New York. He was in good physical condition, having received no wounds in service. 4
- “U.S. Army, Register of Enlistments, 1798-1914,” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 14 Jun 2010), vol. “1901 May – 1902, A-K,” p. 122, entry no. 3241, James B. Butler, 9th U.S. Inf., enlisted 10 Nov. 1901, Georgia; citing Registers of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914, National Archives microfilm publication M233. ↩
- James B. Butler U. S. Army Discharge Paper 4 Nov 1904; Kendrick Family Papers, 1904—, privately held by Tonia Kendrick, {ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE,} Chatsworth, Georgia. This original signed document was passed from Butler’s daughter V. B. Kendrick to the current owner in 2014. ↩
- Compiled service record, James B. Butler, Pvt., Co. K, 9th Inf.; Carded Records, Volunteer Organizations, Spanish American War/Philippine Insurrection; Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780s–1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C. ↩
- James B. Butler U. S. Army Discharge Paper. ↩
Thanks for sharing this! So many people are unaware of this time period of military history.
Ok I have to say I did not know about the Phillipean American War. Thanks for helping our military history knowledge grow.
You’re welcome, Kristina. I didn’t know about this war, either, until I started researching Jim Butler.