Spent most of the day seeing the city and shopping, and we took a walk across the Rhine. Met some boys from the 4th Corps Park Art. and saw the 168th Reg. of N.Y. City drill in the park across from the hotel. Saw another Co. drill on parade. There are many airplanes continually fling across the city.
The end of the most wonderful trip. We were in the city we had started for on Jan. 7, and it was on the 15th we arrived. It was a wonderful trip because of the good company and the fine scenery, the opportunity of seeing the graves of the boys I had known and to whom I felt as a sister. And the battlefields where so many had fought to the finish for the right; forgetting all the rainy days, thinking only of the bright ones.
More Information
The following section provides historical context and is not part of the original diary entry.
Likely location: Koblenz, Germany
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In January 1919, Margaret embarked on a remarkable motor tour through the former battlefields and into occupied Germany. She visited the devastated landscapes of Soissons, Reims, Verdun, and the Argonne before crossing into Luxembourg and Germany, reaching Koblenz where American forces were headquartered.
Research Links for Further Study
- U.S. Army Center of Military History. (n.d.). Occupation and demobilization, 1918–1923. U.S. Army.
- Regional History Institute. (n.d.). Coblenz — A real American city in Europe. In Stars and Stripes over the Rhine.
- Boissoneault, L. (2017, April 12). The women who fried donuts and dodged bombs on the front lines of WWI. Smithsonian Magazine.
- Regional History Institute. (n.d.). Coblenz — A real American city in Europe. In Stars and Stripes over the Rhine.
Diary of a World War I Donut Girl 