"...I did not like the army. I never met a soldier who did..."

John Caspar Wister

John C. Wister, 1919 War: World War I, 1914-1920 Branch: Army Unit: US Advance Ordnance Depot 4, Jonchery Service Location: Augusta Arsenal Training School; Jonchery (Haute Marne), France Rank: First Sergeant Place of Birth: Philadelphia, PA

John Caspar Wister, acting First Sergeant of the Advance Ordnance, Depot 4, Haute Marne, France, wrote an unusual book of memoirs from World War I. He was a serviceman who was never at the front, never heard gunfire, never saw an enemy soldier. His detailed reminiscences, however, give us extensive opinions of military life, and strong personal feelings about the possible resurgence of Germany in times to come. A lover of flowers and plants, he had the opportunity to visit England's Kew Gardens during his term of service. His obituary in 1982 noted that he became our country's "Dean of Horticulture."