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| Smedley Butler at Camp Pontanezen, France |
Sgt E. . Adams, USMC
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Acquisition Number: 2012.1217.1
Medium: Pen and Ink on Paper
Status: Reproduction Available - Click Here
BrigGen Smedley D. Butler, USMC, lugs duckboards at the muddy, flu-infested Camp Pontanezen, Brest, France. The camp was to serve as a transition point for incoming and outgoing troops, but the rapid influx of men, including many who had been wounded, influenza, rain, and mud created horrible conditions. Concerned that severe criticism would erupt at home when the conditions were made public, the AEF placed BrigGen Butler at the camp to rectify conditions. Frustrated with the red tape he had to go through to get basic supplies, Butler seized an opportunity when left in command. He and his men broke into a supply warehouse to get the duckboard he had been requesting and anything else they could use and carried it four miles back to Camp Pontanezen. Sergeant Adams, the artist, most likely gave his drawing to Butler. It remained with his family until Butler’s son entrusted it to Richard Long.
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