No. 13196 R. Martin
Photo of R Martin. Contained in an album at the Dorchester Historical Society of about 150 photos kept by Nathaniel R. Perkins, MD, who examined thousands of men who were going into the war, 1914-1918. Given by Mrs N. R. Perkins in accordance with instructions from her late husband, Dr. Nathaniel P. Perkins of 1122 Adams St, Dorchester. Index catalog has entries for the individuals.
R Martin Serg A.E.F. Dorchester
Ralph Russell Martin. Written by Donna Albino.
Ralph Russell Martin (another source records his name as Ralph Robinson Martin) was born on November 3, 1891, in Milton, Massachusetts. His parents were John R. Martin and Martha (Farnum) Martin, both born in Dorchester, and Ralph was their fourth son. The Martin family lived in Milton until at least 1897, but by 1900, they were living in the Lower Mills neighborhood of Dorchester at 1057 Washington Street. The family had seven children, and two wage earners in the family. Ralph’s father, John, worked as a mill hand in a chocolate factory, most likely the Walter Baker Chocolate Company, and Ralph’s older brother Harry was 17 years old and working as a day laborer. There was also a 74-year-old boarder, William Merrill, living with the family, perhaps to help with expenses.
By 1910, the family was living in Dorchester at 90 Butler Street. Ralph’s father John was still working at the chocolate mill. Ralph’s older brothers, John, William, and Charles were working as an iron worker, a roofer, and a mechanic for a steel ceiling company, respectively. The family now had ten children living in their rented home. Ralph was 18 years old, but unemployed.
On July 31, 1915, Ralph married Margaret Fraser Hynes in Quincy, where his wife lived at the time of their marriage. He was 23 years old, and she was about 17 years old. In 1917, Ralph registered for the war draft as Ralph Russell Martin; He listed himself as married, and gave his occupation as nurse, but he was unemployed; perhaps he was tending someone in the family. Ralph joined the war effort as a member of the American Expeditionary Forces of Dorchester, according to his service record. The American Expeditionary Forces was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The AEF was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of Gen. John J. Pershing. It fought alongside French Army, British Army, Canadian Army, and Australian Army units against the German Empire. A minority of the AEF troops also fought alongside Italian Army units in that same year against the Austro-Hungarian Army. The AEF helped the French Army on the Western Front during the Aisne Offensive (at the Battle of Château-Thierry and Battle of Belleau Wood) in the summer of 1918 and fought its major actions in the Battle of Saint-Mihiel and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in the latter part of 1918.
Ralph was also listed as a sergeant in the 151st Depot Brigade. The 151st Depot Brigade was a training and receiving formation of the United States Army during World War I, located at Camp Devens in Ayer, Massachusetts. The role of depot brigades was to receive and organize recruits, provide them with uniforms, equipment and initial military training, and then send them to France to fight on the front lines. The depot brigades also received soldiers returning home at the end of the war and completed their out processing and discharges. Depot brigades were often organized, reorganized, and inactivated as requirements to receive and train troops rose and fell, and later ebbed and flowed during post-war demobilization.
After the war ended, Ralph returned to his parents’ home in Dorchester, where he was listed as single in the 1920 census. He was working as a house painter. His wife Margaret is not in the census anywhere in the Boston area or in New Jersey, where she was born. However, she appears with Ralph in the 1930 census, where they were listed as renting a home in the St. Marks area of Dorchester at 62B Wrentham Street. Ralph was working as a health inspector for the city of Boston.
Starting around 1923, Ralph and his older brother Charles were members of the Yankee Yacht Club of Swampscott, and the Milton Yacht Club. They owned several boats that they raced, and they often competed for the same club and in the same races. Charles won most of the races when they competed together, but Ralph sometimes was able to win against his brother. They both usually finished in the top three, leading their clubs to victory.
Unfortunately, boating was not always a source of joy for the Martins. Ralph and his wife had been living, since the fall of 1925, in a 35-foot cabin motorboat, the Wanza, which has been put on props at the Town Landing in Milton. On May 1, 1926, Ralph and Margaret planned to get the boat ready for its summer cruise. While Ralph was outside, preparing to launch the boat, Margaret was inside the cabin, preparing dinner on the coal stove. One of the props which held the boat up collapsed, and Margaret was thrown into the companionway as the boat listed to one side. The hot stove went the other way, but the coals fell upon her, burning her and igniting her clothing. Ralph and another member of the Milton Yacht Club managed to extinguish the flames that were burning her clothing. Volunteers from the Milton Yacht Club started a bucket brigade, and the fire on the boat was extinguished with little damage. Ralph was burned about the hands and face in rescuing his wife. Margaret was taken to Milton Hospital suffering from severe burns on her body, face and hands. Despite this tragedy, Ralph continued to race boats with his brother until at least 1933.
In the 1940 census, Ralph and his wife Margaret had moved to 89 Central Avenue in Milton. Margaret’s nephew, William Heusser, age 20, was living with them; they had no children of their own. In 1942, Ralph registered for the WWII draft under the name Ralph Robinson Martin. He was still working as a health inspector for the city of Boston. His card described him as 5’4.5” tall, 125 pounds, with brown hair, blue eyes, and a light complexion.
On October 3, 1950, Ralph passed away in Hyannis, Massachusetts. He was buried with Margaret’s parents, Peter and Annie Hynes, in Jordan Cemetery in Waterford, Connecticut. Margaret passed away in 1961 and was buried next to him.
Sources:
Ancestry.com. Massachusetts, Birth Index, 1860-1970 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.
Ancestry.com. Massachusetts, Birth Records, 1840-1915 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.
Ancestry.com. Massachusetts, Marriage Records, 1840-1915 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.
Ancestry.com. Massachusetts, Death Index, 1901-1980 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.
Year: 1900; Census Place: Boston Ward 24, Suffolk, Massachusetts; Page: 22; Enumeration District: 1535; FHL microfilm: 1240688
Year: 1910; Census Place: Boston Ward 24, Suffolk, Massachusetts; Roll: T624_624; Page: 15B; Enumeration District: 1631; FHL microfilm: 1374637
Year: 1920; Census Place: Boston Ward 21, Suffolk, Massachusetts; Roll: T625_739; Page: 8A; Enumeration District: 525
Year: 1930; Census Place: Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts; Page: 29B; Enumeration District: 0443; FHL microfilm: 2340688
Year: 1940; Census Place: Milton, Norfolk, Massachusetts; Roll: m-t0627-01628; Page: 10A; Enumeration District: 11-127
Ancestry.com. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.
Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.
Ancestry.com. U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
Ancestry.com, Bennett Family Tree by joshua bennett
Wikipedia, American Expeditionary Forces
Wikipedia, 152d Depot Brigade (United States)
The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts) 21 Jan 1923, Sun Page 29
The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts) 15 Jun 1924, Sun Page 55
The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts) 03 May 1926, Mon Page 6
The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts) 02 Jul 1928, Mon Page 18
The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts) 20 Aug 1928, Mon Page 11
The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts) 08 Sep 1930, Mon Page 11
The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts) 27 Jul 1931, Mon Page 8
The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts) 17 Jul 1933, Mon Page 9