THE YORK PATROL

A military historian delivers a new biography of one of the best-known American doughboys.

Alvin York (1887-1964) won the Medal of Honor for his actions on Oct. 8, 1918, when, “it was said, he single-handedly killed two dozen Germans, captured 132 more, and nabbed thirty-five machine guns to boot.” Nelson, the author of three previous books about America’s role in World War I, notes that “York was not alone that day.” Of a 17-man patrol that went out that morning, 11 returned alive with the prisoners; only York went down in history. His exploits occurred when the patrol moved behind enemy lines, where they stumbled upon a German unit preparing for a counterattack. Believing the Americans were part of a larger group, the unit surrendered. As the patrol was organizing the prisoners, a hidden machine gun killed six and wounded three. The highest-ranking unwounded member, York silenced the machine gun, killed a few more German soldiers who charged the group, and led the prisoners back to American lines. York’s achievement earned him a Distinguished Service Cross, soon upgraded to a Medal of Honor. Fame arrived after an adulatory cover article in the April 26, 1919, edition of the Saturday Evening Post, which had a circulation of 2 million. There followed numerous lucrative offers to exploit his fame, which York declined before returning home to Tennessee. Refreshingly, Nelson does not sugarcoat York’s remaining years, portraying him as anxious to help his impoverished community but naïve about human nature. Benefactors gave him a large farm but ran out of money, leaving York with a burdensome mortgage, and his efforts to build local schools met with frustration. The bonanza from Howard Hawks’ 1941 hit Sergeant York helped the schools but brought a huge bill for back taxes from the IRS. It also infuriated other members of his patrol, who had long complained that he was hogging all the glory.

An admiring but realistic account of an American hero well suited to any WWI buff.