The reburial of a WWI American Airman in France

On September 15, 2024, a rare event will occur in northeastern France. The remains of a downed American pilot will be reburied in the small village of Chevière, Ardennes.

Captain Hamilton Coolidge, was a pilot with the 94^th Pursuit Squadron, the famous “Hat in the Ring”. “Ham” as he was known, was born on September 1, 1895 in Brookline, MA. Growing up in a privileged environment, he graduated from the Groton School where he was a top student and a star athlete. He was then accepted to Harvard in the class of 1915. However, like many young men of the time, Ham was fascinated by flying. After his sophomore year, with war raging in Europe, he and his good friend Quentin Roosevelt decided to leave Harvard and join the fledgling United States Army Air Service. After receiving his commission and flight training in the states, Lt. Coolidge was sent to France in 1917. At first, he was working on setting up the large U.S. training facility at Issoudun and testing newly received aircraft. He was diligent in his duties, but wanted to get into the fight. On June 16, 1918, after receiving further training in combat flying from French instructors, he was assigned to the 94^th Pursuit Squadron.

Ham was a skilled pilot who was popular with his comrades and known for his cool-headedness in the unforgiving arena of aerial combat. Lt. Coolidge scored his first kill on July 7, 1918, helping bring down a German Rumpler observation aircraft. However, it was during the U.S. Meuse Argonne Offensive that Ham really began to shine as a fighter pilot. On October 2-3, he brought down three enemy aircraft and an observation ballon, bringing his number of kills to five, and earning him the title of “ace”. These actions also earned him a promotion to Captain. He added to his tally with three more kills between October 6-13.

On October 27, a little more than a month after his 23^rd birthday, Captain Coolidge was leading a flight of Spad XIII fighters that were providing top cover for U.S. observation and bombing planes on a mission to the village of Grandpré. Seeing enemy fighters attacking the vulnerable aircraft, Ham dove into the fray. The Germans had massed a significant number of anti-aircraft guns along their front lines, and one of them sadly found its mark. Just north of the village of Chevière, Captain Coolidge’s Spad XIII took a direct hit beneath the engine, likely killing him instantly, and bringing the aircraft down in flames next to the Aire River, The following day, the 94^th’s commanding officer Eddie Rickenbacker, newly promoted to Captain, secured a staff car and made his way toward the front lines looking for his dear friend Ham Coolidge. With the help of an infantry officer from the 78^th Division and a regimental chaplain, they found Capt. Coolidge’s body next to the Aire River and after administering the Last Rites, they buried him alongside the wreckage of his Spad.

(left) The current gravesite next to the Aire River. Capt. Coolidge is buried just in front of the trees. He will be exhumed in the very near future for internment at the new memorial site. (right) Tributes left at the current grave of Capt. Hamilton Coolidge.

In March of 1919, Captain Coolidge’s body was recovered by Graves Registration Service and interred at the Meuse Argonne American Cemetery. However, the wishes of the family were to have his body returned to the site where he fell in battle. They purchased a small parcel at the site and arranged to have his body returned to the banks of the Aire River. A memorial was constructed, and in June of 1924, Captain Hamilton Coolidge was laid to rest next to the remains of his airplane. The family also made arrangements with the villagers of Chevière to have the site cared for. In exchange, they provided financial support for the rebuilding of the village, even going so far as to send Christmas presents to the children. To this day, the Coolidge family maintains a relationship with the people of Chevière, and continues to buy presents for the kids.

Over the years, the eroding banks of the winding Aire River have moved closer and closer to the gravesite, so much so that it became obvious that Ham would have to be moved lest his grave be lost to the river. In coordination with the family, the decision was made to move his grave and memorial to higher ground. The memorial was carefully disassembled, restored, and reconstructed adjacent to the village cemetery.

The new gravesite under construction next to the village in Chevière, Ardennes, France earlier this year (left) and the completed memorial site (right).

On September 15, 2024, dignitaries, members of the U.S. Air Force, representatives of the Coolidge family, and the people of Chevière will come together in the village church for a memorial service. Afterward, current pilots of the 94^th Fighter Squadron will carry their fallen comrade to a restored U.S. Army wagon that will bear his coffin some 400 meters to his final resting place. Flyovers by the U.S. Air Force, the French Air Force, and a vintage Nieuport fighter are scheduled.

Author Eric Mueller, pictured with the Hispano-Suiza 8 engine and the Marlin 7MG machine gun from the wreckage of Capt. Hamilton Coolidge’s Spad XIII, shot down in 1918.

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